Listening
Day 3- Sit in your SP for 10 minutes and listen closely to everything you can hear. Make a list of as many things as you can-- at least five more than you identified on Day 1. After you practice quiet listening a few times you will notice that you hear more sounds without even trying- this is an important detective skill! (You can make this a competition with a sibling or parent too) Number your sounds.
Day 3- Sit in your SP for 10 minutes and listen closely to everything you can hear. Make a list of as many things as you can-- at least five more than you identified on Day 1. After you practice quiet listening a few times you will notice that you hear more sounds without even trying- this is an important detective skill! (You can make this a competition with a sibling or parent too) Number your sounds.
After you are done, review your spelling with a parent or guardian. Talk about how to spell anything you misspelled.
After you are done, review your spelling with a parent or guardian. Talk about how to spell anything you misspelled.
Day 4- Be a Bird Detective! Sit in your SP for 10 minutes and listen carefully. Many of the sounds you will hear are birds- listen carefully to all of the different bird calls you hear and count how many different ones you can identify. Draw the birds and describe the calls in your journal. Later with a parent listen to some different types of calls and try and identify all the birds you heard. (There is also an app)
Day 4- Be a Bird Detective! Sit in your SP for 10 minutes and listen carefully. Many of the sounds you will hear are birds- listen carefully to all of the different bird calls you hear and count how many different ones you can identify. Draw the birds and describe the calls in your journal. Later with a parent listen to some different types of calls and try and identify all the birds you heard. (There is also an app)
*Extension- Look at some different types of nests that birds build and try and build your own outside in your yard or inside with blankets. Talk about what a good nest needs: shelter, camouflage, soft bedding materials etc. Then make a nesting material dispenser. (Examples using types of holders here, here and here, there is conflicting advice about what materials are safe, use your best judgement) You can search around you yard/neighborhood later in summer and try and find where your materials ended up!
*Extension- Look at some different types of nests that birds build and try and build your own outside in your yard or inside with blankets. Talk about what a good nest needs: shelter, camouflage, soft bedding materials etc. Then make a nesting material dispenser. (Examples using types of holders here, here and here, there is conflicting advice about what materials are safe, use your best judgement) You can search around you yard/neighborhood later in summer and try and find where your materials ended up!
Day 5- Sit in your SP for 10 minutes and listen carefully for bird calls again. This time use tally marks to record how many of each type of call you hear. Either write the name of the bird if you are able to identify it or just describe the sound and try to ID the bird later. Once you have recorded your data make a bar graph in your journal to determine which birds you heard the most frequently. You can draw pictures of the birds, use stickers or some other type of mark to record the birds on your graph. (Or use the bird images below)
Day 5- Sit in your SP for 10 minutes and listen carefully for bird calls again. This time use tally marks to record how many of each type of call you hear. Either write the name of the bird if you are able to identify it or just describe the sound and try to ID the bird later. Once you have recorded your data make a bar graph in your journal to determine which birds you heard the most frequently. You can draw pictures of the birds, use stickers or some other type of mark to record the birds on your graph. (Or use the bird images below)
Another Day - Sit in your SP for 20 minutes and listen carefully for different sounds again. Now that you have been doing this for several days it should be easier to pick up different sounds. Make a symbol for the different types of sounds you hear (bird sounds, people sounds, car or machine sounds etc.) Your symbol should be simple enough to draw over and over and have some connection to what it represents. On one side of your journal make a key to explain what each symbol represents. Draw yourself in the center of the paper. Now start drawing the symbols where you hear sounds coming from. Close your eyes and really focus on what direction the different sounds are coming from and then try and mark them on your sound map. Make the symbols larger for a louder sound and smaller for a quiet sound.
Another Day - Sit in your SP for 20 minutes and listen carefully for different sounds again. Now that you have been doing this for several days it should be easier to pick up different sounds. Make a symbol for the different types of sounds you hear (bird sounds, people sounds, car or machine sounds etc.) Your symbol should be simple enough to draw over and over and have some connection to what it represents. On one side of your journal make a key to explain what each symbol represents. Draw yourself in the center of the paper. Now start drawing the symbols where you hear sounds coming from. Close your eyes and really focus on what direction the different sounds are coming from and then try and mark them on your sound map. Make the symbols larger for a louder sound and smaller for a quiet sound.
