Backyard Science & Discovery Workbook : Midwest

Why settle for less? Utilize educational content tailor-made for your part of the country, and introduce children to nature in the Midwest.

National workbooks are great—but regional content is even better! The Midwest encompasses 12 states, and it features four distinct seasons. Focus on the habitats, plants, and animals found here.

Written by Brett Ortler, a naturalist from the region, the Backyard Science & Discovery Workbook: Midwest does what other workbooks can’t: It gets specific about climate, geography, state symbols, weather, and especially birds, fungi, insects, minerals, trees, wildflowers, and so much more. With over 20 simple, fun introductions to scientific subjects—like astronomy and geology—it gets children excited about nature in their own backyard and teaches them to love and protect the great outdoors. More than a dozen activities help kids to make hypotheses, experiment, and observe. The 19 hands-on science projects—such as raising native caterpillars, making mushroom spore prints, and attracting moths with an ultraviolet light—put students in control of their own learning!

You never know what your children will uncover in their outdoor classroom. Every day is a little treasure hunt. If they keep good records and share what they find, their observations can even help scientists learn more about nature in the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. So get the Backyard Science & Discovery Workbook: Midwest, and get started on a lifetime of discovery.

Regional workbooks are better:

• Introduction to the Midwest’s geography, plants and animals, and biology
• Activities specific to your part of the country
• Fun hands-on projects that spark wonder
• Regionally accurate information about agriculture, invasive species, weather records, and more

Brett Ortler is a writer, a naturalist, and an editor. As the editor at Adventure Publications, he’s edited more than 300 titles pertaining to nature and the natural world, including best-selling field guides to the night sky, rocks and minerals, birds, bugs and insects, and pretty much everything in between. When he’s not working, he’s usually outside looking for rocks, photographing bugs, or looking at mushrooms. He is the author of a number of popular introductions to the natural world, including The Fireflies Book, The Mosquito Book, Animal Tracks Activity Book, and many others. He’s also an essayist and poet, with work published in Fatherly, Scary Mommy, and Yahoo! Parenting, as well as many other venues. His first collection of poetry, Lessons of the Dead, was released in 2019. He lives in Minnesota with his wife, two kiddos, and three dogs.