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This column discusses resources and science topics related to students in grades preK to 2. This month’s issue discusses children observing and documenting the growth of a plant from a seed to seed-production and animal interactions with the plant.

Children will need to distinguish between an animal’s home and its habitat and see that while a home gives the animal shelter or a place to nurture and produce their young it is the wider living place the habitat that supplies food (nutrition) and the other conditions that the animal or plant needs to live.

Today's task is inspired by the NSTA eBook Home is Where My Habitat Is. The story follows a jumping spider named Kippy in her search for a new place to live. Though her habitat is small, some of the animals that Kippy encounters live in much larger ones. Diversity doesn't exist just in the types of plants and animals living in a habitat; Kippy journeys through many different types of habitats as well.

Student's misconceptions about ecosystems.

The Envirobox Project involved a total of six classes (first- through fifth-grades) from around the United States sending each other a shoebox containing six to ten environmental samples. The boxes contained items such as pressed leaves and flowers, rocks, water samples, feathers, soil samples, pieces of bark, snake skins, acorns, pinecones, shells, lobster claws, and maple syrup. Once each class received their enviroboxes, the children began their investigations to identify the samples. Exchang