“Would you like to choose a special kind of vegetable to grow in our garden this summer?” my mom asked me. Photo © Smartstock/iStockPhoto.com. I was excited, and soon began looking through a seed...
2021, 05, May Story Contest
You Can Draw an Eastern Chipmunk Lesson
Go to May 2021 to download
You Can Draw a Bullfrog Submissions
Go to January 2021 for Bullfrog Lesson
Cat Attack!
On an unexpectedly cool afternoon, my brothers and I were biking over to a friend’s house. Crossing the creek, my brother exclaimed. “A deer! No, a coyote!” Bobcat. Photo © Chris...
Mailbox, May 2021: How can We Attract Birds?
Dead, Yet Alive
One balmy day during the summer of 2014, my sister and I found a deceased cicada. We deposited it in a Styrofoam container. Then we gifted it with an air freshener, a mothball. After performing...
Wondernose: What Animal Nearly Always has its Mouth Open as if it Were Panting?
Not only does our mystery animal swim around with its mouth open, but that mouth is actually filled with sharp teeth! As a result, many people think this is a fierce, dangerous animal. Some stories...
A Migration Miracle
I looked out the window. Sunlight was streaming through it onto my face. I thought, What a beautiful, peaceful morning…. Red-breasted Nuthatch. Photo © Cheryl Shank. Suddenly, “Tweep, tweep, tweep,...
Invisibles, May 2021
From the Editor’s Quill, May 2021: New Photography Features in the Study Guide
You are holding in your hands the long-awaited May 2021 Story Contest issue. A big thank you to all who participated this year! We picked four winners from three age categories (6-9, 10-13, 14-17)...
Summer Birding
This summer has been interesting since I started birding. One Sunday we went on an afternoon drive. As we crested the hill just past our house, we saw a Broad-winged Hawk on a telephone pole. This...
Covers, May 2021
A white-tailed fawn curled under cinnamon ferns in the Shenandoah National Park, Big Meadows. Photo © Kevin Shank. Back Cover Jack Rabbit Caption This. Photo © Dreamstime.com.