Last night, Scott returned from bedtime prayers with a message for me, a tiny note cunningly concealed in an origami dodecahedron.

"Mom, please look at the Muse on the table, page 8."

I happened to be standing beside the table. Why lookie there! Open on the table, the May/June 2005 issue of Muse. The page 8 article is called "Counting Coots," about the American bird of the giggle-inducing name. Did you know the female coot can count? Neither did I, until last night.

This is a pretty common occurrence around here. The "please read this article" requests don’t always come packaged in geometric shapes, but Jane is constantly quoting from Muse.

"Mom, do you know why babies smile when you smile at them?"

"Because they are delighted by my beautiful visage?"

"Very funny, Mom. No, it’s because of something called ‘mirror neurons,’ and did you know that scientists think there’s a connection between mirror neurons and autism?"

And so goes my education. You know that’s why I homeschool, right?

Muse, which is put out by Carus, the publishers of Cricket and Spider, is by far Jane’s favorite periodical. Engaging and meaty, the science-themed articles are something she can sink her teeth into. She reads her back issues to tatters. I could probably power a whole blog with the Muse-gleaned information Jane passes along to me.

Rose (age 8) is fond of Ranger Rick, and 6-year-old Beanie, like her sisters before her, thinks the world of Your Big Backyard. Both magazines are about wildlife, with gorgeous photography.

Speaking of gorgeous photos, the closeups of backyard birds in Birds & Blooms have dazzled us whenever an issue comes our way.

We used to subscribe to Highlights, but I think it fell victim to household budget cuts at some point. We still look for it at the doctor’s office, though.

Also popular with my younguns is Magnifikid, a weekly missalette containing the readings and prayers for the Catholic Mass.

What are your kids’ favorite magazines? Do you subscribe?