Kids By Nature

Term 3 — The Quiet Earth Wakes 🌱

Winter → early Spring (roughly July to mid-September)

← Term 2 · Program overview · Next: Term 4 →

The season outside: The coldest weeks give way to the first wattle gold, swelling buds, returning birdsong and the very first warm afternoons. Term 3 is about beginnings, growth and care — starting seeds, hatching and tending new life, and watching the world stir.

Big idea of the term: Big things start small. Growth needs the right conditions, patience and care.

🔗 Pairs with free reading: Raising backyard chickens with kids · Backyard homesteading for families · Nature journaling with kids

How to run this term

Before Week 1, set up a bright, warm windowsill or seed-starting shelf — you'll be raising seedlings across several weeks. Decide early whether you'll do the Week 3 eggs/chicks or the sprouts-and-microgreens alternative.

The throughline: "small beginnings, patient care." Almost every week we start or tend a living thing and measure how it grows. Keep a growth chart going all term — a seed, a seedling, a tadpole — and watch the lines climb. This is the term where daily responsibility (watering, feeding, checking) really takes root.

Rhythm reminder: the warming afternoons make outdoor time a joy again — get out for the dawn chorus, the first blossom, the frog calls at dusk. Tie the indoor seed-starting to a daily "tending" habit.

Safety this term: wash hands after handling soil, eggs, animals and pond water; supervise around water (ponds); and remember snakes begin to wake in spring — stick to paths and watch where hands go.

Week 1 — What does a seed need?

  • 🌍 Big Question: What turns a seed into a plant?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Hunt for the first signs of spring — buds, shoots, wattle.
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Set up a seed-starting station (trays, mix, labels) on a sunny sill.
  • 📖 Literacy: Journal — predict & label "what I think my seed will do."
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Measure and mix seed-raising medium by ratio; count seeds sown.
  • 🔬 Science: Germination fair test — light/dark, wet/dry, warm/cold. Record daily.
  • 🎨 Make-it: Decorate seed labels / build mini paper pots.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9SU (life cycles, conditions for life) / AC9SI (fair testing) / AC9M (ratio).

▸ Do this: Set up a germination fair test: sprout the same seeds (beans are ideal) in damp paper towel in zip bags, changing one condition each — one in the dark, one in the fridge (cold), one with no water — plus a "normal" control. Predict what each will do, then check and record daily for a week. 🗣️ Talk about it: A seed has everything it needs to start packed inside — so what does it need from outside to wake up and grow? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — sprout one bean and draw it each day. Harder — keep a results table and write up which condition mattered most, and why.

Week 2 — The miracle of growth

  • 🌍 Big Question: How fast do living things grow, and how do we measure it?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Measure a fast-growing plant outside; mark and revisit.
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Prick out & pot on seedlings; thin the strongest.
  • 📖 Literacy: Keep a growth diary (dated daily entries).
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Plot growth on a line graph; calculate growth per day.
  • 🔬 Science: What part grows first? Watch a bean in a jar against glass.
  • 🎨 Make-it: Time-lapse flip-book of a sprouting seed.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9M (data, line graphs, rate) / AC9S*U (growth) / AC9E (recount/diary).

▸ Do this: Line a clear jar with damp paper and tuck beans against the glass so you can watch everything — the root comes first (down), then the shoot (up). Measure your seedling's height every day, plot it on a line graph, and work out how many millimetres it grows per day. 🗣️ Talk about it: The root always heads down and the shoot always heads up, even in the dark — how do you think the seed "knows" which way is which? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — measure with a strip of paper and compare day to day. Harder — calculate the average daily growth rate and predict next week's height.

Week 3 — New life on the homestead (eggs & hatching)

  • 🌍 Big Question: How does a chick get inside an egg — and out?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Observe nesting birds; listen and log birdsong at dawn.
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Candle eggs / care for chicks, or set up a sprout & microgreen "tiny harvest" if no birds. (Apartment-friendly alternative.)
  • 📖 Literacy: Read about life cycles; write a sequenced "egg to chook" explanation.
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Incubation maths — count down 21 days; egg weights & sizes.
  • 🔬 Science: Parts of an egg (crack, observe, label); why the shape is strong.
  • 🎨 Make-it: An egg-strength arch experiment + drawing.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*U (life cycles, reproduction) / AC9M (time, mass) / AC9E (explanation).

▸ Do this: Crack an egg into a bowl and find and label the parts — shell, membrane, white (albumen), yolk, and the little white "chalaza" cords. Test the arch shape: stand four half-shells dome-up under a flat board and gently stack books — eggshells are astonishingly strong in compression. (No birds? Start sprouts/microgreens for a fast "new life" harvest instead.) 🗣️ Talk about it: A chick takes 21 days to develop — what is the egg providing it the whole time it's sealed inside? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — draw and label the egg parts. Harder — make a day-by-day incubation timeline and weigh/sort eggs by mass. 🔗 Go deeper: Raising backyard chickens with kids

Week 4 — Birds & the dawn chorus

  • 🌍 Big Question: Why do birds sing more in spring?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: A simple bird survey — count species visiting in 20 minutes (great for the Aussie Backyard Bird Count habit).
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Build a bird bath / nest-box / native-plant bird garden.
  • 📖 Literacy: Onomatopoeia — write the calls; a bird-themed poem.
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Tally & graph species; estimate populations.
  • 🔬 Science: Beak-and-food matching — why different beaks for different jobs.
  • 🎨 Make-it: Field-guide page for your three most common birds.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*U (structural adaptation) / AC9M (data) / AC9E (poetry).

▸ Do this: Sit still for 20 minutes and tally every bird species you see or hear (a real citizen-science skill). Then match beaks to jobs using kitchen tools as "beaks" — tweezers (insects), pliers (seeds), a straw (nectar), a slotted spoon (water) — and "feed" on matching foods to see which beak wins. 🗣️ Talk about it: Why is the noisy spring dawn chorus mostly males, and mostly at first light? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — tally and name the birds. Harder — graph species counts and research why each bird's beak suits its food.

Week 5 — Frogs, ponds & wet places

  • 🌍 Big Question: Why are frogs the "canary" of a healthy place?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Listen for frog calls at dusk; log them (FrogID-style).
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Build a small frog pond / bog tub habitat.
  • 📖 Literacy: Life-cycle sequencing writing (egg → tadpole → frog).
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Metamorphosis timeline; measure tadpole growth.
  • 🔬 Science: Water quality — pH and clarity; what frogs need to thrive.
  • 🎨 Make-it: A frog life-cycle wheel.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*U (life cycles, ecosystems, indicators) / AC9M (time, measurement).

▸ Do this: Build a simple frog habitat — sink a tub, add rainwater, rocks and native water plants, and place it near cover (no fish!). At dusk, record the calls you hear (the FrogID app helps identify them). Make a life-cycle wheel showing egg → tadpole → froglet → frog. 🗣️ Talk about it: Frogs breathe partly through their skin, so pollution hits them first — why does that make them an early warning sign for the whole habitat? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — sequence the life-cycle pictures in order. Harder — test and log the pond's water clarity/pH and track tadpole growth over time.

Week 6 — Weather watchers

  • 🌍 Big Question: Can we predict the weather like our grandparents did?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Read the sky daily; note cloud types, wind, "feel" of the air.
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Build a weather station (rain gauge, wind vane, thermometer).
  • 📖 Literacy: Weather lore & sayings — true or false? Write your findings.
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Collect a week of data; averages, range, simple forecasting.
  • 🔬 Science: Make a cloud in a jar; understand the water cycle in action.
  • 🎨 Make-it: A weather-symbol chart for the kitchen.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*U (weather, water cycle) / AC9M (data, average, range) / AC9E (research).

▸ Do this: Build the station: a funnel-in-a-jar rain gauge marked in mm, a pivoting wind vane, and a shaded thermometer. Read all three at the same time each day for a week and tabulate it. Make a cloud in a jar (warm water, a little hairspray, then an ice-topped lid) to see condensation happen. 🗣️ Talk about it: With a week of our own data, can we out-predict tomorrow's forecast? What signs are most reliable? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — draw the daily weather with symbols. Harder — calculate the week's average and range, then write a forecast and check it. 🔗 Go deeper: Reading the weather & the sky

Week 7 — Pollinators return

  • 🌍 Big Question: Who wakes up to help spring's flowers?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Repeat Term 1's pollinator stake-out — what's different now?
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Sow a bee & butterfly patch; install the Term 1 insect hotel properly.
  • 📖 Literacy: Compare-and-contrast writing (summer vs spring pollinators).
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Compare two data sets (Term 1 vs now); find the difference.
  • 🔬 Science: How pollination makes fruit — hand-pollinate a flower and track it.
  • 🎨 Make-it: A butterfly life-cycle / origami pollinator.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*U (pollination, interdependence) / AC9M (comparing data) / AC9E (compare/contrast).

▸ Do this: Repeat the exact Term 1 Week 5 pollinator stake-out at the same spot and compare the two tallies — what's changed now it's spring? Hand-pollinate a flower (dab pollen between blooms with a small brush), mark it with wool, and watch over the weeks to see if fruit forms. 🗣️ Talk about it: What does comparing our summer and spring counts tell us about how the seasons change who's working in the garden? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — tally and compare totals. Harder — graph both data sets together and calculate the difference for each insect type.

Week 8 — Trees & planting for the future

  • 🌍 Big Question: Why plant a tree you may never sit under?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Adopt-a-tree — measure girth, height (shadow method), canopy.
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Plant a tree or shrub (great for National Tree Day energy).
  • 📖 Literacy: Persuasive writing — "why our town needs more trees."
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Estimate tree height with shadows & ratios; rings & age.
  • 🔬 Science: Transpiration — bag a leafy branch and watch it "sweat."
  • 🎨 Make-it: Bark rubbings + a "tree ID" page.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*U (trees, ecosystems) / AC9M (measurement, ratio, estimation) / Sustainability.

▸ Do this: "Adopt" a tree to follow all year. Measure its girth with a tape, and estimate its height with the shadow method (your height ÷ your shadow = tree height ÷ tree shadow). Tie a clear bag over a leafy branch on a sunny day and return to find water droplets — the tree breathing out (transpiration). 🗣️ Talk about it: Who planted the big trees we enjoy today — and who will enjoy the one we plant now? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — hug-measure the trunk and do a bark rubbing. Harder — calculate tree height from shadow ratios and estimate its age.

Week 9 — Wind & flight

  • 🌍 Big Question: How do seeds, birds and kites all use the air?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: Wind day — fly things; watch how seeds and birds use it.
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Build & fly a kite; rig a simple washing-line "wind dryer."
  • 📖 Literacy: Read about flight; write instructions for the kite build.
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Measure wind speed; angles of flight; symmetry in kite design.
  • 🔬 Science: Lift & drag — test paper-plane and seed designs.
  • 🎨 Make-it: Decorate the kite / make spinning seed models.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*U (forces, push/pull) / AC9M (angles, symmetry) / AC9TE (design & build).

▸ Do this: Make "helicopter" seeds from paper (a strip split and folded into two wings with a paperclip) and drop them beside real winged seeds like maple or wattle — race their spin and fall. Build and fly a simple kite, then write up the build as numbered instructions someone else could follow. 🗣️ Talk about it: A kite, a bird and a spinning seed all stay up using moving air — what do they have in common? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — drop and watch the spinning seeds. Harder — change one variable (wing length, weight) at a time and time the fall to find the best design.

Week 10 — Spring is sprung (lighter week)

  • 🌍 Big Question: What has woken up since the start of term?
  • 🥾 Outdoor: "Then & now" — revisit your Week 1 spring-signs spot.
  • 🪓 Homestead skill: Plant out the seedlings you raised; mulch and water in.
  • 📖 Literacy: Reflective journal — your seedling's whole journey.
  • 🔢 Numeracy: Final growth graphs; survival rates of your seedlings (percentage).
  • 🔬 Science: Review germination & growth experiments; what conditions won?
  • 🎨 Make-it: A spring-awakening mural / nature-table refresh.
  • ✅ Codes: AC9S*I (review, evaluate) / AC9M (percentage) / AC9E (reflection).

▸ Do this: Plant out the seedlings you raised from Week 1 into the garden or bigger pots, and water them in. Finish your growth graphs and work out your "survival rate" — what percentage of seeds made it to planting? Look back at the germination fair test and name the winning conditions. 🗣️ Talk about it: Looking at the whole journey from seed to seedling — what would you do differently next time, and why? 🔧 Adapt it: Easier — retell the seedling's story in pictures. Harder — calculate the survival percentage and write an evaluation of your experiment.

Term 3 at a glance — what to gather

Seed trays + seed-raising mix, fast seeds (beans, peas, sunflowers), a clear jar for the bean-in-glass, egg candler or sprouting jars, bird-bath/nest-box materials, a tub for a frog pond, weather-station bits (jar, ruler, funnel), kite materials, a tree to plant. Full list: Materials & supplies.

Curriculum codes: Curriculum alignment → Term 3.

→ Next term: Term 4 — Bloom, Buzz & Build