We started this study by reading the beautiful book “The Acorn’s Story.” It does not appear to be in print at the moment but there are some used copies on Amazon for as little as $0.13. I highly recommend it for the Preschool-1st grade range. It is quite lovely.

We looked in our neighborhood and could not find an oak tree to study so we packed up and headed to the park. Gammy and Othy joined us. We collected lots of acorns and then sat down at a picnic table to draw in our journals. It was chillier than we planned for and we ended up rummaging through the car for extra layers. Once we were warm enough, we chose what appears to be a White Oak to focus on. BTW – If you would like to make your own Treasure Pouch for nature collecting it is the Free Pattern of the Month on Wee Folk Art right now.

Here are some of our observations:

No acorns left on the tree.

Grey, rough bark.

Leaves yellow/green.

Leaves have rounded lobes.

Leaves about 3-6in long.

Tree bending to one side at the top to get out of the shade of the other trees.

Some very twisty branches.

Acorn top covers about 1/3 of the whole acorn.

Acorn top looks slightly scaly.

Acorn is brownish.

Most acorns had detached from their caps.

When we got home we decided to try and plant some acorns to see what would happen. Since White Oaks acorns mature in one year we shouldn’t need any dormant time in order to sprout the trees. I will post an update if we get some progress.

Then during the girls’ nap time I had Bug check out this awesome web program about trees: Exploring the Secret Lives of Trees. He really enjoyed and went through the whole program twice. Check it out!

Join in the Outdoor Hour Nature Studies.