Beginning Nature Walks

Have you tried nature walks with your children yet?

Did you take along all the guide books, nature journals, pens, markers, coloring pencils, rulers, magnifying glasses, nets, and baggies?

Did your children dress in long pants, long socks, long sleeves, boots, hats, and just about coat themselves in bug spray?

Were you tired from all these preparations before you left the house?

On the walk, did you require your children to find, draw, color, measure, name, and classify a plant and an animal?

Did you expect them to have a relaxing stroll through the woods, showing interest in every plant and animal you encountered?

Years ago, on our very first 'official, school counting' nature walk, I could have answered yes to every single one of these questions. 

It was awful.

The walk was very stressful for me as I tried to make them learn about something - anything. 
With in minutes, the children were taxed, and so was I. 
It was just too much!

We didn't go on another nature walk for the rest of the school year.
Yes, that's right. We took off the entire rest of the school year from nature walks because our first was that detrimental.

Another school year began, and I thought perhaps we should try another nature walk.

This time, I decided to leave it all behind. No guide books. No pencils, notebooks, or magnifying glass.   I'm not even sure we had bug spray.

Instead, our only goal was to enjoy the afternoon and creation.
It was transcending and freeing.
Not only did we enjoy the day and creation, but we learned.
We observed.
We noticed.
We savored every moment.
It was everything I had ever hoped a nature walk would be.

That walk was the first of many low-key, enjoyable nature walks that still continue to this day. While we don't always leave all the guide books behind, and sometimes we even tote a magnifying glass or two, we still use a casual approach to our nature walks.

So, if you are thinking about implementing a few nature walks
for the first time this spring,
then might I encourage you to start with just one goal?
And, perhaps this one goal could be to just enjoy the day in nature?

Apples, Alligators, and Aardvarks

Sophie and I have been reading the creation story and working on the letter A and the number 1.  

She loves the creation story and giggles when we talk about Adam's job {to name all the animals} because he picked some silly names. {aardvark and crocodile seem to really make her laugh!}

 We colored with white crayons on white paper and then painted over it with black paint to make the white lines show up - we had a blast with that!  We've also painted the letter A red {like apples} and worked with cutting and pasting.

Today we are making an alligator  out of an A - complete with google eyes :)  Can't wait to see her giggle about those!!

Now, I have a question for YOU:

Sophie has colored, drawn, painted, and eaten with her left hand for over a year.  This week, when we started working on letter writing - she's trying to use her right hand....and now she's not holding crayons or paintbrushes correctly??!

Do I push her to use her left hand, or wait and see what she does?  I don't want it to become an issue, and I'm a little confused as to the switch?  Any thoughts?

Recording God's Creation: The Use of Science Journals

"God saw all that He had made, and it was very good."-Genesis 1:31

Since it is the beginning of many homeschoolers school year, I thought I would share something I did with my students when I taught 6th Grade Science. There is so much I could say about using science journals, but I will try to keep it brief. I love Science. It is the study of God’s creation. In using science journals, children get to record their observations of all that God has made.

When I taught 6th Grade Science, my students had a notebook that they brought to class every day. Things they included in it were notes they took, observations they made, vocabulary, drawings, charts, and assignment questions. They were graded on whether or not they had the correct amount of entries for the journal, and I took off points if something was missing. I didn’t grade on the quality of the contents, because it was their journal; it belonged to them, and they could use it for study purposes for testing for which I did take a grade.

Although Leonardo DaVinci is probably most well known for painting the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, he was also a scientist who kept extensive journals. He conceived in his mind things like the tank and flying machines before man ever had the capabilities to produce such things. He also dissected human cadavers and drew the human body. (Gross, I know.) His drawings are incredible, very detailed. He is worthy of further research, but I point him out because of his use of journals.

Using a science journal as part of your homeschool curriculum will accomplish many things. You will give your child a way of expressing himself/herself. Science journals will give them an avenue for authentically expressing the knowledge they acquire aside from simply testing and giving the right answer. If you choose to use a science journal you can cover several different subject areas. Using the science journal, your child will be practicing their writing skills, which is a language arts requirement. If your child chooses to include drawings and science poems in the journal, this would be art and language arts. Drawing graphs would meet a math requirement. There are so many things you can do with this. At the end of the year, you would have a neat little record of what your child learned, and a keepsake for the future.

Creating the journal could be something special you could do with your child. You can get as creative as you want or not. A simple spiral-bound notebook will suffice. Simply put the child’s name on the front and voila! You have a science journal. You can the also modify the use of science journals to fit the assignment requirements of the student from kindergarten up through high school.

So when it is sunny outside, grab that science journal, a pack of colored pencils, and go outside to study that anthill. Challenge your child to put those poetry skills to use or encourage the budding artist to record his/her perspective of the ant hill. Then go inside and research how an ant creates that hill! The science journal is just one more tool for your toolbox in educating your child. Have a great school year! Blessings!

~Beth