Travel Tuesdays: Mount Desert Island ME and Chatham, MA

Today I'd like to focus on travel that's closer to home. Not everyone is able to travel internationally, but nearly all of my suggestions can be applied to domestic travel.

This past summer, my family took a vacation to Mount Desert Island (MDI) in Maine. MDI is home to Acadia National Park, so we spent part of our time visiting various sites in the park. The rest of our time, however, was spent getting to know the area as the locals do.

We observed birds of prey that were fledging and talked to local residents to see if they had identified the birds. During one conversation we also got a tip about a local swimming hole. When we went for a swim, we were the only ones there. We spent lots of time observing a sunfish protecting its nest. On another day, we hiked to a scenic overlook (some say the most beautiful on the island) that few tourists climb. Afterwards, we purchased delicious bread from the local bakery and tasted ice cream at a shop a block away. While eating my ice cream, I noticed a flyer for a local artist.

After seeing that flyer for r scott balz gallery for a third time, I decided I should take a drive to meet the artist. Scott and I engaged in a lively discussion of our creative processes. We viewed his bold landscapes with rich colors. When I told him I tend to take close-up photos of small things like rocks, insects and lichen he told me he used to take close up photos for a living and went into a back room to pull out a photo of kelp on the beach. It was an enriching and inspiring conversation I never would have had if I were on a scheduled tour with a program of events to follow.  Our family had scheduled a couple of things, but otherwise wandered where we felt inspired to wander on any given day.

A couple of weeks later I was in Chatham, MA on Cape Cod (about one hour from my home) with my whole family (sisters, spouses, nieces, parents, kids, etc). While kayaking in a pond, I noticed a man in waders walking along the edge of the pond. He had a camera hanging from his neck and was taking notes. I turned my kayak and paddled over. “Hi. I hope you don’t mind me interrupting you. You seem to be documenting something. May I ask what you’re working on?”

Fred went on to tell me that his parents used to own a large section of land surrounding the pond. Much of that land, including the sand banks along one edge, had been destroyed by various human activity including locals riding ATVs. About 10 years ago they sold the land to a private conservation organization at a discounted rate. Fred was out that day documenting the changes in the edge of the pond since conservation efforts were put in place. He told me that ten years ago a plant commonly called Marsh Mallow, that only grows in three counties in Massachusetts, was wiped out along the pond. Now it’s back and getting stronger. He was documenting these changes by counting and photographing the plants. By talking to Fred, I looked more closely at the edge of the pond and noticed the detailed centers of these beautiful flowers.

By connecting with the locals, we learned more about the places we were visiting and connected to the landscape in more meaningful ways.

How might you put some of these ideas into practice in your domestic travels or daily life? Have you had an enriching experience by interacting with the locals where you are? Please share your stories.

Related Posts:

Birds of Prey

Wordless Wednesday: Seal Cove- Mount Desert Island, ME

Mystery Caterpillar

My family has been nurturing a small section of milkweed in our perennial garden (that is slowly taking over the garden) hoping to attract Monarch Butterflies. Year after year, we search the plants looking for caterpillars we can watch go through the magical process of metamorphosis. Sunday, my kids and I went in search again. We found lots of leaves that had clearly been eaten. Yes, we thought,  maybe this is the year! We searched and searched. We found ladybugs. We found beetles. We found Dragonflies. No Monarch caterpillars.

Then, on a terrifically eaten plant that had nearly no leaves left, we found a caterpillar!

That's no Monarch caterpillar, but I think it's pretty cool. So do my kids. My son said, "It looks like a bottle brush!" After more thought he said, "Or a pipe cleaner!" Quite a colorful bottle brush, don't you think?

 After a more searching we found another, and another. So off we went to get our butterfly house.We carefully placed two caterpillars in the house along with lots of fresh milkweed leaves. We'll replenish those leaves daily until the caterpillars make their chrysalids.

I'm sure you're all wondering, "What kind of caterpillar is it?" We don't know! My kids weren't terribly motivated to find out so I didn't look. As I mentioned in last Friday's post about Birds of Prey, we learn so much just by observing, we don't necessarily need an ID. I'm sure they'll want to know at some point, then our field guides will come out and more investigations will ensue. For now, we'll watch and wait.

Take a walk around your yard our neighborhood with your kids this weekend. See what you can find. In my neck of the woods, there's loads of insect activity this time of year that's easily visible. Dragonflies zip about. Grasshoppers spring everywhere. Katydids croak their end of summer song. See what's happening in your piece of the world. Then come and share what you saw. Also, let me know if you take any photos you'd like to share. 


Related Posts:
Teachable moment: Caterpillar Investigation
Caterpillar Investigation, part 2
Caterpillar Investigation, part 3
Caterpillar Investigation, part 4
Top 10 Ways to Promote Science Inquiry

Reading the Land

My family spends lots of time in the woods behind our house. We know the place where the trail splits and we often find coyote skat (poop). We know where the pioneer white pine forest transitions to a hardwood forest. We know the exact place where we relaxed on our backs in the snow and watched a Bald Eagle fly overhead. We know the little hole that is home to a chipmunk. We know our woods.

Yet, each time we go out there, we learn something new.

Maybe we notice a new fungus growing on a log.

Or the rainbow created by the fading sunlight as it hits the vernal pool.

Ot the dappled sunlight as it falls upon a princess pine.

Recently, my son stopped to point out this tree.

"Mommy. It looks like this tree started to split and then it grew back together again."
"Oh yeah. I've never noticed that before. I wonder why we never noticed it."
"Maybe because that branch was in the way." (He pointed to a branch that used to be in front of the "crack" but fell off. In the photo- on the ground to the left).

"When do you think that branch fell?" I asked.
"A while ago."
"How do you know?"
"There's mushrooms growing on it."

We've passed this tree probably hundreds, certainly many times since the branch fell, but we never noticed this detail. In that moment, I realized we had never touched it, either. As we touched the bark we were surprised to learn how rough it is. From a distance is looks smooth.

My son moved closer and further away examining the bark and then touched it again. "Yeah. It looks so smooth but it's really rough."

No matter how well you think you know a place, there is always more to learn. Close observation reveals the details.

Spend time getting to know where you live. City dwellers, this can be as simple as getting to know the tree growing up through the sidewalk outside your apartment. What shape are it's leaves? Does it bear fruit? What kind? What animals are living on it/around it? (Remember that insects are animals). Does your tree look healthy? Feel it's bark. Maybe even make a bark rubbing. How does your tree change over the seasons? Visit it regularly to find out.

Have you observed nature lately? What did you see? Did you learn something new? I invite you to share.

Caterpillar Investigation, Part 4

In three previous posts (here, here, and here), I described our caterpillar investigation. The caterpillars seemed to suddenly appear on the parsley in our vegetable garden. We started by observing them in the garden and eventually placed two caterpillars in a "butterfly house" to hopefully watch their metamorphosis into butterflies.  We are patiently awaiting some changes. One point I neglected to mention on those previous posts is the fact that this butterfly house in exposed to the cold. It's inside our screened porch so it's protected from severe weather but the temperature is basically the same as outside. I did this because the caterpillars were outside eating our parsley. Presumably, those caterpillars are adapted to the seasons and should, therefore, be left to experience the appropriate weather.

Last Wednesday, we added a new specimen to our butterfly house- a woolly bear caterpillar. I almost crushed the fuzzy little creature while walking through our dining room. Luckily, my husband spotted it and stopped me. Of course, I picked it up and showed our kids.

My daughter was the first to suggest we place it in with the other caterpillars. I was happy to support her investigation, as long as I knew we could keep the caterpillar healthy. Unlike the first caterpillars we found, I did not know how to care for a woolly bear. Even though I've seen them for my entire life, I had never seen one eating or researched their life cycle. I did a quick Internet search to be sure of what to do to care for it. I learned they eat clover or grass and would need a stick on which to climb. The kids gathered the needed supplies and we added the woolly bear to to the butterfly house. We need to add "fresh" grass every day until it stops moving around. Then it will winter over and make a cocoon in the spring. My research revealed that this caterpillar must be allowed to experience the cold or it's life cycle will be disrupted. It will make a cocoon too early and emerge as a moth that cannot survive the cold weather. 

We now have two un-identified caterpillars that made crysalids (photo to left)  in the butterfly house. We think they will emerge as butterflies very soon. (Full disclosure... I know what they are but I haven't told my kids or my readers. Does anyone besides Gail want to suggest what kind they are?) We also have the woolly bear that will eventually spin a cocoon and emerge as a moth in the spring. We check them each day to watch for changes and now we add grass or clover as the woolly bear needs more. We also need to add some pieces of bark or maybe leaves for it to hide beneath.

So, our investigations continue. I'll keep you posted when anything changes. In the meantime, I leave you with this idea. Take baby steps in your investigations with children. Know your limitations. Resist the urge to look up information just to get answers. By observing closely, you and your children (or students) can learn things together. Do find out enough, however, so that you can properly care for any organisms you observe.

Have you embarked on an investigation with your children or students lately? What did you do? What did you learn together? If you haven't done an investigation, how might you begin? Try to make time to to begin one soon.

Caterpillar Investigation, Part 2

Yesterday, I posted about the caterpillars that appeared on our parsley a little over a week ago. I also told you I'd provide updates regarding any changes.

Here's a quick photo update.
Taken the first day we officially observed them- last Wednesday, September 22nd. This was the largest caterpillar at the time.

Taken two days later on, September 24th.

And here' s one taken today, September 27th:

My how they've grown in just 5 days! Nearly doubled in size!

Our primary question is: Will the caterpillars change into butterflies? And, if they do, how long will the process take? My daughter has already connected our observations to The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. In it, a fictional caterpillar eats lots of food (not all of it "real" caterpillar food) and then changes into a beautiful butterfly.

What do you think will happen? What questions do you have?