Exploring Nature
Here are my favorite tools for learning about nature with your child. Start with outdoor time, good shoes, and a sketchbook. Children are natural explorers.
PAMELA EVANS
The Preschool Parent Blog
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Science—Observations and Experiments to Enjoy with your Preschooler
Spring is a great time for science/nature investigation and experiments with preschoolers.
Feel Confident Outdoors!
It’s time for the yearly get outside, but with knowledge, for safe, rewarding time enjoying nature post!
Nature Alphabet
March is a great time to get outdoors. I know, I say that about every month! But there is something about a nice spring day that makes a walk outside invigorating and we can make learning letters outside fun too.
Exploring the Little Things This Winter
January is a great time to get outside even if (especially if) your world is frozen. No need to travel to discover new worlds – they are all around you and your child. Study rocks, tree bark, grass, leaves, snow, and ice. What can your child see with their eyes? With a magnifying glass? With a pocket microscope?
Inquiry Based Learning
This is the first in a series of blog posts with brief descriptions and suggestions for bringing the preschool experience into your home. The series will cover various teaching styles that help preschoolers blossom. Hopefully a little something for everyone. Today, Inquiry Based Learning.
Wildrock - Get Outside!
Getting outdoors is always important for kids and parents, but even more so in difficult times. Wildrock offers booking times for small groups and families to get away from it all.
https://www.wildrock.org/family
Playing Safely Outside
Time outside is wonderful, but there are things you and your child need to avoid. This post is my yearly outdoor hazard update because it's important to know what to look out for, especially if you are not used to spending a lot of time outdoors. If you and your child are already used to spending a lot of time in nature you may want to skip to the bottom of the post for some good links
Winter Nature Walk
If you are lucky enough to live where you get snow in the winter, you know the joy children feel when they get to play, sled, build a snowman, and throw snowballs. There is also nothing like a Winter Nature Walk even if it's just at the local park or in your own back yard.
My Two Favorite Things for Nature Walks
It's been a busy couple weeks with book fairs and presentations. To those who attended I am sharing links to my two favorite things to have on hand when you are out in nature with children.
Rain, Rain, Go Away
It happens...sometimes it seems like the rain or snow just won't stop. Being cooped up with your preschooler can drive you both a little crazy. Here are a few things to keep in mind at those times.
Beach Fun and Beach Care
It's great to visit the beach in the summer. It's also a good time for children to learn to care about the beach. Here is an update to my annual "leave the beach better than you found it" post.
Nature - Know What to Expect!
Time outdoors is time well spent for children and adults alike. This post is an update of one from last summer because it's important to know what to watch out for especially if you don't spend a lot of time out in nature. Today’s blog will focus on introducing children to the concept of hazards.
Good Clean Mud!
Playing in the mud. There is nothing else quite like it. Most children not only love it, but are drawn to it.
The Great Outdoors - Respect and Balanc
Learning to care about the enviroment, plants, and animals requires exposure. Without that exposure children may not develop concern for the natural world. How do we allow our children to explore without harming the very plants and animals we want them to learn about? It's all about respect.
Terrarium Time
This week I had a wonderful time with preschoolers and I want to share the simple project with all of you. It’s always fun to bring the outdoors in and especially rewarding with children. Here are a few tips for a fun meaningful project anyone can do at home or at school.
Bugs Make Great Starter Pets
Is your preschooler asking for a pet of their own? Is a dog, cat or even a fish a bit too much of a commitment for you? Maybe pets aren’t allowed where you live. Small mammals are generally not good pets for very young children. Have no fear: bugs make great starter pets. Your child can learn what it takes to care for a living creature and when you’re done you can simply let your pet go where you found it!
Water and Nature's Treasures
Children and adults alike are fascinated by water. It is calming to the touch. The sounds of water have a soothing effect. And it is visually hypnotic. Items change color in water. Water refracts light in ways that make a child stop and look again and again. As you place your hand in water it can look like your fingers are going in a strange direction. They may even appear to change size!
The Nature Table
When parents ask me about important things to have in their home for their child, I generally don’t worry about all the child proofing and special new child items that I'm sure they will already know about or will hear about from friends, instead I ask, “Do you have a Nature Table?”
Autumn is here and it’s a great time of year for Preschoolers
Fall is an exciting time of year, even if you don’t live where the leaves change color and the air is crisp, there is still that back to school mentality and a bit of a cozy feel. It’s a great time to be outdoors, hiking, picnicking, enjoying time with friends and family, or just with your child. It’s also a time of year when many of us bring nature indoors in the form of mums, pumpkins, and gourds.
Practical Outdoor Information
As many families try to get in one last fun summer experience before school starts, I decided today's post would be short and practical, with helpful information - emphasizing key aspects of some of my earlier summer nature posts - in hopes that everyone can safely enjoy their time outdoors
Fierce Fun at the Beach
It the season for fierce fun at the beach!
It’s hard not to love running with the waves, digging in the sand, and finding treasures at your feet. It’s easy to bring too little or too much with you to the beach. Let’s start off with a good reminder list of what you might want to bring with you if you are taking children to the beach…
Nature Indoors
Today’s post is a short one to wrap up our “Nature Indoors” week. Today I am listing quality references, ideas, and conversations about bringing the outdoors inside.
Nature In the House
There are many reasons for bringing nature into your home. It promotes children’s creativity, knowledge, and even relaxation. Today we concentrate on two of those reasons.
Bringing Nature Home
This week we will focus on a few ways to bring nature indoors, starting with a great way to remember a day spent outdoors!
Nature and Safety
No doubt about it, time outdoors in nature is time well spent for children and adults alike. It is important to know what to watch out for and what to do if a problem arises while out on a hike, playing at the beach, or wherever your wanderlust takes you. Today’s blog will focus on introducing children to the concept of hazards.
Nature Preschools
Nature Preschools and Nature-based Preschools are currently a fast growing trend in the United States. That is not to say that there haven’t always been nature-based preschools, but parents and teachers are certainly expanding the opportunities for outdoor learning across the country.
Learning to See
You’re never too young or too old to learn to see like an artist. A great way to start is to bring something from outside to paint or draw.
