the big word - habitat
We started with the big word - habitat.
Your girls have defined and broken into parts the following:
home/shelter/food resource/reproductive zone.
We picked a sea shore/beach as an example of it. Michelle brought a camera to the shore and recorded ghost crabs and hermit crabs. While observing them, we were able to define zones on the beach: from closer to the ocean: upper intertidal, middle intertidal, lower intertidal and splash zone!
We spoke about the importance of tides and introduced a crucial concept of beach formation: erosion!
Next we moved to the lab. The budding scientists created a sea habitat using beach sand, sea plants, beach vegetation shells and sea water. As your kids poured water into the habitat, they were able to observe changes to the habitat and discovered that a shore habitat is ever changing! Enjoy the picks!