This Valuable Tool Makes Studying Wildflowers a Breeze
As part of your botany lessons, make sure you’re studying wildflowers. This tool includes some awesome science activities for middle school that your tween will enjoy.
Every year, as part of our science studies, we spend some time revisiting botany, usually focusing on a specific theme. To avoid burnout, I try to vary the particular topics we investigate. This year, we’ve been taking a closer look at wildflowers.
What is the difference between wildflowers and flowers? What wildflowers are found in each state? Do wildflowers belong to botanical families?
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So I didn’t have to plan everything myself, I turned to Wonderful Wildflowers from NaturExplorers. This 57 page eBook gave me a framework for our lessons and ideas for science labs.
A bonus ~ it not only covers science, but also subjects like art, math, history, and writing.
While there is plenty of information included on the background pages, there’s more than enough research you can do on your own or as a family.
Personally, as the mom of a teen, I appreciate this. I prefer to have questions we can ponder and activities to choose from, rather than being spoon-fed information.
Why this Unit Study Works for Us
- Excellent Notebooking Pages
The 15 notebooking pages included were the perfect guide for our study of wildflowers.
One of our favorites was the Flower Shapes pages. After we researched all of the shapes, we used them in a scavenger hunt. The girls tucked the papers into their nature journals and when they found a wildflower shape they didn’t have, they sketched it in their book.
- Geography
As we were learning about the 50 states, we made sure to research what wildflowers are in each region of the country.
- Hands-on Projects
With pages of learning activities to choose from, we had no problem expanding our wildflower studies while being creative.
- Nature Walk Suggestions
The unique nature walk ideas gave us incentive to head outside to get a closer look at the flowers we were studying.
This unit study is perfect for families with young children, older kids or a combination of the two. Whatever your child’s age, you’ll find appropriate learning activities to complete. Just like with any curriculum, you can pick and choose what works for your family.
I liked that I didn’t have to adapt this study to fit the needs of my older students because it already included unique projects, suitable for teens. Ideas like writing a speech for a garden club meeting, debating whether a wildflower is a weed or a flower or researching the government’s connection to these flowers.
Four of my teen’s favorite hands-on activities:
- Sculpting wildflowers out of oven bake clay.
- Adding wildflowers to her nature journal using colored pencils and watercolors.
- Coming up with a list of flowers and characteristics to find during a photo scavenger hunt.
- Completing crafts that incorporated pressed and dried flowers.
If you’re planning to study wildflowers, simplify your life by using Wonderful Wildflowers from NaturExplorers. It’s a valuable homeschooling resource.
What is your favorite tool to teach about wildflowers?
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