I’m a little behind in posting this. We completed this activity two weeks ago. For this Green Hour Challenge the girls each choose a tree to “adopt” for the year, observing its changes throughout each season. The three younger girls all chose the same tree. This is their “swinging” tree. Notice all the blue twine for their homemade swings. 😀It has just started leafing out this week. The green you see in the picture are actually the elm tree’s seed pods. Here’s a closer look at them.

Part of their observation study was to do a leaf rubbing. Since there weren’t any leaves we did a rubbing of the seeds instead. We will do the leaf rubbings next week when the leaves are a little bigger. Brewer’s blackbirds, Bullock’s Orioles, and a pair of hummingbirds (we aren’t sure whether they are broad-tailed or calliope) are building nests in this tree. We’ve also seen a few cowbirds flying around. They don’t build nests but lay their eggs in other birds’ nests.

The older girls all headed out to our “orchard” area and decided to study a pear tree. They listened to the birds chattering, and watched them building their nests. We could identify lesser goldfinches, and western tanagers.

They filled out their seasonal tree study worksheet that Barb so graciously supplied for everyone. I forgot to take pictures of them though. Here’s Bon Bon do a rubbing of the bark.

We really had an enjoyable time relaxing and observing our trees. I can’t wait to see the changes that occur throughout the year. I’m also anxious to see what the girls end up observing about their trees. They pick up so much more than I do!