Self-Directed Learning:
FOOD STUDIES/PRESERVES

There are 10 types of preserves to which jam and jelly are just two. In this video, learn about the differences between these preserves

Self-Directed Learning:
HISTORY/PRESERVING

Raisins are a secret ingredient used in the historical preservation of foods. In this video, discover their role in a long-lost method.

Self-Directed Learning:
CULINARY ARTS

Seasonal produce picked out at your local farmers’ market for ingredients of a favorite recipe to be made for your family dinner can be strengthened with lessons in the culinary art. Knowing the base flavors of different styles of cooking is a great place to start a lesson! In this video, learn how to make and use all the culinary bases from around the world, including French mirepoix, Italian sofrito, Spanish sofrito, the Cajun holy trinity, and Chinese GGS. This base knowledge will help you create new recipes!

Self-Directed Learning:
FOOD TRADITIONS

Food is an integral part of our human story. The act of cooking calls upon centuries of cooking methods, ingredients, spices, and flavors that have shaped our distinct cultures and traditions. Within our families, recipes are passed down, and special dishes are often considered an important part of our unique family gatherings and holiday celebrations. The art of recipe collecting and writing is something that allows the generations to share their family’s culture through the legacy of food.

Self-Directed Learning:
ECOLOGY/BOGS

There are many myths and legends around carnivorous plants, and a couple of these plants we can find right here in Western MA! The Hawley Bog is an excellent case of an intact New England bog and bog plants. Take your field guides, sketchbooks, and cameras and spend some time looking closely at these native species’ in their natural environment. Get curious about the differences between habitats, asking questions like, “What’s the difference between a bog and wetlands?” “How are bogs formed?” “Why are bogs important ecosystems?” Seek out answers and return next year.

Self-Directed Learning:
BOTANY/CARNIVOROUS PLANTS

In this TED-Ed video, “The wild nature of carnivorous plants,” Kenny Coogan takes us on an informative tour. “Learn about carnivorous plants and their predatory antics to lure, trap, and digest prey. — Around the world, there are more than 600 plant species that supplement a regular diet of sunlight, water, and soil with insects, frogs, and even rats. Flies, tadpoles, and beetles fall prey to the remarkable, predatory antics of carnivorous plants. What exactly are carnivorous plants, and how do they trap their prey? Kenny Coogan dives into the world of these flesh-eating tricksters.”

Self-Directed Learning:
NATURE OBSERVATIONS/FIREFLIES

While it’s best for the firefly to watch them up-close while out in nature during their short appearance during the summertime, many parents remember catching them in jars for a bedtime nightlight. If this is you and you want to share your memories with your children by doing the same with them, this video will show you how to catch and store them for a few hours safely. Once the kids are asleep, it’s advised to release these friends so they can live out their lifecycle.

Self-Directed Learning:
SCIENCE/BIOLUMINESCENCE

Fireflies are a native bioluminescence species here in New England, but they aren’t the only glowing critters on this planet! In this TED-Ed video, “The brilliance of bioluminescence,” Let your love of fireflies lead your learning about zoology through the lens of bioluminescence. Used for lifesaving purposes, including hunting and mating, a biochemical process produces the glow of a firefly. In this video, Leslie Kenna investigates this magical glow and our scientific quest to replicate.

As gooseberries come into fruit, the catbirds and robins are little thieves in the middle of the day, stripping the fruit and leaving homesteaders frustrated and contemplating berry netting next season. And as raspberries transition from blossom to fruit, ruby-throated hummingbirds pay visits to patches throughout the day. High in the treetops, you can spy Baltimore orioles while hooded merganser ducks paddle by with their brood of ducklings down below through the rivers. These are the bird sightings you might see in the Hilltowns in the early summer. But what about their nests? Yes, you can spy those too, but first, learn WHERE they build their nests (in the trees, reeds, or river banks), HOW they build their nests, and other interesting facts about our avian neighbors and the places they call home. Learn about seven different types of nests in this video!

Self-Directed Learning:
ORNITHOLOGY

Self-Directed Learning:
ENTOMOLOGY

Self-Directed Learning:
ENTOMOLOGY

Self-Directed Learning:
LEPIDOPTEROLOGY/GARDENING

If you’re lucky, this time of year, you might catch a kaleidoscope of male butterflies in the act of “puddling.” The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucus) is one of the most common butterflies in our region. You can sometimes find the males in a group on the ground along the edge of a river where they are retrieving salts that are necessary for reproduction but not available in nectar. Even better, you can create a butterfly feeder where butterflies can come and puddle near your home garden. Learn how to create a butterfly puddler in this video.

Self-Directed Learning:
ENTOMOLOGY/LEPIDOPTEROLOGY

SciShow Kids asks, “Do you have a favorite insect? We really like butterflies! But there’s another awesome insect with really big wings and long antenna that you might see flapping around: moths! Moths and butterflies can look really similar, but we’ve got some tips to help you tell them apart!” Discover these tips in their episode, “Butterfly or Moth?” Grab the kids and join them to learn about the differences between the two. Tips include the differences between a cocoon and a chrysalis, straight and feathered antennae, how they hold their wings, and what time of the day they are active.