Nature Walk

My ten year old's picture of a pine cone.  She liked the way her boots looked in the picture, so she didn't crop them out.

Over Christmas break, most of my friends had to go back to work.  Their kids were at Grandma's, the babysitter's or staying home alone if they were old enough. I'm fortunate to be a stay-at-home-mom (the only one among my friends) and I took my kids on a Nature Walk, a term I learned when I was a student teacher, working in the classroom of a phenomenal teacher who was the 4th grade science specialist for her district.  The idea is simple, you go for a walk.  You notice nature.  You talk about nature.  You share any knowledge you might have about the things you notice.  If you have learning goals, you direct the walking and noticing to accommodate them.  Such a simple concept, but such a valuable way to learn and spend time together.

When I had my own classroom, I'd have my students take notebooks and pencils to record their experience.  Sometimes I now have my own kids take notebooks, but this time I gave them cameras.  I love my kids' photography.  I've been handing them cameras since they were big enough to understand how to use them.  Seeing the world through their eyes is a special treat for me.  They love it, too.  Even my thirteen year old likes to come straight home and download her pictures so we can see them on the retina screen of my computer.

On this walk, I compiled a short list of item for my kids to seek - a visual scavenger hunt, if you will.  It was a successful afternoon.  We got out of the house, we enjoyed our time, they took interesting pictures.  Then we came home and they each got a turn to edit in iPhoto.  Seeing the different things they looked at - big picture vs. details and how they chose to edit the pictures is fun.  Below are my favorites.

My seven year old's picture of ice.  He liked his sister's boots, too.

My 13 year old liked the sky.  She was frustrated because she couldn't get the blues behind the clouds to show up.

Rabbit tracks.  All three kids took almost this identical photo.  They were the only animal tracks we saw that day.

Playground tree, taken by my seven year old on an iPhone 4S.

Playground tree taken by my thirteen year old with a Canon G5.

The seven year old's  pinecone, photo cropped and processed by the ten year old.

Dying pine needles, by the ten year old.