What would you think if there were no frogs to kiss?
In stories, frogs are often portrayed as ugly and slimy. When frogs are not hopping off lily pads or croaking”ribbit” in the pond, they are often said to turn into a beautiful prince or princess if you dare to kiss them. And it is a big IF . . . usually the last desperate resort is to close your eyes and kiss the slimy creature. Frogs simply do not have the best reputation. This makes it a bit of a challenge if you want people to care about frogs enough to lift a finger to save them.
Today, frogs are disappearing at an alarming rate.
So. . .
On the sixth Day of June,
we saved Six Jumping Frogs
Frogs face a range of threats such as habitat loss, water pollution, climate change, disease and invasive species. Frogs need clean and reliable sources of water. So if you have a garden, you can create a pond with a sloped ramp so that the frogs can easily climb in and out of the pond. Remember that if you put fish in the pond, they will eat the tadpoles and the frogs.
Why not write an exciting story where frogs and lily pads play the main roles?
Stories are a great way to spread the message that you care about something.
In Tuesday
This book is about the impossible. It is a fantasy book that starts in a swamp around eight on a Tuesday night. To their surprise, a turtle and some fish see frogs flying on lily pads. The frogs fly into a town where some of them watch TV, and one of the frogs uses its tongue to change the channel. When the sun rises, the flying lily pads cease to fly, and the frogs fall back to the earth.
The frogs are the main characters in this book, where magic and unrealistic things happen all the time.
If the frog is heavy, the leaf will sink beneath him, and this helps the frog keep the skin moist in the water.
Water lilies have edges that are turned upwards and this helps the water lilies to stay afloat even if a frog puts its weight on them. It is often tricky to view the bottom of the pond because the water is often dark with algae.
It is easy to believe that lily pads are floating leaves, but we only see part of the plant. There are long stems that connect the leaves to the plant that grows on the bottom of the pond. The stems help make the pads strong enough so a frog can sit on the leaves.
Perhaps the frogs in the story live in a lilypad city.
Check out the amazing Lilypad Project by Vincent Callebaut.
This isn’t just imagination — Callebaut’s Lilypad concept is real biomimicry architecture, directly modelled on how a giant water lily’s radiating ribs let it support enormous weight while floating. We explored this same lily pad structure in Patterns Everywhere! Be Inspired.
Mind Map
We explored a different frog-inspired idea in CroakMet Messaging Service.
Note that the lemur frog in the featured image is an arboreal tree frog native to tropical rainforests, meaning they spend their lives high up on branches and broad-leaved plants rather than floating in ponds.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is biomimicry?
Biomimicry is the practice of looking to nature for solutions, then applying what we learn to design and problem-solving. Instead of inventing from scratch, it means studying how plants, animals, and ecosystems have already solved a challenge — like staying cool, collecting water, or absorbing carbon — and adapting that strategy for human use.
How does biomimicry help address climate change?
Nature has been adapting to extreme conditions for billions of years, so many organisms already hold working solutions to problems we now face at a larger scale — cooling buildings without electricity (termite mounds), collecting water in drought (the Namib beetle), protecting coastlines from storms (mangrove roots), and capturing carbon (corals, forests, kelp). Biomimicry means studying those solutions and applying the same principles to human design.
How can children get involved in biomimicry?
Children don’t need special training to think like a biomimicrist — just curiosity and a habit of asking “how does nature solve this?” Simple ways to start include a backyard scavenger hunt for nature’s patterns, a “design-an-animal” challenge for a changing climate, or building a small model (like a passive-cooling structure or a water collector) inspired by something they’ve observed outdoors.
Is biomimicry only for scientists and engineers?
No — biomimicry is as much a mindset as a profession. Anyone can practice it by observing nature closely and asking design questions. Professional biomimicry practitioners apply it in architecture, materials science, and engineering, but the same core skill — careful observation followed by “what if we built it that way?” — is exactly what this post’s classroom and family activities are designed to build in children.
Åsa Jomård
In 2015, Åsa completed a course in Biomimicry: A Sustainable Design Methodology at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. With over 10 years of experience exploring nature for inspiration and as a former member of Ben, Biomimicry Education Network, she brings both academic background and creative teaching experience to her work. Her materials seamlessly integrate stories, nature observations, and design challenges, making them perfect for inquiry-led learning in early primary contexts.
AI was used as a Thinking Partner.
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