May Nature Calendar Themes
May is almost here and with it brings consistent warm weather, spring in all it’s blooming glory, and the sense that good things are coming. Those longer, sunny days hold so much promise; a promise of fun and adventure, a promise of joyful memories; a promise for more.
For this month’s calendar, I went with themed weeks again, just like last month. I really enjoyed April’s calendar and how it felt a little more cohesive and less random in comparison to the other month’s calendars, like I could really hone in on a single topic and run with it, versus jumping all over the place.
For the first week of May, we will finish up learning about ponds since it blends in with the last week of April.
After that, we will focus on pets. I’ve been a veterinary technician for about 14 years now, so I’m very passionate when it comes to companion animals, especially. Learning about pets is a great topic for all ages of children because it’s relevant to their life. Many people have pets of their own, but even if they don’t, so many books, toys, shows, schoolwork, field trips, etc. are focused around animals and pets.
For the following week, we will learn about butterflies. Now, I will say, if you ever get the chance to hatch butterflies, I absolutely would recommend it! We did it last summer and the kids were fascinated with the process (mom and dad were too). It’s truly remarkable to watch.
Next, we will dive into little woodland mice. I just had to add this topic in because there are just. so. many. wonderful books featuring these sweet little woodland creatures.
For the last week of May, I chose zoos and zoo animals as a topic because it’s that time of year to be getting back to regularly visiting the zoo again. At long last, right?! I’m really eager to try the zoo-themed yoga poses with my kids during that week’s activities – they just look like so much fun.
A Little Bit About My Nature Calendars
If you are new here: Hi! Welcome! I make these nature calendars each month and offer them as freebies that you can download and print at home (no sign up required).
After you read through the blog post to get an idea of what the month will look like, I recommend printing, laminating, and sticking the calendar on your refrigerator – after all, they are just so pretty!
Next, log on to your library’s website and place holds on any of the books that you don’t already own. There is a big ol’ booklist at the end of the blog post that includes all of the titles of the books listed in the calendar, so be sure to scroll down and check that out. My nature calendars HEAVILY focus on books – so there are a bunch of titles!
Lastly, I recommend jotting down each days’ plans in your homeschool planner or wherever you plan things out so that you are prepared each week with the proper books, recipes, or activity supplies.
There isn’t a whole lot of pre-planning required for these nature calendars. I aim to keep them fairly simple. There may be sensory bins here and there or nature crafts – but nothing over the top. I include poetry tea time every Wednesday – so there will be recipe links for those days that will require some preplanning on your end with your grocery list, but other than that, it’s mostly read alouds and nature facts.
May Activity Links + Information
Here is where I’ve broken it all down for you – you’ll find more information about the activities, nature facts and sources, and read aloud choices for each day of the month.
Disclaimer: The ABCs of Motherhood is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, which helps me run my website. Read more about these links in my disclosure policy.
Week 1: Ponds Continued
May 1st: Try to catch tadpoles at a pond on your next nature hike.
This is such a simple and fun springtime activity – so grab those nets and head out to a pond area!
May 2nd: Many of our freshwater lakes, streams, and ponds are polluted. Discuss why they are and how we can be “water savers”.
Last month, in April’s Nature Calendar, I had the kids listening to the Arthur Podcast episode, “Speak Up, Francine” which introduced the topic of water pollution.
Today, we can expand on that further and review water pollution and ways we can be “water savers” at home.
I came across a few helpful website articles for this topic. The first is from the American Museum of Natural History and has a nice Water Saver Checklist with actionable ways to save water and why each task is important for conservation.
Here is another helpful article from The American Museum of Natural History where an ichthyologist (scientist who specializes in the study of fish) answers why so many lakes, streams, and ponds are polluted.
May 3rd: Do a trash pick up at a local pond area.
My kids LOVE a good trash pick up. In the warmer months, especially, we try to get out in the neighborhood during our walks and pick up litter we see laying around near our neighborhood’s small ponds. It’s always really eye-opening just how much trash we find – that would otherwise pollute our ponds and get ingested by our local waterfowl and fish (or trapped around our birds’ legs and bills).
We love using these tools for trash pick up – they come in a 2-pack. My 3 year old can use them (albeit, she is slow at operating them), but my older child has been using them proficiently/fully independently since probably around 4.5 years old.
Week 2: Pets
May 4th: Approximately 6.3 million companion animals enter U.S. animal shelters nationwide every year.
That is A LOT of homeless animals. There are a lot of other interesting statistics about shelter animals that you can find here, in an article from the ASPCA.org, like how many of those homeless animals get adopted out each year and how many are reunited with their owners.
May 5th: Begin reading The Incredible Journey.
This book has been on my read-aloud bucket list for a long time now. I have actually never read it and am hoping it lives up to the hype.
I was obsessed with the movie Homeward Bound as a child (I still cannot even watch a clip of certain scenes without bawling), so I’m hoping the book is just as good or even better.
After you finish reading, you can all watch Homeward Bound together for a family movie night.
May 6th: Set up a ‘Wash the Pets’ sensory bin. Read a stack of picture books about pets.
We did a ‘wash the pets’ sensory bin a year or so back and the kids STILL talk about it and ask if we will be doing it again. I guess it made a lasting impression!
This one is taste safe, so it’s perfect for younger toddlers to join in, but it is a messy one! Not to say that the mess can’t be contained in the bin, but it’s meant for getting hands all messy – so fun for kids.
I’d be negligent in my veterinary technician duties if I did not disclaim that this sensory bin is made with cocoa powder, which is totally taste safe for people, but incredibly dangerous for our pets! Do not let this one spill onto the floor – I recommend doing it on a tabletop and gating off your pets elsewhere.
You can find all the details and the ‘mud’ recipe here in my pet-themed week blog post.
Scroll down to the Booklist section of this blog post for a complete list of my recommended/favorite pet-themed books. I’ve got a bunch! I honestly am struggling to come up with my top picks out of this large selection, but if I was forced to my top 5 would be:
- Alfie – Thyra Heder
- The Old Woman Who Named Things – Cynthia Rylant
- Can I Be Your Dog? – Troy Cummings
- The Mercy Watson Series – Kate DiCamillo
- What Pet Should I Get? – Dr. Seuss
May 7th: Poetry Tea Time: Read from a James Herriot treasury and enjoy rice cake ‘cats’.
James Herriot is a treasure! If you’re unfamiliar, he was a British veterinarian who became an author in his 50’s, writing loosely about his own experiences with animals as a veterinarian.
I just love this illustrated treasury – the illustrations are so whimsical.
There are oodles and oodles of fun pet-themed snacks out there (apparently pet-themed birthday parties are a thing – wouldn’t know, as we don’t do parties). I stumbled on these adorable “cat” rice cakes and just knew they’d make the perfect simple poetry tea time snack.
Check out the rice cake cats over at From Val’s Kitchen. I might make ours with cream cheese on top of some of them. You could probably use Nutella too! So then you could have some brown, white, and nearly blackish cats!
May 8th: Sign up to read to a library dog (or your own pet!)
I have been eager to do this for years and now that Mr. 6 is reading, I’m ready to sign him up for this! Our libraries offer this program regularly.
Here is a little 1 minute clip from Dav Pilkey, author of the super-popular Captain Underpants and Dog Man series – explaining the benefits of reading to your dog, man.
If potty-humor-filled graphic novels aren’t your thing, then here is an article from UC Davis, backing the same research.
I included two favorite picture books depicting children reading to animals in the booklist at the end of this post, so be sure to check that out!
May 9th: Veterinarians are animal doctors. There are vets for dogs and cats, farm animals, zoo animals, and more!
There are so many different types of animal doctors.
Here are some examples:
- large animal veterinarians (farm animals, horses) – they often travel to each job site
- zoo veterinarians
- exotic veterinarians (rodents, birds, reptiles)
- shelter medicine veterinarians (homeless animals, spay/neuter clinics)
- laboratory medicine veterinarians (doing research, often using rodents)
- companion animal veterinarians (dogs, cats, sometimes rodents)
- mixed animal veterinarians (companion animals AND large animals)
- home euthanasia veterinarians (compassionate at-home euthanasia)
Beyond the type of animal that they see, there are also board certifications veterinarians can obtain, such as in emergency medicine, behavior, dentistry, internal medicine, or surgery, etc. Many, many veterinarians do all of these roles though, even without fully specializing in one area.
You can use this opportunity to ask your children what they think it would be like to clean a dog’s teeth, like the dentist does for them. Or what it would be like to give medicine to a bird, guinea pig, or cat. You can ask them what type of veterinarian they think is the most interesting, etc.
May 10th: Tour a veterinary hospital or do so virtually.
If you are a homeschooler, call around and see if you can set up a tour of a local veterinary hospital. I know some will do this and the larger ones have a lot of really cool things that the kids can see, such as surgery rooms, anesthesia machines, intensive care units, ct machines, x-ray machines, laboratories, or underwater treadmill / therapy rooms.
If this is not an option, here are a few sources for virtual tours that I found helpful:
This one shows what happens during a physical exam for a dog and tours a surgery room and anesthesia machine as well as some x-ray images (including a broken bone x-ray and a pregnant dog’s x-rays). It concludes with giving a dog a bath.
This one showcases a day in the life of an (Australian) veterinarian. In it, the veterinarian does a FNA (fine needle aspirate) of a lump on a dog and looks at the sample with a microscope. Afterward, they perform a dental cleaning on a dog. These are all brief clips, but is very accurate and kid-friendly too.
This one is longer, about 20 minutes, and is by Nat Geo Kids titled Awesome Animal Vets featuring Dr. Pol. It features a ton of different types of animals, not just dogs and cats. It is accurate in it’s portrayal of the field.
Week 3: Butterflies
May 11th: Butterflies don’t have noses. Instead, they taste and smell food using their legs and feet.
I honestly never knew this about butterflies and found it interesting. There are a bunch of other butterfly facts in this power point slide by Butterfly Creek.
May 12th: Read a stack of picture books about butterflies.
I have a nice big booklist featuring picture books about butterflies that you’ll find near the end of this post. Out of all of them, you just HAVE to check out Butterfly House by Eve Bunting. It’s a sweet story and the illustrations are absolutely breathtaking.
May 13th: Create a butterfly collage using items found in nature.
This butterfly nature craft by Crafts On Sea is so simple and creative. Kids will gather nature items, like leaves and flowers and glue them on to an outline of a butterfly. Love when nature exploration mixes with craft time.
May 14th: Poetry Tea Time: Read poems from Animals Animals and enjoy butterfly + flower sandwiches.
The Animals Animals poetry book had been on my wish list for awhile and then I ended up winning it in a raffle! I was so excited and knew it would go perfectly with our pet-themed week.
I don’t have a how-to link, but I have a link to the image for inspiration in making butterfly and flower sandwiches.
Side Note: These cute sandwiches would also pair well with a fairy-themed poetry tea time, reading The Complete Book of Flower Fairies.
May 15th: Visit a butterfly house.
Is there anything quite as magical as a warm and colorful butterfly house?
May 16th: The wings of a butterfly are covered in tiny scales, which create the patterns and colors we see.
This fact is from the same source mentioned earlier, by Butterfly Creek.
May 17th: Plant flowers the butterflies will love.
We chatted in last month’s calendar about the importance of native plants and flowers for our pollinators. Now is the perfect time to go plant some of those!
Week 4: Woodland Mice
May 18th: Mice use their whiskers to sense changes in temperature.
I thought this was pretty interesting! Here are some more mice facts.
May 19th: Begin reading The Tale of Despereaux.
Kate DiCamillo is a gem in children’s fiction and an award winning author, including being a two-time Newbery Medal winner.
She is famous for The Tale of Despereaux, Because of Winn Dixie, The Mercy Watson series, Flora & Ulysses, and more.
Several of her books have been made into film adaptations, including The Tale of Despereaux (DVD link). Once you finish reading, plan a family movie night and watch the film.
May 20th: Make a mouse like Despereaux out of clay or play dough.
Okay, you probably don’t need any inspiration for creating a play dough mouse, but here is some, just in case, ha. You can have them try a sculpted version (like the one linked) or a flat version. One that looks like a real mouse or one that walks around like Despereaux. Get creative and have fun with it.
May 21st: Poetry Tea Time: Read Mouse Soup and Mouse Tales and enjoy a charcuterie snack board.
My kids are totally obsessed with these books! They are some of our all-time favorites and they always lead to fits of giggles.
Arnold Lobel is probably most famous for his beloved Frog and Toad series, which won the Caldecott Honor and Newbery Honor Award, but he has so many more really special books too, like Mouse Soup and Mouse Tales. I promise you’ll fall in love with them.
Other favorites are Owl at Home, Uncle Elephant, and Grasshopper on the Road.
May 22nd: What types of food do mice eat? Point out food options a mouse would enjoy on your next nature hike.
Start a conversation about mice habitats and tie it into a nature exploration hike.
May 23rd: In the wild, mice usually only live for about six months, but as a pet, they can live for up to two years.
May 24th: Read Thimbleberry Stories outside on the next beautiful day.
Aren’t these illustrations just beautiful? Can never go wrong with a book from Cynthia Rylant.
Week 5: Zoos
May 25th: Zoos play an important role in animal research and conservation.
Here is a great article from National Geographic detailing the history of zoos, the importance of them, and what they are designed for.
May 26th: Read a stack of picture books featuring zoos or zoo animals.
Head down to the Booklist section of this blog post for my favorite picture books featuring zoos and zoo animals. Out of all of these, our all time favorite is The Gingerbread Man Loose at the Zoo by Laura Murray – this entire series is amazing!
May 27th: Create an animal track hop scotch game.
This looks like such a fun spring/summertime outdoor activity by Modern Preschool. It’s essentially hopscotch where you can tie in counting and learning colors with each jump and instead of squares – you draw animal tracks.
I think I’ll modify ours to include acting like different animals when they reach the finish line, such as, roaring like a lion, or walking like a bear, etc.
May 28th: Poetry Tea Time: Read the Amos McGee series and enjoy animal crackers + a chocolate chip cookie dough dip.
These two books are timeless treasures and will become instant favorites for your home library. A Sick Day for Amos McGee won the Caldecott Medal in 2011. Amos McGee Misses the Bus is just as sweet.
I just discovered that there will be a 3rd release to the series in September of this year, A Snow Day for Amos McGee, this will be perfect for gifting some new wintertime books this year.
I cannot wait to try out this mouthwatering looking chocolate chip cookie dough dip by The Country Cook for our poetry tea time snack! We will use animal crackers as dippers.
May 29th: Go to the zoo.
It’s the perfect time of year to get back to regular zoo visits.
May 30th: The first modern zoo was built in 1793 in Paris, France and is still opened today. Can you find Paris on a map?
May 31st: Do zoo themed yoga poses.
How fun do these kid-friendly zoo yoga poses look from Pink Oatmeal.com?! I love this and can’t wait to try with my kids.
May Nature Calendar Booklist
The Incredible Journey – Sheila Burnford
Pet-Themed Book Ideas:
What Pet Should I Get? – Dr. Seuss
Just Me and My Puppy – Mercer Mayer
The Night Before the New Pet – Natasha Wing
Can I Be Your Dog? – Troy Cummings
Strictly No Elephants – Lisa Mantchev
Oh, The Pets You Can Get! – Tish Rabe
I Wanna Iguana – Karen Kaufman Orloff
The Old Woman Who Named Things – Cynthia Rylant
Arthur’s New Puppy – Marc Brown
Arthur’s Pet Business – Marc Brown
The Gingerbread Man: Class Pet on the Loose – Laura Murray
Mercy Watson Series – Kate DiCamillo
My Pet Wants a Pet – Elise Broach (check your local library)
What Pet To Get? – Emma Dodd (check your local library)
Not Norman: A Goldfish Story – Kelly Bennett
Aaaarrgghh, Spider! – Lydia Monks
The Cat Man of Aleppo – Irene Latham and Karim Shamsi-Basha
James Herriot’s Treasury for Children – James Herriot
Books Featuring Reading To Pets:
James’ Reading Rescue – Dianna Wilson-Sirkovsky
Madeline Finn and the Library Dog – Lisa Papp
Butterfly-themed Book Ideas:
Crinkleroot’s Guide To Knowing Butterflies & Moths – Jim Arnosky
National Geographic Kids: Caterpillar to Butterfly – Laura Marsh
National Geographic Kids: Great Migrations – Butterflies – Laura Marsh
National Geographic Kids: Butterflies – Marfe Ferguson Delano
A Butterfly Is Patient – Diana Hutts Aston
Monarch Butterfly – Gail Gibbons
Isabel’s House of Butterflies – Tony Johnston
Little Bear: The Butterfly Garden – Else Holmelund (check your local library)
The Tale of Despereaux – Kate DiCamillo
Thimbleberry Stories – Cynthia Rylant
Zoo-Themed Book Ideas:
The Gingerbread Man Loose at The Zoo – Laura Murray
Good Night, Gorilla – Peggy Rathmann
Curious George Visits the Zoo – H.A. Rey
Wild About Books – Judy Sierra
The View at the Zoo – Kathleen Long Bostrom
Behind The Scenes at the Zoo – DK Publishing
Put Me in the Zoo – Robert Lopshire
A Sick Day for Amos McGee – Philip C. Stead
Amos McGee Misses the Bus – Philip C. Stead
Enjoy Your May Nature Calendar
Grab your FREE copy of the May Nature Calendar by clicking here.
Happy May, friends!
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