A Scientific Journey

Today we discovered a live video cam capturing images of some baby Bald Eagles near Lake Washington.  We were able to watch the two babies as they interacted with their mom in a nest near Lake Washington.

We watched the Eaglets grow impatient waiting for their mom to return, watched them interact with the mother eagle, and saw them practice flapping their wings.

Here’s some of what we saw:

You can watch the baby eagles by clicking here.  It makes a great virtual field trip.

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We made bird suet a few weeks ago using different variety of bird seed. Then we did some scientific testing to see what suet the birds in our region preferred. We had a very clear winner.

We’re sharing the recipe here. But if you’d rather not make your own, or if you just want to help a little girl fulfill some of her dreams to study animals in San Diego you can buy some from McKayla in her new store. She is selling Bird Suet to earn money for an educational field trip to the ocean, Sea World and the San Diego zoo.

Here’s How To Make Bird Suet

You will need:

• Small plastic zippered bags
• Mesh bag or suet basket.
• Stove
• Pot
• Stirring Spoon
• Freezer
• 2 cups peanut butter
• 2 cups lard (not shortening)
• 4 cups rolled oats (not quick oats)
• 4 cups cornmeal
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup bird seed

1. Melt the lard and peanut butter in a pot over low heat. Have a grown-up do that part.

2. Stir in the rest of the ingredients.

3. Scoop the mixture into small zippered bags.

3. Place the bags in the freezer so the suet will harden.

Once the suet has hardened:

1. Remove the suet from one of the bags and place it in the mesh bag or suet basket. We found it easies to cut the bag open.
2. Hang the bag or suet basket on a tree outdoors. It should be on an open branch where cats can’t easily access it.
3. Wait, watch, and enjoy the birds that flock to it.

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We went on a field trip in the Rocky Mountains.

And we saw seagulls. And we had a picnic. We ate gummy bears.

We saw geese. Geese is going to have babies in the Rocky Mountains. You should go there sometimes.

We saw some black birds. See my mom’s picture on the computer at our .com (below). Them sing very beautiful.

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Last Friday was a busy science day at our house. First we learned about how you can identify different the species of bird by looking for markings. Then McKayla and I went on a field trip to see the birds at local bird sanctuary. It is only minutes away from our house, but strangely we hadn’t take her there before.

We took a picture of this species of bird. We didn’t know what kind of bird this was it is so today we set out to find. McKayla looked at our 1008 page book looking for birds with black feathers and yellow beaks, while I tried doing an internet search. McKayla finally found the bird on page 783.

It was a European Starling.

We didn’t think it was the correct bird at first because we didn’t notice that this bird had white tipped feathers at first. The blackness of the birds was the most noticeable to us when we were watching them. A closeup photograph of the birds showed the white tips.

Common Name: European Starling
Family: Sturnidae
Species: Sturnus vulgaris
Length: About 8.5 inches
Wingspan: About 15.5 inches
Plumage: Sexes similar
Migration: Northern bird migrate
Weight: 8 ounces
Song:

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All bird feet is different from each other.

Owls: With their feet they can pick-up food and put them in their mouth.

Heron: They have long toes because they like water and their long toes they stick into the mud because the mud is like glue to their feet.

Chicken: Chickens eat corn and eat lots of bugs (ooh!). They use their feet to scratch for the bugs.

Ducks: Ducks really like water too. And them eat bread and bugs. They have web between their toes for swimming.

Cassowary: The cassowary have big fat feet because they are big fat birds. They have a mohawk.

P.S.  It was my birthday. I am 7 now.

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Today, in biology, I learned the following definitions:

Chordata: a classification for animals that have a spine, are vertebrates.

Aves: Greek word for birds.

Warm-blooded: Warm-colded animal that keeps the same temperature in warm and cold weather.

Ornithology: The study of birds.

Ornithologists: A person that studies birds.

Famine: A severe shortage of food.

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This is my first article for our new science blog, and my first ever blog posting.  I talked and mom typed.  I am six years old.

This is what I learned about Polar Bears today. I am learning about the word extinct and what it means.

Polar bears eat meat. In 40 years the ice cube is going to melt and the polar bears home is going to collapse. The snow is getting really, really, really squishy. The polars bears are going to sink into the water and they might die. But polar bears are really, really, really, really good swimmers. They eat fish.

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Our educational focus changed somewhat recently. I was trying to save money by writing my own lesson plans on nearly every subject. The lessons were basically designed to use existing materials that we had around the house and the vast variety of lesson plans available on the internet.

I created some incredible materials. I had flash cards, beautiful journal pages, or worksheet pages to go with everything and then our computer crashed. I lost hundreds of hour worth of work. Tip: Back-up regularly.

Another problem is that I was spending too much time writing lessons, and that took away from quality teaching team. So we finally invested in some courses in nearly every every subject. We are jumping into our new science courses mid-year. Here is what we are studying for the remainder of the year.

Austin: Biology

Text: Exploring Creation With Biology
Publisher: Apologia Educational Ministries
ISBN: 1-932012-57-5

Introduction
DNA and Life
Energy Conversion and Life
Sensing and Responding to Change
Reproduction
The Scientific Method
Biological Classification
The Microscope
Kingdom Monera
Kingdom Protista
Kingdom Fungi
Atoms, Elements, and Moleculs
Organic Chemistry
DNA
The Cell
Cellular Reproduction and DNA
Mendelian Genetics
Evolution and Scientific Theory
Ecology
Invertebrates
Phylum Arthropoda
Phylum Chordata
Plantae -Anatomy and Classification, Physiology and Reproduction
Reptiles, Birds, and Mammals

Items we still need for this course:

Key & Test Booklet and Key
Dissection Kit

Items we would really like to get need for this course:

Microscope
Apologia Biology Slide Set

Brieana & McKayla: 1st Semester

Text: Exploring Creation With Zoology 1
Publisher: Apologia Educational Ministries
ISBN: 1-932012-61-3

In this course we will be exploring the dynamics of flight and animal classification. We will learn about birds, their physical characteristics, diverse nests, anatomy, and domestic practices. After becoming amateur ornithologists, Brieana and McKayla will explore chiropterology, which is the study of bats.

Table of Contents

Items we still need for this course:

List Pending

Items we would really like for this course:

Owl Pellet Study Kit
Incubator with Four Quail Eggs
Bird Watcher’s Backpack Kit

Brieana & McKayla: 2nd Semester

Text: Exploring Creation With Botany
Publisher: Apologia Educational Ministries
ISBN: 1-932012-61-3

Following flying creatures we will study on the nature of botany and the process of classifying plants. We will learn about the development of plants from seeds, the reproduction processes in plants, the way plants make their food, and how plants get their water and nutrients and distribute them throughout the body of the plant. They will learn about many different kinds of plants in Creation and where these plants belong in the plant classification system.

Table of Contents

Items we still need for this course:

List Pending

Items we would really like for this course:

Botanist Back Pack Kit
Plant Presses or Materials to Make a Wooden Plant Presses
Botany Survey Set

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