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Let’s do MATH with Native Bees!

Animals· Backyard· Math in Nature· Minibeasts

15 Feb

Let’s Do MATH with Native Bees!

Have you ever thought about incorporating math into your nature journals?

At the beginning of every nature journal, I paste a measuring tape. This encourages the children to think about the size of what they are drawing. If they find a leaf or flower, even a bee, they can compare it to the tape in the cover and measure what they have found.

If what they are drawing is smaller than what it is, for example a tree, we talk about how much smaller their drawing is to the actual tree.

If what they are drawing is larger than the actual drawing, we talk about estimating how much larger.

Here my bee is 18X larger than the actual bee. You can teach your children how to write, next to their drawing, the magnification.

Describing the position of the bee can also be a great way to do some ‘math talk.’ The bee is ON the flower. The bee is BESIDE the water. The bee is INSIDE the insect house. When you have talked about position, encourage the children to include this information in their journals.

Another way to incorporate math is to research statistics applicable to the nature journal entry.

Here are some places where you can find information on Australia’s native bees.

aussiebee.com – lots of information and photos.

CSIRO web site – great information and links to where you can purchase a Field Guide.

Info-graphics make a visual impact, and they can help the children come up with their own Australian Native Bee Info-graphic poster. Here is a link to a Bee vs Wasp Info-graphic and here is one for Bee Keeping and Honey Production. You can look at them for inspiration.

What about including a graph in your journal? Using the statistics from your research, or by keeping your own log of the bees that you encounter, you can create graphs. Use the back of your journal to fill in your findings.

There is a great free journal insert HERE, created by John Muir Laws. It has lots of math related information to help you keep records in your nature journal.

Would you like a free preschool Bee math worksheet?

Preschool Bee Math WorksheetsDownload

Have you seen our Naïve Bee Identification Cards? You can get them HERE.

The Backyard Guide, Volume 5, has a lesson on native bees and you can use any work you do to earn the Nature Club insect badges.

We would love to see your Native Bee journal entries! Email your photo to Nature Study Australia or share via Instagram /Facebook.

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Jo: Wife, Home-school Mum and Homemaker

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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. 
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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.
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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/

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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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/
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