Nature Study

Between global warming, holes in the ozone, and the pollution of our seas and rivers, maybe it is best to keep kids indoors and pacified in front of the television....but probably not. If these aren't real threats then there's nothing to protect our children (or ourselves) from, and if they are real threats—all the more reason to instill a love of nature in the younger generations.

Kids have an inclination toward exploration and learning. Allowing them to do so encourages not only active bodies and active minds, it fosters a healthy imagination and love of beauty. Charlotte Mason understood this over a century ago, and developed a system of education in which nature study played a prominent role. It is in nature, more than in the classroom or the rec room or even the library, that children best learn by observation, and this habit once formed will never disappear.

The often-referenced "childlike wonder" inherent in all of us from a young age (though modern society seems to be stamping it out quicker and more efficiently) isn't just some esoteric feeling of awe. It's literal wonder—kids wonder how birds fly, why their pet dog's fur falls out in summer, where ants go in the winter, why it gets colder and harder to breathe the higher you get. The less contact they have with the natural world, the less wonder they'll have; but the reverse is also true, and kids allowed to roam and explore the outdoors will develop a sense of inquisitiveness that can only help them in the so-called "real world."

Preparation for the Real World of modern myth often takes on peculiar guises. Children are snatched from the fields and streams and placed in front of computer screens or television sets. They are crowded into classrooms and made to feel good about the fact that they are learning nothing at the same rate as everyone around them. They are given plastic toys with supposed educational properties and made to "play" with them under close adult supervision.

Meanwhile, the real real world waits outside the walls and doors and windows with its fresh smells, its colors brighter and more unique than anything on HDTV or Blu-Ray, its real wind, and its endless mysteries. If you don't like answering questions, don't want your kids to grow or exercise, prefer fat and lazy to fit and intelligent offspring, by all means somberly prepare them for a life without questions, and consequently without answers. If you want children who will grown into thoughtful adults with a sense of the loveliness of Earth and their place in it, keeping them inside is possibly the most dangerous choice you can make on their behalf.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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94 Items found Print
Active Filters: 4th grade (Ages 9-10), Hardcover, In-Stock Books & Materials
100 Things You Should Know about Mammals
by Jinny Johnson
from Barnes & Noble
for 2nd-5th grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
44 Animals of the Bible
by Nancy Johnson
from Master Books
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIB-STU)
$9.59 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Amateur Naturalist
by Gerald Durrell
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Animal Behavior
Life Nature Library
by Niko Tinbergen
from Time-Life Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Animals Without Backbones: Invertebrates
Come Learn with Me
by Bridget Anderson
from Charlesbridge
for 4th-6th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Answers Book for Kids Volume 2
by Ken Ham
from Master Books
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Worldview & Apologetics for Kids (Location: BIBWV-APK)
$6.39
Apes and Monkeys
by Deborah Dennard, illustrated by John F. McGee
from Northword Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Baby Whale Sharp Ears
by John Y. Beaty, illustrated by Helene Carter
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$80.00 (1 in stock)
Beetle Is Shy
by Dianna Hutts Aston
from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$16.99
Bluebirds Seven
by R. Bruce Horsfall
1st edition
for 3rd-6th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Eagles
by Helen Roney Sattler, illustrated by Jean Day Zallinger
from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Small Mammals
by Ted S. Pettit, illustrated by G. Don Ray
from Garden City Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Breathtaking Birds
Marvels of Creation
by Buddy & Kay Davis
from Master Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$10.39
Bringing Back the Wolves
by Jude Isabella; illustrated by Kim Smith
from Kids Can Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Ecology (Location: SCI-ECO)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Bug Dictionary
from Tangerine Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Oversized Science Books (Location: SCI-OVER)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Bugs Big & Small God Made Them All
by William Zinke
from Master Books
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$13.59
Burgess Bird Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$28.99
Burgess Flower Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$28.99
Burgess Seashore Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$29.99
Butterfly Is Patient
by Dianna Hutts Aston
from Chronicle Books
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$16.99
Butterfly Is Patient
by Dianna Hutts Aston
from Chronicle Books
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$7.99
Delver's Danger
Smithsonian Wild Heritage Collection
by Susan Thompson-Hoffman, illustrated by Eileen Major Buzzanco
from Trudy Corporation
for 1st-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Dinosaurs by Design
by Duane Gish
from Master Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$14.39
Dinosaurs for Kids
by Ken Ham
from Master Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$13.59
Dinosaurs of Eden
by Ken Ham
2nd edition from Master Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$13.59 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Dinotopia
by James Gurney
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Dinotopia: The World Beneath
by James Gurney
2012nd edition from Calla Editions
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Disguises and Surprises
Supersmarts
by Claire Llewellyn
from Candlewick Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
DK Eyewitness: Mammal
DK Eyewitness Series
by Steve Parker
from DK Publishing
Science Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
DK Eyewitness: Pond & River
from DK Publishing
for 3rd-6th grade
in River, Pond & Swamp (Location: SCI-ECO)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
DK Eyewitness: Predator
from DK Publishing
for 3rd-6th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
DK Eyewitness: Seashore
DK Eyewitness Books
by Steve Parker
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Sience Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Seashore & Tidepools (Location: SCI-ECO)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Dragons
by Bill Looney
from Master Books
for 4th-6th grades
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$15.99
Dry Bones and Other Fossils
by Gary & Mary Parker
2nd edition from Master Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$11.19 $6.50 (3 in stock)
Egg Is Quiet
by Dianna Hutts Aston
Library Binding from Chronicle Books
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$16.99
Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
from Henry Holt and Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Exotic Invaders
by Jeanne M. Lesinski
from Walker Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Exploring Creation With Botany
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
2nd edition from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Young Explorer (Location: SCICUR-AEM)
$39.20
Exploring Creation With Botany (old)
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Science (Old Versions only) (Location: OSCI-AEM)
$12.00 (3 in stock)
Exploring Creation With Zoology 1
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
2nd edition from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Young Explorer (Location: SCICUR-AEM)
$39.20
Exploring Creation With Zoology 1 (old)
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Science (Old Versions only) (Location: OSCI-AEM)
$31.50
Exploring Creation With Zoology 2
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Science (Old Versions only) (Location: OSCI-AEM)
$34.30 $18.00 (1 in stock)
Exploring Creation With Zoology 2
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
2nd edition from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Young Explorer (Location: SCICUR-AEM)
$39.20
Exploring Creation With Zoology 3
by Jeannie Fulbright
from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Young Explorer (Location: SCICUR-AEM)
$39.20 $28.00 (3 in stock)
Eyes on Nature: Cats
Eyes on Nature
by Janr P. Resnick
from KidsBooks, Inc.
for 1st-6th grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Familiar Animals of America
by Will Barker, illustrated by Carl Burger
from Harper & Brothers
for 4th-12th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Fantastic Flying Journey
by Gerald Durrell, illustrated by Graham Percy
from Simon and Schuster
for 3rd-6th grade
in Ecology (Location: SCI-ECO)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Fossil Book
Wonders of Creation Series
by Gary & Mary Parker
from Master Books
for 4th-10th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$15.19
Freshwater Life
Science Nature Guides
by Susan McKeever
from Silver Dolphin
for 4th-6th grade
in Oceanography & Marine Biology (Location: SCI-OCEAN)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Gay-Neck: The Story of a Pigeon
by Dhan Gopal Mukerji
from Dutton Juvenile
for 4th-9th grade
1928 Newbery Medal winner
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$14.00 (2 in stock)
God's Big Book of Animals
by Shirley Rash
from Master Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$30.39
Golden Guide: Weather
by Paul E. Lehr, R. Will Burnett, Herbert S. Zim
from Golden Press
for 3rd-8th grade
in Meteorology (Weather & Climate) (Location: SCI-WEA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Great Animal Search
by Caroline Young
from Usborne
for 3rd-7th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.00 (2 in stock)
Great Discoveries and Amazing Adventures
by Claire Llewellyn
from Kingfisher
for 4th-8th grade
in Archaeology (Location: HISRF-ARCH)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Hand That Paints the Sky
from New Leaf Press
for 3rd-Adult
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Have You Ever Heard of a Kangaroo Bird?
by Barbara Brenner, illustrated by Irene Brady
from Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
How Bodies Work: Animal Physiology
Come Learn With Me
by Bridget Anderson
from Charlesbridge
for 4th-8th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Insects Do the Strangest Things
from Random House
for 3rd-6th grade
in Step Up Books (Location: VIN-STEP)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Journey Into Africa
by Tim Knight
from Oxford University
for 4th-6th grade
in Africa (Location: HISMC-AFR)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Junior Book of Insects
by Edwin Way Teale
1962 Printing from E.P. Dutton & Co.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Kingfisher Illustrated Encyclopedia of Animals
by Michael Chinery, ed.
from Kingfisher
for 4th-8th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Living Pond
by Nathalie Tordjam, translated by Vicki Bogard, illustrated by Laura Bour
from Young Discovery Library
for 2nd-4th grade
in River, Pond & Swamp (Location: SCI-ECO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Lone Muskrat
by Glen Rounds
from Holiday House
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Magnificent Mammals
Marvels of Creation
by Buddy & Kay Davis
from Master Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$11.19
Meadows in the Sea
by Alida Sims Malkus, illustrated by Margaret Cosgrove
from World Publishing Company
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
My Father's World
by Pablo Yoder, photography by Jacinto Yoder
from TGS International
for 2nd-4th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
National Audubon Society Field Guide to Seashore Creatures
by Norman A Meinkoth
First Edition from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 4th-Adult
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$27.00
National Audubon Society First Field Guide: Weather
by Jonathan D. W. Kahl
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FIELD)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Nature's Champions
by Alvin and Virginia Silverstein, Illustrated by Jean Zallinger
from Random House
for 3rd-6th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Nature's Clean-Up Crew: The Burying Beetles
by Lorus J. Milne and Margery Milne
from Dodd, Mead & Co.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Oh Say Can You Say Di-no-saur?
by Bonnie Worth, illustrated by Steve Haefele
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 2nd-4th grade
in Cat in the Hat's Learning Library (Location: EAR-CAT)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Ospreys
by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, photos by William Munoz
from Clarion Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Real Book About Amazing Animals
by Alec Dickinson, edited by Helen Hoke and illustrated by Fred Collins
from Garden City Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Real Books series (Location: VIN-RBA)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Real Book About Prehistoric Life
by Dorothy Shuttlesworth, illustrated by Matthew Kalmenoff
from Garden City Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Real Books series (Location: VIN-RBA)
$6.00 (2 in stock)
Rock is Lively
by Dianna Hutts Aston
First Edition from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$16.99
Seed Is Sleepy
by Dianna Hutts Aston, Sylvia Long
1st edition from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$16.99
Sensational Sea Creatures
Marvels of Creation
by Buddy & Kay Davis
from Master Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Oceanography & Marine Biology (Location: SCI-OCEAN)
$11.19
Shine-A-Light: Secrets of Animal Camouflage
Shine-A-Light
by Carron Brown and Illustrated by Wesley Robins
from Kane Miller
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Shine-A-Light: Secrets of the Apple Tree
Shine-A-Light
by Carron Brown and Illustrated by Alyssa Nassner
from Kane Miller
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Slow Down
by Rachel Williams; illustrated by Freya Hartas
from Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
for 3rd-7th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$24.99
Smithsonian Super Bug Encyclopedia
by John Woodward
from DK Publishing
for 3rd-6th grade
in Oversized Science Books (Location: SCI-OVER)
$12.50 (1 in stock)
Snakes and Lizards
by George S. Fichter; illustrated by David Mooney
from Western Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Reptiles & Amphibians (Location: SCI-REPT)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
The Birds
Life Nature Library
by Roger Tory Peterson
from Time-Life Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Travels of Monarch X
by Ross E. Hutchins, illustrated by Jerome P. Connolly
from Rand McNally
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Tree Book for Kids and Their Grown-Ups
by Gina Ingoglia
from Brooklyn Botanic Garden
for Kindergarten-Adult
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$15.95
Walt Disney's Odyssey of an Otter
Walt Disney's Animal Adventures
by Rutherford Montgomery, Illustrated by Hamilton Greene
from Golden Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$26.00 (1 in stock)
Whales: Friendly Dolphins and Mighty Giants of the Sea
by Jane Werner Watson
from Golden Press
for 2nd-6th grade
in Whales & Dolphins (Location: SCI-OCEAN)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
What Makes a Monster?
by Jess Keating, illustrated by David DeGrand
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 2nd-4th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Which is Which
by Solveig Paulson Russell, illustrated by Gail E. Haley
from Prentice Hall
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Who Lives in a Field
by Duryea Morton; illustrated by Douglas Howland
from Coward McCann
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Wicked Bugs
by Amy Stewart, illustrated by Briony Morrow-Cribbs
from Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
for 3rd-6th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Wild Folk in the Desert
by Carroll Lane Fenton & Evelyn Carswell
from The John Day Company
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Wild Folk in the Mountains
by Carroll Lane Fenton
from The John Day Company
for Preschool-6th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Wildlife Portfolio of the Western National Parks
by Joseph S. Dixon
from United States Government Printing Office
for 3rd-Adult
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$14.00 (1 in stock)