Okay, this is the last "Summer Magic" post and it actually isn't one of my mom's traditional units. I came up with this one myself because I thought it would be a really fun thing for me and my son to do together. We currently live in Arizona, which is in the Sonoran Desert. I don't know much about the Sonoran Desert, since I grew up somewhere else, so I've been wanting to explore our area and get to know our surroundings a bit better. Hence this "Deep in the Desert" unit. Plus, its full of activities I thought a little boy would enjoy!
As a side note, my mom gets asked all the time about her units and has even been asked to speak about them to womens groups. One thing she always tells young moms is that the whole point of her units is to make motherhood more fun. She always says, "Don't copy my units if they don't interest you. Just find things that DO interest you and your kids and create your own way of having fun! Motherhood is as fun as you want to make it. We don't need to be supermoms, we just need to have fun!" And she was right. I had a lot of fun creating this unit and tailoring it to my son. And it was a great way for us to get out and do some things and to explore areas of our city that I otherwise might not have.
Here is what we did to have some Desert fun!!
LEARN ABOUT CACTUSES
For example, did you know that the plural of cactus can be cactuses, cacti, or cactus? I never knew that! :)
And, did you know that there are...wait for it... 1, 500 different kinds of cactus? Whoa!
To learn about cactuses on a toddler level, we made a cactus out of a cucumber. Just cut one in half. Make sure it's level so that it stands up nicely. Then stick toothpicks in it to be the needles, and a little bit of pink tissue paper on top for the flower!
We also tried some Cactus Chews that we got at a local candy store here. Notice the flavors- it was pretty fun to try them.
You can also pick up some prickly pear cactus at your grocery store to let your kids touch and feel. The needles have been removed so its safe to handle. And if you're feeling really ambitious, here is a link to 83 Prickly Pear Cactus Recipes!
Some other ideas for older children:
Read books about Cactuses
Fun Saguaro Facts:
Saguaro Cacti are only found in the Sonoran Desert
They can live to be 200 years old!
They can grow as many as 25 arms!
Saguaro grow very slow. A 10 year old saguaro may only be 1.5 inches tall! But... they can grow to be 60 feet tall!!
Even at 60 feet tall, their roots are only about 4-6 inches deep.
A fully hydrated saguaro can weigh as much as 4800 lbs!!
A Visit to the Desert Botanical Gardens
This is a huge, expansive and GORGEOUS garden that aims to conserve plants and flowers native to the desert and also to educate people about vegetation and animals that call the Sonoran Desert home.
This was an awesome opportunity to discover just what types of things live around us, and to appreciate this region just a little better. My son especially loved exploring in the butterfly garden there.
There were SO many different kinds of cacti. Our favorites were the little round barrel cactuses (bottom left) and the Bunny Ears Prickly Pear (bottom right).
CREATE A DESERT SENSORY BIN
Just buy some decorative sand (I found mine at Joanne's for $2.99) and pour it into a large tupperware. Then let your child create a desert scene with plastic desert animals. I found a tube of 12 plastic desert figures at a Red Balloon toy store. My little guy played with this for HOURS!! When he was done I'd pop the lid on the tupperware and set it aside for him to play with later.
This is a great toddler activity!
LEARN ABOUT DESERT ANIMALS
There are so many fun ones! We learned about armadillos, bats, coyotes, owls, road runners and lizards. For my son's age, this mostly just meant looking at pictures, reading books with him, and teaching him to say the names and make the animal sounds. He has perfected his coyote howl and his owl hoots this week!! :)
My mom had this darling book and stuffed armadillo. It was fun for my son to play with and hold the armadillo while I read the book.
She also had this great book and some stuffed bats to go along with it!
After we read the book, my son loved coloring this bat mask I found at Joanne's in their dollar section. "Bat" was a new word for him this week!
MAKE DESERT TREATS
Desert Owl Cupcakes
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| Cutehoots.blogspot.com |
Desert Sand Dessert
This is the same recipe we used for our Under the Sea Unit. Follow this link for instructions: Desert Sand Dessert.
Making Merry Memories Blog also has a cute alternative - Chocolate pudding covered with crushed graham cracker. She even hides gummy animals inside to act like the burrowing animals of the desert!
We also found this popcorn to snack on while we read some books!
READ DESERT BOOKS
Here are some of the ones we found at our library!
This last one was perfect for a toddler! It has large, cute pictures and teaches opposites using desert animals!
SING DESERT SONGS
I couldn't believe how many darling desert songs there are for kids! Follow these links for a whole bunch!
This one was my son's favorite because of the actions:
THE ANIMALS IN THE DESERT
(Sung to the tune of "The Wheels On The Bus")
(Have your children jump in place)
The jackrabbit in the desert hops like this, hops like this, hops like this
The jackrabbit in the desert hops like this, all night long
(Cuff hands and howl)
The coyote in the desert howls Awwww, Awww, Awww
The coyote in the desert howls Awww, all night long
(Have your children hiss exaggerating their tongue movement)
The rattlesnake in the desert goes hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss, hiss
The rattlesnake in the desert goes hiss, hiss, hiss, all night long
(Have your children run in place)
The roadrunner in the desert runs fast like this, fast like this, fast like this
The roadrunner in the desert runs fast like this, all night long!
FAMILY HOME EVENING IDEAS
Hear are some suggestions for including desert fun in your weekly family home evening lesson:
Sing the Hymn "Scatter Sunshine" (LDS Hymn 230) or "There is Sunshine in My Soul Today" (LDS Hymn 227), since the desert is really hot and sunny. :)
Summarize:
The Friend July 2006
or
F. Burton Howard
A beautiful and inspiring story about travelers lost in the Desert
or
Talk about the Savior's role in leading the Israelites and Nephi's family through the literal desert and His role in leading us through the figurative deserts of life. Talk about His role as the Living Waters.
"And they thirsted not: he led them through the deserts; he caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them; he clave the rock also and the waters gushed out."
1 Nephi 20:21
Then, serve the Desert Sand Dessert (above) while you enjoy a game of Desert Memory as a family:
Check out this darling blog for the free printable of this game:
Desert Memory Printable
Thanks for taking a look at our "Summer Magic" Units! It has been an awesome summer for us - full of discovery, exploration, learning and fun! These units are a great way to make the summer come alive and of course to keep your kids minds and imaginations active all summer long! And... I believe the best part about them is that they make motherhood more interesting. I've been able to use my own imagination and creative talents this summer and to learn a bunch of new things myself. We've gotten outdoors, visited new places in our area that we've never been to before, made fun use of our library, and have enjoyed precious hours of undivided, undistracted, technology-free mommy-son time!
I am so grateful to my mom for creating magic each summer of my childhood- for opening up a world of imagination, discovery and exploration to us; for encouraging us to learn, to seek out new experiences, and above all, to be curious.
If the units I've shared don't particularly tickle your fancy, I'd still encourage you to come up with subjects and topics that DO interest you and your kids. You will be amazed at the resources out there (the books, songs, crafts, field trips, etc.) to help you and your kids explore and discover!
And if you'd like to know more about these other "Summer Magic" units of my mom's, let me know and I can give you any information you'd like:
"Knights and Princesses" Week
"The Real Story of Alice in Wonderland" Week
"China" Week
"Creatures of the Night" Week
"Honeybees" Week
"Trees" Week
"Grin and BEAR It" Week
and her 'famous' CAMP RAINBOW!
(Each day of the week is dedicated to learning about a different color!)
. . . . .
"I think, at a child's birth, if a mother could ask a fairy godmother to endow it with the most useful gift, that gift should be curiosity."
Thanks Mom, for all you did to enrich my childhood and to instill in me the gift of curiosity. And thank you for all of the moments, the small, unassuming moments, in which you taught me by example how to be a mother. I love you.
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