My Gabby Rose is so small compared to the high drifts of snow.

Male Northern Cardinal in tree near feeders.

Northern Cardinal at feeders.

AND, I’m so excited that I got my first 12-Sided Snowflake photo today!!

I took over 100 photos of which here are 18 of my favorites.

My Backyard - Can you tell which way the wind was blowing the snow?

I have several photos of ice crystals on various objects. I think because everything was first so wet, then the wind blew and formed these gorgeous feathery miracles.

Ice crystals on dried up wildflowers from fall.

Lots of chipmunks are hibernating in this brush.

The sun made everything come alive with dazzle.

Again, wildflowers (I believe Asters) from fall, donned with sparkle.

Another photo showing the sparkling ice in the sun.

Can you tell I loved taking photos of how the ice crystals formed on the dried up wildflowers?! Just stunning.

This, I think, is my favorite...ice crystals on a Queen Anne's Lace wildflower. Looked like a magic wand.

Ice on a fox tail weed (at least that's what we call them)

Again, another magic wand.

The creek was flowing gently in some places.

And frozen in spectacular ice patterns in other places.

Another tree photo showing how the snow and ice is clinging to one side.

I hated leaving my footprints in this perfect landscape.

One last ice crystal on wildflower photo!

Whenever I’m talking about observing the details in nature in the winter time to help gain appreciation for all the seasons, this is exactly what I mean! I came back inside feeling in awe of our Creator God and His masterful display in nature, even in the midst of frigid cold winter.

Dendrite Snowflakes

Star Snowflake

Basically all you need for appropriate snowflake observation is a dark surface such as dark blue or black felt, or as you see in the first photo, that was a snowflake on my daughter’s red coat! We keep our felts in a zippered bag in the freezer so that they are nice and cold and ready to catch, and not melt, the snowflakes. Also we keep a magnifying lens on hand to help us see the details closer. And as you can see in the photos, if you have macro ability with your camera, that can serve quite well also to bring these beauties up close!

I do know that not every snowfall is good for snowflake observation. Seems when the temperatures are too warm or the snow is falling too heavily the snow sticks together too much and you cannot observe individual snowflakes as well as when the weather is colder and dryer and the snowfall is less intense.

As this beautiful  snow is falling be sure to take the time to go outside if only for a moment and observe these crystal miracles of God’s creation!

The following is a link to our Snow Studies from last year. We’ll be doing many of those things again, plus more starting in January using the Snow and Ice unit that Shining Dawn Books will be releasing very soon!

Snow Studies

Ok, on to our snow studies.  Here are a some more things we did to finish up our formal study this week.

Blizzards – When Snow Turns Deadly

We talked about and defined what a blizzard is – sustained or gusty winds of 35 mph or more, and falling or blowing snow creating visibilities at or below 1/4 mile. These conditions should persist for 3 hours.

We also watched a YouTube video on The Great Blizzard of 1977.  Do any of you remember that?  It seemed it affected quite a large area of the eastern US.  I remember being 6 years old and while playing outside I stepped into a low lying area and had snow up to my chin and was so scared!

Notebooking Page – Snowflakes and Snowflake Bentley

We completed a notebooking page for our nature journals on snowflakes and Snowflake Bentley, where we drew and labeled a few different kinds of snowflakes and pasted in a picture of and a quote from “The Snowflake Man”. 

The Science of Snow

We watched a free online video on Brain Pop on the science behind Snowflakes.  And took the quiz at the end.

As the snow is currently falling outside, we are keeping measurements of it.

Experiment – Dew and Frost

We also did an experiment showing how dew and frost are formed.  First we gathered two tin cans (old fruit cans that I had peeled the labels off of), a spoon, table salt, crushed ice, and water. 

 First I explained to the kids that we would be putting ice and water in one can, and ice and salt in the other.  And one can would form frost on the outside, and the other dew.  Then I had them make predictions on their science journals as to which can would do what and why.   We labeled our cans “Can 1″ (salt) and “Can 2″ (water).  Both of the kids predicted that Can 1 would form frost and Can 2 would form dew.  

 Next I gave one child the crushed ice and salt, and the other crushed ice and water.  They filled their cans half way with the crushed ice, then Can 1 was sprinkled with salt, and Can 2 was filled with water just until it reached above the ice. 

 We used the spoon to stir the salt and ice for 30 seconds.  Then we sat and waited just a few moments and found that Can 1 (salt) formed frost, and Can 2 (water) formed dew.

 Can 1

 After that we talked about the science behind why both reactions happened, and then they finished their science journals.

 We also looked at a few photos online of frost. Have you ever noticed how beautiful it is?

 Bible Study – Salt of the Earth, Whiter Than Snow

During the above experiment when we we’re learning about the effects of salt on not only the ice but also other things like food, I tied in the following verse from Matthew 5:13:  “You are the salt of the earth…”

 Also we listened to the hymn I Shall Be Whiter Than Snow by James L. Nicholson, and talked about it’s meaning to us.

 I also found a wonderful Bible study on snow.

 OK!  Well, that’s a wrap!  And I can’t leave you without one of my latest snowflake photos!  I really am beginning to understand Mr. Bentley’s passion.

 by W.A. Bentley

 I was overjoyed to find information on crystals/snowflakes in the Handbook of Nature Study.  Oh please, read this section in her book (pgs. 751-752, 809)!  After reading through it I was so educated and inspired!  Just as with anything we have found in nature, mathematics and order can be found.

 “Moreover, when crystals show a variation in numbers of angles and planes it is merely a matter of division or multiplication….Why should water freezing freely in the air so demonstrate geometry by forming, as it does, a star with six rays, each set to another, at an angle of 60 degrees?  And as if to prove geometry Divine beyond cavil, sometimes the rays are only three in number – a factor of six – and include angles of twice 60 degrees.” ~ pg. 809

 Most places we have read inform you that snowflakes are six-sided, there isn’t any mention of some of them having three.  It was a odd thing then when a few days ago, before I read this, I took a macro photo of a snowflake that appeared to only have three.  A day later my older daughter and I both exclaimed “sometimes it has three rays” at the same time when we read the above and below passages.

“A snow crystal is a six-rayed star, yet sometimes it has three.” ~  pg. 751

My 3-rayed snowflake photo

Here is another amazing sampling of what we read (in the section on how water forms):

“But the story of the water magic is only half told.  The cold brings back the invisible water vapor, forming it into visible drops; but if it is cold enough to freeze, then we behold another miracle, for the drops are changed to crystals.  The cool windowpane at evening may be dimmed with mist caught from the air of the room; if we examine the mist with a lens we find it composed of tiny drops of water.  But if the night be very cold, we find next morning upon the windowpane exquisite ferns, or stars, or trees, all formed of the crystals grown from the mist which was there the night before.” ~  pg. 809

Remember this photo I took of our patio table?  Very cool stuff.

“God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways; he does great things beyond our understanding. He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth,’and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’ So that all men he has made may know his work, he stops every man from his labor.” ~ Job 35:5-7

It is flurrying outside as I type this entry, we are forecasted to get up to three inches this evening.  Looks like I’m going to grab my camera and dark felt and get outside for a couple photos before it gets too dark.  Maybe I’ll catch another 3-rayed snowflake.

 With her permission, I’ll leave you with a poem that my older daughter recently wrote after we read the above passages from the Handbook:

The Wonder In It All

by Hannah

 As the snow falls down no one alike,

It shines like diamonds in the sky.

The diamonds are worth more to the eye,

Than to a man’s pocket and mind.

You may look outside and see only dots,

But floating down beauty is there.

Just pay more attention and you will see,

Wonders of all kinds.

Here may be six sides or even three,

Each one with it’s one design.

You may run outside and play in the snow,

Or catch them on your tongue.

Think about how tiny they are,

But together they over the ground.

Look more closely and you will see,

The wonder in it all. 

Snowflake on Hannah’s Coat

 We could hear the beautiful, magical music floating through the woods.  Can you?  Shall we snow dance?

When All the World is Full of Snow 

I never know just where to go,

when all the world is full of snow.

 I do not want to make a track,

not even to the shed and back.

I only want to watch and wait,

while snow moths settle on the gate,

 and swarming frost flakes fill the trees

with billions of albino bees

I only want myself to be

as silent as a winter tree,

to hear the swirling stillness grow;

when all the world is full of snow.

~ N.M. Bodecker

 Oh my, there is so much that I want to blog about, seriously I have a long list…but I must refrain from being on this computer for hours!  It just has to be a bit a day.  So today, I’d like to share with you part one of our art snow studies.  But first I just have to share, as you can see from the photo above, we got snow today!  It hasn’t amounted to more than a heavy dusting, but it was enough to get out and have loads of fun in it.  I got some amazing macro photos of the snowflakes!  But all about that will be one of my other posts!  Ok, back to art.

 After all the fun being outside, we settled in to get a few of our regular studies done, and then we turned our focus to art.  First about Artist Anna Mary Robertson Moses, or more affectionately known as Grandma Moses. 

 If you’ve never read about her before, oh please spend some time doing so; after I read about her I just wanted so much to have been able to know her in person.  Here is an amazing woman who dedicated all of her young and middle aged adulthood to others, and only started painting in her 70′s, after arthritis made it impossible for her to do embroidery anymore.  She painted through her 70′s, 80′s, and 90′s, and lived to be 101 years old!  Here are two books that we have read:

Grandma Moses, by Mike Venezia

Grandma Moses, by Alexandra Wallner

 We also viewed the slideshow of her works of art HERE.  Since we have been studying snow, we paid particular attention to all of her snow scenes.  The painting below is entitled January from 1956.

 After learning about Grandma Moses, we did a quite messy but fun art project using “snow-like” materials we found around the house, such as marshmallows, sugar, cotton balls, and glitter glue. 

 For the second half of our art study, we will be finishing up the last season from Nature’s Paintbox which will feature the medium pen and ink.  AND finish up listening to Antonio Vivaldi ,The Four Seasons – Winter.

Ok, before I go, I just have to share one macro photo that I took today of some snowflakes!