Pre-K Explorers Discover the Wonders of Nature

At the Swain Campus, our Pre-K explorers have been diving headfirst into the wild wonders of Pennsylvania, learning about animals such as the white-tailed deer, raccoons, red foxes, and eagles. We even went on a nature trek and built a life-sized eagle’s nest! This week, the adventure continued with our first bus ride and a field trip to the Wildlands Conservancy.

Our mini adventurers hiked a full half-mile to the Conservancy, where they got to meet two feathered friends: a Screech Owl and a pigeon. Each child had the chance to touch the pigeon if they wanted to, and many described it as “soft.” The fun didn’t stop there as our kiddos transformed pinecones into gourmet bird feeders, using Crisco as the glue to hold their birdseed banquet together.

In science class, which is new to Pre-K this year, Mr. Olenwine talked about turkeys. He allowed the students to feel and observe a turkey feather up close as he passed it around the room. We also learned a fun fact: turkeys have three different types of feathers—down feathers, flight feathers, and bristle feathers.

The Screech Owl at Wildlands reminded us of Baby Echo, the puppet owl used in our FUNdations curriculum. In Unit 1 of our Singapore Math curriculum, we are covering matching and sorting. This allowed us to discuss similarities and differences not only with Baby Echo but also with the changing seasons.

As we continued our field trip, our explorers “netted the meadow,” capturing insects. Our tour guide found a milkweed bug, placed it in a small container, and showed it to all of the students. Other insects, such as monarch butterflies, ladybugs, and beetles, are also very fond of milkweed. Later this school year, we will dive deeper into butterflies when we observe the life cycle of the painted lady butterfly.

On our first nature walk, as summer shifted into autumn, we observed the bold green leaves filled with chlorophyll. On today’s hike, we compared those to autumn leaves with less chlorophyll, hearing them crunch underfoot. With binoculars in hand, our scouts observed the seasonal transition, noticing more leaves on the ground than on the trees.

Developing social and emotional learning skills is important for everyone. We read The New Bird in Town, a story about an owl who faces challenges after moving to a new neighborhood. This story helps readers, and listeners like our Pre-K friends, recognize when others need help and how to respond politely and respectfully. Afterward, our little owl experts made their own owls out of paper plates.