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Nature Discovery

ByKim @ The Learning Hypothesis

 

A few weeks ago, the boys and I went for a hike at a local natural area.  I am a biologist by training, but my specialty is not ecology.  This isn’t something that comes naturally to me.  Off we went ready to explore.  This is the second hike we have taken since Labor Day weekend.  This is a new love for our family.  We read about half of a lovely book about leaf change before we went.  We were on the look for leaves and whatever else we could find.  I armed my 6 year old with the camera and off we went…

 

 

 

After our long hike, we had a nice lunch and came home to rest.  Later we pulled out the wax paper and paint/glue that has been bouncing around the internet.  I saw it at Pink and Green Mama.
We also finished that book we started on leaves and read some in Crinkleroot. I printed off the leaf pictures and we tried to identify the leaves.

Now every time we go outside my 4 year old explains that the leaves are changing colors.  The guys have talked and talked about their favorite leaf colors and interviewed the relatives.  I love it!  My 6 year old can’t wait to go again.
What are you doing to capture the spirit of fall?

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23 Comments

  1. I love the way that you had prepared the children by reading the leaf book before you went. This is a technique that I've used successfully for other field trips but need to use before nature walks so that we actually look and see changes.
    Thank you.

  3. The boys were totally engaged once we started the hike and they were on the ultimate leaf hunt so I definitely thinking reading the book as an engagement exercise helped.

  5. Love the nature walk – it is the perfect time of year for that! We love How Leaves Change colors too. Thanks for linking up to TGIF =-)
    Beth

  7. Stoppin' by from TGIF!

    I just pulled out that same book – Why Do Leaves Turn Colors? And I also picked up more fall books at the library. More for my 6-year-old, but my older kids listen in too. (My 12-year-old won't admit it though! LOL)

    LOVE nature studies! It's something we do a lot of!

  9. Outdoor exploration is such a wonderful way to learn for young children! Preparing them with books beforehand is a really good way to get the most out of being outside!

  12. Hi Tiger's Mum,
    Thanks. We had a great time. I wish I didn't find the Handbook of Nature Study so overwhelming. Any suggestions?

  13. Thanks JDaniel4's Mom,
    I am hoping to extend the fun with some chromatography. We tried it last year and it was a miserable failure so I want a practice run before I get the kids involved.

  14. I love the idea of a nature walk. We did a nature walk each season my first year of teaching. I honestly don't know why I don't do it anymore…Thank you for reminding me how valuable this can be. I have to try and work it into my lessons again!

    Liz
    http://stickersscissorsandsmiles.blogspot.com/

  15. It's so cool that you gave the 6 year old the camera! What a great way to get the child to notice.

  16. How fun! I have been eyeing one of those books and am thinking of getting it for next year!

  17. Stopping by from Favorite Resource of the Week. Looks like a fun nature study.

  18. Hi Kim,

    I've put Handbook of Nature Study aside for now for the same reason — too overwhelming. I'm doing pretty much what you're doing: choose a topic, read the relevant book(s), then go outside and observe/explore. After exploration, come back in and add relevant experiments if you can find any; otherwise, I think it's ok to leave it at that and move on to the next topic.

    Many families seem to find the blog dedicated to using the Handbook to be very useful:
    http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/

    I personally think you're doing great as you are. Good luck!

  19. I agree with Tiger's Mum…you are doing a great job! The most important thing is to get outdoors, pay attention, and follow up on things you and the kids are curious about (just my two cents, for what it's worth!)

    Thanks for linking to Favorite Resources 🙂

  20. Would love for you to come link this up with us at the Outdoor Play Party!

  21. Thanks everyone for the awesome comments. I also feel a little better about my less than stellar attitude towards nature studies in the past. Thanks everyone.

  22. Thanks so much for linking up to the outdoor play party! This is great. I love when we can connect our outdoor play to art and books inside as well.
    Thanks for sharing the link to the party too!

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