One of the greatest gifts that spending time in the outdoors has given me is the ability to adapt. That skill has been infinitely handy as a parent, where situations change in seconds and expectations regularly get stomped all over. Yesterday, it led to a lovely afternoon in Wheaton Regional Park – even though we hadn’t planned to go there in the first place.
Welcome to Day 7 of the Outdoors Family Challenge! This is a seven day challenge to help get you and your kids outside, living more sustainably, and connecting more with nature and each other. You can read about our experience yesterday or check out the archived prompts on the Outdoors Family Challenge page. If you would like updates each morning with the activities, sign up for the email list or like my Facebook page.
Visit a farmers market, farm stand, local farm or pick-your-own.
One of our biggest but most overlooked connections to nature is our food. More than any other industry, agriculture is intimately connected to natural cycles, influenced by the weather and ecosystems. Unfortunately, most people are quite disconnected from what ends up on their plate. But with the growth of interest in local and regional agriculture, it’s the easiest it’s been in decades to connect with where your food comes from, even if you live in a city.
Welcome to Day 6 of the Outdoors Family Challenge! This is a seven day challenge to help get you and your kids outside, living more sustainably, and connecting more with nature and each other. You can read about our experience yesterday or check out the archived prompts on the Outdoors Family Challenge page. If you would like updates each morning with the activities, sign up for the email list or like my Facebook page.
Visit a park that’s new to you.
So often, we don’t spend the time to explore what’s right in our area. You don’t need to go to Yellowstone or Hawaii Volcanos National Park to experience the benefits of a park. Today is National Public Lands Day, which makes it ideal for making the most of the lands that belong to all of us.
The artist at work.
Yesterday, we completed the Day 4 activity but I didn’t get to write about it because my children hate sleep. When I got home from work, we had a lovely time poking, smashing, smudging, and squishing leaves, weeds, and clover into finger paint. Sprout also used his fingers to create a lovely swirl of red and blue.
Welcome to Day 5 of the Outdoors Family Challenge! This is a seven day challenge to help get you and your kids outside, living more sustainably, and connecting more with nature and each other. You can read about our experience yesterday or check out the archived prompts on the Outdoors Family Challenge page. If you would like updates each morning with the activities, sign up for the email list or like my Facebook page.
Take a bug’s eye view.
Nature often feels the most significant on the large scale – at the tops of mountains and edges of oceans. But the small scale offers untold wonder and insights. Millions of organisms that are essential to how the world works live under our feet every day.
Welcome to Day 4 of the Outdoors Family Challenge! This is a seven day challenge to help get you and your kids outside, living more sustainably, and connecting more with nature and each other. You can read about our experience yesterday or check out the archived prompts on the Outdoors Family Challenge page. If you would like updates each morning with the activities, sign up for the email list or like my Facebook page.
Integrate nature into art
Nature has inspired creative expression since art began! Many of the earliest cave paintings are of animals. In addition to inspiring art, nature can also provide the canvas and tools to create it.
Go outside and find some materials you and your kids can use to make art. Some possibilities include leaves, acorns, pinecones, blades of grass, sticks, dirt, sand, water, and weeds. Let the materials themselves inspire you.
Day 3 of the Outdoors Family Challenge in my house almost ended as soon as it started. When I came in the door, Sprout was playing with his Duplos. I asked him, “Do you want to go outside?” To which he promptly answered, “No.” Fortunately, I wasn’t deterred and he wasn’t being terribly stubborn, so we headed outside five minutes later. The scavenger hunt (PDF) didn’t exactly go as planned, but plans never quite do with three-year-olds.
Welcome to Day 3 of the Outdoors Family Challenge! This is a seven day challenge to help get you and your kids outside, living more sustainably, and connecting more with nature and each other. You can read about our experience yesterday or check out the archived prompts on the Outdoors Family Challenge page. If you would like updates each morning with the activities, sign up for the email list or like our Facebook page.
Have a nature scavenger hunt
Children approach nature with an inherent sense of play. They love searching out objects that look ordinary to adults and imbuing them with great meaning.
One way to spark and encourage that curiosity is to have a scavenger hunt. Download the scavenger hunt worksheet as a PDF or print out the graphic or text below. Unlike a regular scavenger hunt, where there are specific “right” answers, there may be many ways to fulfill each category here. In addition, there are a number of blank spaces where you can make your own categories!
“We talked about how it was different from the spiderweb at the house.” (The one outside our kitchen window.)
My husband took on the Outdoors Family Challenge responsibilities today! (For instructions on today’s prompt, check out Day 2 – Walking and Biking to a Destination.) I have a long commute and often don’t get home until 6:30, so I knew it would be hard to walk anywhere further than the park (which is literally across the street) before dinner.
Chris decided to walk to our downtown area with the kids, which at a mile away, is fairly ambitious. Here’s what they saw, with quotes from my husband:
Welcome to Day 2 of the Outdoors Family Challenge! This is a seven day challenge to help get you and your kids outside, living more sustainably, and connecting more with nature and each other. You can read about our experience yesterday or check out the archived prompts on the Outdoors Family Challenge page. If you would like updates each morning with the activities, sign up for the email list or like my Facebook page.
Walk or bike to a destination.
One of the best ways to get outside and connect with your community is to walk or bike places for transportation. Many of my favorite memories as a child were formed from behind a set of handlebars. Now, my family regularly walks to the park and grocery store.