← Back to course
Backyard Explorer 3 to 5 / Week 06 / Explorer Day
6/6
Week 06 · Signs and Safety

Explorer Day

Explorer Day: Sign Survey
// Reading the clues that mammals, reptiles and amphibians leave behind
⏱ about 15 min

Explorer Day: Sign Survey

Rocket, Raven and Nova set out along the creek path right after breakfast.

By the first bend Raven has written down two tracks and a nibbled leaf.

By the log pile Rocket spots a tiny tail drag line in the dust.

Nova marks each find with a soft cyan dot on her map of the route.

"Eight signs," says Raven at the end. "And we never saw a single animal."

  1. Animals leave signs: tracks, scat, shed skin, calls, nibbled plants and burrows.
  2. Mammals have fur or hair and most are born live.
  3. Reptiles have dry scales, most lay eggs and they bask to warm up.
  4. Amphibians have smooth moist skin and start life in water.
  5. Every structure has a job that helps an animal survive.
  6. Explorers look. They never touch.
◇ EXPLORER DAY: A SIGN SURVEY
Walk your planned route with your grown-up and your notebook.
Every time you find a sign, stop. Write where it was and what you observed.
Then write your inference: which group might have left it, and why.
Count the toes in any track. Look for claw marks, a tail line or webbed toes.
Listen for one full minute at the quietest spot. Write any calls you hear.
At the end, count your signs. Which group had the most?
Back inside, pick your best sign and share it with your family.
Safety first
Look at every sign. Touch none of them. Not scat, not shed skin, not eggs, not fur.
Never touch or follow a wild animal. Never lift logs or rocks yourself.
Stay with your grown-up and stay back from water. Wash your hands when you get home.
For a grown-up
Carry the notebook if your child is busy looking.
If a sign is unclear, that is fine. Write mystery sign and move on.
Ask: what did you observe, and what did you infer? Keep the two apart.
SignWhereObservationInference
SURVEY CHECK
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
You find a dry scaly skin by a rock. Which group left it?
You hear croaking from a ditch. Which group is that?
What should you do with your hands when you find a sign?
WHY THIS EXERCISESigns are for looking, never touching. Point and write.
Draw your best sign from the survey. Label your observation and your inference.

Brilliant survey, explorer! Next week we follow who eats whom in your backyard.

← Friday