Here you will find some practical ideas for homeschool nature study in the city or in a small backyard. You will see just how much you can enjoy with your family!

I have been pondering over a question that someone asked about Outdoor Hour Challenge #10 from our free Getting Started in Homeschool Nature Study Guide. The commenter asked how I would suggest that they complete the challenges since they live in the middle of the city. I think you may have to be a little more diligent about your nature study but if you are up to the challenge I think it is well worth the effort.

Homeschool Nature Study in the City or in a Small Backyard

I live in an urban area. Can I still do this?

Whether your backyard is a rural patch, suburban yard, or a small city lot, you can participate in Green Hour activities and discoveries with your child. And if you don’t have a backyard, there most likely will be a nearby public park, community garden, nature center, or other green space accessible to you and your family. – Green Hour website

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How to Handle City Noise and Congestion During Nature Study

If you have trouble with noise, dogs, or traffic, try taking your walks at different times of day to see if it is any better. I know we live within earshot of a very busy highway. Sometimes I can hear the traffic clearly but at other times of day it is not even noticeable. We also live across the street from a school so during the weekday mornings and then during afternoon dismissal time, there is a lot more traffic and noise. We enjoy early mornings and early evenings relatively noise free.

How To Be Alert To Homeschool Nature Study Opportunities

Take advantage of any aspects of nature that you have on hand. The original commenter made reference to the wind blowing their napkins during their picnic. The wind could be a whole field of study during your nature time. Measure the speed, the direction, and the effects of the wind. Build on that for a study of the weather in your local area. Everyone has sky up above and you can watch the clouds and the sky each day as you go outside. I make it a habit to look up each time I go outside.

Make The Best of The Nature Surroundings You Have

Bugs were also mentioned in the question. Take a few minutes and observe the pesky little insects that disrupt your picnic. Each time you go out try to identify one insect and then record it in your nature journal. We focused on a study of insects last fall and I was surprised at how my attitude changed about them as the term went along. I was actually looking for insects by the time the nine weeks were up. If you have boys, insects may be just the ticket to their buying into a study of nature.

Adopt a Tree for Your City Nature Study

Adopt a tree in your neighborhood or a near-by park or near somewhere you go regularly like the library or the grocery store. Observe the tree each time you go by for changes and differences. You could start a year long tree study with the Outdoor Hour Challenge and this would be a great way to participate.

Set Up a Nature Study Habitat in the City

I know several city dwelling families that are able to put up a bird feeder outside a window in their apartment. You might be surprised at what you attract right to your own window.

Enjoy Homeschool Nature Study in Local Parks

Most big cities that I have been to have some sort of central park area that could provide a way to have a study of nature. Ducks, geese, or pigeons can usually be found in urban areas and are covered thoroughly in the Handbook of Nature Study. If there is a pond, look for tadpoles, turtles, or minnows. Study the plant life around the pond or the algae if there is any.

Notice the Trees

How about a collection of leaves? Leaves are something easy to collect and then press or make rubbings of when you get home. Collect leaves on your nature walk, while running errands, or anywhere else you visit during your regular travels.

Collect Seeds

You could do a study of seeds by saving seeds from your meals. Oranges, apples, tomatoes, grapes, watermelon, or any other seeds you come across can be examined and drawn into a nature notebook.

Here is an important quote from the book Last Child in the Woods that I think may be helpful. Read the entire quote and then think about somewhere you might have close at hand that can provide you and your family with a place to get to know even if at first it seems like an “empty” lot or a “weed patch” along the sidewalk of a city street.

” Your job isn’t to hit them with another Fine Educational Opportunity, but to turn them on to what a neat world we live in,” writes Deborah Churchman in the journal American Forests, published by the nation’s oldest nonprofit citizens’ conservation organization. She recommends re-creating all the dopey, fun things you did as a kid: “Take them down to the creek to skip rocks-and then show them what was hiding under those rocks. Take a walk after the rain and count worms…Turn on the porch light and watch the insects gather…..Go to a field (with shoes on) and watch the bees diving into the flowers.” Find a ravine, woods, a windbreak row of trees, a swamp, a pond, a vacant and overgrown lot-and go there, regularly. Churchman repeats an old Indian saying:“It’s better to know one mountain than to climb many.”

I love that saying. The Outdoor Hour Challenges were started to do just that very thing: Get to know what you have close at hand, right outside your doorstep. I admit that for some this is more of a challenge but I know you can do it.

More Nature Study Ideas for Small Spaces

If all else fails, you can always bring nature to you.

• How about a balcony garden? Balcony Gardening 
• Or a Square Foot Garden on your deck, patio, or roof? Square Foot Garden 
• Table Top Garden – Complete instructions for growing a table top garden indoors
• Hatch Some Butterflies Indoors – Butterfly Garden

Maybe this will help those that are finding that the real challenge is to just find some sort of “green” to spend some time in. Keep me posted on how it is going for your family.

Join Our Homeschool Nature Study Membership for Year Round Support

You will find a continuing series of Outdoor Hour Challenges for nature study in our Homeschool Nature Study membership. Plus 25+ continuing courses with matching curriculum that will bring the Handbook of Nature Study to life in your homeschool! In addition, there is an interactive monthly calendar with daily nature study prompt – all at your fingertips!

-originally published May 2008 by Barb. Updated January 2022 by Tricia.