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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316 Items found Print
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1001 Animals to Spot
by Ruth Brocklehurst
from Usborne
for 3rd-6th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
7 Continents: Antarctica
by Jo Ellen Moore
from Evan-Moor Educational Publishers
for 3rd-6th grade
in Evan-Moor Geography (Location: GEO-CUREM)
95 Animals of the Bible
by Nancy P. Johnson
from Master Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIB-STU)
$8.50 (1 in stock)
Adventures of Bob White
Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #23
by Thornton W. Burgess
Illustrated from Dover Publications
for 2nd-4th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$5.00
Akiak: A Tale From the Iditarod
by Robert J. Blake
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
All the Water Birds - Pacific Coast
by Jack Griggs
1st edition
for 7th-12th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FG07)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Almost Gone
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Steve Jenkins
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
America's Deserts
by Marianne D. Wallace
1st edition
for 4th-6th grade
in Deserts & Grasslands (Location: SCI-ECO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Animal Architects
National Geographic Kids Level 3
by Libby Romero
from National Geographic
for 2nd-4th grade
in National Geographic Early Readers (Location: EAR-NGR)
Animal Homes
National Geographic Kids Pre-reader
by Shira Evans
from National Geographic
for Preschool-Kindergarten
in National Geographic Early Readers (Location: EAR-NGR)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Animals in Winter
by Henrietta Bancroft
Revised from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Another Field Guide to Little Known and Seldom-Seen Birds of North America
by Ben, Cathryn, and John Sill
from Peachtree Publishers, Ltd.
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FG07)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Ant Cities
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Arthur Dorros
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$5.99
Antarctic Antics
by Judy Sierra
Reprint from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-1st grade
in Arctic & Tundra (Location: SCI-ECO)
Ants
National Geographic Kids Level 1
by Melissa Stewart
from National Geographic
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in National Geographic Early Readers (Location: EAR-NGR)
Avenging the Owl
by Melissa Hart
from Sky Pony Press
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in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Baldy the American Eagle
The Good and the Beautiful Library Level 4
by Mary Adrian, edited by Jenny Phillips, illustrated by Genevieve Vaughan-Jackson
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 4th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Balto and the Great Race
Totally True Adventures
by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
1st Printing from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 1st-3rd grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$5.99
Bats
by Lily Wood
from Scholastic Inc.
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$2.00 (1 in stock)
Bed for the Winter
DK Readers Level 1
by Karen Wallace
1st edition from DK Children
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
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$4.99
Beekeeping
Storey's Guides
by Richard E. Bonney
from Storey Publishing
in Self-Sufficiency (Location: SS-Self)
Berenstain Bears' Big Book of Science and Nature
by Stan & Jan Berenstain
from Dover Publications
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$15.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Big Book
by Kathleen Ruckman
from Master Books
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in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Big Dinosaur Sticker Book
by Paul Nicholls
from Usborne
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Bird Watching Answer Book
by Laura Erickson, Illustrated by Pedro Fernandes
from Storey Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
Birds of the Willamette Valley Region
by Hall Opperman, Harry Nehls & Tom Aversa
1st edition
for 9th-Adult
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FG07)
Birds, Nests and Eggs
Take-Along Guide
by Mel Boring
from Northword Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$7.95 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Birds: Nature's Magnificent Flying Machines
by Caroline Arnold
from Charlesbridge
for 3rd-6th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$7.95
Book of Birds
by Sarah Jo Davis & Kalee Miller
2nd edition from Memoria Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Memoria Press Science (Location: SCICUR-MP)
$20.50
Book of Insects - Student Text
by Arabella Buckley & Julia McNair Wright
from Memoria Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Memoria Press Science (Location: SCICUR-MP)
$17.90
Book of Insects - Student Text (old)
by Arabella Buckley & Julia McNair Wright
1st edition from Memoria Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Old Edition Science (Location: OSCI)
$9.00 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Trees
by Sean Brooks
2nd edition from Memoria Press
for 6th-8th grade
in Memoria Press Science (Location: SCICUR-MP)
$17.90
Botany Coloring Book
by Paul Young
1st edition from Harper Perennial
for 5th-9th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
Bugs!
National Geographic Kids Pre-reader
by Shira Evans
from National Geographic
for Preschool-Kindergarten
in National Geographic Early Readers (Location: EAR-NGR)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Bugs! Bugs! Bugs!
DK Eyewitness Readers Level 2
by Jennifer Dussling
from DK Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
Bugs, Beetles, and Butterflies
Puffin Science Easy-to-Read Level 1
by Harriet Ziefert, illustrated by Lisa Flather
from Puffin Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Early Readers (Location: EAR-MISC)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Building an Igloo
by Ulli Steltzer
from Square Fish Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Arctic & Tundra (Location: SCI-ECO)
Burgess Bird Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Dover Publications
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$12.95
Burgess Seashore Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$12.95
Burgess Seashore Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess, illustrated by W.H. Southwick and George Sutton
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$20.99
Buzz, Bee!
National Geographic Kids Pre-reader
by Jennifer Szymanski
from National Geographic
for Preschool-Kindergarten
in National Geographic Early Readers (Location: EAR-NGR)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Buzztail and Leaper
by Robert M. McClung
from Purple House Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$12.99
Caterpillar to Butterfly
National Geographic Kids Level 1: Starting to Read
by Laura Marsh
from National Geographic
for Kindergarten-1st grade
in National Geographic Early Readers (Location: EAR-NGR)
$2.50 (2 in stock)
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 1
by Florence Bass & Julie McNair Wright
3rd edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 1st grade
in CLP Phonics & Reading (Location: REA-CLP)
$13.35
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 2
by Julia McNair Wright
3rd edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 2nd grade
in CLP Phonics & Reading (Location: REA-CLP)
$13.35
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 3
by Julie McNair Wright
3rd edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 3rd grade
in CLP Phonics & Reading (Location: REA-CLP)
$13.35
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 4
by Paul Lindstrom & Edward Shewan
3rd edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 4th grade
in CLP Phonics & Reading (Location: REA-CLP)
$13.35
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 5
by Wendy Kramer
4th edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 5th grade
in CLP Phonics & Reading (Location: REA-CLP)
$13.35
Collector, The
by Jack Nisbet
from Sasquatch Books
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Colly's Barn
by Michael Morpurgo
New Ed from Mammoth
for 3rd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Creative Haven Beautiful Birds - Coloring Book
Creative Haven
by Dot Barlowe
First Edition, Fir from Dover Publications
for 7th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$6.99
Creepy Beetles!
Scholastic Reader Level 2
by Fay Robinson, illustrated by Jean Cassels
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-2nd grade
in Scholastic / Hello Reader! (Location: EAR-SCH)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Crinkleroot's Guide to Knowing Animal Habitats
by Jim Arnosky
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
Crinkleroot's Guide to Walking in Wild Places
by Jim Arnosky
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
Curious World of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
Reprint from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
2010 Newbery Honor
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Danger in the Desert
by Roger Cohen
from Sterling Publishing Co.
for 5th-9th grade
in 20th Century Exploration (Location: HISW-20EXP)
Deadly Animals
Usborne Discovery
by Henry Brook
from Usborne
for 1st-3rd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
Desert Is Theirs
by Byrd Baylor, illustrated by Peter Parnall
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-2nd grade
1976 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Desperate Adventures of Zeno and Alya
by Jane Kelly
from Square Fish Publishing
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Diary of a Wombat
by Jackie French
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
Digging Up Dinosaurs
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Dinosaur Activity Book
by Earl & Bonita Snellenberger
2015 Printing from Master Books
for Preschool-1st grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$7.99 $5.50 (1 in stock)
Dinosaur Bone War
by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
from Random House
for 4th-7th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
Dinosaur Bones
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$5.99
Dinosaurs on the Move
by Cathy Diez-Luckie
1st edition from Figures in Motion
for 3rd-6th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
Discover Nature in Water & Wetlands
by Elizabeth P. Lawlor, illustrated by Pat Archer
from Stackpole Books
for 9th-Adult
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
DK Eyewitness Explorers: Insects
by Steve Parker
from DK Publishing
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
DK Readers: Diving Dolphin
DK Readers Level 1
by Karen Wallace
from DK Children
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in DK Readers (Location: EAR-DK)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Do You Know the Difference?
by Andrea Bischhoff-Miersch, Michael Bischhoff-Miersch
from North-South Books
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
Dolphins!
A Step into Reading Book Level 3
by Sharon Bokoske and Margaret Davidson
from Random House
for 1st-3rd grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$5.99
Double Trouble in Bugland
by William Kozwinkle
from David R. Godine
for 3rd-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Draw 50 Baby Animals
by Lee J. Ames, Murray Zak
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Birds
by Lee Ames & Tony D'Adamo
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Cats
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Creepy Crawlies
by Lee Ames
Reprint from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
Draw 50 Dinosaurs
by Lee J. Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Dogs
by Lee Ames
from Broadway Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Sharks, Whales, and Other Sea Creatures
by Lee Ames
from Broadway Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Drawing from Nature
by Jim Arnosky
Reprint from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
for 7th-Adult
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Dry Bones and Other Fossils
by Gary Parker
7th edition from Master Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Elephants of Africa
by Gail Gibbons
Reprint from Holiday House
for 1st-3rd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
Emperor Penguins
by Roberta Edwards
from Grosset & Dunlap
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Ereth's Birthday
Poppy Stories #4
by Avi
from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
Reprint from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
2010 Newbery Honor
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Exploring Insects with Uncle Paul
Copper Lodge Library
by Jean Henri Fabre, edited by Stephanie B. Meter
from Classical Conversations
in Classical Conversations (Location: CUR-CC)
$14.95
Fabre's Book of Insects
by Jean Henri Fabre
from Dover Publications
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$11.95
Fall
by Dianne Hayley, Pat Wishart, Will Husby
from Lone Pine Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
in Clearance: Science & Health (Location: ZCLE-SCI)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Farm Anatomy
by Julia Rothman
1st edition from Storey Publishing
for 6th-Adult
in Self-Sufficiency (Location: SS-Self)
$18.99
Fiddler Crab
Good and the Beautiful Library Level 4
by Mary Adrian, illustrated by Jean Martinez
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 3rd-5th grade
in GATB Science & Health (Location: CUR-GABSc)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Field Full of Horses
by Peter Hansard
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Horses & Ponies (Location: SCI-MAMHOR)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
First Encyclopedia of Animals
Usborne Internet-Linked
by Paul Dowswell
from Usborne
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.00 (2 in stock)
Flutter, Butterfly!
National Geographic Kids Pre-reader
by Shelby Alinsky
from National Geographic
for Preschool-Kindergarten
in National Geographic Early Readers (Location: EAR-NGR)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Forager's Harvest
by Samuel Thayer
from Forager's Harvest
for 9th-Adult
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FG07)
$27.95
Forest Unseen
by David George Haskell
from Penguin Books
for 10th-Adult
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Forests
Our Planet
by David Lambert
from Troll Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
in Forests & Mountains (Location: SCI-FOREST)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Forever Forest
by Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini, Rachel Crandell
from Dawn Publications
for 1st-3rd grade
in Jungles & Rainforests (Location: SCI-ECO)
$4.50 (4 in stock)
Fossils Tell of Long Ago
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$3.00 (2 in stock)
Frog Alphabet Book
by Jerry Pallotta
from Charlesbridge
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
From Caterpillar to Butterfly
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out-Science Stage 1
by Deborah Heiligman
from HarperCollins
Non-fiction for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$6.99
Garden Friends
DK Readers Pre-Level 1
from DK Publishing
for Preschool-1st grade
in DK Readers (Location: EAR-DK)
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