"Tree Squirrel Playground" Project

7th grade Physics in Waldorf education includes a focus on Simple Machines. Usually I use Roberto Trostli's excellent book, Physics is Fun! A Sourcebook for Teachers.

But this year, we are going to have some fun with this topic by designing a Tree Squirrel Playground!

Our playground design will specifically be for the eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis). The squirrel familiy in Southern Illinois also includes fox squirrels, groundhogs, chipmunks, and southern flying squirrels.

For the younger children, this will be more Nature Study than Mechanics. Here are our questions, observations, investigations, and explorations:

Thu May 8
do squirrels come out in the rain?

A rainy Thursday threw a wet blanket over our hoped-for observations of squirrels. But we did learn that squirrels do not come out in the rain!

question: do squirrels come out in the rain?
observation: no

new questions: Would a squirrel run through a sprinkler to get to a nut? Would a squirrel dip its hands in water to get to a nut?

Mon May 12
what do squirrels like to eat?

Work in teams to measure out 50 grams of five different foods. Arrange plates on a table under the tree and see which foodstuff is the most popular!

question: what do squirrels like to eat?
in order of preference: black oil sunflower, shelled corn, whole peanuts

we also observed squirrels taking whole peanuts away and burying them

Tue May 13
oatmeal box challenge

Today's challenge is a peanut hanging suspended inside an oatmeal box.

Today we also read a portion of The Chisel-Tooth Tribe by Wilfrid Swancourt Bronson (pages 3-12 of chapter 1, "The Chisel-Tooth Tribe in General").

question: can a squirrel get to a hanging peanut suspended in a box?
observation: YES... we found peanuts missing beginning Sat May 17 but did not directly observe the squirrels taking them until Thu May 22

this was a difficult challenge for the squirrels and they mostly ignored it

Wed May 14
crumpled paper challenge

Today's challenge is a pile of corn covered with crinkly brown paper. Will the squirrels be able to overcome the unpleasant sound and get to the corn?

We updated yesterday's challenge by replacing the thread with aluminum wire, as one student was concerned a squirrel might get thread wrapped around them and get hurt; we also re-hung some of the oatmeal boxes so that a squirrel to get to the peanut from the underside (a low part of the branch, standing on the corncob holder, jumping up from the ground). And we also read the second half of chapter 1 from The Chisel-Tooth Tribe!

question: can a squirrel overcome its timidity and dig in loud crinkly paper?
observation: YES... we observed this Sun May 18

Thu May 15
PVC pipe challenge

Today's challenge is a piece of PVC pipe (84 inch length, 3 inch diameter) with sunflower seeds inside its full length. Will the squirrels go completely into the tube, or maintain their instinct to always have an escape route?

question: will a squirrel go into a tunnel?
observation: NO... the squirrels did NOT go completely into the tube, and we had to cancel this experiment early because they were chewing the PVC pipe and dropping bits of plastic all over the ground

Mon May 19

old dresser challenge - LL

Today students began to add their ideas to the Tree Squirrel Playground.

LL wanted to create a Climbing Wall, so we put an old dresser (minus the drawers) out in the grass with an ear of corn on the top. Can they climb the wooden rungs of the drawer supports?

question: can a squirrel climb the rungs of a dresser?
observation: YES... we observed this Tue May 20

brick tower challenge - KEL

KEL wondered, can squirrels climb rocks or only trees and wood? She built a brick tower and placed a cup of sunflower seeds on top.

question: can a squirrel climb bricks?
observation: the squirrel simply jumped to the top of the tower (28 inches)

box swing challenge - EF

EF wanted to create a Swing, so she placed whole peanuts inside a box and tied it to the tree in such a way that it would swing violently if a squirrel jumped in. Can they get over their fear of the swing, and stay inside the moving box and eat the peanuts?

Today we also read the first four chapters and did the experiments from Inclined Planes and Wedges.

question: will a squirrel jump into a swinging box
observation: the squirrels have completely avoided this challenge

Tue May 20

dresser + ramp challenge

After reading about Inclined Planes, we added a ramp to the old dresser challenge to see if the squirrels would use this path, which is easier than climbing straight up the rungs of the dresser.

question: will a squirrel use a ramp to save itself work?
observation: YES... we observed this Tue May 20 (the squirrels beat this challenge almost immediately)

floating peanut challenge - OH

OH wondered if a squirrel will reach its paws into water to get floating food. She put several handfuls of whole peanuts into a basin and filled it with 4 1/2 inches of water.

question: will a squirrel get wet in order to get food?
observation: YES... we observed this Tue May 20 (the squirrels beat this challenge almost immediately)

we also observed squirrels taking whole peanuts away and burying them

board branch challenge - CLH

CLH wanted to add an artificial branch to a tree to see if the squirrels would go on it. He laid out a line of peanuts along a very long thin board, and we placed it in a tree.

question: will a squirrel climb onto an artificial branch in order to get food?
observation: PERHAPS... the peanuts were missing the following morning but we did not directly observe the squirrels taking them

Wed May 21

In an effort to better see what was happening with the oatmeal box challenge, we removed all other challenges (but did not observe any new activity). We also read Levers and did the corresponding experiments.

Thu May 22

There are six Simple Machines which we hope to incorporate into our design. I will keep these notes up-to-date as we go along.

NOTE: This project was inspired by two things, the excellent Illinois Squirrels training I took with IDNR, and the classic Reggio Emilia project, "An Amusement Park for Birds," available in its entirety for free on YouTube!

It was not in any way inspired by Mark Rober, whom I learned about later!

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