Mater Amabilis™

Level 1B Nature Study

North American Animal Life, Landscapes, and Ecosystems

A year’s study of the natural world with a two term emphasis on tide pools.

Time requirement: One lesson weekly (with an optional second lesson using The Burgess Seashore Book) and one nature walk/study weekly.

Teacher involvement: Read aloud and wonder together!

Pagoo by Holling C. Holling

Nature Anatomy by Julia Rothman
This gorgeous book offers hundreds of beautiful pieces of art illustrating countless concepts, collections, and observations throughout the natural world. We have scheduled it to accompany the science and geography lessons throughout Level 1. It is not essential, but as a single book, it does a lot of heavy lifting!

Ocean Anatomy by Julia Rothman
If you love Nature Anatomy, you might like using Ocean Anatomy to accompany your studies of Tidepool Life in Terms 2 and 3 

Crinkleroot’s Guide to Knowing Animal Habitats by Jim Arnosky
Out of print but available as a kindle book, this book gives an overview of all the habitats covered in Term 1.

Lots of Library Books!
An extensive list of nature books accompanies the plans for Term 1. Use what is available to you.

Optional Extra Reading: The Burgess Seashore Book by Thornton Burgess (spread throughout the year at approximately a chapter a week)

TERM 1:

North American Animals and Landscapes

References to topics found in Nature Anatomy and picture books that go along with those topics are listed for each Lesson below. Don’t feel you need to follow this strictly as a schedule.

One way to approach this study would be to request what you can from the library throughout the term, and as books become available, put them in a basket. For this lesson time, choose a book from the basket, read it together, and then use the Nature Anatomy references to supplement your reading.

There is no wrong way to do it. Just read and explore the wonders of animals and their habitats together!

Lesson 1: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “Animals in the Neighborhood” & “Anatomy of a Bat” pp. 132-135
  • From the library:
    • Raccoons and Ripe Corn (Arnosky)
    • Stella-Luna (Cannon)
    • Rabbits in Raindrops (Arnosky)

Lesson 2: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “Tree Squirrels” “Ground Squirrels” “Bears” and “The Animal Underground” pp. 136-139
  • From the library:
    • Blueberries for Sal (McCloskey)
    • Over and Under the Snow (Messner)
    • Bear Snores On (Wilson)

Lesson 3: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “Snakes” “Lizards” “Salamander” “Turtles” pp. 142-143 & 152-153
  • From the library:
    • Frogs, Toads, Lizards, and Salamanders (Parker)
    • The Salamander Room (Mazer)
    • The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash (Noble)
    • Over in the Meadow (illus. by Keats)
    • The Frog Book (Jenkins)
    • All About Alligators (Arnosky)
    • All About Lizards (Arnosky)

Lesson 4: 

  • Nature Anatomy: North American Landscapes: Deserts p. 30
  • From the library:
    • A Desert Scrapbook: Dawn to Dusk in the Sonoran Desert (Wright-Frierson)
    • Cactus Hotel (Guiberson)
    • Don’t Call Me a Pig: A Javelina Story (Storad)
    • The Three Little Javelinas (Lowell)
    • Roxaboxen (McLerran)

Lesson 5: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “Wild Cats” “Wild “Dogs” “Animals with Antlers and Horns” pp. 144-147 
  • From the library:
    • Tomten and the Fox (Lindgren)
    • The Buffalo Are Back (George)
    • All About Deer (Arnosky)

Lesson 6: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “North American Landscapes: Grasslands” p. 31 “Sedges, Rushes, Grasses” pp.82-83
  • From the library:
    • The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush (de Paola)
    • The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses (Goble)
    • The Buffalo Are Back (George)

Lesson 7: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “North American Landscapes: Swamp” “Sphagnum Bog” pp. 34-35
  • From the library: 
    • Explore a Spooky Swamp (Messner)

Lesson 8: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “Aquatic Mammals” “Beaver Dam” pp. 148-151
  • From the library:
    • Turtle’s Race with Beaver (Bruchac)
    • Otters Underwater (Arnosky)

Lesson 9: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “Ecosystem of a Pond” pp. 194-195
  • From the library:
    • Over and Under the Pond (Cortesi)
    • Pond (Morrison)

Lesson 10: 

  • Nature Anatomy: “Marine Mammals”  pp. 156-159
  • From the library:
    • Sam the Sea Cow (Jacobs)
    • Big Blue Whale (Davies)
    • All About Manatees (Arnosky)

Lesson 11: 

  1. Nature Anatomy: “North American Landscapes: Sandy Shore, Rocky Coast, and Moist Coastal Forest” pp. 32-33
  2. From the library:
    • One Morning in Maine (McCloskey)

Lesson 12: Catch-up/Exams

TERMS 2-3: Pagoo 

The story of Pagoo in Tide Pool Town presents a perfect early opportunity for the practice of notebook “keeping.” Charlotte Mason educator, Celeste Cruz, has some lovely examples of her childrens’ notebooking while reading Pagoo on her blog, Joyous Lessons.

TERM 2

Week 1: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 1 Pagoo Might be a Hermit Crab

Week 2: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 2 Shifting Tides and Changing Hides
    • Nature Anatomy: “Tidal Zone Ecosystem” pp. 204-205

Week 3: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 3 Pagoo is a Hermit Crab!
    • Nature Anatomy: “On the Sand” p. 211

Week 4: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 4 At the Ringside
    • Nature Anatomy: “Seashells by the Seashore” pp. 212-213

Week 5: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 5 A Ride and a Fall Far, Far From Home

Week 6: 

Week 7: 

Week 8: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 8 Around Snail Cousins’ Rock
    • Nature Anatomy: “Some Seaweed” pp. 214-215

Week 9: 

Week 10: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 10 Houses are Scarce in Tide-Pool Towns

Week 11: 

  • Another book you may have not had time for in Term 1!

Week 12: Catch-up/Exams

TERM 3

Week 1: 

Week 2: 

Week 3: 

Week 4: 

Week 5: 

Week 6: 

Week 7: 

Week 8: 

  • Pagoo Ch. 18 Down to the Depths of Deep Hole

Week 9: 

Week 10: 

Week 11: 

  • Another book you may have not had time for in Term 1!

Week 12: Catch-up/Exams

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