The Caterpillar

The caterpillar was innocently inching it's way across our patio when it was spied by my intrepid explorer girls this afternoon.  Ciaran was napping and Reagan was at school, so I thought it was a good time to take the girls outside and do some gardening while they played.  The caterpillar interrupted their play, however, and captivated their attention.

I encouraged them to watch it, noting how it moved, how long it was, what it felt like when stroked gently with one finger.  We talked about it's many legs and it's colors.  Then we talked about what caterpillars eat, and what happens to them when they get big enough.  Eventually Piper turned her attention toward other things and moved on, but Bridget was still fixated.  So, Bridget had a couple more lessons to learn.

1. You can't force feed a caterpillar.  It will eat when and what it wants to.


2. You can't make a caterpillar drink.  It will drink when and what it wants to.


3. Caterpillars and all God's creatures are to be respected and observed but left alone.

I think she learned the lessons.  She stopped trying to go inside to get a glass of water for it, and stayed out of it's way, just watching for a long while.  I think I'll have them draw and color a picture of it this evening while it's still fresh in their minds.

And that's our Science for today.