{Nature} River visit, and guess what we saw!

Day 4!  (Although I'm a day late.) 

We went to the river the other day and had a lot of fun.  I'm so thankful to live in such a beautiful part of the country.  We are surrounded by lovely landscapes - all attesting to the glory of our awesome and creative God.  I'm also thankful for time spent together as a family, enjoying each other and the outdoors.

I think this is a great blue heron?  We can never see them up close.

There's nothing like spending time together throwing and skipping rocks.  Simple pleasures :)

Who says you need toys?

We saw something that I've never seen before in real life - TWO bald eagles!  Can you see this one in the picture below?

They were on the other side of the river so we didn't get to see them up close.  My camera won't zoom very far, but you can tell what they are.  So, so cool!  And then, of course, this week's bird selection from the Burgess Bird Book had to be the bald eagle :)

Making mud pies.

Two beauties :)

And another one, fast asleep :)

The perfect place to climb.

Ahhh, ladybugs :)

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord!

Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving;

Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.

For the Lord is the great God,

And the great King above all gods.

In His hand are the deep places of the earth;

The heights of the hills are His also.

The sea is His, for He made it;

And His hands formed the dry land.

Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

For He is our God,

And we are the people of His pasture,

And the sheep of His hand.

(Psalm 95:1-7)

What are you thankful for today?

Nature outings with littles

I've talked about outdoor time before and how it's an important part of a Charlotte Mason education.  However, since Izzy is just a kindergartener this year and Addy is a preschooler, we have yet to be consistent in including any kind of formal nature study.  And I'm okay with that because I, myself, am still learning how to go about it.

I've almost made myself overwhelmed with the whole idea, being the perfectionist that I am.  (Which, by the way, I hope to one day become a recovering-perfectionist.)

Where and how do we start?  Where do we go?  What should we look for?  Do I show them things or do they just explore?  Do I need to know about nature stuff - animals, birds, flowers, plants, trees, etc. - beforehand?  (Please say no.)  Oh, and where do we start?

A few weeks ago I took the girls to a park.  After reflecting on our time there, I put together a list of steps to follow for beginners (me) to ease into nature study, especially for those with young children who are being introduced to the whole idea.

Step One - be intentional

We've always been pretty good about getting the kids outside to play.  But...most of that outside play time involved a playground of some sort.  There wasn't much exploring-of-nature going on.  The kids were way too preocuppied with the swings or the slides.  Not that there's anything wrong with that.  But, unless we, the parents, are intentional about placing our children in nature's way, they may not discover the wonders that surround them.

So I've made it a point to be intentional - to purposely place my children in an environment in which they can discover the things that nature has to offer, without being distracted by all the "artificial" stuff.  That's the beginning.

Step Two - let them be

Then, I let them be.  I let them run and jump and play and collect sticks and throw rocks (not at each other, though) and pick flowers and stomp in the puddles (still need to get the girls Izzy some rubber boots) and climb trees and chase butterflies and play with ladybugs and...I hope you get the idea.

I let them play in nature.  And not just in nature, but also with nature.

Now, this sometimes takes some persuading or compromising.  For example, there is a local park we like to visit that has a beautiful little pond with a creek, in the midst of a ton of trees, running to it.  (That's where these pictures were taken.)  At this park there is also a playground.  When we visit this park I normally let the kids play at the playground first before I coax them out into the "wild."  I do this in order to get it out of their system.  Otherwise, my kids are too worried about when they'll get to play at the playground, rather than being free to enjoy the natural world.  It's understandable...they're little.  And who doesn't love a playground anyway?

However, if there's nothing to distract them from the wonders of the natural world, they are much more likely to explore and find ways to enjoy their surroundings.  It may take them awhile to get used to it, but I've found that children adapt pretty well.

Step Three - catch their attention

This particular day we bypassed the playground, originally because we needed to visit the restroom.  On our way, we had to pass the pond, and as we passed the pond Izzy noticed this little fella just hanging out.  

Isn't he cute?  We sat and watched him for a good 5 minutes.  He (or maybe she) looked to be foraging for food.  He finally took off to what I'm guessing was his home (of course, though, I didn't take a picture of it).  Then we moved on.

There was something that caught the kids' attention and we went with it.  Many times I am the one who finds something and calls the kids over, but not always; they've yelled at me plenty to come and look at some treasure they've found.  No matter what it is, even if it's fly, I act excited (not to imply that I'm never excited - I truly enjoy nature, even though I don't know much about it - yet).  That's extremely important.  My fascination of all-things-nature will hopefully keep them excited and willing to discover new things.

We finally made it to the restroom, then the kids ran around the trees and the rocks and the creek for around 20 minutes, just...playing.

 

As we made our way to the playground, we stopped by the pond again, this time on the side opposite our little furry friend.  During the warmer months we see many turtles and frogs, along with ducks, in and along the water.  Now, however, we only saw the ducks.  They were very busy diving for food.

They were so funny with their little "butts" wiggling around up in the air when they dove down.

There are usually a ton of turtles swimming around and just sitting on logs, but not today.

Then off to the playground we went.

Step Four - revisit the outing

Since the furry mammal was the highlight of this outing, the kids and I looked him up later that afternoon.  I first used The Handbook of Nature Study to look up mammals that live around ponds.  A beaver was not listed (I knew the little guy wasn't a beave, but I just wanted to officially rule him out for the girls), but a muskrat was.  

Then I looked for a picture of a muskrat on google because the pictures in The Handbook of Nature Study are not the best.  

Sure enough, he's a muskrat.  

We also own this little field guide for children, Tracks, Scats and Signs (found at a yard sale for 25 cents - score!).  There was a page about muskrats and we read a little about them - what they eat and what their lodges look like and are made of (oh yeah, forgot to mention that a muskrat's home is called a lodge).  The depth of the learning at this point depends on the child.

We also looked up turtles and frogs and ducks and we wanted to know which animals hibernate, since the frogs and turtles were missing at the pond.  We found out that the frogs and turtles do hibernate by burying themselves in mud under the water. 

The girls then spent some time just leafing through the book, asking me to read some sections here and there.

Step Five - make a plan

While we were at the pond we watched the muskrat swim over to what I think was his lodge, but we didn't take the time to walk over and examine it.  So, we decided that next time we visit this park we would do just that - look it over and see what it's made of.  I also read that turtles sometimes crawl into muskrat lodges and bury themselves in the mud in order to hibernate, so we may look for that as well.  We'll also see if we can find the muskrat's tracks in the mud around the pond and maybe measure them.

(We have gone back to this park since this particular outing and I will post a few pictures in the future.)

Step Six - utilize a nature journal

The next step would be to include this and any other information about the outing into a nature journal, along with sketches.  Field guides would need to be utilized to label and to include facts and information about the subjects which are being studied.

We, however, have not made it to this step yet.  We're just getting our feet wet in this - as well as in the whole homeschooling endeavor - so I'm taking baby steps.  Right now we are just getting used to being outside and noticing things.

I have a goal to begin a weekly nature journal come January with a lovely spiral-bound notebook and everything (which I've already purchased, but just haven't been brave enough to draw in!).  Izzy will get one when she begins first grade next August or September, and will be encouraged to contribute to it weekly as well.  Until then, if she wants to join me in drawing and making journal entries, she will be more than welcome to do so in my journal or on sheets of paper which we'll then put into a binder - same for Addy.

And that's that!  Enjoy the outdoors!

The importance of an out-of-doors life

As I mentioned in a previous post, outside time is very important for children - especially for those under the age of six since they are not officially in "school" yet.  And life spent in the outdoors is pretty much considered their school.

The importance of an out-of-doors life

(Info taken from Charlotte Mason's "Home Education" and Anna Botsford Comstock's "Handbook of Nature Study.")

A child's first 6 years of life should be spent outside, preferably 4-6 hours in warm weather and 2-3 hours in cold.  This provides for a low-key and low-stress existence - not only for the kids, but also for the mom (which I've found to be very true).

The child's work before the age of 6 is to watch and observe the world around him and to make connections in his mind.  A child's mind is designed to observe and learn from seeing all that he can and doing all that he can in his own environment.



During this time, masterly inactivity is the optimal way to allow children to spend their time.  Masterly inactivity is simply letting the child(ren) alone to collect experiences and make his/her own connections, rather than the parent force-feeding information that is not interesting to the child.  Masterly inactivity is something the parent does - finding a balance of intervening and letting kids work things out in their own minds.

Tiny mushrooms.

Weird bug.

Ant hills.

Pine needles to play with.

Addy just had to pick the biggest branch and drag it around.

And more mushrooms.

A child may not seem to be gaining much from what looks like doing nothing because he hasn't learned the words or the way to articulate and express everything he sees and is finding out.  However, those experiences are developing his mind.

Also, a love for nature will most likely come at this age.

Exploring under a rock in our yard.

A child's mind is much better off becoming familiar with the ways of nature.  Nature is always changing, always new, and there is always something interesting to show.

God reminds us of His love in nature :)

We were watching the crawfish run around in the water.

Ladybug of course.

A child who is familiar with the ways of nature is developing a scientific mind and learning the laws of nature that may make him more patient and kind as an adult.

We found a butterfly (it wasn't dead) on the path.  It wouldn't fly away, though, so we watched it forever.

We had to be very gentle with it.

It was really pretty.

Addy thought it was the coolest thing ever.  

And, an added bonus to us parents, a child impassioned with nature will have enough to excite him without having to get into mischief.

They had a big time collecting sticks...

...to make a pretend bonfire.  

What the out-of-doors life looks like

There should be a plan when taking children outdoors.

"They must be kept in a joyous temper all the time, or they will miss some of the strengthening and refreshing held in charge for them by the blessed air.  They must be let alone, left to themselves a great deal, to take what they can of the beauty of the earth and heavens."

A small amount of guidance from mom (or whomever) is needed to keep the day fresh and interesting.

During outdoor time is when a mother trains the child to be observant, holding them a few moments longer to gaze at and observe the details of a spider's web or a flower or a frog.

We had a pet frog for a couple of days.  He was living in our small garden in our front yard.  You can barely see him in the corner in this picture.

Here's a closeup.

There should be no storybooks while the children are playing and exploring outside - the outdoors provides the entertainment.



Here are a few exercises and/or lessons that could be done, provided the child also has plenty of time for masterly inactivity:

• Children could be sent on a sight-seeing adventure:  "Who can see the most, tell the most, about that hill, creek, hedge, etc, over there?"  The responses are turned into lessons about precision and narration as they are encouraged to give more detail and accuracy.

• Children could be directed to look at a view, then close their eyes and describe what they saw in words.  The mother should do this as well to model.

• Children should be familiar with the plant life in their community - what grows where, where to find specific wildflowers, etc.  They should know what the plant life looks like from collecting and drawing them.  A good idea is to pick out 6 trees and watch them change throughout the seasons.

• Children could keep a calendar of nature events to know what to look for the following year - "the first oak leaf, first tadpole, first ripe blackberries," etc.

• Children can keep a nature journal and illustrate it with paints.  They can write about interesting things that they see in nature - "three squirrels in a larch tree, a jay flying across such a field, a snail eating a cabbage leaf," etc.

• Children should be watchful observers of the wildlife around them.  They should spend enough time watching bees, tadpoles, ants, squirrels, birds, etc, to learn something of their habits.  This could be kept in their nature journal.

Right now, since neither of my girls are school age yet, it's all about just getting outside - no formal nature study yet.  We make it a point to get outside everyday, and we do pretty good staying out for several hours throughout the day.

Sometimes I ask them to tell me a couple of neat things they found.  Then, if we feel like it, we'll look up a few pictures on the internet to investigate something further.

I actually, somewhat, began a sort-of nature study (can you sense my hesitancy in even calling it "nature study"?  It's not official and I don't really know what I'm doing.).  I had the girls help me pick out 6 trees in our neighborhood to watch throughout the seasons.  The first day I took a picture of each tree and had Izzy look at them and tell me something about them - we mostly talked about how they were still very full and just barely changing colors.

Then one day, while the kids were outside playing, I picked a leaf off of our maple tree (one of the trees we picked), grabbed some blank paper and colored pencils, and proceeded to draw the leaf and write a little about the tree for that day.  (I also noted how we kept seeing monarch butterflies flying by - in a southward direction.  I've noticed so many of them the past few days.  We were at the park the other day and counted at least 20 flying over us.  Monarch migration?)

Anyway, this prompted Izzy to pick out a few leaves and draw them later that afternoon.  Success!

We don't always have to go on a walk or go somewhere to find cool stuff outside.  We've actually found plenty in our backyard.  Last week we found Phasmatodea crawling around on our house.

What's that?

You mean...you don't know what a Phasmatodea is?

Me either, until I looked up a walkingstick online.  Phasmatodea is its scientific name.  Here it is climbing around on our roses.  We sat there and just watched it for like 10 minutes.  Pretty sure he (or she) knew we were watching him (or her).

We also have a pet spider - some sort of Argiope species - that has built a humongous web by our roses in the front yard.  We usually check on him when we go outside and he's always catching bugs.  

Poor grasshopper :(  I would rather the spider catch the lingering mosquitoes.

Have fun outside!