Bugs

This summer, Asher learned about fireflies.  He got to stay up past bedtime.  We chased the fireflies all around the back yard.  We caught one in a jar and brought it in to show to Daddy.  Then we went back out and watched our little captive fly off into the night.

He also learned about hornets.  He climbed up a tall wooden play structure and found a nest.  One of its residents stung him on the eyebrow.  A knowledgeable friend rubbed some plantain herbs on it and it didn't even swell.  But Asher still screamed.  A lot.

He eventually learned about flies.  I spent the rest of the summer after the hornet episode trying to convince Asher that flies are not bees and that they cannot, in fact, sting us.  It took a few months, but he finally transitioned from screaming to swatting and saying "shoo" at the sight of one.

He learned about honey bees, and if you ask him, he can tell you that they gather nectar from flowers, which they then take to their hives and fan to make honey.  I've tried explaining pollination a few times, but so far that part doesn't seem to be sticking.

He learned about ants.  (Thank you, Magic School Bus.)  He knows that there are different kinds of ants that do different things and he is sure that every really big ant he sees is a queen.  Which they might be, but I'm less confident in my ant knowledge than my preschooler is in his.

He learned about butterflies.  We went to a butterfly exhibit at the local botanical garden and he saw all varieties of butterflies and moths, both living and, er... dead.  We also saw a monarch hatchery, but Asher still doesn't believe that caterpillars turn into butterflies.  In fact, he is a little upset by my insistence that they do.

Now summer is over.  We'll see what lessons fall has in store.