September of the 365 Nature Journal
I love September. Its a great time for the seeds in trees and flowers which often display many varied shapes and numbers , Poppies have fantastic styled seed pods (10th) and types of Eucalyptus trees bear star shapes in the centre of their pods. But also September can still be warm and offer opportunities for imaginative play outside after school even for a few minutes with friends (25th). Many collections of leaves get started in September and we like to press them to save their colours (1st and 29th).
September’s mix
September can be a mix of many things. Still enjoying summer fruits (6th) if the opportunity is there or preparing the garden and home for the winter. The suggestions on the 2nd, 18th, 15th and 8th make good little home chores that encourage a sense of every member of the household taking part in the care of everyone. The family home is a place that nurtures all and everyone has their role to play. Farming families often all have roles within the farm chores too, you could get involved if you wanted to. (4th)
Swans
Swans are the largest of the waterfowl species and no other can move so fast in water or in the air. The males are called ‘cobs’ due the shape of the beak and the females ‘pens’ (20th).
Comparison of the season stories.
Do you remember what the trees looked like back at the beginning of the season? Trees hold stories in them, that we can learn to read. (12th) Each branch of the tree will have certain marks that sow us how much it has grown that season, we can see them when we examine them.
Its a good time to remember our bird families from earlier in the year. Can you still spot them around? (26th) maybe you have become quite used to seeing them nearby. They will hopefully have plenty of hedge and tree berries to feast on (3rd) but keep feeding them though. Swallows may be preparing to migrate soon (20th) you look out for groups of birds getting ready to make their flight and tweeting loudly!
Balance in September
The Autumnal Equinox will be on the 21st or around then. It is such a wonderful moment of perfect balance shared by the whole world. Everyone will have equal amounts of daylight and darkness. For us in the northern hemisphere, the sun’s path (as it seems to us!) now moves into the southern hemisphere signalling less hours of daylight and cooler days. We begin our journey through the darker months. Or in the southern hemisphere, the opposite. I think it is a poignant moment in the year. To fully understand what is happening you can make a simple model to explain what happens.
Also watch the moon, just get used to where you are likely to see it each night and which direction it moves in (27th). The time you can see it will change. In October we will spend more time studying the moon so just become familiar for now.
The sensory observations (5th, 11th) continue in September, I’m often really aware of the change in scent in the air of autumn which I love.
September may see a change in temperature from the beginning to the end of the month so it could be an opportunity for a temperature study which will all contribute towards the sensory observations this month. Make sure you are prepared for the winter months with your clothing (22nd) as you don’t want any reasons to not be able to get outside!
September Crafts
Textures seem a big thing for me in September. There are many textures in nature but I am always more aware of them in autumn. Use the bark or papery seeds for crafts. At this time of year you can often buy whole corn cobs with their husks still on in supermarkets. I’m not sure why but i quite like this texture for wrapping shapes a sort of anti corn dolly.
Thread the circles and globes of acorns onto necklaces. Also around oak trees at this time of year is the many forms of the Oak Gall, fantastic shape shifters of nature.
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Other months might feel a long time ago now, but you can compare between spring and now and swap activities round if you want April, March, May, July, January, June, August, February.
