Thinking about time

I'm so excited!  At this time of year, I start to feel the effect of the shorter days and like the trees, I turn inward. I begin to reflect on the last year and dream for the coming year.  Last week, my daughter and I found an amazing calendar at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.  It is called the ECOlogical Calendar by Chris Hardman; the subtitle is 'A New Way to Experience Time.'

 I am ready for a new way to experience time, especially this time of year.  Instead of looking at a year in the traditional human sense, with months, days, and hours, this calendar looks at a year from the perspective of seasons-winter, spring, summer, fall-and the star position, sun position, moon position, ocean tides, and...you guessed it....phenological events.

You probably already know that I geek out about this stuff.  So, I bought the calendar and was reading it this morning as I start to plan for 2012.  I knew I made a good purchase when I got to the fourth page that starts out "It's All Connected."  I will quote my new friend Hardman at length here to broaden our definition of phenology...it's good:

"Over the past several decades there has been a growing awareness of the interrelatedness of all things....This awareness has strongly influenced the study of ecology-the science of how living things interact with one another and their environment. Such interactions are affected by seasonally triggered events in nature.
Phenology, the study of timing of natural events, is an important component of ecology. Phenology was originally conceived to assist in successful planting of food crops and management of domesticated animals; phenological findings provided the information for framers' almanacs. More recently, phenology has expanded to include natural cycles on a broader scale, making the discipline an indispensable source of information for the ECOlogical Calendar."

So when we think about this new way to experience time, it is through nature's events based on the seasons, not the clock on my cell phone.  I have a busy life and I find myself needing to know the exact minute of the day, what meeting I need to be in, where I need to go, and what I need to do.  Instead, what if I thought about my week in comparison to where Jupiter is in the sky, which geese are migrating, and what the kangaroo rats are gathering?  It's not as practical for my daily life, but it does remind me of what is happening in the world that I am connected to.

By the way:  this week, Jupiter can be seen in the evening sky, the snow geese are migrating in large groups (100-1,000 birds) from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico (1,700 miles before resting!!!!), and the kangaroo rats are creating storage areas in the soil near their dens making sure that their winter food does not spoil in the wet/damp soil.

As you probably know, I had all of you in mind when I bought this calendar.  I will be using Hardman's new perspective of time to add to our discussions on this blog.

Dr. Keena

Hidden Treasures

Does this look like an ordinary tree???

Look harder....

We found an engravement under the tree above. The engraving said,"This tree is dedicated to Michael Hopkins Bertha Heid Elementary November 1, 1996."

Who do you think Michael Hopkins is?

Trivia of the week:
What percentage of energy do Americans waste?
Bonus Question:
What percentage of the world's population do Americans make up?

Signs of Wildlife

We think these are insect eggs on a fallen leaf.

A grasshopper hopped across Patricio's notebook.

We saw mysterious tracks in the snow leading to a hole in the ground under an evergreen tree!

swinging and journaling

On November 3, 2011 Ms.Werner's class decided to experiment to see if we could swing and jurnal at the same time, which we achieved.We observed trees with no leaves, trees with some leaves, and pine trees with needles.
The most exciting thing that happened was that Junior slipped and fell in the snow! (=.

We had a blast!!

Weird, True and Freaky: Achieve Academy

When we out to the schoolyard today, Caleb saw the creepiest tree because it looked old and like it had a lot of hands. Another weird tree that Ty saw had only one leaf on it. The leaf was on the very top, and the rest of the branches were bare. Ty infers that it was too cold, and the rest of the leaves fell off. He thinks that one leaf was healthy. Elizabeth saw a tree with holes in the bark that looked like eyes. Caleb thinks a woodpecker pecked the holes.

Lexus observed it was really wet outside yesterday. Patricio observed the field was covered with snow, and the playground didn’t have any snow on it. He infers that the kids on the playground made the snow melt faster. Elizabeth observes that yesterday, the snow sounded crunchy when you walked on it, but today, it was softer. She saw that there were footprints and dog tracks in the snow, and the snow sparkled because the sunlight reflected off it.  

The snow is sparkly, white, brown, dirty, and yellow. Dalia inferred that people step on the snow, mud got on it to make it dirty, and a dog might have peed on the yellow parts. Ty saw that the snow was black on the side of the road, and he inferred that the cars made the snow black.

We saw two of the weirdest leaves stuck together that had three little things popping out of it. We infer that a spider laid eggs on the leaf or that the leaf was burned by the sun.

We found a tree wolf spider when we got back to the classroom, and when you shine a flashlight on them in the dark, their eyes glow like cat’s eyes. The creature had a creepy reddish-tan body the size of a quarter with a brown head. The spider is not poisonous, but we became nervous because it was crawling fast at us. Mr. G found out that the spider eats pill bugs (rolly pollies).

Drippy Days!

Today on Friday, November 4, 2011, our class went to the front yard of our school and we started nature journaling. We observed the snow melting and it created a lot of water. There was less shade. Nick and Francisco made handprints in the snow and a lot of water started seeping into the impressions they left in the snow.

There was less shade because now most of the leaves have fallen off the trees. We also noticed that it was wetter underneath the trees. Most of the snow gathered on the leaves and is now melting underneath it.

We also noticed that the building, especially the area around the door, is appearing older. There was a lot more dents and cracks on the door than it did a year ago. It also doesn't open as wide as it used to.

There weren't very many natural noises. We didn't hear as many birds (but we did see a two birds pass by). But, we did hear an airplane, the wind, cars, and Maribelle screaming after a bug landed on her. There was also a phone ringing in someone's house.

The snow was very damp and hard or crunchy. We inferred that this happened because some of the snow melted, but it froze again last night making it hard and crunchy. Today, because it was a lot warmer, a lot of it melted as well.

The Naked Trees

The snow makes us feel like we're in the mountains because the cold air feels fresh. The trees were naked and covered with white snow, but some were still full of colorful leaves. The great smells and sights, the leaves falling and changing colors, and so many beautiful things to see changed all in one day. The weather changed from warm to cold very quickly, and then it warmed up. The snow melted fast in our hands. A week ago, we saw birds, squirrels, and butterflies. Now we see birds flying south. Seeing the seasons change is a great experience. The snow is like a white, fluffy blanket, but when Gio’s brother throws a snowball it fells like a slap in the face. The snow reminds us of Santa and gives us memories, and it make us feel like it’s almost Christmas.

Nature Journaling in the Snow

On October 27, 2011, even though it had snowed 6 inches the night before, our class remained dedicated to our nature journaling. This week was vastly different than last week because it had snowed, there was no wildlife, and the red and orange leaves had fallen off the trees. This tells us that fall is ending and winter is just around the corner. Due to the change in weather, the organisms usually hanging around our stomping grounds have either died or gone into hibernation.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

What is the scientific reasoning behind seasonal changes?

EXXXXXXXXTRRRRRRREMEEEEEEEEEE Nature Journaling

On Thursday, October 27 at around 1:00, Mr. Munden's homeroom went outside to nature journal! It was very snowy outside with 6 inches of snow with some bare patches of grass showing. It just snowed the night before, but it melted that day because the sun came out and it was like 1,000 degrees!

We observed some leaves on the ground and some wet patches of grass. Some parts were really muddy because of all the melted snow. The trees were also really bare - it looked like they might be dying?

We also observed a bunch of footsteps in the snow. Our class made those footsteps in our stomping grounds - everybody heading to their zones and people fooling around :)

We inferred that a lot of the branches fell of in the snow storm from the night before. It was really wet, heavy snow that must have weighed a lot when it fell on the branches. The tree branches looked very flimsy with all of the snow on them. In zone 7, there were a lot of broken branches lying on the ground.

There were no living organisms in sight. We think that the birds would have flown away, and some of the other animals may have gone into hibernation. But we did see a squirrel outside, so maybe they don't hibernate (or haven't gone into hibernation yet).

Feeding Barn Spider

On October 14, 2011, we went outside to explore and nature journal. While we were out there, Sandra, Giselle and Kevin spotted a barn spider in its orb web in one of the pine trees at the front of the school.

Mr. G came out with a cricket on his hand and put the cricket in the spider's web for him to eat. We observed that the moment the cricket hit the web the spider ran down, bit the cricket and began wrapping it in his web. Then the spider bit it again to kill it. Mr. G told us that the spider might not eat the cricket right away, he might wait to have it for dinner. When do you think the spider ate the cricket?

When we went outside on October 20, 2011, the spider web and the spider were no longer there. We predicted that the spider had to move closer to the tree trunk because of the cold, rainy weather.

What do you think happened to the spider and his web?

Do you still think the spider is alive?

How long do spiders live for?

Phenology (fen-ol-o-gy)

I love the fall.  I love the fall because I can see nature's timing; I can observe the closing down of plants and animals as they prepare for a long winter. The study of this timing in nature is called phenology.  Observing the patterns of phenomena in nature works like a barometer; it provides natural scientists with a way to identify if a natural system is functioning in a healthy or unhealthy way.

I appreciate the meaning of the word when I look at it this way:

phen(onmena) + ology

Phenology is the study of this timing, of events in the natural world that happen with a season. Birds travel to the places they will find food, black bears search for any and all ways to fatten up before they enter a long period of sleep, and the leaves on the trees mark the turn in the seasons. In the spring, we observe the buds become leaves. There is a predictable timing to these events.  In the fall, we observe the colorful display when the tree pulls inward to store its energy through the winter.

We can observe the natural world's phenomena in many places.  Last week, at Achieve Academy, the Kindergartners went outside to observe the trees and found every color of fall. Reds, golds, browns, and greens are beginning to light up the west side of our school. The pine trees do not change colors.  What do you think? Why do some trees in our school yard change and some do not?  

Every class that has gone outside in the last week has noticed bumps and hard bubbles on the bottoms of leaves.  What could that be?  What will happen as we observe them in our classrooms over time? 

Last week, a third grade Achieve Academy student observed another type of phenomena when he found a dragonfly on the sidewalk as he got off the bus.  He noticed that the dragonfly was not moving away from all of the children's feet as they poured off of the buses, so he knelt down to pick it up.  When he gently grasped the dragonfly by its tail, he noticed that the long, winged insect's body was soft.  The reason that the dragonfly did not fly away was because it could not fly away.  This amazing insect only recently became an adult.  Maybe only minutes before the observant third grade student found it, the adult dragonfly lived under water, had a shorter abdomen, and instead of long, glass like wings, only had small nubs on its back.  When the dragonfly in its nymph stage is ready to leave the water, it crawls to a stiff green plant, holds onto the stem or leaf with its six legs, then as its exoskeleton hardens, something incredible happens.  Its back splits open, its head pulls out of its skeleton as it does a backbend to pull its front legs out of its former shell.  Once its head is freed, it uses its front legs to grasp the plant and frees the back end of its body.  When the dragonfly is finally completely free of its former nymph exoskeleton, it is also completely vulnerable.  Until its new body hardens, it cannot fly or move.  Its wings are soft and useless.  But, it does not take long for the dragonfly to make this transformation complete. As its body hardens, its four wings go from shriveled to flat and straight, its body darkens, and its abdomen (the long thin part of its body) changes colors.  Once airborne, the dragonfly is a fierce consumer of mosquitoes.  It may live for years in the water as a nymph, but will only live for days or maybe weeks as an adult.  What do you think happens to dragonflies as the weather turns colder and the days get shorter? 

What phenomenon will you observe in the land around our school?  What do you want to know about the timing and patterns of the natural world?  This blog is a place for us to share our observations, our questions, and our thoughts.  As we grow to understand the events in nature that happen right around us every day, we will be able to use our phenological record as a way to understand our community from its largest living parts like the trees, to the smallest living parts like dragonfly nymphs becoming adults.  Let the venture begin!!