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Black House Spider

Animals· Arachnids· Minibeasts· Nature Journaling· Nature Study· Seasons· Spring

14 Dec

There are so many spiders at our place. Our guests are very cautious when visiting and I’m quite sure a few leave traumatised as they have a spider phobia or something. I don’t particularly like spiders either but if they’re not sitting on me I’m ok with being near them.

Every spring we have funnel webs on our window frames. I’d wondered at what spider it could be until I spied it on my lace netting. In the middle of the day, mind you.

Of course, I was intrigued, called the children over to observe it. We went over to our spider chart to see if it was listed there. It turned out to be a common Black House Spider.

We wanted to know how dangerous this spider was, so we researched it online and discovered the female spider is venomous. Not lethally so, but it will give a very painful bite where one would experience swelling and a burning sensation. So, Kids! Stay away from female spiders.

We took a photo before it ran away to its safe place. We sketched it in the nature journals and labelled the spiders anatomy while noticing the differences between spiders and insects in general.

I seized the learning opportunity and read a poem named ‘Spiders’ by Janet Bruno.

While the children were using the poem as copy work in their journals I found a  scientific sketches of a spider by naturalist, Brigitte Rubaek we could examine.

Do you have Black House Spiders at your place? Do you mind having them around?

What would you suggest would be a great addition to our study of spiders?

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About Marie

Come, walk with me! We have outdoor expeditions to undertake and adventures to embark upon. We'll explore the outdoors together, side by side and uncover miraculous mysteries, and secrets. We'll wander, and wonder in amazement as we become familiar with the Australian fauna and flora.

I desire to come alongside you in the muddle, making nature study the joy it's meant to be. This is the purpose for the Australian Nature Study Guides for the Aussie homeschool family seeking to explore the outdoors and are not sure where to start. Outdoor adventures will become a regular part of your life as you make connections to the natural world with a sense of awe.

Homeschooling is a gentle amble for me since four of my five children are adults. I share my joy with things beautiful, good and lovely with my grandchildren where I live contently with hubby in rural South Australia.

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Comments

  1. Di says

    January 20, 2018 at 8:32 pm

    Yes. The little lad had one crawling on his leg. I had only just unhoused (de-webbed) our laundry windows. He was quite ok with it on him but as we studied and discovered they are venomous, he developed formication (the feeling of spiders crawling on you) We read and looked up anatomy and types and studied eggs sacs and webs. I was worried he had lost his gall with arachnids, when he suddenly leapt over me shouting “Another black house spider!” And caught the male counterpart in his observation jar

    • Viljoens_123 says

      January 21, 2018 at 7:41 pm

      I’m happy to hear he is unafraid of spiders after his experience and was ready to capture another for observation. I like how you studied the spiders anatomy, webs and egg sacks after the sighting as he would have been invested in what you were reading/showing him.

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Cheryl

We didn’t find out about the program until about half way through term, so we played catch up most of the time. I love how open ended the lessons are, but with enough structure to work well for those children needing such a program. We have been able to cover much of the required curriculum whilst enjoying the activities we love. Your program has been such a blessing to us, because we needed a change to our homeschooling lessons which would still cover curriculum, but would enable us to relax and enjoy “school” together. Thank you.
Nature Study Australia
2018-05-25T15:50:47+10:30
We didn’t find out about the program until about half way through term, so we played catch up most of the time. I love how open ended the lessons are, but with enough structure to work well for those children needing such a program. We have been able to cover much of the required curriculum whilst enjoying the activities we love. Your program has been such a blessing to us, because we needed a change to our homeschooling lessons which would still cover curriculum, but would enable us to relax and enjoy “school” together. Thank you.
https://naturestudyaustralia.com.au/testimonials/cheryl/

Valerie

I totally enjoy using the Nature study guide. The children enjoy learning about the different animals and plants.
Nature Study Australia
2018-05-25T15:51:39+10:30
I totally enjoy using the Nature study guide. The children enjoy learning about the different animals and plants.
https://naturestudyaustralia.com.au/testimonials/valerie/

Sally

We have really enjoyed the program this term. We have gotten outside more often and the children are definitely taking more notice of things when we are out. Having a place to share what we have done and seen has been an encouragement to keep it up. I sometimes felt like we could spend longer on some topics as they were so interesting but that is probably just my obsessive "we must cover everything now" problem. 
Nature Study Australia
2018-05-25T15:48:30+10:30
We have really enjoyed the program this term. We have gotten outside more often and the children are definitely taking more notice of things when we are out. Having a place to share what we have done and seen has been an encouragement to keep it up. I sometimes felt like we could spend longer on some topics as they were so interesting but that is probably just my obsessive "we must cover everything now" problem. 
https://naturestudyaustralia.com.au/testimonials/sally/

Sarah

Absolutely love the activity books my whole family can learn together and it’s Australia based. Highly recommend
Nature Study Australia
2018-05-25T15:52:01+10:30
Absolutely love the activity books my whole family can learn together and it’s Australia based. Highly recommend
https://naturestudyaustralia.com.au/testimonials/sarah/

Jessie

I looked high and low online for an Australian nature based curriculum and when I found Australian Nature study Guide on Instagram I was so excited to have finally found something that my family can relate to. My favourite thing about this guide is that Marie is so hands on and involved with her customers. I have never felt alone in the journey, she is there to guide and encourage us every step of the way in the Facebook group. Thanks Marie for welcoming us to your nature study family 🙂
Nature Study Australia
2018-05-25T15:52:36+10:30
I looked high and low online for an Australian nature based curriculum and when I found Australian Nature study Guide on Instagram I was so excited to have finally found something that my family can relate to. My favourite thing about this guide is that Marie is so hands on and involved with her customers. I have never felt alone in the journey, she is there to guide and encourage us every step of the way in the Facebook group. Thanks Marie for welcoming us to your nature study family 🙂
https://naturestudyaustralia.com.au/testimonials/jessie/

Rachel

We began our homeschool journey this year keen to explore all that nature study entails. I had searched the web for weeks to research what we would use as our framework. I cannot describe the elation I felt when I came across an AUSTRALIAN nature study guide! Marie has done all the hard work and put together a wonderfully elaborate resource for all ages. You can dip your toe in or dive right into all the ideas and links. There’s so much here we could spend all week doing nature study, and often we do.
Nature Study Australia
2018-05-25T15:53:11+10:30
We began our homeschool journey this year keen to explore all that nature study entails. I had searched the web for weeks to research what we would use as our framework. I cannot describe the elation I felt when I came across an AUSTRALIAN nature study guide! Marie has done all the hard work and put together a wonderfully elaborate resource for all ages. You can dip your toe in or dive right into all the ideas and links. There’s so much here we could spend all week doing nature study, and often we do.
https://naturestudyaustralia.com.au/testimonials/rachel/
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