As I began thinking about homeschooling one of the main reasons I felt compelled to opt my children out of the 8-hour school day was that I wanted them to retain their love of nature.

From the time my 8-year-old was an infant she demonstrated a natural interest in the outdoors. I would watch her stare with wonder at the treetops and the way the sunlight cast shadows. As a toddler, she and her brother would take their grabber reacher tools and pick up trash at our local park. She is now our naturalist who enjoys creating wildlife paintings and videos of herself teaching about plants, animals, and the earth. She hopes to create awareness about the beauty of nature and the importance of maintaining clean outdoor spaces.

This took very little prompting on my part. We often play outdoors and try to spend daily time outside in the woods. 

As my children have gotten older, I’ve tried to encourage more outdoor activities for all of us. This list has naturally transpired out of our own interests.

OUTDOOR LEARNING

• Taking nature field guides on hikes: I was surprised by how much they enjoy looking up the birds/plants/trees they see in our area. Yes, apps are good but to reduce the need to have a phone in their hands while outside the field guides have been a great purchase. 
• Playing in the woods: Their imaginations run wild and they could spend all day outside if given the opportunity. We typically spend 3-4 hours on the weekends in the woods when we have friends to go with or new places to explore. 
• Planning and planting a garden: We all work together on the yard weekly by watering and checking the plants we’ve recently planted. This is the best way to get kids to enjoy herbs and vegetables. Kids just love the idea of being able to pick something and eat it. 
• Playing sports: Even if it’s just passing a ball back and forth, playing sports outdoors together as a family will create a love for being outside and being active, which we all can use a little more of these days. We recently got into playing pickleball together and it’s an easy sport for free. 
• Painting and drawing objects in nature:  When my kids are interested they will get into creating art but I never force it. Sometimes just having chalk on hand is enough to inspire creativity.
• Take up hobbies in nature:  They have recently become interested in fishing, rollerstaking, biking, and metal-detecting. 

FOREST SCHOOL

I noticed my son, who seeks out ways to work with his hands, needed to meet this need and recently we began attending a forest school. It was something I didn’t know we needed in our homeschool life.

He’s been able to chop with an ax, learn how to start a fire, and be around bees without fear. This has helped us take nature appreciation to a whole new level. 

Outdoor learning is crucial for fostering an appreciation for nature, cultivating a desire to protect the environment, and promoting physical activity. It also has many benefits for helping children develop their senses, cognitive skills, fine motor skills, social-emotional skills and so much more. 

So the next time you’re trying to figure out a homeschool activity and don’t want to scour the internet or strew some new materials, find a park, hiking spot, open field, or botanical garden, and watch the magic happen. 

Some great websites for more information on the benefits of getting out in nature.

https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/who-we-are/how-we-work/youth-engagement/benefits-of-outdoors-for-kids/

https://www.nwf.org/en/Kids-and-Family/Connecting-Kids-and-Nature/Health-Benefits-and-Tips#:~:text=1%20Children%E2%80%99s%20stress%20levels%20fall%20within%20minutes%20of,social%20interactions%2C%20value%20for%20community%2C%20and%20close%20relationships.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9754067/#ack1