First works

On New Year's night, I asked JillyBoo if she had any questions that she wanted to explore. She boiled it down to three:
1. Why don't butterflies have eyes and ears like foxes do?
2. Why does a glass break when it's dropped, but not plastic?
3. How can people juggle fire without burning their hands?

That last question was inspired by a recent visit to a festival in Triberg, home to Germany's largest waterfall. We watched in hysterics, and amazement, while two very earnest men juggled fire and performed some breakdancing moves while standing on a bridge over the falls. I still am not sure how to authentically (and safely!) explore this topic, but have some great ideas for the first two.

First, I ran downstairs, enthusiastic and sleepless, and rifled though JillyBoo's book collection. A recent gift, Explore Bugs, given to her at her butterfly birthday party, was high interest and had great insect facts! We read the book together this morning, and JillyBoo recorded her facts in her Learning Log:




This says: "Butterflies hear with their antennas. They can see all of the colors in the world."

Next, I used some great calculator printer paper and some facts derived from Explore Bugs to illustrate the difference between the world's largest and smallest butterfly (by wingspan). It was a fun lesson in using rulers, and comparing sizes.

(This is actually only half of the page! The largest butterfly has an 11" wingspan! Wow!)

What's next in the butterfly world? I'm going to read some more books for inspiration. Maybe buy a butterfly hatching kit? But that seems a bit inhumane during the stark winter of Central Europe!