Making cool beaded bracelets while learning about the weather cycle was part of the fun of our Raindrop, Plop! Nature Book Club.
Raindrop, Plop! Nature Book Club Discussion
This month our book club was on the book, Raindrop, Plop! by Wendy Cheyette Lewison. This is a sweet book about a little girl going for a walk in the rain. Though we originally read this book years ago as a counting book, we recently noticed all the fun peaks into nature. So we chose to use this book to start off our fun with the water cycle.
Raindrop, Plop! Nature Book Club Snacks
The little girl in the book eats pretzels while sipping cocoa, so we did, too. We used our fun recipe for Mexican Hot Chocolate.
Raindrop, Plop! Nature Book Club Activities
Since we are studying the water cycle, we played a fun game that introduced us to all the parts of the water cycle. We had recently been on a field trip, and the organizers planned this awesome game that resulted in everyone having a water cycle bracelet at the end. I can't take credit for it, but I found a few sites that had something similar that I will link to at the bottom of this post. But, here's how we played the game and created our bracelets.
There were 9 stations set up representing each part of the water cycle. We all started with a cord for our bracelets that was tied lightly on one end. We gathered at the station for Ground Water, slid a blue bead on our bracelet, and began rolling the dice. The number we rolled determined our next stop.
The stations and the bead colors were:
- Ground Water - Light Blue
- River - Brown
- Lake - Yellow
- Animal - Red
- Soil - Black
- Clouds - White
- Plant - Green
- Ocean - Dark Blue
- Glacier - Clear
At each station, you would roll the dice and read the selection next to your number. The instructions told you about that part of the water cycle and where the water might go next. You would take a bead from that station and place it on your bracelet. Some of the stations had fewer options than others. For example, the Plant station had the following options:
Plant
1, 2, 3 or 4 - Clouds - Water leaves the plant through the process of transpiration
5 or 6 - Stay - Water is used by the plant and stays in the cells
Other stations had several options, like the Soil station.
Soil
1 - Plant - Water is absorbed by plant roots.
2 - River - The soil is saturated. Water runs off into a stream or river.
3 - Ground Water - Water is pulled by gravity. It filters into the soil.
4 or 5 - Clouds - Heat energy from the sun is added to the water. Water evaporates and goes into the clouds.
6 - Stay - Water remains on the surface (in a puddle, or adheres to a soil particle).
At the end, each of the kids had a unique bracelet, and they had learned about all of the parts of the water cycle.
Resources for Game:
Raindrop, Plop! Online Nature Book Club
Go on a nature trek with us based on the book, Raindrop, Plop!. During this online book club, we will go on rabbit trails of discovery about the weather, the water cycle, and more. We will find ways to learn by experiencing parts of the book through arts and crafts.
We will add a little nature study magic dust and go on outdoor adventures into nature.
At the conclusion of the story, we will have a "party school" celebrating water in all its forms.
Take a Sneak Peek into our Raindrop, Plop! Online Nature Book Club:
If this is your first book club....
Adding adventure to the picture book Raindrop, Plop!
Welcome to the Nature Book Club!
The Nature Book Club is a monthly link-up beginning on the 20th day of each month. It’s a monthly book club devoted to connecting children to nature through books. Each month has a different theme. We welcome your nature book and activity related links!
August Theme: Ponds, Rivers and Streams
The Nature Book Club is brought to you by these 6 nature loving bloggers and myself who are your co-hosts! Are you following them? If you don’t want to miss anything, be sure to follow each one.
Here are the co-hosts and activities for the month:
Pond Life Printable Pack from Emily at Table Life Blog
Aquatic Science Studies: 10 Activities for Teens from Eva at Eva Varga
Above and Below a Pond Unit Study and Lapbook from Tina at Tina’s Dynamic Homeschool Plus
Hi, I’m Dachelle. I’m a homeschooling mom of 3 in the South. I love chocolate and have been known to hide it from my children. I can often be found reading a good book (or even sometimes just an okay book) and enjoying a jar of Nutella — don’t judge. I blog, here, at HideTheChocolate.com when I’m not creating book clubs and making lists…lots and lots of lists (it’s an addiction). Learn more…
Our local soil and water conservation district offers this each year during kids free day at the fair!
That’s awesome!