Is there such a thing? We do a geography unit study and there's so much on science this time around. This week we're learning about sunny Florida. (it is sunny down there this time of year, huh?) And there's so much I can do with my girls: hurricanes, thunderstorms, plus the regular
flower detective, animal bios (dolphins!), etc. It looks like we'll be doing some form of science every day for the next 2 weeks! (or almost every weekday)

Would this be too much? It involves learning about the animal, doing some on the internet, learning about hurricane safety (we rarely get hurricanes here, more like tropical storms by the time the hurricane reaches us).

I'm not doing alligators, unless maybe if I find something about what to do if you came near one accidently. Which isn't likely except maybe New York sewers. (just kidding!) My kids are scared of alligators, even pictures freak them out. So if I were to teach them about this animal, it'll have to be about how to keep themselves safe in regards to one, and cut down on the nightmares.

I think whether or not it's "too much" depends on your kids (and you). I would pursue the area they are most interested in, or that have the biggest impact on your family, and leave the rest for another time. When we lived in Florida, we studied a lot about hurricanes (more by personal experience than I would have liked!), but if we were to have a unit like that now we'd probably just skip it. As for the alligators, if studying them would scare your girls, I'd skip it entirely. But if knowing more about them would reassure them (maybe some of the fear is a fear of the unknown?) then it would be well worth the time to study them. You know your kids best, so I'd go with as much science as will benefit them. Doing science every day for 2 weeks is fine, if that works for you. Or touching on it a few times a week is fine, too.

Thanks, Lori! What you're saying makes sense. If you already covered hurricanes, why do it again?

I think part of my kids' problem is a fear of the unknown. "How do we stay safe?" Safety is a big issue for girls, myself included.

The bird for Florida is the mockingbird, but it also was for another state we learned about - Connecticut I think? So it's okay to color the picture but we don't have to go into animal bios for that. And dolphins will be fun! (we're big fans of Dolphins, but not Miami Dolphins, j/k)

Sometimes I'm afraid of overkill.