One of my family’s favorite parts of homeschooling is nature study. In our area, fall brings a variety of treasures like apple picking, changing leaves, and constantly changing weather. As a Charlotte Mason inspired homeschool, we go on nature walks at least once a week. We also go outside no matter what the weather brings. The world is a beautiful place and the changing weather enhances that…even the rain and the gloom. I am not fond of gray days but getting outside and exploring always lifts my mood.
On our last nature walk we had the privilege of seeing the first leaves changing color, chipmunks, squirrels, poison ivy (we had fun finding it so we could avoid it), deer, birds, and a coyote. Actually, only one of my kids and I saw the coyote. The other children were too far ahead. A coyote is a rare find where I live so that was exciting. The best time to visit a park is in the morning or early evening. That is when the animals are the most active. It was also nice to go in the morning since the trails were not crowded and neither was the playground. If truth be told, I love to swing but never want to take up a swing when children are playing.
We keep supplies to a minimum since little ones do not want to carry heavy backpacks. I keep lunch and soccer balls in the trunk for our break. The kids each carry a backpack that contains a nature journal, color pencils, compass, bottled water, trail mix, and plastic baggies to keep little treasures they find. I also bring along my phone so I can look up images of birds, animals, and plant life. After our walk, we look through anything collected and the kids draw what they have seen and add to their nature journals. This is a low pressure activity and simple to prepare for so if you do not already incorporate nature walks you may want to consider it.