IZZY RECOMMENDS!
There are a few good books and sites I want to recommend to you, my little readers...
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Are You My Mother by P.D. Eastman
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Spot Loves His Mommy by Eric Hill
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Where Is Baby's Mommy by Karen Katz
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The Night Before Mother's Day by Natasha Wing
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My Mom by Anthony Browne
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I Love You More by Karen Keesler
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Biscuit Loves Mother's Day by Alyssa Satin Capucilli
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They Came from Centerfield by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
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Mommy Hugs by Anne Gulman and Georg Hallensleben
MR. NICK'S SCIENCE EXPERIMENT!
Here are some fun science experiments YOU can try at home! Well hello to all of my junior scientists! Earth Day is here! In today's experiment, we will celebrate by creating a worm farm. You will discover why earthworms are important to human life and the planet earth! Some may call it fantastic, I call it SCIENCE!!
This experiment is courtesy of Weird Science Kids. For more fun and exciting experiments, visit their site.
First, let's talk about earthworms. We usually only see them after a heavy rain or if your going fishing. What do we really know about them? Well, worms feed by taking soil through their bodies. As they move, worms create tunnels which aerate the soil. Aeration is air gaps in the soil that provides plants with oxygen. These tunnels also allow rainwater to drain which gives plant roots room to grow. If it wasn't for earthworms, many plants would not survive.
Now, my junior scientists, it's time to take what we've learned and use it to answer the vast mysteries of the UNIVERSE! Such as, how can the simple earthworm help save the planet? To discover this we will use SCIENCE!
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A large wide-mouthed glass jar (pickle jar or mayonnaise jar works)
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Sand and soil
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Old rotten leaves
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Five or six earthworms (from garden or pet store)
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Black or dark construction paper
1. First put a 1/2 inch layer of sand on bottom of the jar.
2. Next add 1/2 inch layer of soil.
3. Continue to layer sand and soil until almost at top of the jar. (soil should be top layer)
4. Place worms on top of the garden soil. Put rotten leaves over the worms.
5. Wrap black or dark construction paper around the glass jar to keep the light out. After a few days, unwrap to see the tunnels.
6. Check soil to make sure it doesn't dry out. Moisten a little but don't soak or the worms will drown!
7. Worms should be kept in a cool dark place. Feed them a small amount of oatmeal every two weeks.
8. After watching their behavior for six to eight weeks, return the worms to the outdoors.