Get into Nature and Make Your Own Discoveries

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Get Into Nature and Make Your Own Discoveries

One of the things that I am most thankful for about living in an apartment for the first two and a half years of Ella’s life is that we really got into nature. Not having a backyard, we sought out parks, nature conservation areas, gardens, and other natural environments to explore. I was also more involved with our outdoor explorations thanΒ I would’ve been if we just been hanging out in a backyard. (Now that we do have a house with a backyard, I’ll admit it’s nice to sit on the porch with a lemonade and watch Ella and her friends play sometimes!)

Get Into Nature and Make Your Own Discoveries

TheΒ benefits of playing outsideΒ are mental, physical, and emotional. Everything from the vitamin D from the sun, to the gross motor challenges of a natural terrain, and the hormonal benefits of sinking their fingers into dirt and smelling fresh grass help children develop in a myriad of ways.

Get Into Nature and Make Your Own Discoveries at Study-at-Home Mama

But not all of us grew up playing outside, and some of us even have aversions to various aspects of nature — bugs, allergies,Β dirt, and worse! My personal issue is tall grass; I am terrified that thereΒ will be a snake lurking in the grass and I am going to walk right into it! Try as I might to tell myself that the fear is irrational, I still have to take deep breaths and practically run through paths covered in tall (snake-hiding) grass. (Oh, and the worst kind of snakes that we have in my area are garter snakes, just to emphasize how much of a wimp I am.) I’m really working hard to push past my fears, but I also am trying to be respectful of my limitations so in the meantime, we’ll be keeping our adventures out of the knee-high grass.

Get Into Nature and Make Your Own Discovies at Study-at-Home Mama

Often, children don’t need any encouragementΒ to find fun outside, but if your children could use a little direction, you can:

  • make “natural art” using wildflowers, leaves, or grass (on contact paper or glued to heavy cardstock)
  • host a scavenger hunt, using baskets or egg cartons to gather your findings
  • look through a different lens:Β magnifying glasses, unbreakable mirrors, or pocket microscopes
  • find an area of the yard that the children can make their own, let them build, dig, and tinker to their heart’s content
  • buy or make a nature journal for your child to record their observations (a great way to incorporate writing or representation drawing outdoors)
  • let the children take care of one section of the garden, everything from planting, to watering, to pruning and weeding; they can also make their own garden art to decorate

Get Into Nature and Make Your Own Discoveries at Study-at-Home Mama

And the learning about nature doesn’t have to end when you come inside. Provide books about nature to build on interests that you see your children developing when they are outside, watch youtube videos to answer questions on rainy days, and best of all, let your children bring a bit of nature inside with them! Nature tables are a wonderful addition to any home, and can incorporate a mix of materials, or you can incorporate the materials into Reggio-style invitations, or even home decor!

How will you and your children be exploring nature this summer?

Get into nature, and make your own discoveries at Study-at-Home Mama

(And yes, that’s a quote from Dinosaur Train, one of Ella’s Favourite shows!)

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11 Comments

  1. I’m such a huge fan of that saying! It’s one of the reasons I love Dinosaur Train, I think that it’s the paleontologist at the end who uses that motto, too. Nice article. PS The comment box is typing in white so I’m not sure if this message will be full of typos as Ioften type too fast :). Just fyi. Happy Monday!

    1. Thanks for the heads up! I’m learning this wordpress thing on my feet — you make it look so easy! Every day seems like a new adventure. πŸ™‚

  2. I love it when my kids go outside! Their favorite thing to do at the moment is dig in the dirt with their shovels. They feel, act and sleep better when they can be outside!

    1. I love that you’re brave enough to hand them a shovel! We just did a contained mud pit…

  3. This was such a PRETTY post! I love that first image. And I love to get outside! I’m just not a hot/humid weather girl, so we suffer from Vitamin D deficiency in the summer… but come September I’m right out there!! πŸ™‚ Pinned!

    1. Thanks, Katie! I’m a summer girl, I have given serious thought to moving somewhere that doesn’t have 6 months of winter — know any place that has serious heat but no snakes? πŸ™‚

  4. Do you know how many users are now using Facebook which is the world’s largest social media platform? Well, it is over 2 billion! It means you can reach as many as a 2 billion people. So, it is more powerful than any conventional media like television or newspaper.
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