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hylabrook1
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| Posted: April 16 2010 at 8:52am | IP Logged
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Dd will be entering 9th in the fall. She is more interested in Botany than in Zoology. Looking at materials, it seems most sources cover Zoology far more in depth than they cover Botany. Any suggestions as far as materials and approaches that might help us develop a Botany course?
Peace,
Nancy
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vmalott
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| Posted: April 16 2010 at 8:57am | IP Logged
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No help here, but I will be checking back to see if anyone else has some input. My dd 15 would much rather dissect plants! 
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Valerie
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Kristie 4
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Yes, my dh and my kids don't want to dissect anything!
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Kristie in Canada
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Mackfam
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| Posted: April 16 2010 at 12:17pm | IP Logged
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I built a course this year that seems to fit what you are describing. This plan was built for an 8th grader, but we incorporated enough that I think it could count for 9th grade credit.
This is a Natural History course with an emphasis on Botany:
We focused on one Naturalist for study - Edith Holden. There are many others that could be chosen for this, but because our Botany course was a part of a larger course focusing on the Victorian period, this naturalist made sense and was very inspiring! Edwardians/Victorians had a special hobby of observing and identifying botanical information, so the breadth of knowledge during that period of the *average person* is really quite astounding.
BOOKLIST
** Amateur Naturalist by Lee and Gerald Durell (**NOTE** This book is out of print, but worth the find! I like it because while it fosters a sound and common sense approach to ecological stewardship, it doesn't go overboard. It was originally published in 1982 by Dorling Kindersley)
** The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden
** Edwardian Lady: The Life of Edith Holden compiled by Ina Taylor
** The Nature Notes of an Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden
** Learn to Draw Nature in the Style of the Edwardian Lady published by ArtTricks
** The Botany Coloring Book by Paul Young - this was a core book of the course. There is almost enough information in this book to build a very solid course in Botany! Don't let the idea that this is a coloring book fool you - it is DENSELY PACKED with information on each page. Each coloring page gets a 2-page spread - one detailing information, one for coloring with a key for differentiating certain aspects of the image (ex. parts of a flower, plant cell structure, etc.)
** Botany in a Day by Thomas Elpel (**NOTE** This author has written some books that have a definite New Age bent, however the book Botany in a Day is strictly science information. We found it a very helpful tool, but I wanted to mention the author's connections for consideration.)
** Winter Tree Finder by May Thielgaard Watts and Tom Watts (**NOTE** these small booklets would be an adequate substitute for Botany in a Day if you choose not to use it.)
** Winter Weed Finder by Dorcas Miller (see above note)
** Fern Finder by Anne and Barbara Hallowell (see above note)
** Flower Finder by May Thielgaard Watts (see above note)
** Keeping a Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie
** Favorite Wildflowers coloring book published by Dover (Edited to add...) Wildflowers - Peterson Field Guide Coloring Books and Botany Illustrated by Janice Glimn-Lacy and Peter Kaufman.
** Countryside Rambles by William Furneaux (out of print and difficult to find copies, but great for seasonal encouragement and awareness of natural observations in various settings - fences and hedgerows, woodlands, etc.)
** Nature Through the Seasons by Richard Adams (**NOTE** this book is out of print, but easier and very inexpensive to find used than Countryside Rambles - it would be a good substitute. Great color illustrations and detail throughout.)
** A variety of field guides and reference...too many to list, but you'll need to have a good selection for identification and research. My favorites are Golden Guides. I prefer Peterson to Audubon guides (personal pref). And for general use and reference I like Readers Digest North American Wildlife.
PROJECTS:
** Wildflowers, Weeds, and Garden Flowers journal (notebooking pages available here). This study coordinates with the PLANTS section in Anna Botsford Comstock's, Handbook of Nature Study
** Complete a diary/journal of the natural year as it relates to our local setting. At least one monthly page required in the journal with botanical information detailed. Use a variety of media to illustrate Natural Year Journal, including watercolors. In addition to Clare Walker Leslie's books on nature journals, check out John Hawkinson's Collect and Paint from Nature and More to Collect and Paint from Nature - very helpful and simple!!
** Dissect and identify flower, seed, nut, fungus Spore Prints project (use guide to identify safe and common mushroom for this...if unsure...use ones from the grocery store. ) Flower dissection helps here.
** Specific project directed nature walks with seasonal emphasis...example - when reading Winter Tree Finder we walked in an unknown area and the assignment was to identify and illustrate 3 unknown trees based on the guidelines offered in Ms. Millers booklet.
** Observe plant dispersal and consider and explain various dispersal methods. Ex: maple tree in the front yard is easy...but be able to offer an explanation for why a sassafras tree is growing in the front garden when we don't have a sassafrass tree near the house. Begin to observe unique plants growing in out of the way locations on nature walks...are they a seed or spore dispersal plant? how did they get there?
** Document observation of pollination with butterfly, bee, other insects.
** Pond water analysis with Pond test kit. Algae observation under the microscope.Pond Study was on my agenda but will be saved for another day.
** Photosynthesis - Watch it Happen - further study: Photosynthesis: Sneak Peak inside a Leaf. (We didn't complete this project, but it would be fun...so mentioning...Photosynthesis: Test for Starch)
** Growing Mold - use of microscope helpful.
** Leaf Chromatography - should be done before the fall. Further information specifically for the fall - How Leaves Change Color in the Fall
** The following project will be completed next year, but applies here: Bioassay Test for toxicity of seeds
** Don't forget to check into local service options that would further foster a botanical study. Check with your local botanical gardens or nature conservancy.
NOTES:
** I broke the books down into plans seasonally which made more sense when studying Botany.
** Projects were encouraged seasonally based on the local offerings here.
** We're wrapping up our study here and we have thoroughly enjoyed it.
** Use of p. 33 - 46 of Science Scope to reference coverage checkpoints of course for thoroughness.
Don't know if this is helpful or what you're looking for, but I thought I'd share.
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19 , ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: April 16 2010 at 12:35pm | IP Logged
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Oh jen, I'm gonna have to come back and look at this.. my dh would be tickled with a course strong in botany.. and with that interest by dad.. I have the feeling the kids will be very interested too 
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Kristie 4
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| Posted: April 16 2010 at 6:14pm | IP Logged
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I love it Jen- but how does it work out in the day to day? That is always my sticking point!!
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Kristie in Canada
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Mackfam
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| Posted: April 21 2010 at 9:20am | IP Logged
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I'm sorry it's taken me a bit to get back to your question, Kristie!
Kristie 4 wrote:
| I love it Jen- but how does it work out in the day to day? That is always my sticking point!! |
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It could look very different from family to family, but in general, here's how I divided it up.
By season and term
I planned my 8th graders plans in 4 baskets for the year...think of it as 4 terms or quarters. This helped me break down the Botany plans by season. For example, it is difficult to identify ferns in the middle of winter, and it's impossible to apply winter botany identification skills in the fullness of spring. Many of the books were easy to divide up seasonally. So, that was my first step.
Weekly Meeting to Daily Plans
Once term plans and booklists were in place (which we called a "basket") my dd and I met weekly. Knowing what our week looked like in terms of meetings, appts, she and I began planning out the details of a week together, breaking them into daily plans. I helped her with this at first, but she plans her details on her own now. I have listed a number of details on her basket of work plans - so for example written narrations/biographies, supplemental field work, projects, experiments, DVD's that might enhance a lesson, etc. She is learning how to incorporate these details that I have listed into her daily plans so that they work for her. She has learned that she enjoys and prefers reading an entire book and really digging into it before she starts a project based on those ideas. That's her personal pref. A different student might really enjoy working on a project while reading about it. That's why I said plans and living a booklist like this would look different from student to student. Reflecting and considering these things is a good first step for my dd to learn the *how to* and application of planning and managing her time.
Specifically, my dd and I look at the books listed on our basket of plans, and my dd takes a look at the subject matter and books listed. She considers what she will read and focus on for the week and how long it will take her to read it, considering additional assignments attached to that book, leaving room for open ended work (ideas she might want to pursue or rabbit trails that naturally spring up during the course of reading a book), and my dd assigns herself a certain number of pages for a week...or she might say, "I can finish this book in a week, but I will work on the writing projects next week."
So...sorry if this was a bit of a generic *how do I plan/live the plan* post...but that's how I get from a big booklist with other ideas down to daily work. I break it into manageable chunks (terms or quarters) and from there into bitesize chunks (weekly and daily plans).
Here are a couple of examples of *daily assignments* for you to consider. These come from this year's work:
** Amateur Naturalist - p. 241 - 251. Locate a plant stem from the back treeline (not a tree - do we have any wild mint growing back there?). Snip a 4 inch section. Following detailed directions on p. 250, cut small sections for viewing under microsope. What can you identify? Illustrate.
** Nature Through the Seasons - read p. 10 - 23. Begin journaling different species of butterflies as they are seen in the front garden.
** Winter Tree Finder - read p. 1 - 5. The rest of the book is an identification guide. Nature Walk - Winter Tree Identification. This week's tree: choose a tall tree in the woods (one whose crown is at the top of the forest canopy) and try to identify using the Winter Tree Finder. Illustrate bud or twig in nature journal. (**NOTE** there were several assignments from this small booklet - each encouraging identification of a tree from various settings - river bank, lowland, tall forest tree, under taller trees, bogs/swamps, edge of forest, etc. We tried to identify winter trees from a few different settings. We're fortunate that many of these settings are practically in our back yard.)
** The Edwardian Lady, The Story of Edith Holden - read p. 6 - 58. Written narration.
HTH, Kristie!
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Jen Mackintosh
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Kristie 4
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| Posted: April 21 2010 at 11:09am | IP Logged
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Thanks Jen...I will peruse it when I get time later today!
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Kristie in Canada
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Kristie 4
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| Posted: April 21 2010 at 11:31am | IP Logged
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Jen, are these actual 'daily' assignments. It seems like a lot for one day if one was completing assignments in history, religion etc. For example, reading 50 pages in one book if one were also doing reading in a number of other subjects as well.
I like how you have broken it down though. Right now I am fleshing out our 9th grade text more- I am doing it more on the fly, but my ds and I are enjoying going more in depth with the various topics using a range of resources rather that flying through them in the text!
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Kristie in Canada
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: April 21 2010 at 12:17pm | IP Logged
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Jennifer, this is so amazingly fantastic!!!!
You never fail to amaze me!
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Mackfam
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| Posted: April 21 2010 at 12:26pm | IP Logged
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Kristie 4 wrote:
| Jen, are these actual 'daily' assignments. It seems like a lot for one day if one was completing assignments in history, religion etc. For example, reading 50 pages in one book if one were also doing reading in a number of other subjects as well. |
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I'm so glad you asked that question, Kristie!
My dd chooses to focus in depth on one or two subjects at a time which is why the daily assignments for Botany that I have listed seem VERY heavy. Again, this is her pref, and you could just divide up all the work to spread out evenly. She's also a voracious reader, so what seems doable to her might be overwhelming to another.
In a given day non-negotiables are: math, religion and some latin. My dd chooses what other subjects she works on in addition to those. Since everything in her studies is inter-related (botany, history, literature, handworks and crafts, homemaking skills) this approach works for us. Even in focusing on one or two subjects at a time, topics are connected and inter-related because what we're doing is really just a big unit study. So, she might choose to really work through her Botany reading for a couple of weeks and enjoy her projects...while reading her literature selections as well. There really isn't a mathematical equation to how it works out, it just does. We're both attentive to what is going on and where we are, and where she needs to be, and just move forward accordingly.
Thanks so much for asking and giving me a chance to clarify that! 
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Jen Mackintosh
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Mackfam
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lapazfarm wrote:
Jennifer, this is so amazingly fantastic!!!!
You never fail to amaze me! |
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Thanks, Theresa!  What a compliment coming from you!
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Jen Mackintosh
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Wildflowers and Marbles
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Kristie 4
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| Posted: April 21 2010 at 1:58pm | IP Logged
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Sounds like how my dd likes to learn- except the voracious reader part....her's would be the voracious crafter (likes to do needlework and sewing in bed to get 'sleepy' instead of reading!)
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Kristie in Canada
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Angel
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| Posted: April 21 2010 at 4:04pm | IP Logged
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Quick question, Jen: are these "daily assignments" assignments which you have prepared ahead of time for your dd or assignments which you develop together with your dd? If they're assignments you develop ahead of time, how much ahead of time and how do you keep track of them?
(Well,it was a quick question for me to *ask* anyway )
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Mackfam
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Angel wrote:
| Quick question, Jen: are these "daily assignments" assignments which you have prepared ahead of time for your dd or assignments which you develop together with your dd? If they're assignments you develop ahead of time, how much ahead of time and how do you keep track of them? |
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We collaborate together during weekly meetings reflecting on the quarterly plans listed. When we collaborate together we look at the books she has chosen to work on for the week, and we discuss together the projects that I might not have already assigned as part of the project work to be completed. I don't write out detailed assignments on the quarterly plans, but I do list books and some larger projects to be completed. Smaller projects sometimes show themselves as we reflect and consider the work upcoming during our weekly meetings.
An example would be the Amateur Naturalist assignment listed above. In considering the breakdown of work for the week, we quickly reviewed that entire chapter together. I saw a couple of areas in there that I thought would be good mini-projects (hands on work that takes a day or two to complete with items we have on hand). We quickly discuss and collaborate together and daily plans for the week are built from that point.
I have been encouraging my dd to work out these daily assignments in our weekly collaborations. She is building valuable skills in time management in this way.
I like addressing the general road map of where we're going in big picture type outlines and booklists built at the beginning of the year, but leaving the detailed planning for a time closer to when we'll be living it so that I can reflect on where we've been and the kids and I can collaborate together about our direction.
This is just how we work though, not necessarily the answer for all! There are many ways to plan for and live out a booklist!
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Jen Mackintosh
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Angel
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| Posted: April 22 2010 at 7:12am | IP Logged
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Thanks, Jen, for clarifying.
I did want to also mention that the Boy Scout Merit Badge books are well-suited to this kind of study, too,and anybody can buy them; you don't need to be involved in scouting. There are merit badge books for plant science (it includes options for agrononomy, horticulture, and field botany), forestry, and gardening.
Lots of potential for some interesting gardening projects/experiments, too.
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Angela
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Paula in MN
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Jen, this is wonderful. Thank you.
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Paula
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4Real Forums : Exploring God's Creation in Nature and Science
Topic: High School Bio, emphasizing Botany
