Recommended Age: 4 years and onwards
Level of Parent Involvement: Low, the adult must give the child instructions initially then the child may work independently. This exercise is something which can be an ongoing project for the child, adding to it as they please
Prerequisites
- None
Materials
- A note book for the child to use as their nature journal
- Glue
- Pencil
- A small basket to collect the items in nature
- Texta’s, crayons, coloured pencils etc to decorate the nature journal
Preparation
- None
Steps
- Invite the child, showing them the notebook, letting them know that they will be using the notebook to create a nature journal
- Invite the child to decorate the front page, writing for them the words ‘My nature journal’ for them to copy
- Once the child has finished decorating the front page, let the child know that they can use their journal to collect specimens from nature
- Have a conversation with the child about the occupation of a naturalist, you may like to use an I-pad or lap top to do some research with the child and some reading about the kind of work that naturalists do
- Show the child the basket, letting them know they may place the nature items they have collected into the basket
- Either using your backyard or go for a walk with the child to collect interesting items in nature which are not too large
- Once the items have been collected, show the child how to glue the items into their nature journal
- For each item the child has collected, notice the characteristics by prompting questions such as “what colour is that?” or “can you see any patterns” “does it feel rough, smooth or bumpy?”
- Invite the child to write their observations on the page next to the item (a younger child may draw who is not yet writing)
- Let the child know they may use their nature journal again, encouraging them to find different objects
- You may research the proper terminology for the items the child has collected for example if the child has found a variety of different leaves you may use the leaf shape cards to work out the names OR if the child has found different kinds of flowers, you may find out the names together
- Let the child know where they can keep their journal for future work
Variations
- Collecting items at the beach (when time and whether permits)
