Summer time brings a more relaxed rhythm to most of our family life. That doesn’t mean we can’t still be including some outdoor nature study time with our children. It can be as simple as taking a walk and asking them to look for three interesting things or to take a picnic lunch outside to eat under your backyard tree. Weaving in some family time outside together is a valuable part of any summer bucket list and it takes just a little effort on our part.
Here are some fun First Day of Summer nature study ideas for you to keep in mind for next week. Be sure to mark your calendar!
Summer starts on June 21, 2014!
1. Camp out in your backyard: Since the first day of summer lands on a Saturday this year, plan a sleep out in your own backyard. Spend some of your evening gazing at stars, listening to insects, or take a flashlight walk.
2. First Day of Summer Flower Field Trip: Take a trip to your local garden nursery and let you child pick a plant to add to your backyard garden or patio container garden. After you plant your flower, sketch it into your nature journal along with the name of the flower and the date you planted it. You can combine this activity with this Garden Flower Nursery Field Trip ideas and printable.
3. Twilight at the Zoo: Many zoos have an evening option during this time of year. Check their calendar of events to see if your zoo has a special event for the first day of summer.
For other first day of summer activities from the archives, see this entry: First Day of Summer 2012. This entry has several easy ideas along with printable pages for you to use with your family.
Share you First Day of Summer 2014 activities with the up-coming blog carnival!
Don’t forget that the Great Backyard Campout event will be on 6/28/14 this year. You will find lots of nature study related activities in my entry: Great Backyard Campout-Nature Study Style.