September: Observation and outdoor learning

Book Lists

Children’s Book List

Arnosky, J. 1979. Crinkleroot's Book of Animal Tracks and Wildlife Signs. Penguin Group (USA).

Arnosky, J. 1993. Crinkleroot's Guide to Walking in Wild Places. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.

Arnosky, J. 2002. Field Trips: Bug Hunting, Animal Tracking, Bird-watching, Shore Walking. HarperCollins Publishers.

Arnosky, J. 1995. I See Animals Hiding. Scholastic.

Arnosky, J. 2008. Wild Tracks!  A Guide to Nature's Footprints. Sterling Publishing.

Barasch, L. 1993. A Winter Walk. Ticknor & Fields.

Barraclough, S. 2007. Respecting Our World. Black Rabbit Books.

Baylor, B. and P. Parnall. 1997. The Other Way to Listen. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.

Bunting, E. 1996. Secret Place. Clarion Books.

Capogna, V.V. 1999. Did You Ever Wonder about Things You Find in Your Backyard? Marshall Cavendish Inc.

Carter, D.A. 1996. Colors and Shapes. Little Simon.

Dodds, D.A. 1996. Shape of Things. Candlewick Press.

Fredericks, A.D. 2001. Under One Rock: Bugs, Slugs and Other Ughs. Dawn Publications.

Giogas, V. 2007. In My Backyard. Sylvan Dell Publishing.

Heller, R. 1992. How to Hide a Butterfly: and other insects. Penguin Group Inc (USA).

Herberman, E. 1989. The City Kid's Field Guide. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.

Hoban, T. 1984. Is It Rough? Is It Smooth? Is It Shiny? HarperCollins Publishers.

Kalman, B. 1993. The Colors of Nature. Crabtree Publishing Company.

Morrison, G. 2004. Nature in the Neighborhood. Walter Lorraine Books/Houghton Mifflin Books.

Paolilli, P. and D. Brewer. 2001. Silver Seeds: A Book of Nature Poems. Viking.

Rau, D.M. 2006. Star in My Orange: Looking for Nature's Shapes. Lerner Publishing Group.

Rotner, S. 1992. Nature Spy. Atheneum.

Ryder, J., and D. Nolan. 1990. Under Your Feet. Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing.

Schimmel, S. 2002. Children of the Earth…Remember. T&N Children's Publishing.

Schimmel, S. 1994. Dear Children of the Earth: A Letter from Home. T&N Children's Publishing.

Showers, P. and Aliki. 1993. The Listening Walk. HarperCollins Children's Books.

Silver, D.M., P.J. Wynne, and D. Ettl. 1997. One Small Square Backyard. The McGraw-Hill Companies.

Stockdale, S. 1999. Nature's Paintbrush: The Patterns and Colors around You. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.

Wallace, N.E. 2006. Look! Look! Look! Marshall Cavendish Children's Books.

Weisner, C. 2003. Let's Get Going: The Step-by-Step Guide to Successful Outings with Children. Red Deer Press.

Wiesmuller, D. 2003. In the Blink of an Eye. Walker & Company.

Wood, A. J. 2003. Beetles and Bugs: A Nature Trail Book. Silver Dolphin Books.

Yolen, J. and J. Stemple. Color Me a Rhyme: Nature Poems for Young People. Boyds Mills Press.

Books for Educators

Broda, H. W. 2011. Moving the Classroom Outdoors. Stenhouse Publishers.

Cornell, J. B. 1998. Sharing Nature with Children (20th Anniversary Edition). Dawn Publications.

Chalufour, I., and K. Worth. 2003. Discovering Nature with Young Children.Redleaf Press.

Cohen, R. P. 2011. 15 Minutes Outside: 365 ways to get out of the house and connect with your kids. Sourcebooks, Inc.

Leslie, C. W. 2010. The Nature Connection: An Outdoor Workbook for Kids, Families, and Classrooms.Storey Publishing.

Louv, R. 2008. Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder. Algonquin Books.

Ross, C., and T. Gladfelter. 1995. Kids in the Wild: A Family Guide to Outdoor Recreation. Mountaineer Books.

Stein, S. 2001. Noah's Children: Restoring the Ecology of Childhood. North Point Press.

Van Tilburg, C. 2005. Introducing Your Kids to the Outdoors. Stackpole Books.

September: Observation and outdoor learning

Nature Scavenger Hunts

Scavenger hunts are a fun way for children to explore nature. They encourage children to look more closely at the variety of things that can be found in the natural world.

Below are several examples of nature scavenger hunts. You can also create your own scavenger hunt specifically geared towards your students and the area you will be exploring.

Some ideas for themed scavenger hunts are: colors, shapes, textures, sounds, and seasons. You can make a list for students and teacher helpers to check off, or you can give children baskets to collect objects. Another fun idea is to take a camera and photograph things you find and create a scavenger hunt book or poster.

Use Your Senses Nature Hunt – look, listen, smell, feel, observe

See: A bird nest An animal burrow Poison Ivy A blue bird A dragon fly A snake A mosquito	Listen: A fly A hawk A stick breaking A woodpecker A squirrel
Feel: Moss A prickly plant Sandy soil Soft leaf A hard nut	Smell: A flower Marsh mud Tree bark A rotten log Grass
Observe: An animal running A leaf falling from a tree A bug crawling A bird singing	Write your own exciting observation, smells, what you hear, etc

Nature Scavenger Hunt

2 different kinds of leaves

A bird nest

An animal burrow

Woodpecker holes

Animal droppings

Animal tracks

Seeds from a plant

A nut from a tree

A bird feather

Animal hair or fur

A smooth rock

Moss

Beetle

Litter (pick it up and throw it away!)

Piece of tree bark

Something you think is beautiful

September: Observation and outdoor learning

Nature Journaling

What is a nature journal?

A nature journal is a journal that is kept to record one’s observations of nature. They often contain written observations, sketches, pressed plants, photographs, and nature-inspired quotes or poems. They are the product of time spent in nature observing the world around you.

Nature journaling is a great way for students to connect with nature and their own feelings. It is a great way for students to learn to observe, and records their observations. Nature journals are usually an on-going process throughout the year.

While young children may not be able to write their observations in a nature journal, they can draw pictures, add colors or shapes they see, glue leaves, feathers, etc in a journal, and record their observations with the help of an adult or older student. You may also choose to make a class nature journal that everyone contributes to.

Observations to encourage:

·         Use your senses – what do you see, smell, hear, what does it feel like?

·         Wildlife:

o   What is it doing?

o   How does it move? Sound?

o   Why do you think it is here?

·         Plants:

o   Is it tall or short? What color? Etc…

o   How does it change over the seasons?

o   How do you think it got there?

o   Are there insects on the plant?

·         Sketch a picture, take a photograph, take a “sample”

o   If you can, sketch a quick picture of what you are observing

o   Take a picture with a camera and later print a picture to put with your observations

o   Take a “sample” of what you have observed, a small leaf or flower petal, a feather that you found from a bird, etc…only take something that will not disturb the area or wildlife

·         Look within and reflect

o   How do you feel while you are out in nature?

o   How do you feel when you see wildlife? When you smell a leaf, soil? Etc…

Stick Journal

What you need:

·         Paper (8.5 x 11 cut in half width-wise)

·         Rubber bands

·         Small but strong sticks about the width of your paper

·         Hole punch

Cut stacks of paper in half creating sheets that are 5.5 x 8.5. Along the top edge of each stack of paper (one of the 5.5 sides, this is your width) punch two holes approximately ½ to 1 inch from side edges and ½ inch from top edge. From the back side thread a rubber band through the holes. It should lay across the back between the holes with ends or loops sticking through to the front. Place the stick across the front top edge over the holes. Place the stick through the rubber band loops that are sticking out of each hole. The rubber band and the stick are now holding the stack of paper together. This is your stick journal. Cardboard or cardstock can also be used to create a cover. Just cut to size and hole-punch with the paper before stringing with a rubber band and stick.

For more ideas check out The Nature Connection: An Outdoor Workbook for Kids, Families, and Classrooms by Clare Walker Leslie.

September: Observation and outdoor learning

Nature walks

Shape Walk

What you need:

·         Paper cut into various shapes (square, triangle, circle, star, etc…)

·         Yarn

·         Hole punch

Make each child, or have them help make, a shape necklace by cutting various shapes out of paper. Hole-punch the top of each and string onto a necklace made out of yarn. Take a walk outside to look for the shapes on their necklaces. Take a turn with each shape. When one is spotted say “I spy something shaped like____” and have the children try to find it on their own. When you return to the classroom go through each shape and ask children what they saw that was that shape.

Color Walk

What you need:

·         Box of crayons

Take a walk outside with a box of crayons (or several crayons of each color for each child). Find objects that match the crayons.

Listening Walk

What you need:

·         Paper plates

·         Crayons or pencils

Take children on a walk to a grassy location where everyone can sit comfortably. Give each child a paper plate and a crayon. Instruct children to draw a dot in the middle of the paper plate to represent themselves. Everyone will then sit quietly and listen. Each time they hear a sound they mark it on their plate where it sounds like it is in relation to themselves. For example, if they hear a truck behind them they would draw a dot behind them on their plate. There are many variations you can do with this activity, i.e. children can draw a picture of what they hear where they hear it, they can draw themselves in the center, or use a different color crayon for each different sound etc…Base the activity on the ability and age of the students.

Insect Walk

What you need:

·         Magnifying glasses

·         Insect jar

Take children to a grassy or natural area in your outdoor classroom, school yard or close to school. Encourage children to get down on their hands and knees or crouch down to look for insects. Insects are usually found on or near plants. Observe them with magnifying glasses and/or in an insect jar. Discuss what you see and observe. Return insects to where you found them whne you are done observing them.

For these and other great ideas for getting kids outdoors check out Growing up WILD and Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood.

“Children grow healthier, wiser, and more content when they are more fully connected throughout their childhood to the natural environment in as many educational and recreational settings as possible. These benefits are long term and significant and contribute to their future wellbeing and the contributions they will make to the world as adults.” ~Reconnecting the World’s Children to Nature “Call to Action”

September: Observation and outdoor learning

Benefits and Considerations of taking children outside

There are many ways to incorporate outdoor time into your school day. The benefits of doing so are numerous and well studied. Getting kids out of their chairs, down the hall, and into nature can be as easy as taking a nature walk with preschoolers to look for colors, or as complex as high school students in an ecology class studying a local pond. One essential component that they share however is involving children in observation and the outdoors.

Benefits of taking children outside:

·         Children who spend at least 60 minutes outside every day have increased physical and emotional well-being

·         Outdoor activity has a direct correlation to lower levels of childhood obesity

·         Regular outdoor activity leads to reduced levels of ADHD

·         Children who play outside have improved concentration and school performance

·          Sunlight is a natural source of Vitamin D – an essential vitamin that children today are often lacking enough of

·         Outdoor time improves eyesight

·         Children who play outside grow up to be stewards of the environment

·         Outdoor play leads to improved critical thinking skills

·         Nature makes kids nicer

·         Children who regularly spend time outside show enhanced creative play and decreased aggression

Considerations before heading outsidewith kids:

·         Check out the area before heading out with kids so you are aware of any safety considerations

·         Be prepared for emergencies by bringing a cell phone and first aid kit with you

·         Be aware of the current weather conditions as well as the forecast for the time that you will be out

·         Make sure students and teachers are dressed appropriately for the conditions and have proper footwear

·         Be aware of allergies - know before heading out the door if anyone is allergic to bee stings, pollen or other allergens

·         Use the buddy systems and do frequent head counts

·         Use extra caution around water - plan for extra supervision and life jackets if deemed necessary

·         Be aware of the possible plants and wildlife you will observe - instruct children on the proper conduct around wildlife and unknown plants

·         Wash hands upon returning to the classroom

·         Take only memories; leave only footprints - teach children about having respect for living things and nature