My3Munchkins Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 I like the idea of doing a nature study/keeping a nature notebook but don't know where to start. I would love to hear ideas and suggestions! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ecclecticmum Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 Do you have large grounds or areas where you can go nature walking within foot? I have 2 acres of assorted land in a rural area, so theres lot and lots to investigate for littlies. If you mostly have to go in the car, or on trips a lot, I would suggest starting with supplying the car with resources. Anything from roadkill (ewww lol) to stopping at the side of the road, slowing down at the park, can have interesting nature, and also keep the kids quiet whilst in the car. If you are mostly a car/going out person, then I would keep the Field Guides, and backpacks with supplies & notebooks/journals in the car. At home, if you have a large parcel of land, or are within close walking distance to such, I would suggest having a "nature shelf/table/area" in your house, where you can put all the "nature" collected during your walks. I have a small bookshelf (large dollhouse size) with assorted wicker baskets etc on it for collections. I also have 4 backpacks with supplies all at the read (1 for each child, and 1 for mum) I got the 4 backpacks for $1 each (clearance section in toy store) they are made of see-through PVC, thus pretty waterproof, and the children can see their stuff inside their bags, rather than "rooting" through. Supplies in kids bags: - Lanterns & Torches - Magnifying Glass (these are cool ones, the bottom opens to become a stand, so it can be a hands-free one as well, it also has a little compartment with a pair of plastic tweezers) - One critter keeper (those cheap mini plastic rectanle "aquariums" or what you keep crabs etc in) - A few little baby jars with lids - A pair of binoculars - Walkie Talkies - Nature Journal & Pencil - Roll up cheap raincoat (the ones that fold up really really small) Supplies in my bag: - Gloves - Dynamo Torch - Strong, small magnifying glass (I think its about 10-15x) - Field Guides (Insects, Amphibians, fish booklet, Mammals, Trees & Plants, and a Tracks/leavings one) - Nature Journal & Pencil - Cheap Dispoable Camera (I usually take my phone/digital camera, thats there in case I forget) - Plastic Bags And probably a few other little bits and pieces. Heres some ideas to help with yoru Nature Studies 15 Minutes Outside Handbook of Study Study/Outdoor hour challenge Blog & Products Handbook of Nature Study Book Naturexplorers Destination Discovery Article And I have a few things in one of my Pinterest folders: NAture Shadow Boxes, DIY Flower Press, different ways to make Nature Studies Journals and some Life Science stuff Enrichment Folder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alte Veste Academy Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 Although we are not new to nature study, I have loved The Nature Connection this year. It is solid, enjoyable, easy to implement, and idiot-proof. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meggie Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 We just got each boy a $3 bound sketchbook from Hobby Lobby. We walked down the sidewalk, picked some leaves off a tree, went back to our yard and started to draw. Then a spider started crawling on Pigby, so he freaked out and we went inside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
My3Munchkins Posted July 19, 2012 Author Share Posted July 19, 2012 Do you have large grounds or areas where you can go nature walking within foot? I have 2 acres of assorted land in a rural area, so theres lot and lots to investigate for littlies. If you mostly have to go in the car, or on trips a lot, I would suggest starting with supplying the car with resources. Anything from roadkill (ewww lol) to stopping at the side of the road, slowing down at the park, can have interesting nature, and also keep the kids quiet whilst in the car. If you are mostly a car/going out person, then I would keep the Field Guides, and backpacks with supplies & notebooks/journals in the car. At home, if you have a large parcel of land, or are within close walking distance to such, I would suggest having a "nature shelf/table/area" in your house, where you can put all the "nature" collected during your walks. I have a small bookshelf (large dollhouse size) with assorted wicker baskets etc on it for collections. I also have 4 backpacks with supplies all at the read (1 for each child, and 1 for mum) I got the 4 backpacks for $1 each (clearance section in toy store) they are made of see-through PVC, thus pretty waterproof, and the children can see their stuff inside their bags, rather than "rooting" through. Supplies in kids bags: - Lanterns & Torches - Magnifying Glass (these are cool ones, the bottom opens to become a stand, so it can be a hands-free one as well, it also has a little compartment with a pair of plastic tweezers) - One critter keeper (those cheap mini plastic rectanle "aquariums" or what you keep crabs etc in) - A few little baby jars with lids - A pair of binoculars - Walkie Talkies - Nature Journal & Pencil - Roll up cheap raincoat (the ones that fold up really really small) Supplies in my bag: - Gloves - Dynamo Torch - Strong, small magnifying glass (I think its about 10-15x) - Field Guides (Insects, Amphibians, fish booklet, Mammals, Trees & Plants, and a Tracks/leavings one) - Nature Journal & Pencil - Cheap Dispoable Camera (I usually take my phone/digital camera, thats there in case I forget) - Plastic Bags And probably a few other little bits and pieces. Heres some ideas to help with yoru Nature Studies 15 Minutes Outside Handbook of Study Study/Outdoor hour challenge Blog & Products Handbook of Nature Study Book Naturexplorers Destination Discovery Article And I have a few things in one of my Pinterest folders: NAture Shadow Boxes, DIY Flower Press, different ways to make Nature Studies Journals and some Life Science stuff Enrichment Folder Thanks so much! This is very helpful. We don't have a lot to explore within walking distance so I'm definitely going to put together a backpack of supplies for the car. I need to look into parks in the area and plan some outings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBanjoClown Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 I am interested in this too. There is so much to study it overwhelms me. I think my question is how do you decide what to focus on? For our 1st week we recorded the amount of rainfall we received each day and discussed and colored a drawing of the water cycle. We did this because it was very out of the ordinary that we got rain about 6 days out of 7 in the middle of July (We live in TX). I just bought the Burgess bird and seashore books, so I think we are going to focus on those two things for a while. We recently went to the beach for vacation and the boys collected a ton of seashells and I want to do something with those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merry gardens Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 Start with a notebook. Add pen, pencil, crayons or watercolors. Add child. Send child outside with notebook and writing instrument(s). If child can't find sometime interesting to observe and write about (and/or draw) in notebook, assign something more specific like "leaves", "trees", "birds" or "insects". Repeat 3-5 times per week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 For us having a goal will keep my dd from just running wildly about. A goal can be looking for spider webs, seed pods, mushrooms, a yellow wild flower. It helps them to start looking. Another fun thing we do is go back to a specific spot and look for changes. Take a picture of it so you can compare it to the last time. Make collections for a 3d nature journal. Make charts (temperature at a specific time each day, time the sun sets behind a tree, sky conditions) or lists (we just did a bird study and listed the birds that visited the yard). Specific nature journal pages give focus but letting them draw what they want also gives incite into what catches their eye. When we do this, the one rule is it has to be nature made (I have gotten pictures of a hole, poop, and a crushed bug before). If your child can write, make then date the drawing and add a caption, I make dd add date, specific name if known (we do try to look it up in nature guides) a description if needed, and location. If you really want your children to keep a nature journal the best way is to keep one yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KeriJ Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 Start with a notebook. Add pen, pencil, crayons or watercolors. Add child. Send child outside with notebook and writing instrument(s). If child can't find sometime interesting to observe and write about (and/or draw) in notebook, assign something more specific like "leaves", "trees", "birds" or "insects". Repeat 3-5 times per week. :) This is where we will start! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helena Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 We started with Private Eye jewelers loupes and worksheets. We went on nature walks and quietly observed and recorded things of interest. We also invested in the wood collection boxes. http://www.theprivateeyestore.com/servlet/StoreFront For a basic quality journal, we like these Waldorf style booklets http://www.waldorfsupplies.com/cgi-sys/cgiwrap/psstone/store/agora.cgi?product=Lesson_Books_and_Paper&xm=on hth :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmilyK Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 Although we are not new to nature study, I have loved The Nature Connection this year. It is solid, enjoyable, easy to implement, and idiot-proof. :D This looks really amazing. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrunchyGirl Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Perfect timing! I was lying in bed last night thinking "how exactly are we supposed to do 'nature study'". I'm not exactly an outdoor-type person :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmpmelmack Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Start with a notebook. Add pen, pencil, crayons or watercolors. Add child. Send child outside with notebook and writing instrument(s). If child can't find sometime interesting to observe and write about (and/or draw) in notebook, assign something more specific like "leaves", "trees", "birds" or "insects". Repeat 3-5 times per week. this is/was our method adding slightly to say we learned the most from watching ONE tree in our yard all year long, we drew it often, found and identified bugs on it, identified the birds in it, drew it again, watched it during a storm, looked up the wind patterns, looked at the clouds through the leaves, looked up clouds. once you get started its easy, but that one tree last year man he learned so much from it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckens Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Some resources we are using this year for Nature Study/Nature Journals: 1) There's a lot of good ideas on emmanadine's pinterest. http://pinterest.com/emmanadine/homeschool-nature-journal/ Emmanadine, I hope that it's okay that I posted this here since you had already shared it in a former thread. I apologize if you did not want me to do so, and please PM me if you want me to adjust this post. 2) Handbook of Nature Study website has "Nature hour (aka 15m of nature) challenges. Here are the beginning ones, but there are several for every season. http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/2011/01/outdoor-hour-challenges-getting-started.html Remember: a good nature journal entry is: --a picture --a word or phrase to describe "today's weather" or "sunflowers in our garden" or "ladybugs" --a date If your kids aren't ready for more than that, then don't sweat it. 3) Purchase a calendar at the beginning of the year and start writing down firsts: first robin of spring first day over 100 degrees Fahrenheit first day of snow first day of leaves changing colors first monarch caterpillar found first buds on trees first seeds sprouted in our pre-garden pots By the second year, your kids will be asking if it is time to look for the robin yet, and "what time did he come last year?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amyrobynne Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 2) Handbook of Nature Study website has "Nature hour (aka 15m of nature) challenges. Here are the beginning ones, but there are several for every season. http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/2011/01/outdoor-hour-challenges-getting-started.html I'm planning to do her intro to nature study this fall and then study birds with this feeder/tracking program over the winter. http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iskra Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 We are going to start nature study for the first time this year as well. I've been reading "The last child in the woods" to get myself motivated because we've mostly been an indoors kinda family. What I'm getting from the book is for a connection with nature to occur I need to give my kids unstructured time to explore, dream, build in nature. I think especially if you have the kind of kids (like my kids), who would much rather play inside than outside, giving them as much freedom as possible when in nature, and not making it schooly might be the best way to start and then later on in the year, once they are drawn in and have learned to enjoy being in nature that's when I would start asking them draw/write about what they observe. Actually, I will send them out with loops and paper in case they themselves want to do some recording/drawing, but I will not give them any specific assignments at first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BugsMama Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Another vote for The Nature Connection- We love it. The website has printables for it too, so you can use it with more than one child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blessed3x Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Another vote for The Nature Connection- We love it. The website has printables for it too, so you can use it with more than one child. :iagree: Here is the link to the printable pages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.