I honestly can’t believe that May is already upon us, and the Summer season is just about here. Here in Colorado, the trees are fully leafing out, flowers are growing, and the cold and warm weather are usually fighting it out.
Here are 6 nature study ideas, activities and books for the month of May:
1. Pollinators
Now that things are blooming, the pollinators have arrived! Bees, butterflies, beetles and many other creatures help to pollinate plants and trees and are vital to our planet’s food supply.
Go on a Pollinator Scavenger Hunt (FREE Printable!)
Learn to recognize pollinators visiting the plants in your yard with this FREE printable Pollinator Scavenger Hunt! Bring it out to your backyard and have your students search for pollinators, observing how they move from flower to flower.
Pollination STEM Activity
We love this fun pollination activity for kids! Their fingers become butterflies as they move “pollen” from flower to flower, learning how pollination works in the process. (You can find the pollination activity here.)
To learn more about pollinators and the role they play in the garden, check out The Garden Notebook!
Our Favorite Picture Books about Pollinators
Protect the Pollinators, by Rachael Zoller
My Pollinator Garden, by Jordan Zwetchkenbaum
Give Bees a Chance, by Bethany Barton
Bella’s Garden and the Magic of Bees, by Matt Bryson
2. Dandelions
I challenge you to find a more ubiquitous flower blooming right now than the dandelion. This humble flower, while many consider it a weed, can teach us so much about the plant life cycle – and it’s a vital food source for many pollinators. Since it’s one of the first flowers to pop up in the spring, bees and other insects rely on dandelions for their main food.
Dandelion Science Activity
This is the perfect time of year to try this simple experiment! For this activity, you’ll need a few dandelions that have already gone to seed, with a full seed head (the “clock”), and a clear glass jar of water.
Slowly and carefully, holding the dandelion by the bottom of the stem, completely submerge the clock into the water. Keep it in the water for a few seconds and observe the bubbles that form. Then, very carefully, remove the dandelion from the water.
It’s not magic ~ although from my kids’ oohs and aahs you would’ve thought it was. Dandelion heads are so delicate, you would think they’d fall apart after a dunk, but these incredible plants have a layer of air surrounding the seeds that protect it.
Each dandelion seed is attached to a fuzzy structure called a pappus, which is made of about 100 fine bristles with a lot of air in between ~ it’s actually 92% air! This creates a sort of protective air bubble around the seeds, and it’s also a reason why the seeds fly so amazingly well. Try dunking your fluffy dandelion heads at different speeds (and into different liquids) to see if it makes a difference!
Make Dandelion Crowns
Use the instructions below to create simple dandelion flower crowns! A perfect way to celebrate the beginning of summer.
Learn more about dandelions with the Spring Journal.
Our Favorite Picture Books about Dandelions
The Dandelion Seed, by Joseph Anthony
Dandelion’s Dream, by Yoko Tanaka
Little Dandelion Seeds the World, by Julia Richardson
3. Hummingbirds
This is the time of year when hummingbirds are finishing up their migration from South America to the northern region of North America. We’ve missed these adorable little friends and can’t wait to see them back at the feeders!
Learn all about common migrators (like hummingbirds) and the different kinds of migration with this FREE bird migration printable!
Our Favorite Picture Books about Hummingbirds
The Courage of the Little Hummingbird, by Leah Henderson
Migration: Incredible Animal Journeys, by Mike Unwin
4. Clouds and Weather
May is the rainiest month for many in the Northern Hemisphere, so it’s a great time to study weather ~ like clouds, rain, rainbows, thunderstorms, severe weather (like tornadoes), and the water cycle.
Make a Cloud Viewer
Take your students outside on a partly cloudy day and see what kinds of clouds you can spot. We love this DIY cloud viewer from Kids Kubby – it’s easy to make and a great way to learn about the different types of clouds!
Make the Water Cycle in a Bag
How does the continuous cycle of evaporation, condensation, and precipitation create weather? Teach your students all about the water cycle with this easy activity, using items you likely have laying around your house already!
Water Cycle in a Bag Science Activity
Our Favorite Picture Books about Weather
A Drop Around the World, by Barbara Shaw McKinney
The Wonder of Thunder, by Sharon Purtill
Sometimes Rain, by Meg Fleming
5. Spring Flowers
It’s spring, and so much is blooming outside right now! Take a quick stroll around your yard to see what’s blooming.
Flower Pounding
Preserve spring on cards (or watercolor paper) with this flower pounding activity! We made these for Mother’s Day cards one year and they were a hit. Try to identify what flowers are blooming in your yard before picking a few for this project.
Make Edible Flower Cookies
Make cookies that look (and taste) like spring! We love these shortbread cookies with edible flowers recipe!
Check out my Lilacs Mini Nature Study for more on Spring Flowers!
Our Favorite Picture Books about Spring Flowers
Miss Rumphius, by Barbara Cooney
The Big Book of Blooms, by Yuval Zommer
Flowers, by Gail Gibbons
Planting a Rainbow, by Lois Ehlert
6. Earthworms
Now that the soil has thawed and spring rains have started, you should start seeing earthworms pop up. These little creatures are important for the soil and fascinating to learn about.
Can Worms Smell? Science Experiment
Worms don’t have eyes, ears or noses… so can they smell? Try this experiment and see for yourself.
For this experiment, you will need an earthworm, a moist paper towel, a Q-tip, and vinegar.
First, place the place the earthworm on a moist paper towel. Dip a Q-tip into the test substance (vinegar). Gently hold the Q-tip near the end of the worm, but do not touch it. Observe the reaction. Does the earthworm move away in the opposite direction? This would indicate a negative reaction to that smell.
You can also try this with other odors. Divide a blank sheet of paper into four quadrants, and place one item on the corner of each quadrant. Examples might be a cotton ball soaked in vinegar, a cotton ball soaked in rubbing alcohol, mashed berries, mashed banana, damp coffee grounds, mushrooms, etc. Place an earthworm in the center of the paper and make a guess to which quadrant the worm will be most attracted to. Did you guess right?
So, can worms smell? While they lack noses, worms use sensory neurons on their rear ends to “smell” and detect odors.
Make a Worm Farm
See decomposers in action by making a worm farm – check it out here.
Our Favorite Picture Books about Earthworms
Martin Snell and his Worm Hotel, by Susan Frazee
Wiggling Worms at Work, by Wendy Pfeffer
Worm Makes a Sandwich, by Brianne Farley
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