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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199 Items found Print
Active Filters: 2nd grade (Ages 7-8), Used 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)
Ancient Ones
by Barbara Bash
from Sierra Club Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Animal Architects
by W. Wright Robinson
from Blackbirch Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Animal Babies in Grasslands
from Kingfisher
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Animal Lives - 8 Book Set
by Sally Morgan
from QEB Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$16.00 (1 in stock)
Animal School: What Class are You?
by Michelle Lord, illustrated by Michael Garland
from Holiday House
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Animals Born Alive and Well
by Ruth Heller
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$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 (2 in stock)
Attack and Defense
by Robert Coupe
from Mason Crest Publishers
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Babes and Cradles
by Maud Wolcott Spalding, illustrated by Lucile Patterson Marsh & Anita Parkhurst
from Southern Publishing Association
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$11.00 (1 in stock)
Baby Animals
Extraordinary Animals
by Andrew Brown
from Crabtree Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$6.00 (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)
Bag in the Wind
by Ted Kooser, illustrated by Barry Root
from Candlewick Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Barn Owls
by Wolfgang Epple, photographs by Manfred Rogl
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Bat Loves the Night
by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Sarah Fox-Davies
from Candlewick Press
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$4.00 (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)
Bear Cub
All Aboard Reading - Station Stop 2
by Pam Pollack and Meg Belviso, illustrated by Neecy Twinem
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 1st-2nd grade
in Early Readers (Location: EAR-MISC)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Big and Small, Short and Tall
by Ron Roy, illustrated by Lynne Cherry
from Clarion Books
for 2nd-4th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Big Book
by Kathleen Ruckman
from Master Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Biography of a Rhino
by Alice L. Hopf; illustrated by Kiyo Komoda
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$44.00 (1 in stock)
Bird's Eye View: The Natural World
by John Farndon and Paul Boston
from Words & Pictures
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Bombus Finds a Friend
by Elsie Larson, illustrated by Elizabeth Haidle
from Master Books
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Butterflies Come
by Leo Politi
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
By Pond and River
Eyes and No Eyes #2
by Arabella B. Buckley
from Cassell
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Readers & Textbooks (Location: VIN-READ)
$25.00 (1 in stock)
California Plant & Animal Communities
by Barbara J. Collins
from California State Department of Education
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Readers & Textbooks (Location: VIN-READ)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Caterpillars and Butterflies
Usborne Beginners
by Stephanie Turnbull
from Usborne
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
$2.70 (1 in stock)
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 2 (old)
by Julia Wright
2nd edition from Christian Liberty Press
for 2nd grade
in Old Edition Reading (Location: OREAD)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Classical Acts and Facts Science Cards: Ecology, Astronomy & Physics (old)
from Classical Conversations
for Kindergarten-8th grade
in Clearance: Science & Health (Location: ZCLE-SCI)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Collins Children's Encyclopedia of Nature
for 2nd-6th grade
in Oversized Science Books (Location: SCI-OVER)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Coral Reefs
by Jason Chin
from Square Fish Publishing
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Oceanography & Marine Biology (Location: SCI-OCEAN)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Coyote
by Stephen R. Swinburne
from Boyds Mill Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Creepy Crawlies and the Scientific Method
by Sally Kneidel
from Fulcrum Resources
Science Curriculum for Kindergarten-6th grade
in Clearance: Science & Health (Location: ZCLE-SCI)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Creepy, Crawly Caterpillars
by Margery Facklam
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Dangerous Animals
Usborne Beginners
by Rebecca Gilpin
from Usborne
for 1st-2nd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
$2.70 (1 in stock)
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)
Detective Dinosaur
by James Skofield
from Barnes & Noble
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Digging Up Dinosaurs
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd Grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Dinosaur Days
Step Into Reading 3
by Joyce Milton, Franco Tempesta
Revised from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 1st-3rd grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Dinosaurs
Usborne Beginners
by Stephanie Turnbull
from Usborne
for 1st-2nd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
$2.70 (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)
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)
DK Animals Around the World
from DK Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.00 (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 Eyewitness Juniors: Amazing Frogs & Toads
by Barry Clarke, photography by Jerry Young
from DK Publishing
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Reptiles & Amphibians (Location: SCI-REPT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
DK Ultimate Sticker Book: Animal
from DK Publishing
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Dolphin Treasure
by Wayne Grover
from HarperTrophy
for Ages 8-12
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$5.99 $3.50 (2 in stock)
Draw Write Now Book 8
by Marie Hablitzel & Kim Stitzer
from Barker Creek
for 1st-5th grade
in Draw Write Now (Location: ELE-ARTDWN)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Ducks Don't Get Wet
by Augusta Goldin, illustrated by Leonard Kessler
from Thomas Y. Crowell & Co.
for 1st-2nd grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Earthworm
by Andrienne Soutter-Perrot, illustrated by Etienne Delessert
from Creative Education
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Edgar, the Super Dolphin
by Nathaniel Benchley, illustrated by Mamoru Funai
from Harper & Row
for 1st-3rd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Eggs of Things
by Maxine W. Kumin and Anne Sexton, illustrated by Leonard Shortall
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$25.00 (1 in stock)
Elephants
Usborne Beginners
by James MacLaine
from Usborne
for 1st-2nd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
$3.15 (1 in stock)
Emperor Penguins
by Roberta Edwards
from Grosset & Dunlap
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
$2.50 (1 in stock)
EyeLike Letters
from Play Bac
for Preschool-2nd grade
$6.00 (1 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)
Fast Forward: Rain Forest
by Kathryn Senior; illustrated by Carolyn Scrace
from Salariya Book Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Ecology (Location: SCI-ECO)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Field Full of Horses
by Peter Hansard
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Finding Out About Deserts
Usborne Explainers
by Angela Wilkes
2nd edition from Usborne
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Deserts & Grasslands (Location: SCI-ECO)
$2.70 (1 in stock)
Finding Out About Things Outdoors
Usborne Explainers
by Eliot Humberstone
from Usborne
for 1st-4th grade
in Meteorology (Weather & Climate) (Location: SCI-WEA)
$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)
$6.30 (2 in stock)
First Look at Owls, Eagles, and Other Hunters of the Sky
by Millicent E. Selsam, illustrated by Joyce Hunt
from Walker Publishing, Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Flower Grows
by Ken Robbins
from Dial Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Follow the Water from Brook to Ocean
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Arthur Dorros
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Water Cycle (Location: SCI-EARTH)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Forever Forest
by Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini, Rachel Crandell
from Dawn Publications
for 1st-3rd grade
in Ecology (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)
Fossils Tell of Long Ago
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Aliki
Revised from HarperCollins
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$4.00 (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)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
From Seed to Plant
by Gail Gibbons
from Holiday House
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Fun with Nature Take-Along Guide
Take-Along Guide
by Mel Boring, Diane L. Burns, Leslie Dendy, illustrated by Linda Garrow
from Northword Press
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Giraffe: A Living Tower
by Christine and Michel Denis-Huot
from Reader's Digest Young Families
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
God's Miracle –a Seed
by Rebecca Newswanger, illustrated by Harold Weaver
from Christian Light Education
for 1st-3rd grade
in Christian Light Reading (Location: REA-CLE)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Golden Guide: Skyguide
Golden Guides
by Mark Chartrand
from Golden Books
for 2nd-7th grade
in Astronomy (Space) (Location: SCI-AST)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Golden Guide: The Sky Observer's Guide
Golden Guides
by R. Newton Mayall, Margaret Mayall, and Jerome Wyckoff
from St. Martin's Press
for 2nd-7th grade
in Astronomy (Space) (Location: SCI-AST)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Hexapod Stories
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-4th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$7.00 (1 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 and Why Wonder Book of Cats - Activity Book
by Sarina Simon, illustrated by Lesley Boney
from Price Stern Sloan
for 2nd-5th grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$2.00 (2 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 (2 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)
How Flowers Grow
Usborne Beginners
by Emma Helbrough
from Usborne
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
$4.49 $2.70 (2 in stock)
How Grace Got Her Name
by Alice Elshoff, illustrated by Jennifer Curtis
from Moonglade Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
How to Hide a Gray Treefrog
by Ruth Heller
from Grosset & Dunlap
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Reptiles & Amphibians (Location: SCI-REPT)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Hungry, Hungry Sharks
A Step into Reading Book Level 3
by Joanna Cole
from Random House
for 1st-3rd grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$4.99 $2.50 (2 in stock)
Hurry and the Monarch
by Antoine O Flatharta, illustrated by Meilo So
from Dragonfly Books
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
I Am a Shark
Discovery All-Star Readers Level 2
by Lori C. Froeb
from Silver Dolphin
for 1st-2nd grade
in Early Readers (Location: EAR-MISC)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Icky Bug Shapes
by Jerry Pallotta, illustrated by Shennen Bersani
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
If I Were a Bird
by Gladys Conklin; illustrated by Artur Marokvia
from Holiday House
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Joey
from Tambourine Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Journaling A Year in Nature
from Simply Charlotte Mason
for 1st-12th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$15.00 (2 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)
Kiya the Gull
by Fen H. Lasell
from Addison Wesley
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Let's Get Turtles
by Millicent Selsam, illustrated by Arnold Lobel
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Let's Go for a Nature Walk
by Joan Rosner, illustrated by Betty Harrington
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for 1st-4th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$34.00 (1 in stock)
Lifesize
from Kane Miller
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Little Turtle and the Song of the Sea
by Sheridan Cain, illustrated by Norma Burgin
from Crocodile Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Living Fossils
by Caroline Arnold, illustrated by Andrew Plant
from Charlesbridge
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$4.00 (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)
Living World: Grasslands
by Clive Catchpole, Illustrated by Peter Snowball
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Deserts & Grasslands (Location: SCI-ECO)
$4.00 (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)
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