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1. Parent & Afterschool Resources | Grades   K – 2  |  Tip & How-To
   Engaging the Five Senses to Learn About Our World
   The outside world shapes children's development through experiences that they have, which include using their five senses—hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch. Drawing a child's attention to the five senses and discussing them increases understanding of and communication about the world around us.
2. Parent & Afterschool Resources | Grades   K – 2  |  Printout  |  Learning New Skills
   Exploring the Five Senses
   This printout helps engage children in the thinking about how their five senses contribute to their understanding of and communication about their world.
3. Classroom Resources | Grades   1 – 12  |  Calendar Activity  |  July 12
   Henry David Thoreau was born in 1817.
   Students make mental "snapshots" of a natural setting, then capture the details of their setting by writing and then creating a class booklet of the nature walk.
4. Classroom Resources | Grades   K – 6  |  Calendar Activity  |  August 21
   Monarch butterflies begin their migration in the fall.
   After exploring the ways that monarch butterflies react to seasons, students complete an inquiry study to examine how other things change because of the seasons and create a class anthology.
5. Classroom Resources | Grades   K – 6  |  Calendar Activity  |  January 20
   On this day in 1910, animal rights activist Joy Adamson was born.
   A KWL chart is used to organize information about lions. Persuasive letters are written lobbying for programs and resources to protect these animals.
6. Classroom Resources | Grades   K – 2  |  Lesson Plan  |  Unit
   Rain, Ice, Steam: Using Reading to Support Inquiry About the Water Cycle
   Water is always moving in a continuous cycle from liquid to solid to gas and back again. Students study this never-ending cycle through shared readings, center activities, and experiments.
7. Classroom Resources | Grades   1 – 5  |  Calendar Activity  |  November 3
   Stellaluna author Janell Cannon was born in 1957.
   After reading Stellaluna, students discuss themes in the story and do a unit on bats or a creative writing activity based on the book.
8. Parent & Afterschool Resources | Grades   K – 6  |  Activity & Project
   The Natural World as Inspiration: An Outdoor Art Show
   Children incorporate materials from outdoors with paints or crayons to create pieces of art to display on their clotheslines, fences, or porches for a neighborhood art show.
9. Classroom Resources | Grades   1 – 8  |  Calendar Activity  |  August 10
   The Smithsonian Institution was founded in 1846.
   After exploring an exhibit online, students use the information they learned to write "A Day in the Life" narratives that tell about a person, animal, or object they saw in the exhibit.