Sunlight & Seasons Signs of the Season: Observations for March 2011 March is a time of dramatic change. Make a temperature timeline this month. Record each day's high, low, and average temperatures and add all the signs of spring you notice. Spring officially begins on March 20, but when does it begin unofficially for you? Think about it. Send us your sightings. Keep your eyes and ears open and follow along on spring's adventures with Journey North! News: March Brings New Animal Life Observations: What's Happening to Sunlight Maps Explore: Spring Fever: Build a Temperature Timeline Think: "Official Spring" and Your Spring See: Related Journey North Lessons and Links Each seasonal change paves the way for others. What clues can you find? Photo: J. Gallion March Brings New Animal Life March and April are a busy time for animal families. Baby squirrels are born during this time. I noticed one of my regular Fox squirrel at the feeder getting very plump in her stomach with baby squirrels will be born in the next coming month of March. Squirrels give birth twice a year March into April and August into September. The last 2 years I have gray squirrels nesting in a hole in my old maple tree outside my window. I watch them go in and out throughout the day also carrying bunches of leaves in their mouths to the hole making nests for this years new comers. - Wendy in Morris, Illinois What do you see today, on the first of March? Here's a sampling of recent reports: Recent Sighting Reports Squirrels belong to a large family of rodents. Do you recognize any from their family poster? What's Happening to the Sunlight? Are you tracking sunrise and sunset times, daylength, or shadows in your hometown? What have you noticed? Some important things have changed since the last update. In Minnesota we have gained 57 minutes of sunlight since February 1. How is your daylength increasing? We continue to follow the angle of the sun across the Earth as winter turns into spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and summer turns to fall in the Southern Hemisphere. Imagine you're in space looking at Earth on the morning of March 1. Here's what you'd see! How is sunlight changing? Please report your observations! Observe the natural world closely. Make drawings and record data. Look for patterns of seasonal change. Then report observations from your part of the world! North America (map/sightings) Europe (map/sightings) Asia (map/sightings) Spring Fever: Build a Temperature Timeline March is a time of dramatic change. Keep a record of these changes with a temperature timeline. Observe each day's temperatures and any new signs of spring. Record them all on a timeline in your classroom or hallway. Think about cause and effect. How will the timing of one event affect another? Will earthworms surface and robins arrive at the same time; cherry blossoms and honey bees; milkweed plants and monarch butterflies? What other events in nature are interconnected? How do the temperatures outside influence spring’s awakening? Think: Why is it important to study the timing of natural events (also known as phenology)? Add your ideas to this list. To better manage allergies and hay fever To know the best time to plant crops For creating records to understand climate change ? ? ? Photo: Wayne Kryduba "Official Spring" and Your Spring! For a long time, you've noticed signs that spring is brewing. But it's official this month: Spring begins on March 20. Why then? Scientists declare it "spring" in the Northern Hemisphere when the direct rays of the sun are above Earth's equator. That's when the calendar says spring begins. But people have very different ideas. Some say that it's spring when the first robin appears or when they can finally go outside with no jacket. These dates will change depending where you live! What signs tell you when spring has arrived? Draw or write a list. Combine lists to add to your class chart. Use this Journal Handout. On the equinox, the sun's direct rays are over the equator.  Resources to Explore Student Journal: What signs tell you spring has arrived? Handout: Watching the Seasons Change (grades K-3) Handout: Signs of Spring Checklist (grades 4+) Report your observations! (Choose the sighting or event that best fits!) Maps: Spring events and Signs of Spring Journal Handout: Signs of Spring: Clues About Seasonal Change Tool: Sunrise/Sunset Data Teachers: About Signs of the Seasons Keep observations, drawings, and checklists in easy-to-print Signs of Spring journals. Signs of Spring for April A reminder will be posted on April 1, 2011

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