As we approach Thanksgiving break, our children took some time to enjoy the wonders of nature and be grateful for such beauty.

Hey, hey-

These will be the last nature studies pictures for a while as we head into our Thanksgiving break. During nature studies this week, first and second grades were busy moving things around the woods. I loved watching, and facilitating their cooperative efforts of moving fallen trees, and making leaf heaps for jumping in and throwing around. Fun was had by all.

Have a happy safe Thanksgiving.

Maren

Our fifth grade class decided it would be a great idea to create a field guide for the WSB woods.

Nature studies not only encourages our children to spend time appreciating our planet, it's also giving them a chance to practice the art of observation. With Ms. Jung's help, the students were able to put together a field guide of things that can be discovered in the WSB woods. Students combined curiosity, the scientific process, art, grammar, and observation to create a beautiful guide. Take a look at some of the pages.

A new study finds teen mental health is impacted by screen time and participation in extracurricular activities, according to CNN.

A study found that teens who are spending less than two hours of time on a screen and participating in extracurricular activities are experiencing less anxiety and depression, according to a CNN article.

Take a look as Ms. Jung leads our Cherry Tree class on fall a nature adventure. Many exciting and imaginative discoveries were made.

The Day of the Dead is celebrated each year as part of the Spanish language curriculum. While the theme is death, the point of the celebration is to demonstrate love and respect for deceased family members.

Day of the Dead festivities unfold over two days in an explosion of color and life-affirming joy. While the theme is death, the point of the celebration is to demonstrate love and respect for deceased family members.

On last week’s cold, blustery, and rainy Friday third grade nature studies collected leafs, and dipped them into hot beeswax (carefully of course). Waxed leafs make a wonderful fall decoration.

The wax makes the colors, and structures on the leafs pop, and inspired the children to go look for the most beautiful, interesting, unique leafs.

It was a good lesson about the beauty of nature.

Third grade went on a nature walk for nature studies. Our destination: The brook below Elephant Rock.

After we arrived there I asked the six third graders to notice something interesting and let me know after the found it. The six swarmed out, and after a little while called me over excitedly!!! They had found a snake!! 

First and second grade went on a walk to Elephant Rock. Before free play, they were tasked with finding one thing they find interesting, and then tell us what they noticed, what they wondered about, and what it reminded them off.

WSB's Nature Studies Teacher Maren Jung talks about composting and biodegradable materials.

I wanted to talk about composting some more. I recently read an article in the New York Times about biodegradable plastics. The interesting thing I was reminded of was that biodegradable does not necessarily mean you can throw it onto your home composting heap, bucket, container etc.

The Festival of Courage is celebrated each fall and our community comes together wearing blazing, dragon-fighting red for the occasion. Find out why this festival is cherished each year.