Cassie has been obsessed with worms lately and we've been playing in the dirt quite a bit! She is following in my footsteps... since I enjoy gardening and playing in the dirt too! We happened to come across the book Yucky Worms by Vivian French at the library and fell in love with it!! It is a great story and it has some fabulous facts about worms that I've never heard before! If your kids are grossed out by worms it is a good book to help explain that they are not just yucky---and that there is so much more to these amazing creatures!
Here are some wonderful pictures of Cassie enjoying worms! I'm so glad that my daughter enjoys digging and playing in the dirt! She watches me garden and play in the mud all the time!
Here is Cassie still observing her worms! She enjoys letting the worms wriggle around her hand and tickle her! She quickly drops the worms back to the dirt! In the book it explains how worms move and that you should put them back after looking at them because the dirt is their home! Cassie learns quickly!
Here are the yucky worms we discovered underneath a huge rock in our backyard! Cassie loves looking for bugs too! In the book it explains the difference between a young worm and an adult worm! We quickly observed that too! We also observed why they come to the surface after it rains! It has rained here a lot lately and there is a reason you find worms all over the pavement! This book tells you why!
***If you are wondering if there are any projects to do with worms? Here is one involving painting with worms!!! Painting with Earthworms is a Great Art Project for Your Preschoolers I think we would use spaghetti instead...I would feel I would be harming the worms!!!!
***Here is our link to our Spaghetti Worm Painting that we did after this posting...Take a look here!
***Build a "Worm Hotel" from Your Big Backyard Magazine here!
What creatures do your children like to explore in Nature?
What valuable experiences have your children had while observing Nature?
Would You Paint With Worms???
This post is good timing as now that spring is here the whole outdoor world of bugs is open to our children!
I am planning to allow my children lots of learning and exploring about bugs, and am going to look for this book at the library. It looks very good!
I wouldn't want to paint with worms either, as they are "living creatures". I generally encourage my kids to see bugs as living creatures to discourage some of the squishing, and stomping on of bugs, although that seems inevitable when it comes to children and bugs.
I haven't used spaghetti for painting, but a co-worker did, they had FUN.
Melissa, I'd like to invite you over to my early childhood blog, I've purchased my camera, and have posted a few pictures of my daycare environment.
I love the pictures of Cassie enjoying the dirt and worms!
Usually b oth in the spring and fall here, we get huge masses of ladybugs, and that is one of the first bugs my children observe.
Cassie and Anna would make good friends! She loves digging for worms and observing bugs. Her favorites are snails. And I am with you - I would never paint with worms. Snails, on the other hand... Hmm... Oh, and I will make sure to look for this book!
My kids love worms too! I think it is weird, but I love that they are so adventurous (unlike me as a a child) I am so glad you shared that book! I will get it at the library asap. And painting with spaghetti "worms" sounds wonderful. I can't wait to see your post about that.
well, we've never painted with worms,but we have dipped long strands of yarn into paint and splatted them on paper. they're a great (cleaner!) way to teach kids about Jackson Pollock rather than splattering paintbrushes everywhere!
also, sorry my hyperlinks aren't working on my blog. i had to type out the entire link. for some reason blogger is adding a prefix to all my link address and i can't get rid of it! thanks for bringing it to my attention!
My son (and I) love worms! I wouldn't paint with them; it might harm them. But like Joanna said, I've used yarn for "worm" painting. I use a clothespin to hold the string and it can make it a little easier for hands to hold.
I love worms too and its good for kids to learn and explore about bugs. I loved the smile on your daughter's face.
I'm going to have to hunt this book down. The kids at preschool LOVE worms, and given that it has been raining pretty much non stop for a week or two there are plenty about!
I already commented on this before I noticed it was shared at my blog party. Thanks for joining us again!
I think we would have a blast painting with spaghetti worms. Thanks for the tip and the great book pick we will have to see if our library has this one soon. I don't think C has ever seen a worm.
Oooh playing with worms! Brilliant. My 3yrs old always wants to "stroke them"... and today we explored tadpoles too!
We just started a compost box. JDaniel loves taking care of the worms.
Now this is one lesson I'd have to hand over to the teacher! Another fun activity for the RC - thank you!
I love digging for worms and playing with them. My girls are not as enthusiastic as I am though. Sam is convinced that they hurt her when she holds them.
Thanks for joining the outdoor play link up!
Cassie is my hero! Seriously, that girl knows how to get her hands dirty and loves it!
I'll have to look for this book. Princess Pea for some reason has a real fascination with worms (though she would never consider touching them!), and the last two springs have found us trying to look up worm info on the web (great link to the 10 facts by the way).
Thanks for linking up to Outdoor Play!
Love the pictures and the expressions on your daughter's face. I have to pick up this book.!