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Nature Study & Journaling

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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Active Filters: 1st grade (Ages 6-7), Trade Paperback, Used Books & Materials
95 Animals of the Bible
by Nancy P. Johnson
from Master Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIBR-STU)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Amazing Birds
by Dorling Kindersley Ltd
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Animals in Winter
by Henrietta Bancroft
Revised from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$3.00 (2 in stock)
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)
$5.94 $2.80 (1 in stock)
Bats
by Lily Wood
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Early Readers (Location: EAR-MISC)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Big Book
by Kathleen Ruckman
from Master Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
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)
$2.80 (1 in stock)
Cactus Hotel
by Brenda Z. Guiberson
1st edition from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Deserts & Grasslands (Location: SCI-ECO)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 1 (old)
by Florence Bass
2nd edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 1st grade
in Old Edition Reading (Location: OREAD)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
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)
$1.60 (1 in stock)
Diary of a Wombat
by Jackie French
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49 $3.60 (1 in stock)
Digging Up Dinosaurs
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$3.00 (2 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)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Emperor Penguins
by Roberta Edwards
from Grosset & Dunlap
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
$2.00 (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)
Forever Forest
by Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini, Rachel Crandell
from Dawn Publications
for 1st-3rd grade
in Jungles & Rainforests (Location: SCI-ECO)
$3.60 (4 in stock)
Good and Beautiful Animal Guide: Ducks
Good and the Beautiful Library Level 2B
by Desiree Vorel & Jessica Parks, illustrated by Zoe Damoulakis
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 1st-2nd grade
in GATB Language Arts & Reading (Location: CUR-GABELA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Good and Beautiful Animal Guide: Hummingbirds
Good and the Beautiful Library Level 2B
by Brooke Hodson Davies, illustrated by Zoe Damoulakis
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 1st-2nd grade
in GATB Language Arts & Reading (Location: CUR-GABELA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Good and Beautiful Animal Guide: Rabbits
Good and the Beautiful Library Level 2B
by Brooke Hodson Davies, illustrated by Zoe Damoulakis
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 1st-2nd grade
in GATB Language Arts & Reading (Location: CUR-GABELA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Good and Beautiful Animal Guide: Turtles
Good and the Beautiful Library Level 2B
by Miranda Olexa & Jessica Parks, illustrated by Zoe Damoulakis
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 1st-2nd grade
in GATB Language Arts & Reading (Location: CUR-GABELA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Great Kapok Tree
by Lynne Cherry
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Jungles & Rainforests (Location: SCI-ECO)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
How a Seed Grows
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 1
by Helene J. Jordan
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$3.00 (2 in stock)
How a Seed Grows
by Helene J. Jordan
Revised from HarperCollins
for 1st-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
How Do Bats See in the Dark?
by Melvin, Berger
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
How Do Birds Find Their Way?
by Roma Gans
from HarperCollins
for 1st-3rd grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Insects
by Daniel J. Bickel
from National Geographic
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Kingfisher First Encyclopedia of Animals
by Camilla Reid
from Kingfisher
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Little Glass Lake: Turtles
Book 2, Level 2B
by Jenny Phillips
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 1st-3rd grade
in GATB Language Arts & Reading (Location: CUR-GABELA)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Lizards for Lunch
by Conrad J. Storad
from Bobolink Media Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Mixed-Up Chameleon
by Eric Carle
from HarperTrophy
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Nature Study Idea Book
by Mary E. Woodis
for Kindergarten-12th grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Oil Spill!
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by written by Melvin Berger; illustrated by Paul Mirocha
1st edition from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Environment & Conservation (Location: SCI-ENV)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
One Small Square: Backyard
One Small Square
by Donald Silver, Patricia Wynne
1st edition from McGraw-Hill
for 1st-3rd grade
in One Small Square (Location: SCI-1SS)
$15.00 $7.50 (1 in stock)
One Small Square: Cave
One Small Square
by Donald Silver & Patricia Wynne
from McGraw-Hill
for 1st-3rd grade
in One Small Square (Location: SCI-1SS)
$13.00 $9.00 (1 in stock)
One Small Square: Coral Reef
One Small Square
by Donald Silver
from McGraw-Hill
for 1st-3rd grade
in One Small Square (Location: SCI-1SS)
$15.00 $7.50 (1 in stock)
One Small Square: Woods
One Small Square
by Donald Silver, Patricia Wynne
1st edition from McGraw-Hill
for 1st-3rd grade
in One Small Square (Location: SCI-1SS)
$15.00 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Sassafras Science Adventures Volume 1
Sassafras Science
by Johnny Congo & Paige Hudson
from Elemental Science
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Sassafras Science (Location: SCICUR-SAS)
$11.00 (2 in stock)
ScienceWorks: Animals Without Backbones Grades 1-3
by Jo Ellen Moore
from Evan-Moor Educational Publishers
for 1st-3rd grade
in Evan-Moor Science (Location: ZCLE-EM)
$5.25 (2 in stock)
Secret Life of Trees
A DK Eyewitness Reader Level 2
by Chiara Chevallier
from DK Publishing
for 1st-2nd grade
in DK Readers (Location: EAR-DK)
$4.24 $2.00 (1 in stock)
Tree Is a Plant
Let's- Read - and -Find- Out Science
by Clyde Robert Bulla
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$3.50 (2 in stock)
Tundra Discoveries
by Ginger Wadsworth
from Charlesbridge
for 1st-3rd grade
in Arctic & Tundra (Location: SCI-ECO)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Under One Rock
by Anthony D. Fredericks
from Dawn Publications
for Preschool-5th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Whales and Dolphins
A Hello Reader! Book Level 1
by Peter and Connie Roop
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-1st grade
in Scholastic / Hello Reader! (Location: EAR-SCH)
$1.60 (1 in stock)
What Is the Animal Kingdom? (Science of Living Things)
Science of Living Things
by Bobbie Kalman, Greg Nickles
from Crabtree Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$9.95 $5.50 (2 in stock)
Where Are the Night Animals?
by Mary Ann Fraser
1st edition from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$3.00 (2 in stock)
Why Do Tigers Have Stripes?
from Usborne
for 1st-3rd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$2.50 (2 in stock)
Young Child as Scientist
by Christine Chaille, Lory Britain
2nd edition from Allyn and Bacon
for Preschool-4th grade
in Preschool Science (Location: PRE-SCI)
$9.50 (1 in stock)
Zipping, Zapping, Zooming Bats
by Ann Earle
from HarperCollins
for 1st-3rd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
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