Nature Word of the Month: FEUILLEMORT

“The dead leaves their rich mosaics
Of olive and gold and brown
Had laid on the rain-wet pavements,
Through all the embowered town.”

-Samuel Longfellow

What colors come to mind for you when you think of the colors of dying leaves?  Olive?  Sepia?  Copper?  I love how the word for this month (from the French feuille morte) conjures up so many different hues, the visual unique for each one of us.

Spend some time with your child noticing the colors of the autumn leaves around you.  Bring home a collection or take some photos.  Look at the variety.  Can you arrange them from darkest to lightest?  How else might you categorize them?  How would you describe the colors?  What do the colors make you think of?

Resources to Inspire:

• Broaden your color vocabulary with this Color Thesaurus
• See 20 different shades of each of the nine basic colors in this book
• Learn about the pigments found in leaves with this infographic

Investigate Further

• Try a leaf chromatography experiment with your kids

I hope this word of the month and the resources above help heighten your appreciation for all the shades of fall’s fading leaves.

Have fun exploring!

Fondly,
Monique

P.S. If you’d to print a copy of this month’s word, you can download a PDF version.