Museums: The Denver Museum of Nature and Science

The Denver Nature and Science Center is a great place for your little one to explore nature through out time… with exhibits displaying large dinosaurs of prehistoric times (I mean what little explorer doesn’t like dinosaurs? and you can even talk to a real paleontologist !)

To their modern day ancestors like the powerful birds of prey…

There is a fantastic geology section where you can learn about the rocks that make up our world.

My little explorer really enjoyed the interactive displays where you can see the world through the eyes of a snake… COOL!

Walking and reading the signs with your little explorer will open their minds to big thoughts :o)

This museum also participates in the Blue Star Museums Program that offers large discounts and often free admission for military families from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

Little Green Thumbs

Gardening had never been so simple... or so GREEN! 

We started an indoor herb garden in our kitchen window using recycled applesauce cups ( free), garden pellets ( $2.50 at Walmart) and of course... seeds ( prices will vary)  and we made little markers using toothpicks, paper, and clear tape.

We put the pellets in the cups and poured warm water over them, after they expanded we removed the net casing ( you don't have to do this but we wanted to see the roots grow), we stuck a finger in the middle, dropped in a few seeds and lightly cover them up. Then we set them in a sunny window and watered them regularly to keep the soil moist. In a about a week we saw sprouts and the kids where so excited!

***this is a great science project for your little one to teach them about recycling and the life cycle of plants :o)

Making Dino Poop!

I was in the toy store and saw "Dinosaur Train Poop Kit" and thought, "Are they really selling poop to kids?" No! They are selling an awesome exploration and scientific experience. So you know we went home and made it.

Using this homemade Play Dough recipe:

• 2 cups of flour
• 1 cup of salt
• 2 cups of water
• 1/2 cup of oil
• 4 teaspoons of cream of tartar
• Green, Blue Yellow, and Red food coloring

Mix all the ingredients in a large saucepan mixing until almost smooth, and add the food coloring until you get the color you want, I favored the green... and keep in mind that it will get darker when it is cooked.

Then cook it on the stove over medium heat, and stirring it the whole time, it will start to thicken, and you just keep stirring. Remove when it looks like play dough and allow to cool. Store in an air tight container.

We found some dinosaur skeleton toys at the Dollar Store, two in a pack! Then we wrapped them in the  play dough... plastic leaves would also work well if your dinosaur is a herbivore. 

He has been hands deep in dinosaur poop all afternoon! :oD

Science Time: Cloud Watching

It was beautiful day today and there were wispy clouds floating in the sky so we decided to learn about clouds.What are clouds? A whole bunch of tiny water droplets that are so small they float in the air.

How are clouds made? When the sun heats up water on earth it turns into gas which floats up in the air and when the gas gets really high it started to cool off and turn into water droplets which group together to form clouds.

Types of Clouds:

• cumulus : the puffy clouds that look like cotton balls
• stratus: the big cloud blankets... when they are really close to the ground we call them fog
• cirrus: wispy, stringy clouds
• nimbus: clouds that have rain or snow falling from them.

Go outside and draw pictures of the clouds you see in your science notebook. Then see if you can name the different kinds of clouds.