une promenade dans les bois part 4...trees in autumn

For the final part of our nature walk in the woods we learnt a bit about leaves and we got to jump in as well. Well, the kids jumped...I cheered them on :)
Did you read the other posts about our autumn adventures? Read part 1, part 2 & part 3

Our walk was planned well in advance. We read the book This Tree 123 (A. Formento). We got to practice the names of animals and insects in french, PLUS we counted to ten in french as well (this book is an easy read when it comes to translating. We really love Outside your Window: A First Book of Nature (N. Davis) and we've been doing most of our seasonal scavenger hunts based on the book.

At circle time, we also talked about:

1. what we love about fall
2. what happens to the weather
3. what kinds of clothes do we wear/not wear
4. what kind of clothing do we like to wear/not...mitts were so unpopular :)

Even though we planned for our outing, boy was it chilly. I hardly took any photos because my hands were numb (at least my camera hand was). The kids never seem bothered by the cold. Oh how I would love to be young again *sigh*. They were running around and didn't stop to take a breath, and finally we got into the leaves...

So what did we learn about leaves and trees?

1. trees do not die in Autumn, they prepare for the colder weather - winter.
2. the leaves fall off so that the trees can put on layers for the cold month ahead - to protect it
3. dead leaves are very important because they break down and release nutrients into the soil - this gives food to trees and other plants
4. the flat leaves of some trees lose water quickly. In the winter when the ground is frozen, it is difficult for them to to absorb water, so they drop their leaves and stay sleep in the winter and the wake up again in the spring. 

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