We are continuing our festive theme of finding Christmassy reds and greens in nature. This homeschool nature outdoor hour challenge includes the greens of winter with a moss and lichen nature walk. Here is how you can enjoy a greens of winter nature walk too!
Take a Walk to Find Greens of Winter in a Moss and Lichen Homeschool Nature Walk
It was a cold, frozen day but if we stopped and looked closely….there was beauty all around us.
These lichens are just so interesting! Did you know that lichens are not plants at all? The are complex organisms formed by a symbiotic relationship between fungus and an algae. They will certainly make for a fascinating, in-depth study!
Even on the tree branches it was beautiful. So many shades of green!
After a bracing walk hunting for these wonderful non-vascular plants, an afternoon spent painting in your nature journal may just be the perfect way to wrap up the day. You might even decide to paint while warming up next to a warm fire.
Join the Nature Study Homeschool Membership for Helpful Tips Year Round
Next week we start our first Outdoor Hour Challenge (OHC) of the new year. We will be looking at winter tree silhouettes. The nature study plans for 2022 and the corresponding ebooks are available for our members to download. Be sure to download in preparation of an exciting new year of outdoor hour challenges.
If you are not yet a member but would like to join and receive access to all the curriculum books, the interactive nature study calendar and fresh new posts every Friday then please consider joining the homeschool nature study membership now.
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Did you enjoy this Outdoor Hour Challenge? Be sure to tag us on Instagram @outdoorhourchallenge and use the hashtag #outdoorhourchallenge so we can see and comment!
Taking your winter nature studies indoors when the weather outdoors is proving to be a challenge may be just the thing you need every once in a while. We have a lovely post from the archives to inspire your homeschool nature studies indoors for those days that you can’t face getting outdoors.
Taking Your Winter Nature Studies Indoors
I knew as I posted the challenges each of the last few weeks that there were families who were buried under snow already and those that have really cold temperatures to deal with. I received a personal email from several of you letting me know that you are suspending your Outdoor Hour Challenge (OHC) participation until spring and it made me a little sad. I have been thinking hard about how to help you to keep up a system of nature study while you are living a more indoor centered life until the temperatures warm up.
Believe it or not, although my photos are not showing it, we are experiencing cold temperatures here in Northern California. I know that in perspective that they are not as cold as some parts of the world right now but still we have had ice and frost every morning this week and yesterday on our afternoon hike it was 37 degrees. My nose and ears were cold because I took off down the trail without my knit hat. We occasionally will get snow that lasts a few days which is just enough to make it fun and not a chore. I share all this so you don’t think of me as sitting outside in my shorts in the sun under a palm tree just because I live in California.
What can you do to bring a little nature study time to a cold winter’s day?
Long lists of nature study ideas always seem to overwhelm me so I thought I would share just a few really *great* ideas that could get you started in taking your winter nature studies indoors.
Hang a bird feeder outside a window where you can sit inside and look out at your daily feathered visitors. A simple seed or suet feeder outside your window will bring years of enjoyment as you get to know and learn about your local birds.
Keep a window sill garden. One of our OHC families wrote about their window sill garden, its a great and inexpensive way to enjoy nature.
Here is her photo of their window area. Doesn’t it look inviting and make you really want to take a minute to not only look out the window but also take a peek at the plants? They would make great subjects for a nature journal as well. Thanks to Mama Stories for letting me use her photo.
Grow a Tabletop Garden. Last year a lot of families tried an indoor gardening project and had great success. It is something easy and inexpensive and so interesting to grow. I was thinking that it was about time to plant another dish garden using root vegetables.Here are the instructions and photos at Hearts and Trees – Tabletop Garden Instructions and Notebook page
This is a really easy project even for little ones to manage. The results are fantastic and will brighten up a winter day for sure. Here is what the tabletop garden looks like after it starts growing. Update #2
This was our tabletop garden last year and it always cheered me up to take a minute to view its progress. We had great results even in this not so very bright window, in a room where we don’t keep the temperature very warm. Things to learn about: roots, leaves, and then eventually flowers. Grow the garden and keep up the notebook pages and you will bring a little nature study into your winter.
Another activity that we do around here is to play nature journal catch-up when the weather is too cold or wet to go outside. Items that we have on our nature shelf can be brought to the table and sketched or painted into the nature journal on a long winter’s afternoon. Many times this activity will spark a memory or a question that we had that we never took the time to research before. This is a perfect time to dig a little deeper into subjects that interest your child. A stop at the library the next time you are out running errands can provide the opportunity to look for books on the birds, trees, and wildflowers of summer.
Plan next summer’s garden. Okay, I admit it. I love gardening catalogues. One favorite winter nature-related activity that we do in our home is plan next summer’s garden. Browsing and dreaming over the seed and garden catalogs warms your heart in a way that brings optimism and hope during a bitterly cold day. The promise of a garden full of green things can help pass the time as you stare at the starkness of a winter’s scene out your window. Sketch the garden out on paper with colored pencils. Ask your children to participate. Designate one catalog as the cutting catalog and let the children cut the photos of flowers and veggies out and glue them to paper.
I have in mind a whole new idea for a summer’s garden. It was sparked by this family’s idea and blog entry at Understanding Charlotte. Make sure to pop over to her blog and view her photos of how they brought nature study up close during the summer. This is such a great way to attract nature right up to your window. This idea could be started next spring and kept going for next winter as well. Many times if we just leave plants in the ground over the winter, creatures find a way to use them. I still have sunflowers…very dead sunflowers….in my garden but they provide food and shelter for visiting birds. I think this is such a great concept for families that have limited space or need to contain their garden in pots on a patio. You can use your imagination and plan your own window accessible garden for next spring and summer and winter.
Last but not least, don’t minimize the power of a quick walk outdoors if the weather cooperates. Seize a few moments each week to step outdoors even if you are bundled up and initially not excited about the thought of getting cold on purpose.
One of my favorite moments in the winter are those few minutes after the snow stops and everything is covered in whiteness. The stillness and quiet of that moment are priceless in our modern world. It is as if everything has stood still and you can capture the clean white slate that snow gives…even in the city or in a neighborhood.
The time before all the kids head out to play and enjoy the winter games of childhood is one of the gifts of winter. As an adult don’t forget the delight you had as a child when it snowed. Muster up some enthusiasm and view the winter weather from your child’s point of view. It can seem like a miracle to them.
“There is enough to see outside in winter to satisfy any poet. In fact, winter may be even better because there aren’t so many things going on in nature that they crowd each other out. It’s easier to notice what’s there.”
Charlotte Mason volume 1, page 86
Join the Homeschool Nature Study Membership For Helpful Tips Year Round
We have an exciting winter nature study program planned for the balance of our winter Outdoor Hour Challenges during January and February full of more simple ideas to spark your family’s love for nature at this very challenging time of the year. Plenty of ideas for taking your winter nature studies indoors!
These plans are available right now for our members along with a nature study calendar full of links to explore. Both these are exclusive to our membership so if you are not yet a member please do consider joining our Outdoor Hour Challenge membership…we would love to have you become part of the family.
Connect With Our Homeschool Community On Social Media
Did you enjoy this Outdoor Hour Challenge? Be sure to tag us on Instagram @outdoorhourchallenge and use the hashtag #outdoorhourchallenge so we can see and comment!
Winter Nature Study Resources
Here are some of our favorite resources for winter nature study!
Are you up for a wintery festive homeschool nature study challenge?
Christmas time is so busy and it is easy to get distracted by all the hurry of the season. Sometimes it is just nice to get outdoors with the children and leave the pressures behind.
How Can I Make Our Homeschool Nature Study Festive?
I’m glad you asked! Our winter series of curriculum ebooks and courses have so many wonderful winter challenges to inspire your homeschool nature studies and because we are known for our challenges only taking about an hour (or longer if you prefer). It does not have to be an onerous task during this busy season.
A festive homeschool nature study can be as simple as wrapping up warmly and going on a lovely winter walk to find some winter colors. Challenge 1 in our Winter Wednesday book does just this. You can read about Barb’s hunt for red and green on a wintery walk she took a few years back. You can also read her World of Winter post which fits in nicely with our wintery festive homeschool nature study theme.
I always find that you can add a little fun into your nature studies by including a few nature crafts and a festive nature study is the perfect time to do just that!
Challenges from our Winter Wednesday Outdoor Hour Challenge Book
Our Winter Wednesday ebook and accompanying course has lots of other wintery nature topics to explore in your homeschool:
Challenge 2 – Snow
Challenge 3 – Winter Star Constellations – this would tie in beautifully with the story of the wise men from the east as they followed the star to find Jesus in the stable at Bethlehem!
Challenge 4 – Trees: Silhouettes
Challenge 5 – Trees: Cones
Challenge 6 – Winter Weeds
Challenge 7 – Winter Insects
Challenge 8 – Birds
Challenge 9 – Mammals
Please be sure to share photos of your nature time with us! Use the hashtag #OutdoorHourChallenge when sharing so we won’t miss your photos!
A Homeschool Nature Study Membership For Helpful Tips Year Round!
Our members’ Outdoor Hour Challenges for January will come from the Winter Wednesday ebook and course. If you would like to join our nature study membership then please visit the link below to join – we would love to have you along.
Members also now have a printable plan for the upcoming year for guided nature study – January 2022 to August 2022. We will be following highlighted challenges from the Winter Wednesday, Spring, Summer and the Garden books and courses.
Connect With Our Homeschool Community On Social Media
Did you enjoy this Outdoor Hour Challenge? Be sure to tag us on Instagram @outdoorhourchallenge and use the hashtag #outdoorhourchallenge so we can see and comment!
Outdoor Hour Hostess Shirley lives in Chester, England and blogs at Building A Household of Faith where she writes about homeschooling the Charlotte Mason way, nature study and encouraging homeschooling moms in their great charter as Christian wives, mothers and keepers of the home. She also hand-dyes yarn in her home studio Under An English Sky, which is inspired by the English countryside and of the great living books she and her family enjoyed over their homeschooling journey. No doubt you will be sure to recognise some of the names of her yarn from literary childhood favourites!
We decided to repeat last year’s Winter Challenge on a recent hike. This homeschool nature study is perfect for the season.
Our Winter Homeschool Nature Study
We had planned on leaving in the early afternoon but it actually started to rain so we postponed it for a few hours. The rain stopped eventually and it was amazing how beautiful everything was as we hiked along the trail.
The colors were vivid and we noticed a few outstanding things to share.
Green And Red In Nature
We found some beautiful green moss covering stones and trees. Isn’t so vibrant and bright? It stands out from the winter grey making it hard to pass by. If you come across some moss be sure to encourage your children to take a closer look through a magnifying glass.
Bright red berries on bushes along the way. Red berries add a splash of color to stark and frosty scenes when most of the trees have lost their leaves. They are a vital food source for animals and birds during these ‘hungry’ months. All the berries you see on your walk have grown and developed in autumn.
Interestingly, studies have shown that birds choose the order they eat the berries carefully to ensure that they have as much food as possible to last the winter.
Finally, we found some Manzanita wood. Isn’t it just so vividly red after it gets wet?
Finding green and red in our homeschool nature study was a wonderful way to blend learning with a celebration of the holiday season!
It’s our Winter Wednesday challenge once again and time to bring the world of winter into your homeschool nature study.
Winter Wednesday – Week 1 The World of Winter in your Homeschool Nature Study
1. Read chapter one Discover Nature in Winter. While you are reading you can highlight any portions that you would like to share with your children. I also like to write in the margins any topics and ideas that come to me as I read.
2. Our family is going to complete the winter color activity on page 14 and illustrated on page 17. Please feel free to complete any of the suggested activities in chapter one of the book and then share your experiences in a blog entry.
If you do not have the book and you would like to follow along with the activity, here are some basic instructions.
Finding The Colors Of Winter In Your Nature Study
The bareness of the trees and the appearance of a white snowy landscape help to sharpen the other colors of winter. Find a few minutes this week to notice the colors you can observe in your own backyard, even if it is from your window.
Some Ideas to Get You Started In Your Homeschool Study This Winter:
I announced my retirement in August and many of you so kindly expressed your love and support for my decision, as well as your best wishes for the next chapter in my life. One of those people who contacted me with great sadness was Tricia Hodges from You Are An Artist (also, Your Best Homeschool). She felt strongly that the Outdoor Hour Challenge and the other resources on the Handbook of Nature Study website should stay available to families. Prayerfully considering the options, she and her husband Steve offered to take over the curating of the content found on the Handbook of Nature Study website.
The Outdoor Hour is Staying Online – Same place, same content, just new owners!
Great News for Current Members!
-Current memberships will be honored for the remainder of the membership period.
-All content will still be available to members after 12/31/21.
Let me introduce your new host on the Handbook of Nature Study website.
Tricia Hodges has been a personal friend and professional colleague for many years. She has been a huge part of the Outdoor Hour Challenge family from the very beginning. She participated with her own children, sharing their nature experiences with the Handbook of Nature Study newsletter (archives found in the Member’s library) and the Outdoor Hour Challenge blog carnival. You do not have to dig too deep into the archives to find her presence and support for everything we have accomplished promoting family nature study time.
I’m excited for you to get to know their website, You Are An Artist, since it’s a perfect complement to the nature study lessons found on the Handbook of Nature Study.
It’s truly an honor for them to keep my work available for current members and an even bigger honor to know that my love of nature and the passion I poured into this work will benefit future participants. In addition to their You Are An Artist website, Tricia also runs The Curriculum Choice website that has been a valuable resource for homeschoolers for many, many years. She also shares her personal homeschooling wisdom and journey on her Your Best Homeschool blog.
I’m thrilled to have Tricia and her whole family take over the reins here on my website. The content will be in very capable and loving hands.
Details To Come
We’ll be making more details available as we work through the transition process in the month of December. We aim to have the website transferred and ready to go by the end of the year. Please be patient because we all know that stuff happens behind the scenes when making changes to websites.
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me.
Have you ever wondered how to use The Handbook of Nature Study? Does one look at it have you feeling completely overwhelmed? Here are 7 top tips to help you use The Handbook Of Nature Study In Your Homeschool.
The Handbook Of Nature Study: Perfect For Your Homeschool
This is a BIG book and can be a little intimidating!
Don’t worry, I felt the same way which is why I want to share how The Handbook of Nature Study might be helpful in your homeschool.
The Pros And Cons Of Using The Handbook Of Nature Study As A Guide In your Homeschool
What made me not want to use this book before:
1. Size-over 800 pages doesn’t transport well in my backpack
2. Black and white photos
3. I was trying to use it as a field guide.
4. I wanted to just start at the front and work my way to the back like a “regular” book.
5. I thought it would take too much time to use this book in our nature study because of the size and the sheer volume of information.
The Benefits Of Using The Handbook Of Nature Study As A Resource In Your Homeschool
Here are some thoughts that I have now that I took the plunge and started using this wonderful book:
1. Read the pages at the beginning of the book that talks generally about nature study.
2. Pick a topic to focus on and read the introductory pages for that section only. We are focusing on insects this term but you can pick anything that seems appropriate for your family. You could change your focus each season if you wanted to. 3. Take the time after your nature walk to look up things that you saw on that nature walk. I turn to the table of contents and just scan down the list and see if I can find what I want to research. For instance, you might have seen a honeybee and it is very easy to skim down and find honeybee and turn right to those few pages.
4. Read the small section (usually 1 or 2 pages) that pertain to that object or creature.
5. Write in the book……gasp. Yes, write in the book as you go along to highlight the little bits of information that you want to share with your children.
6. If you don’t have time after your nature walk to look something up and share it right then, research it in the Handbook before your next nature study session and then share it the next time.
7. Realize that nature study is a lifelong project, or at least I think it should be. You don’t need to cover every aspect of everything you find.
Making Homeschool Nature Study Easy And Effective
Anna Botsford Comstock suggests that nature study be only 10 minutes to half an hour in length. (page 6) I am finding this is a wonderful way to spend a few minutes outside with my boys each day….yes we are committing to 10-60 minutes outside per day. We all feel so much more refreshed and it has actually helped us be more focused when we are doing our indoor homeschooling.
If you’re not a member here on the Handbook of Nature Study yet, please consider joining to gain the benefit of having a nature study library at your fingertips. There are numerous resources available for you to help create the habit of nature study within your family.
So you have The Handbook of Nature Study on your bookshelf. Are you wondering how to use it? Having used it for a number of years in my homeschool I have a few tips to share with you to help put this fantastic resource to good use!
Disclosure: Affiliate links in some blog posts. If you click through and make a purchase, the owner earns a small commission at no extra cost to yourself.
The Value Of Nature Study In Our Homeschools
There are the obvious benefits of adding time in nature to our homeschool days (think kids outdoors and burning off all that extra energy!). But more than just getting some fresh air and taking an outdoor break, there is significant educational value in the study of nature.
One of the best resources I have found to help guide and cultivate our homeschool nature study is this guide!
Helpful tips for using The Handbook of Nature Study
Don’t carry it on your nature hikes. It isn’t a field guide so you will more than likely not pull it out anyway.
When you come indoors from your nature time, pull it out and turn to the index to see if something you saw that day is covered in the book.
Quickly skim the information in the book that talks about the subject you observed.
Share a few points with your children.
Try those steps as a good place to start until you get more familiar with the book. Are you ready for more?
Additional Tips For Using The Handbook Of Nature Study
If you find a subject that your interested in covering with your children, read the introduction to yourself. Make pencil notes of anything you want to share.
Take a few minutes and share those points and then help your child make a nature journal entry using those points.
If you want to make a more in depth study, turn to the end of the section and use the suggested activities or just pick out one or two items to try.
Purchase Your Copy of The Handbook of Nature Study
There it is… The Handbook of Nature Study, sitting on your bookshelf. Now what? It can be intimidating to say the least. Is The Handbook Of Nature Study a friend or foe in your homeschool?
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The Handbook of Nature Study can Seem Daunting at First
My own copy of the Handbook of Nature Study sat on my shelf for a couple of years and I finally sold it on eBay. Yes, you heard me right. I got tired of dusting it and feeling as if I should be doing something with it when I couldn’t figure it out at all.
I absolutely saw it as a bit of a foe in our homeschool.
You must be wondering what happened to bring me around to where I am now? Simply put, I stopped fighting it!
The Advantages Of Using The Handbook Of Nature Study For Your Homeschool Nature Lessons
I decided to check it out from the library and took some time to page through it. I read blogs where families actually used the book, encouraging me to give it a real try this time.
We already had a love of nature in our family but we really wanted to have a better way of studying things in nature in a little more systematic way. Maybe it was not the book that was the problem for us.
Since I trusted Ambleside Online’s ideas for many subjects already, it was a natural fit to try their system for nature study. I went to their nature study page and read the whole thing, then I read the information in the Charlotte Mason volumes about outdoor time and nature study.
Finally, I read other blogs that used the Handbook of Nature Study. In other words, I did a little bit of homework and came up with a plan for our family.
Tips on Using The Handbook of Nature Study In Your Homeschool
Pick three sections of the book to cover in your school year….four if you want to cover one over the summer too. Try to think of things you will actually be able to observe in your course of everyday life. If you have a birdfeeder you could learn about which birds visit your garden. Perhaps you have a budding meteorologist who enjoyes Keeping track of the weather. It could be as simple as beginning with your families pet. Pick something of interet.
Start with something you will enjoy.
As the parent/guide, read the introduction to the section you are going to study a few times over. I have found that just reading these few pages opens your eyes to a lot of ideas for further study on the topic chosen. Use the information and suggested activities as a place to start your study of a particular animal or aspect of nature.
Make notes in the book or in a notebook with ideas for your study.
Go through your personal library and check for any reference items you may have on the subject of your study. I was surprised when I did this to find that I already owned quite a few books to go along with our fall study of insects. Check your library for books and field guides too.
Our family enjoys identifying things we find on our nature outings. This means we need to have a basic field guide to go along with our study since the Handbook of Nature Study is NOT a field guide.
Yes, I finally purchased the Handbook of Nature Study for the second time! I am happy to report that this time around it is getting used weekly. I had tried to use the online version by printing out only the pages I needed but that was too much work. Having my own copy at my fingertips has been a blessing this past term. Our nature study has taken on a new level of interest.
The Handbook Of Nature Study has truly become a friend in our homeschool.
Are you new to nature study, the Charlotte Mason philosophy and getting started with nature journaling in your homeschool?
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase I will receive a small commission at no cost to you.Please see our disclosure policy.
How to Get Started With Nature Journaling
Every student of Charlotte Mason’s was encouraged to keep a nature notebook or nature diary. I had the privilege of visiting the Armitt Museum in Ambleside a few years ago and having a look at some of Charlotte’s student’s nature journals.
Have a look through some of Charlotte Mason’s Students Nature Journals
If you would like to have a look yourself you can have a look at the Charlotte Mason Digital Archives HERE and HERE.
Students nature journals were inscribed with poetry, observations and seasonal notes. The paintings are of course beautiful and I think this is where we can get a little tough on ourselves and not want to produce anything that looks less than perfect.
The Importance of Keeping a Nature Journal
At the beginning of our homeschooling journey in keeping with Charlotte’s way, I began keeping a nature journal myself and led my children to do the same. Bit by bit over the years we have each created treasured keepsakes and we can see the progress we have made from our rudimentary first entries. We have also grown in our knowledge and understanding by observing nature in our Outdoor Hour Challenges.
The field notebook is a veritable gold mine for the nature-study teacher to work in securing voluntary and happy observations from the pupils concerning their out-of-door interests. It is a friendly gate which admits the teacher to a knowledge of what the child sees and cares for.
Anna Botsford Comstock ~ The Handbook of Nature Study
Many people don’t know much about nature and the years’ natural rhythms because they don’t observe it. If we give our children regular time outside to get in touch with God’s creation we are gifting them with a habit that will be a source of much delight all through their lives.
What Do I Need To Start a Nature Journal?
Any kind of blank book will do for this, except that it should not be too large to be carried around in the pocket, and it should always have a pencil attached.
Anna Botsford Comstock ~ The Handbook of Nature Study
Anna gives sound advice on what is needed, a small blank book that is easily taken with you on your nature adventures. You do not want anything cumbersome for children are adventurous creatures and should have every freedom to explore the great outdoors.
A graphite drawing of what is observed is easily done and is in Anna’s opinion far better than a long description of a natural object.
My Nature Journal Recommendations
My personal recommendations are the Speedball Art Journals. The paper is thick enough to take watercolor and the size makes it easily transportable. I currently have the square journal but I’m keen to try out the 5.5X8.25 next.
If you have a reluctant journaler consider just providing blank paper which can be easily replaced if their drawings don’t go to plan. Some children (and adults) can find it very intimidating to commit to putting pencil to paper in a new journal.
A Word on Watercolors
I bought each of my children a small set of watercolor paints at the beginning of our homeschooling and they lasted years! Don’t be tempted to buy something that has too many colour options, it’s amazing what colors you can achieve through mixing.
Do make sure that you have invested in good watercolors as the cheap and cheerful ones just do not do your work any justice and in keeping a nature journal you are creating something that will be treasured for many years to come. This particular set of watercolors costs around £11.00 – so about $14.61.
Anna Botsford Comstock’s Advice On Nature Journaling
Remember that a nature journal or field notebook is to be a joy to the child. In The Handbook of Nature Study, Anna lays out a few rules to be observed to make nature journaling a success:
The book should be considered the personal property of the child and should never be criticized except as a matter of encouragement; for the spirit in which the notes are made is more important than the information they cover.
The making of drawings to illustrate what is observed shall be encouraged.
The notebook should not be regarded as a part of the work in English. The spelling, language, and writing of the notes should all be exempt from criticism.
Anna also believed that no child should be compelled to keep a notebook and although I agree, I believe that we can encourage our reluctant journaler in other ways. Perhaps instead of drawing what they observe they can take photographs which may be printed out and pasted into their journal. I think that it is natural for a child that feels their drawing is ‘not good enough’ to want to shy away from drawing what they observe.
If not I would highly recommend that you do. Karen is the author of the Charlotte Mason Companion, another book to add to your booklist. A Pocketful of Pinecones is a story written especially for homeschool moms who are feeling discouraged in their homeschooling as well as a lovely guide to nature study.
It is written as a diary of a homeschooling mom who is in her first year of homeschooling using Charlotte Mason’s gentle art of homeschooling. There are some beautiful chapters on what nature study looks like on a practical level in her homeschool and which gave me the confidence to implement the same into my own homeschool. You don’t have to be an expert instead you can learn alongside your precious children and learn together, creating a treasure trove of precious memories spent in God’s glorious creation at the same time!
This book is honey for the homeschool mothers heart and I would encourage you to get a copy. I have found that I read this book each year, I never tire of it and always feel encouraged and inspired to lead my children in their adventures in discovering and forming connections with nature.