One of the little pleasantries we enjoy now that we live out in the country is the sound of crickets serenading us to sleep at night. I've always loved cricket songs in the moonlight. I could sit around a campfire, gazing at the stars and listening to crickets all night long.

It seems that, in our neighborhood, crickets are so plentiful that many see them as a nuisance. Apparently, they can overrun a house if left unchecked. We, too, have found a lonely lost cricket or two in our basement, but the children are always careful to set them free. To be sure, they love the crickets even more than I do, and have found hours of delight in chasing them, catching them, and examining them in our backyard.

We've decided to make cricketology (that would be, of course, the study of crickets) our first nature study of this school year. So far, we have learned that crickets are insects. They are omnivores, and will eat almost anything you give them, but if you are going to keep them as pets, you need to be sure to make sure they get enough greens or they will become malnourished. They also need plenty of water. I haven't yet decided if I will allow a pet cricket in the house, so for now we are limiting any hands-on study to the back yard.

We found a lot of fascinating information at the Minnesota Polution Control Agency Website. Apparently, crickets are the Creature of the Month for September. Other than a passing reference to evolution, the information is factual and kid friendly. It even includes a PDF coloring page. Asher will probably not use it as a coloring page--coloring inside the lines is truly boring to him--but he will likely study it and use it to teach himself how to draw his own cricket.

Of course, the most fun part of cricketology is allowing a cricket to crawl all over you! I am amazed by how easy my children are with God's creepy crawly creatures. I don't think I would have done this as a child. The cricket in these pictures was named "Cricka" by my daughter. Cute!