Earlier this week Caden & I got the opportunity to met some local homeschoolers and check out their 
accidental tadpole pond in their kiddie pool. Caden had so much fun catching some toads and watching the tadpoles swimming around with the other kids. At the end of the meet up we were able to catch some tadpoles in a jar and take them home to watch their metamorphosis.
When we got home I set up this science/nature table so we could explore the life cycle of frogs and toads. I used a large TV tray table which weren’t in use, but are just the perfect size for this type of thing. I love that they fold up and can be put away when we need the space for something else. Right now I have this set up in our dining area in front of a window so it has lots of natural light and Caden can easier access it when he wants to.
I initially set up the table with just the jar of tadpoles, a magnifying glass, a book we picked up at the library about frog life cycles, a printable from TwistyNoodle.com, a couple of frogs from the Safari LTD sets we have, and the iPad set to play an episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy about amphibians on You Tube.
Later I added these frog life cycle printables from Learn Create Love and we did a frog life cycle craft to add to our table too! I plan to update the table with new printables such as these free Montessori cards from Montessori 123, and any other things that would add value and learning to the table. I would love to get this set of frog life cycle figures from Safari LTD. And check out these amazing Frog and Frog Life Cycle Resources from Racheous- Loveable Learning!
And now it’s time for the Saturday Science Blog Hop & Link Up!
Veins from Suzy Homeschooler
My 5 Senses Discovery Table from Little Bins For Little Hands
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Great post! learning about frogs is always fun!
This looks like to much fun and so educational! We have done butterflies and ladybugs, but I’ve always wanted to do frogs! I think the girls would love this!
What a great table! We definitely need to raise some frogs one of these days!
Great idea! Be careful with the light though – direct sunlight can raise the temperature quickly and the heat can be deadly.
Thanks! And not to worry Chris, that window doesn’t get direct sunlight. 🙂
Using live animals when possible in the classroom or home classroom has been shown to be an engaging and very important tool to teach science. We’re all fascinated by animals. I’ve had tadpoles many times in my science classroom. My best advice for being successful with them is to be sure not to add water directly from the tap, especially if you are on a city water system. Amphibians are very sensitive. If you leave chlorinated water out in a sunny location for a few days the chlorine evaporates out. Also be mindful of any temperature changes, water temperature included. Thanks for the post and great pictures!
Very good advice! We only used the water we found them in. Or water from a nearby pond.