Mont Saint-Michel, France by Beatrice Preve and Samir Belhamra @Grafixart_photo
Nature journaling is the practice of drawing or writing in response to nature. This fun, relaxing practice helps you to connect more closely with nature, and results in the creation of your own unique nature journal. Both the practice and the end product are important.
Nature Journaling is fun for kids and adults too. It doesn't have to be complicated! Whether you want to improve your drawing skills in a sketchbook or write about what you are experiencing in a pocket journal, this guide will help you get started today! #nature #natureart #naturedrawings #charlottemason #naturesketchbook #naturejournal
Last week we talked about the first chapter of Laurie Bestvater's The Living Page , and earlier this week I raved a bit about a favorite...
A great tutoral for a DIY Nature Journal - choose from more than 70 free printable outdoor activities to include in yours!
As the girls study about each of the states in the United States for their multi-year, multi-disciplinary unit study, a component that we all enjoy is studying about nature. The Handbook of Nature Study blog has many Outdoor Hour Challenges for homeschooling families including one for pine trees. We've been learning about Maine this month and its state symbols (e.g., bird, tree, flower, rock/gem). Today, we took a look at Maine's state tree and flower which is the Eastern white pine cone and tassel. The girls listened to some facts about white pine trees from in The Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock. The following facts are paraphrased from the book: ----->> The white pine can grow 100-200 feet and live to be 200-300 years old. The girls by one of the white pines in the backyard. Notice how some of the pine needs are changing colors. The yellow/brown ones will drop and the green ones will remain during the winter. ----->> All cone-bearing trees have a central stem from which the branches come off in whorls. ----->> The white pine has five branches in each whorl. White pine needles in the autumn. ----->> The very tip of the central stem is called "the leader" which leads the growth of the tree. ----->> The bark on young white pines is smooth. On older trees the bark has ridges that are broad, flat, and scaly. The bark near the base of the white pine tree looked like this. Further up the tree, the bark was smooth. ----->> The needles on the white pine tree are soft and pliable. ----->> Pine cones require 2-4 years to mature. ----->> The seeds are winged and are developed in cones. ----->> The foliage is evergreen, but is shed gradually. Raindrops on pine needles. It was raining when we went on our nature walk. - The girls colored a picture of the white pine cone and tassel in their book called State Birds and Flowers Coloring Book by Annika Bernhard. Sophia's picture of the white pine cone and tassel as well as Maine's state bird (the black-capped chickadee). The description below said the flowers (without petals, as in all confiers) are yellow (male) and pink (female); and appear in the spring. The female flower turns into the cone. Pine blossom in the spring. This was on one of the white pine trees in the backyard. The "tassels" are the delicate-looking clusters of needles which emerge in groups of five. - The girls colored pages in their book United States Coloring Book by Rod and Staff Publishers. Each two-page spread shows the state they are studying about as well as some highlights and facts about the state. The state bird is included with each illustration. Sophia's colored picture of Maine. Each two-page spread about a state includes a picture of the state tree, flower, and bird. - Since we had studied white pine trees in February 2011, we did not do another nature journal entry. Sophia's journal entry about white pine trees from February 2011. - Since they didn't do journal entries, they did fact sheets about white pine trees instead. This is from Considering God's Creation which came with the "Cantering the Country" curriculum bundle. Olivia's fact sheet about the white pine tree. Olivia's sheet with pressed pine needles. Sophia's tactile page about white pine trees. She included green and yellow/brown pine needles as well as pieces of a pinecone. The next tree that we'll be studying is the white birch which is New Hampshire's state tree.
Last week we talked about the first chapter of Laurie Bestvater's The Living Page, and earlier this week I raved a bit about a favorite part of mine from the second chapter. (Don't those Natural History Clubs sound amazing?) Now I'm back to think a bit more about this second section, in which Ms. Bestvater discusses Nature Journals. Jen invited us to share excerpts and photos from our own nature journals, and I'm planning to do so. One of the most delightful parts of my week is Friday afternoon, when I sit down with my oldest three, our drawing supplies, our notebooks, and our nature tray and spend an hour or two capturing on paper the discoveries from our outing that morning. If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you know that nature study takes up a good chunk of my writing space here. So I had lots of examples to pore through that I have posted here before, and I've chosen just a few to re-share. Before I do that, I want to chat a bit about this chapter. Last time I focused on the idea of whether e-notebooks can provide the same benefits of Keeping that Miss Mason promises. I still can't answer that. ;) But I can say that I don't really think there is a digital comparison for a nature journal. One can take lots of nature photos and arrange those photos into a useful record, the kind of record that the students in Miss Mason's schools were keeping for sightings of birds, wildflowers, and other signs of changing seasons. Those photos can also be useful for identifying and for drawing from (we do this often). One can keep narrative notes of one's nature walks in digital form and I don't think much is lost. But photos and typed notes are distinct from drawings, which are a component of Miss Mason's nature notebook and require of the Keeper a different kind of observation and attention. One also cannot keep pressed flowers or leaves in digital form, as Bestvater includes under nature scrapbooks in this section. So a digital Nature Journal, though perhaps more useful and complete than a hand-Kept one in some ways, would not meet the full intentions that this category of Keeping carries. (Or am I mistaken? Let me know. It's so valuable thinking all this through with others.) ~~~~ Now on to some examples from these labors of love in our home: I love viewing my son and daughter's narrations of the same outing side by side. It's so interesting to see the differences in what they focus on and how they process their discoveries. And from a more recent outing: A few from Mommy's nature journal: And one from my preschooler's--her drawings are just darling and she is so very serious about getting things just as she sees them: I was not a nature-lover as a child, nor have I ever considered myself a draw-er. I determined, however, to get over my inhibitions and start a nature journal alongside my children when they started their formal schooling. Since then, it has become a favorite hobby. And my children, seeing me excited and inspired, have eagerly taken up the habit as well. Even my preschooler loves to join in, drawing next to Mommy, looking up finds in field guides, and asking me to write down the nature walks she spontaneously narrates to me as the older children record their own observations in both word and drawing on the other side of the table. Nature study is one of the highlights of our home education (something I never thought I would say a few years ago!). And if there is hope for me, a girl born and living still in the midst of Silicon Valley suburbia, there is hope for you and your family as well. ;)
Opening the World Through Nature Journaling, a curriculum produced by John Muir Laws and the California Native Plant Society presents free, standards based, activities to engage students in nature study through journaling.
Introducing children to the common names of plants, and other things we encounter in the forest, it teaches them how to differentiate various plants and trees, as well as mushrooms and berries as, but it can also be used for the nature table or displays.Learn More
Thank you Tampico Beverages for sponsoring this conversation. This post contains affiliate links. The boys love exploring the outdoors and we are lucky to live near a number of forest preserves. We created some nature
Using nature journals alongside nature study improves not only scientific observation, but writing skills, art skills and much more.
Start a nature journal with your kids using this free printable template. Learn how to keep a nature journal and why you should do it. Plus get 16 creative nature prompts
Last week we talked about the first chapter of Laurie Bestvater's The Living Page, and earlier this week I raved a bit about a favorite part of mine from the second chapter. (Don't those Natural History Clubs sound amazing?) Now I'm back to think a bit more about this second section, in which Ms. Bestvater discusses Nature Journals. Jen invited us to share excerpts and photos from our own nature journals, and I'm planning to do so. One of the most delightful parts of my week is Friday afternoon, when I sit down with my oldest three, our drawing supplies, our notebooks, and our nature tray and spend an hour or two capturing on paper the discoveries from our outing that morning. If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you know that nature study takes up a good chunk of my writing space here. So I had lots of examples to pore through that I have posted here before, and I've chosen just a few to re-share. Before I do that, I want to chat a bit about this chapter. Last time I focused on the idea of whether e-notebooks can provide the same benefits of Keeping that Miss Mason promises. I still can't answer that. ;) But I can say that I don't really think there is a digital comparison for a nature journal. One can take lots of nature photos and arrange those photos into a useful record, the kind of record that the students in Miss Mason's schools were keeping for sightings of birds, wildflowers, and other signs of changing seasons. Those photos can also be useful for identifying and for drawing from (we do this often). One can keep narrative notes of one's nature walks in digital form and I don't think much is lost. But photos and typed notes are distinct from drawings, which are a component of Miss Mason's nature notebook and require of the Keeper a different kind of observation and attention. One also cannot keep pressed flowers or leaves in digital form, as Bestvater includes under nature scrapbooks in this section. So a digital Nature Journal, though perhaps more useful and complete than a hand-Kept one in some ways, would not meet the full intentions that this category of Keeping carries. (Or am I mistaken? Let me know. It's so valuable thinking all this through with others.) ~~~~ Now on to some examples from these labors of love in our home: I love viewing my son and daughter's narrations of the same outing side by side. It's so interesting to see the differences in what they focus on and how they process their discoveries. And from a more recent outing: A few from Mommy's nature journal: And one from my preschooler's--her drawings are just darling and she is so very serious about getting things just as she sees them: I was not a nature-lover as a child, nor have I ever considered myself a draw-er. I determined, however, to get over my inhibitions and start a nature journal alongside my children when they started their formal schooling. Since then, it has become a favorite hobby. And my children, seeing me excited and inspired, have eagerly taken up the habit as well. Even my preschooler loves to join in, drawing next to Mommy, looking up finds in field guides, and asking me to write down the nature walks she spontaneously narrates to me as the older children record their own observations in both word and drawing on the other side of the table. Nature study is one of the highlights of our home education (something I never thought I would say a few years ago!). And if there is hope for me, a girl born and living still in the midst of Silicon Valley suburbia, there is hope for you and your family as well. ;)
A great tutoral for a DIY Nature Journal - choose from more than 70 free printable outdoor activities to include in yours!
Last week we talked about the first chapter of Laurie Bestvater's The Living Page, and earlier this week I raved a bit about a favorite part of mine from the second chapter. (Don't those Natural History Clubs sound amazing?) Now I'm back to think a bit more about this second section, in which Ms. Bestvater discusses Nature Journals. Jen invited us to share excerpts and photos from our own nature journals, and I'm planning to do so. One of the most delightful parts of my week is Friday afternoon, when I sit down with my oldest three, our drawing supplies, our notebooks, and our nature tray and spend an hour or two capturing on paper the discoveries from our outing that morning. If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you know that nature study takes up a good chunk of my writing space here. So I had lots of examples to pore through that I have posted here before, and I've chosen just a few to re-share. Before I do that, I want to chat a bit about this chapter. Last time I focused on the idea of whether e-notebooks can provide the same benefits of Keeping that Miss Mason promises. I still can't answer that. ;) But I can say that I don't really think there is a digital comparison for a nature journal. One can take lots of nature photos and arrange those photos into a useful record, the kind of record that the students in Miss Mason's schools were keeping for sightings of birds, wildflowers, and other signs of changing seasons. Those photos can also be useful for identifying and for drawing from (we do this often). One can keep narrative notes of one's nature walks in digital form and I don't think much is lost. But photos and typed notes are distinct from drawings, which are a component of Miss Mason's nature notebook and require of the Keeper a different kind of observation and attention. One also cannot keep pressed flowers or leaves in digital form, as Bestvater includes under nature scrapbooks in this section. So a digital Nature Journal, though perhaps more useful and complete than a hand-Kept one in some ways, would not meet the full intentions that this category of Keeping carries. (Or am I mistaken? Let me know. It's so valuable thinking all this through with others.) ~~~~ Now on to some examples from these labors of love in our home: I love viewing my son and daughter's narrations of the same outing side by side. It's so interesting to see the differences in what they focus on and how they process their discoveries. And from a more recent outing: A few from Mommy's nature journal: And one from my preschooler's--her drawings are just darling and she is so very serious about getting things just as she sees them: I was not a nature-lover as a child, nor have I ever considered myself a draw-er. I determined, however, to get over my inhibitions and start a nature journal alongside my children when they started their formal schooling. Since then, it has become a favorite hobby. And my children, seeing me excited and inspired, have eagerly taken up the habit as well. Even my preschooler loves to join in, drawing next to Mommy, looking up finds in field guides, and asking me to write down the nature walks she spontaneously narrates to me as the older children record their own observations in both word and drawing on the other side of the table. Nature study is one of the highlights of our home education (something I never thought I would say a few years ago!). And if there is hope for me, a girl born and living still in the midst of Silicon Valley suburbia, there is hope for you and your family as well. ;)
Discover how experiential learning across all subjects can be achieved by encouraging your students to use a nature journal when leading PLT activities.
Last week we talked about the first chapter of Laurie Bestvater's The Living Page , and earlier this week I raved a bit about a favorite...
Have you ever wanted to start a nature journal? They are a wonderful way to reflect on your world and are simple enough for children to try. Here's why.
As the tree grows it starts the appearance of rings inside the trunk. Counting the rings of a tree gives a fairly accurate measure of a tree’s age. The growth rings show how the weather has changed and affected the tree’s quality of life over the years. The wider the rings the more growth of the tree and the closer it is to ideal weather conditions. The narrow the rings will indicate less growth due to cold weather or drought conditions. The oldest layer of growth is in the center; the newest gr
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