For the last couple of weeks we have been talking about animals in winter and the various ways animals survive when cold weather comes.   We have focused our discussions on three things animals might do:  migrate, hibernate, or remain active.  We were thrilled to have Lindsay join us for ECO yesterday, when we looked for signs of some of these active animals.    We began our morning learning about four animal gaits: walking, bounding, hopping, and waddling.   Children had a chance to practice each gait and we sorted animals by their gait, noticing that walkers tend to have longer legs, bounders have shorter legs and long, thin bodies, hoppers have powerful hind legs, and waddlers tend to have shorter legs and stouter bodies.

Waddle like a bear.

Hop like a rabbit.

Walk like a deer.

Once we were outside we broke into three groups and became detectives, searching for tracks around the school. It's amazing how prevalent the tracks are once you start looking!  We wrapped up our outside time with tea.  After lunch for quiet time we became bears and hibernated!

Spraying tracks with colored water to highlight the trail.