Backyard Science & Discovery Workbook: Southwest
Fun Activities & Experiments That Get Kids Outdoors
Why settle for less? Utilize educational content tailor-made for your part of the country, and introduce children to nature in the Southwest.
National workbooks are great—but regional content is even better! The Southwest encompasses several states. Focus on the habitats, plants, and animals found here.
Written by George Oxford Miller, a botanist from the region, the Backyard Science & Discovery Workbook: Southwest 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 Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, western Oklahoma, western Texas, and southern Utah. So get the Backyard Science & Discovery Workbook: Southwest, and get started on a lifetime of discovery.
Regional workbooks are better:
- Introduction to the Southwest’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
Professional nature photographer and botanist George Oxford Miller is a lifelong resident of the West. He has lived in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas, and he has written six guidebooks to the Southwest, including the best-selling trio Landscaping with Native Plants of the Southwest, Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas, and Landscaping with Native Plants of Southern California. He also wrote Wildflowers quick guides to Arizona & New Mexico, Texas, Southern California, and Colorado. He wrote a “Plant of the Month” column for New Mexico Magazine and is former president of the Albuquerque chapter of the Native Plant Society of New Mexico, where he still conducts workshops and programs on how to create your own backyard pollinator oasis.