CREATIVE CONNECTIONS WITH NATURE
Our sustainability expert, Sarah Walkley looks at ideas for getting outside and connecting with nature, perfect timing for the summer holidays.
We know that building a strong bond with nature is critical to the future of the planet. The more our children appreciate the natural world, the more likely they are to want to protect and preserve it. To really connect with nature, it is important that children spend time outdoors doing things that really fire their imagination whatever their other interests.
Here are 10 suggestions for spending time in nature and for getting the creative juices flowing…
1. Food for thought
Foraging for food and cooking it is a great way to inspire the next Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. You need to be sure that what you are picking is safe, so if you’re thinking of going off to the woods to pick mushrooms, sign up for a trip guided by an expert. However, if that’s a little too adventurous, why not take a tub with you on your next countryside walk to pick blackberries, or go to your local pick your own farm for strawberries, raspberries, or even pumpkins later in the year.
2. Painting en plein air
You don’t have to be Monet to take your paint box outside. Taking time to sketch a view, a tree or even a single leaf, is a great way to focus on the wonderful detail to be found in nature. Or why not collect natural materials and turn them into a collage, or take some crayons and do some bark rubbings? It’s fun to see the different patterns each type of tree makes.
3. Take a picture
These days, we all have our camera in our pockets, allowing us to take pictures of anything and everything we come across. Why not spend a day out snapping in nature? And get really down in the detail. Encourage children to take a picture of a seed, plant or flower close up or from an unusual angle; the others have to guess what’s in the picture.
4. Colour spotting
Spotting lorries or cars of a particular colour has always been a great way to entertain children on a long car drive. Why not try the same idea on your next walk. How many blue flowers, or birds with red plumage can you spot? Only one rule… you can’t just pick ‘green’, it has to be ‘lime green’ or ‘deep green’…
5. Build your own home
Building a big hotel, bird box or hedgehog house is a great way to teach children a few basic woodworking and DIY skills. The Wildlife Trust has dozens of instructions for how to build homes for the different birds and animals that might visit your garden. Take a look at our Our World Is Changing themed activity box for more about building a bee hotel.
6. Sound and vision
Why not turn wildlife cameraman for a day and try to film your own nature documentary, or even record the natural sounds outside your window and see how many different creatures you can identify? Older children may enjoy the challenge of setting up a camera in a bird box to film nesting birds and their chicks. Just make sure that the box isn’t in use before you start.
7. Literacy of landscape
We’re all guilty of it. We talk about trees, flowers, plants and hills. However, there are lots of different species of flora and fauna and more precise ways to describe natural features. What’s the difference between a river, a brook, a stream or a creek? Can you find and name 5 different trees on your next woodland walk? Is the web a spider’s home or another word for the Internet? Have fun playing with words and getting to grips with just how much variety exists in the world around us. The Woodland Trust has put together a few helpful quizzes and spotting guides to get you going.
8. Inspiring stories
Who doesn’t love a good story? There are lots of great books about nature. We’ve come up with a list of a few of our favourites, but we’re sure you have some of your own. You could also write one of your own, especially if you and your children have spent a lot of time learning all those wonderful nature-related words.
9. Keep a diary
Journals are a great way to document what you have seen and experienced it nature. It could be a simple list of the birds that have come to your garden or you’ve seen in the park. Or you could note the new species that you saw on a day out or while you were on holiday. Encourage children to write down their thoughts and feelings about nature and the environment; it could be a great way in to a wider conversation about their reaction to climate change and nature loss, helping to head off any eco-anxiety before it can take root.
10. Turn detective
Feathers, footprints, animal poo… Animals leave lots of traces behind. Can you follow the clues and find out which species have been this way before you? Again the Woodland Trust has provided a lot of handy advice if you need a bit of a primer to tell your fox footprints from your dog footprints. If you want more, then be sure to check out our eco-activity box - Awesome African elephants - the iSpy card is all about identifying animal tracks and also poo!
Sarah Walkley is a freelance writer and researcher on a mission to empower everyone to play their part in addressing climate change and nature loss.
She set up Purplefully to help organisations develop their sustainability strategy and communication.
