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Becky Parker
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| Posted: Aug 12 2006 at 7:09am | IP Logged
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When we started homeschooling, 5 years ago, the Handbook of Nature Study came highly recommended. I bought it, and I read it, and every year I say I'm going to use it with my kids, but it doesn't find it's way off my shelf.  So I'm just wondering, if you have this book, how do you put it to use? I want to make sure I add that we are big nature study fans here. Our hikes are the highlight of our year! I just haven't incorporated this book into our study very well.
Thanks!
Becky
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hylabrook1
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I can't wait to read what everyone has to say about this! This is one of the *first* books always recommended when someone says they are going to do a CM-type approach. I've looked through it and am fascinated, but it seems like more a reference than anything. That is not a bad thing at all, but I have often wondered whether I am getting the right idea by viewing it this way. Hmmm...
Nancy
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lapazfarm
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I have it and don't use it alot. Sometimes I will pull it out as a reference or to get ideas, but I don't use it as laid out, with the question-and-answer format. But then again, I never use anything as laid out!LOL! And I never do question-and-answer activities. Just not my style.
I find other books and websites much more helpful, personally.
Oh, I forgot, one way I do use it is to find poetry related to what we are studying to add to our notebooks. I like that she has a poem to go with just about anything!
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning
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jdostalik
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I know the book is pretty hefty, but I've been known to take it along in our extra large LLBean Canvas Tote (the book's not that big, when you use this supersized bag!) 
I tend to fail when it comes to using the Handbook of Nature Study after we get home from a nature outing--if we have it with us, it gets pulled out pretty often on site!
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Jennifer in TX
wife to Bill, mom to six here on earth and eight in heaven.
Let the Little Ones Come
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Becky Parker
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| Posted: Aug 14 2006 at 5:46am | IP Logged
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Well, it's nice to know I'm not the only one. Jennifer, when you take it with you, do you use the questions to discuss your nature find, or do you use the information about it and read it with the kiddos? It says not to read the information to the kids but let them explore the item through leading questions, but sometimes, I think the kids would like me to just read the info to them. It is written so well - not a boring textbook read but almost story like. Well, I'm still not sure what to do here. Taking it with us is a little difficult because I usually have my little guy on my back (and he's not as little as he used to be!). I hate to carry too many guides. I'll have to think this through some more I guess.
Becky
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TracyQ
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We've used it as more of a field guide often when I just can't find it in other guides. I've been able to find things I never thought I would. It's a neat book, but I too should utilize it more.
Maybe I will this year using The Prairie Primer, and doing more nature study. 
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Tracy Q.
wife of Marty for 20 years, mom of 3 wonderful children (1 homeschool graduate, 1 12th grader, and a 9th grader),
 homeschooling in 15th year in Buffalo, NY
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Kelly
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Sometimes I xerox the pages appropos to what we're studying, makes for easier use "in the field" or wherever.
I can't say I use the book A LOT, but I find it very useful when I do use it. When I first got the book, I noticed it tends to focus on flora and fauna of the NE, and I almost got rid of the book, us being in FL. I'm awfully glad I didn't. It really is a fountain of information. We've been working on setting up a Bird Camp, and it has lots of good ideas for studing birds, starting with domesticated birds like chickens and moving all the way down the spectrum to raptors.
Kelly in FL
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Helen
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We use this book while we are in our yard. It is very difficult to bring anywhere because of its size. The children and I enjoy the engaging text. I find it more of a living book than a reference book because the author has many personal anecdotes and a friendly style rather than an encyclopedic flavor. Maybe because we live in the Northeast, this book works for us. Ms. Comstock worked at Cornell U in upstate NY and we find many of her observations relevant to what we find in the yard.
I find I either read her entry *or* try to follow the detailed instructions for observation. I have found to do both is redundant. (There aren't too many times we actually followed through on her more classroom like suggestions.) If the kids experience 'drift away' while I am reading I just keep reading hoping to remember some of the great information for the next time we stumble across a salamander, frog or hummingbird moth.
Many times we will first use an Audobon field guide with big, hearty pictures to identify a creature and then later on turn to Ms. Comstock to flesh out the information.
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~Rachel~
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I love the book... my only problem is that I never realise what a fantastic resource it is until it is too late!
Case in point, I have recently been reviewing many of my homeschool books, and I looked back at this, only to find that there is a fantastic section on swallowtail caterpillars that had I but looked, would have been very useful a few weeks before!
It has a series of different experiments that you can do with each subject... in the case of the caterpillars, you observe different traits of them, and it will nicely explain what will happen if you do x, y or z. She has illustrated all of her entries with anecdotes from when she was a child! Very interesting!
Luckily for my kids, we have some new caterpillars to try the things out on!!
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Willa
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I am bumping up this thread to mention that someone in an e-list gave this link to Handbook of Nature Study online in text and pdf form.
She said she uses it to print out sections for her daughter's notebook. This seems like a way to make the book more useful and accessible so I thought I would share.
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Willa
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SuzanneG
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Barb has a GREAT BLOG on Nature Study using this Handbook:
Handbook of Nature Study
She has "outdoor hour challenges" that are VERY do-able!!! We've done several of these this summer and it's really fun. Tips for getting started are on the right sidebar.
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Suzanne in ID
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hmbress
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Becky, I'm glad you asked this question, as I was wondering the very same thing.
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Heather Rose (ds13, ds10)
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Lori B
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A friend of mine took her copy of HONS to Staples, had them take off the binding and spiral-bind it in sections. She only has to take one small section with her on outings (they pick a topic to study each term and focus on that almost exclusively).
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4Real Forums : Exploring God's Creation in Nature and Science
Topic: Handbook of Nature Study
