Evening, friends.
It's Kristen again, this time reporting on a little adventure we Llama's had on Tuesday... In getting to know the area and meeting new friends, we have become a part of a lovely group of homeschoolers from the Temple Terrace area... Which isn't exactly "close," but that's okay. And besides, they're so fantastic that we can't stay away!
Anyway, on Tuesday, everyone from our little group ended up coming up to the
Crystal Springs Nature Preserve, which is much closer to our neck of the woods than theirs. I'd never been - or really heard very much about the springs, other than Thomas telling me about how he used to swim there as a kid - so I wasn't quite sure what to expect... But we were really in for a treat!
The guides there are extremely knowledgeable, and led the kids in a cool science experiment and some games to learn about the hydrologic cycle, and despite it being a bajillion degrees out, we all had a wonderful time.
We started outside the learning center, and learned about the origins of the Crystal Springs Preserve, and then proceeded inside to learn a bit about the water cycle...
Once we were inside, it was all about the water... How much of it there is, why it's important, and what tests you can do to find out if an unknown liquid is water or not (without drinking it - an especially important distinction stressed to the littlest ones!). So, after a short discussion, it was time to get on to the experiments, putting little hands, minds - and even their noses - to work...
Scientific discovery at its best! Gotta love it.
After everyone finished conducting their experiment (Pipettes! Petri dishes! Charts and observations!) and the kids figured out which of the three mystery liquid was actually water, it was time to go outside to see the beautiful spring, learn a little more, and play some games!
All in all, it was a great afternoon.
I can't wait until our next adventure at Crystal Springs, and I know the girls are pretty excited about it, too.
Until next time,
-Kristen...