Ideas and resources
This is billed as an activity for toddlers, but I’m sure my elementary-school-aged kiddo would still love it, too, because she loves every kind of nature walk that requires observation.
Going on a counting walk is a super-simple activity to … Read More ...
I am a big fan of scavenger hunts as a way to get kids outside and paying attention to nature.
The ones I have done in the past have mostly had to do with things you can see (as with … Read More ...
The other day my daughter told me one of the things she missed about having centers like they had in kindergarten was the science center. She said it was her favorite place (mostly because only one child was allowed there … Read More ...
My daughter loves to garden and watch things grow. I bought a tiny seed starting kit to put in her Easter basket, and we planted the seeds over the weekend, so maybe by the end of the summer we will … Read More ...
My daughter loves it when the seasons start to change, particularly winter into spring (me, too). She loves to look for signs of spring and wants to notice every little change, from the first blooming flowers to the greening of … Read More ...
Most kids seem to go through a phase when they are interested in insects, or at least a particular kind of bug. Insects are such an important part of our natural world, it’s important to encourage an interest in them … Read More ...
I have always loved the idea of Montessori trays. They’re a way to gather materials for kids to play with or manipulate that keeps things together and makes it easy to support a theme in the classroom or at home. … Read More ...
Fall is a great time to gather natural materials to using in play, art and learning, and there are a great variety of things you can do with them, from painting on leaves to making collages of natural materials, drawing … Read More ...
Bring a bit of Halloween fun into the classroom or your learning activities at home by learning about bats and making bat crafts.
We’ve probably all read the book Stellaluna, right? Make your own hanging bats with clothespins and basic … Read More ...
Playing with, exploring and mixing up natural materials like said, soil and stone is a lot of fun for kids, and you can make it an easy science exploration without a lot of effort, as shown in this tutorial from … Read More ...
Music is one learning activity that doesn’t seem to go outside very often, and that’s a shame, because natural materials can be used in a lot of different ways to make musical instruments.
This idea for a garden xylophone from … Read More ...
I know it’s not technically fall yet but I’m so ready, and there are a lot of great ideas for learning with fall items like leaves and acorns that you should have in mind when the time comes. Here are … Read More ...
There are so many fun ideas for things to do with kids that have to do with apples, whether you’re in a classroom environment or just want to do something fun with the kids on the weekend. Here are a … Read More ...
There are so many fun things to do with Legos, I feel like smart moms and teachers are never going to run out of ways to use them to teach and help kids understand different concepts.
I love this idea … Read More ...
There are many times in the year when you just don’t want to take your kids outside, whether as a parent or a teacher. It’s too hot or cold or rainy or whatever and you’d rather not bother, right?
It’s … Read More ...
