5 Fun Activities To Earn the Brownie Numbers in Nature Badge

This booklet will explore the hidden math in the world around you. Through fun games, creative crafts, and interactive worksheets, you will learn to find and count numbers in plants, use geometry to build a maze, and understand patterns in nature. This booklet will help girls see how numbers are everywhere, from the petals on a flower to the rings inside a tree.

• The Temperature Detective– You will use your senses to feel temperatures and a thermometer to measure temperature, then turn the numbers you discover into a colorful data wheel.

• Nature's Ruler – You'll use natural materials and your own body to explore measurement. You'll play a game to build the longest line and use your handprint to measure objects.

• Create Your Own Data Art – You will transform data you find in nature into a visual masterpiece by making graphs and charts with natural materials.

• Map a Magical Habitat Maze – Become a habitat architect and use your imagination to design a home for a mythical creature! You’ll use math skills to plan a magical maze, designating specific areas for different activities your creature needs to thrive.

• Build a Life Size Habitat Maze – You will learn to use math to plan and design a life-size habitat maze, practicing with fun activities that will teach you about area, perimeter, and habitat spacing.

Did you know many flowers have a special number pattern in their petals called the Fibonacci sequence? It's like nature's secret code!

Go on a scavenger hunt outside. Look for flowers like daisies, sunflowers, or even dandelions. Count their petals. Do you see any of these numbers: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21...? You'll be amazed at what you find!

Nature is full of beautiful, balanced symmetry. This is when something can be folded in half and both sides are a perfect mirror image of each other! Think about the wings of a butterfly, the two sides of a leaf, or the reflection of a tree in a still pond.

Can you find objects that are perfectly symmetrical?

Grab a piece of paper and a pencil, and head outside. Draw one half of what you see and then try to draw the other half. For an extra challenge, gently fold a leaf to see if both sides line up perfectly along the fold line.

How tall is that tree? 

How long is that twig? 

You don't always need a ruler! 

Use natural objects to measure things, which is a great way to learn about estimation and comparison. For this activity, you can choose a fallen stick as your unit of measurement. "That rock is 3 sticks long!" or "The flower stem is 2 leaves tall!" Try to measure different objects and then compare them. Is the bench in the park longer or shorter than five big sticks?

Take a short hike outside.

How many different kinds of bugs can you spot in 5 minutes?

 How many birds do you see fly by? 

How many ants are on that anthill?

Keep a tally! This helps with counting and data collection.

Go for a hike outside.

Look at the bark on a tree, the scales on a pinecone, or the veins in a leaf. Can you describe the patterns you see?

Are they spirals, stripes, or something else?

Try to recreate a simple nature pattern using twigs, pebbles, or leaves on the ground.