Friday, April 12, 2013

Our Pond Study



We are lucky enough to have a pond on our property. Once we heard the toads calling we knew exactly what we were going to explore next.

We added an old downed tree bench and a small swing set to the pond area for added fun! (Sorry for the piles of leaves...spring has just started and we are just cleaning up the area!)

In the past years the pond on our property has been a big worry for me. I was worried my boys or the neighborhood kids would go down there and something bad would happen. We have instilled in them that no child is allowed down there with out an adult. Only once did they get spoken to due to a curious boy wondering what the pond frozen over felt like. After that talk, we felt that our boys and the neighborhood children understood the rules of the pond. Now that my boys are older I am less worried about the pond yet, we do still have the an adult must be present rule.

We started our pond lesson by, taking a walk around the pond. We made sure to be very quiet. We took note of all the sounds and sights we saw. We heard and saw the toads in the middle of mating season, we saw their eggs, we saw deer prints, tons of fish, lily pads, and even a pretty frog.


We also discussed why the pond was there. Our pond helps keep our yard from flooding. During rain the rain flows down to the pond from our driveway. It then releases slowly out into the wooded area behind our house where it then releases into several creek areas.

The boys really enjoyed feeding the goldfish and observing the pond. We sat on the bench and listened to the toads chatting. It was wonderful.

Up next we discuss the difference between Toads and Frogs. We also get to catch and release a couple!

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