Yes, no, maybe so! We play this game called 'vote with your feet' to get to know the interests, preferences, and the 'why' behind our individual personalities. On our first day of winter session we began construction of a positive group dynamic built on a foundation of understanding, inclusion, and a love for adventure. We’ll keep working to create a strong social community, ready to learn together and support one another.
Let’s start our journey by asking your child to show you their nature name action, and see if they can recall their friends names and special roleplay that tells about their animal. Taking animal forms in movements and behaviours is our unique way of getting connected with the wild critters around us. If you find time, research these animals to find some more information about diet, habitat, and life cycles. Our level of care and stewardship grows when we can name and are familiar with details about the living world that surrounds us.
Take a trip with your child using their map of the farm. Ask about what each symbol means and how we captured the ‘bird’s eye’ view of this land. Explore favourite places, location of tree friends and identify where the Canada Goose landed near the waterway or deer carcass washed up near Crayfish Catch. So much change in a few short weeks, with some pretty BIG surprises too!
Bats hang upside down to rest and we found a way to suspend ourselves at Backwoods circle. What other fun and interesting things happened on our ‘place naming’ hike along the south and north trails bordering Crayfish Creek.
Lunch is time to hang with old friends and make some new connections. Despite a chilly wind we were able to get a warm fire going and enjoy time chatting. Tree climbing was high on the list of fun activities in Pine Haven. Chat about what we know is a safe way to climb, how to judge the height we can climb, and which branches are sturdy enough to hold our weight. We will be having more conversations about this next week. Learning boundaries and taking the lead role in showing the way we flow at nature school, helps others get the most from this unique experience.
The hayloft is becoming a place to stretch limits and take reasonable risks. This is such a critical part of growing up and will come into play often as these young ones measure their capabilities and ethics against those of their peers. It takes courage to say you’re not ready for a challenge, and we were so proud to see bravery to step away from a jump that felt too scary. Praising these decisions and offering advice while leaving choices to the kids when possible is a great learning experience we can manage with a small group. High fives all around for hayloft leaps today!
Journaling takes some skills and patience, but is such a worthwhile investment to capture our learning. Make sure to look at journals with your child, comment and ask questions, and make sure they are packed for next week. We finished our farm map with a key and will add to this in the coming weeks. Take a memory walk encouraging your child to refer to this map, orient it using the road as a landmark, and travel both trails on your journey out and back.
Putting a bit of muscle into the care of animals is important in growing the relationship of caring. Horse stalls need to be mucked, feed mixed with special supplements, eggs collected, the coop cleaned out, and fresh food and water added. Have a chat about the helping role involved in chores today and your child's hopes for next week.
Our wish list for our next adventure is quite long. More horse time, hayloft play, hiking and so much more. See if you can get at a particular idea once your child has had some reflection time. Encourage them to write this down, pass us a note the next time, or send along an email message. Adding choice and canvassing for opinions is so empowering for children. Daisy and myself ended our day happy, tired, and already sharing ideas to expand the experience for this amazing group.
I think Daisy wants to spend more time with Gus! Happy trails until next week Forest Friends:)
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