Wonder Bugs: Dragonfly By!

Summer sure is flying by! Last week's Wonder Bugs session was Dragon-fly By and dagonflies flew by all day long every day!There were plenty of nymphs (baby dragonflies) to observe and catch in the pond too!  I hope you had fun flying by your friends and family at home with your dragonfly wings. I think the deck might still be glittery and sparkly!

As promised, here is the book title that we read or talked about in class: About Insects by Cathryn Sill. Check it out!

Would you like to brush up on those dragonfly facts we talked about? Check out this site with your wonder bug!

You can also act out part of the life cycle of a dragonfly by singing the Little Nymph song from class!

Little Nymph by Miss Tara Von Dollen (Tune: London Bridge)

Our pond has a little nymph, little nymph, little nymph. Our pond has a little nymph swimming ‘round.
Little nymph eats lots of bugs, lots of bugs, lots of bugs. Little nymph eats lots of bugs in our pond.
Little nymph will molt his skin, molt his skin, molt his skin. Little nymph will molt his skin in our pond.
Out of the pond our nymph will crawl, nymph will crawl, nymph will crawl. Out of our pond the nymph will crawl, to grow wings.
Little nymph will grow some wings, grow some wings, grow some wings. Little nymph will grow some wings by our pond. (Say: Then he’ll be a dragonfly.)
Little nymph is all grown up, all grown, all grown up. Little nymph is all grown up, flying ‘round.

Fly by you soon!
 
Miss Tara

The new Wonder Bugs sessions have been announced and are up on ALNC's website! Hope you can join us for one of them or for one of our Wonder Bugs Family Days!

WONDER BUGS FAMILY DAYS
Saturday August 13th, September 24, October 22 & November 19
9:30 -10:45 am

Join us for weekend Wonder Bugs family days we will explore, sing, and craft the day away to a different nature topic each month. You won't want to miss out on the opportunity to share the Wonder Bugs experience with your whole family! Appropriate for children 2-5 years accompanied by an adult.

ALNC Members: $6/child; Non-Members: $7/child
Click here to find out more or to register!

Summer's Not Over Yet! Booknics & Woodland Championships Await!

It's almost that time of year when the kids start to get antsy about going back to school and parents breath a huge sigh of relief that summer is almost over...but not quite yet!

There are still plenty of opportunities to enjoy the last few weeks of lazy, sunny summer days! Here are some ideas to get the most out of the rest of your summer:

Go on a "Family Booknic"

Turn an afternoon in the nearby park into a virtual adventure! Pack some books and thematic snacks to match. For example, if the book is Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree, pack some apples, broccoli "trees," or get creative and have your child make a tree out of pretzels and cucumbers like in the photo below.

 Then, take a walk to your favorite outdoor spot and enjoy the afternoon snacking and reading! This is a great way to get your kids hooked on reading outdoors!

Sign Your Child Up for the Woodland Championships!

On Friday, August 26 from 1-4 pm, ALNC is hosting the Woodland Championships for ages 7-10. Is your child ready to take on nature’s obstacle course? They'll compete in potato sack races, try Native American "spear-throwing," and other physical challenges at the Aldo Leopold Nature Center's Monona Campus.  Click here to find out more!

Check out this photo from last year's Woodland Championship!

Happy Summer!