Maintaining a Sense of Wonder

Today I watched as a delicate, white feather- probably a down feather- drifted in the breeze and then caught ahold of a leaf from a tree. The feather clung to the leaf with all its might for quite some time, until it eventually continued its graceful descent. I was mesmerized by this feather for some reason; much in the same way that my young daughter will examine a found object carefully for long periods of time. She, like me, has a sense of wonder about her. For her, it is natural and simply a part of being a child- but for me it has been nurtured over time. Growing up, my siblings and I were encouraged to play outside as much as the weather and general safety allowed- Rain, snow, and night fall did not stop us- We blazed trails through the narrow greenbelts that separated the houses in my grandmother’s neighborhood and splashed in muddy puddles after summer showers. We collected bones on gravel roads, petrified wood in dried up creek beds, and rocks on the playground. We watched tadpoles, collected from a nearby stream, grow into frogs and then released them; and we rolled down grassy hills till we made ourselves sick. My parents are not biologists, or even environmentalists. They are both business people that simply believed that it was best for us to have freedom in our play. They did not overly worry about the always present possibility of harm, but taught us to be safe and use good judgment.  That is all we really can do, isn’t it? What did all of this version of parenting result in?- Three children, all now adults, that care immensely about the natural world; people that understand that everything is connected and nothing is to be taken for granted; and most importantly, three individuals that continue to have that beautiful, natural sense of wonder about the world that is so often lost after childhood.

Rachel Carson spoke in depth about this “sense of wonder” and its importance. She stated that it is not the teaching of the natural world that is important, but the feeling of it. One must develop a healthy relationship with other living things in order to ultimately appreciate, value, and protect them. Filling a child’s head with facts and figures will only bore them and help detach them from what is wild. This is where the traditional education system fails our kids. Rather than focusing on experiential learning, we like to show slideshows, videos, and textbooks. We remove the wonder, and replace it with monotony. Fortunately, education is reforming in our country thanks to dedicated teachers, unique public charter schools, and the creation of innovative private schools.

I grew up in major cities, and still managed to do everything I mentioned at the start of this article. While I got to go to my grandparent’s farm on the weekends, I was mostly an urban dweller. Creeks, flood easements, drainage ditches, and vacant lots- these are all present in almost any city. Do yourself, our planet, and your children a favor- get outside!

Making Masks with Leaves!

I thoroughly enjoy collecting leaves that have fallen from the trees any time of the year. There are so many different shapes, colors, and patterns to be found. On the 4th of July this year, I walked out in the backyard to find an adorable little Screech Owl perched in the tree as it rained all around us. He let me walk right up to him as he stared back at me with his large, bright eyes. It was after this wonderful encounter that I came up with my most recent idea- making an owl mask from found leaves! First, I collected my supplies: leaves picked up on walks, string, a cardboard container from last night's dinner, glue, and scissors.

I cut a cat-like shape out of the cardboard to act as my base and then I cut holes for eyes and attached string so that the finished mask could be worn. After doing this, I began strategically gluing on my various leaves in a pattern that I felt mimicked the feathers of an owl.

This is a great project for kids slightly older than mine. Bug would not let me put the mask on her to model it, let alone participate in the project (she is only one after all). I was quite pleased with the final product. One could also use a watered down non-toxic glue mixture to varnish the leaves, similar to decoupage.  What a great seasonal project for Autumn, or art project to integrate into a unit on animals.

 

I LOVE seed pods!

 

Seed pods are awesome! They represent the renewing of life and the transition of the seasons. I love to collect things on nature walks, seed pods being one of those things. Once the seeds have been released, the pods dry up and will eventually fall from the branches and decay into the earth. I like to pick them before the decaying process, so that they are nice and crisp. These cool pods can easily be turned into creative projects such as canoes, boats, mobiles, and jewelry.

Today, I turned a Trumpet Vine seed pod into a boat complete with a found feather sail. I used wire from my jewelry making kit to secure the feather, but you can easily use hot glue (just be sure that if you float it in a pond or stream you make sure to pick it up and not discard it there- you don't want wire or glue being consumed by wildlife). Kids love to make boats and then watch them float (in addition to splashing in the water) and this is a great way to teach units such as buoyancy in an elementary classroom.

In addition to the Trumpet Vine boat, I also made a fun little necklace from a Buckeye seed pod. I secured dried flowers and a cool little green pod, that I have yet to identify, to the Buckeye pod with wire and then strung some hemp string through a jump ring. Little girls especially love stuff like this! They can be queen of their own imaginary fairy kingdom! You can also create head dresses, bracelets, and rings using found objects in nature.

The collection of something like seed pods can easily be turned into a lesson on classification or seasonal cycles, but why not take it one step further and turn it into an art project!? Don't just teach a lesson, but inspire creativity and imagination as well!