Sharing gratitude and nature sightings

Many classrooms have morning or afternoon routines that involve children each sharing something with the entire class. These activities are excellent ways to engage all students in the class and foster community. The daily practice of students sharing a single gratitude or nature sighting is an excellent way to build a community that cares about and respects the earth.

Activity: Sharing gratitude

• During your class meeting time or when wrapping up the day, have children sit in a circle and take turns sharing a personal gratitude from the day. It can be anything they wish. You will find that children come up with all kinds of examples of gratitude. If they are at a loss, suggest choosing something from nature such as the sun, the birds singing in the morning, or the fresh apple they had for lunch.

Activity: Sharing nature sightings

• Sharing nature sightings is another way to involve each child in morning meetings while encouraging a deeper connection with the natural world. For this activity, ask children to share a nature sighting they may have seen that day or during the week. These sightings do not have to be elaborate. They can be as simple as hearing a sparrow in the bushes, the sun coming through the window while they ate breakfast, or listening to the rustle of leaves as the wind blew them across the sidewalk.
• Alternatively, you may devote a few minutes during the day to ask if anyone has any nature sightings that they wish to share. This can also be a great way to fill in an awkward time in the schedule or to slowly release students to line up or begin the next activity.

Variation

• Have children journal about something they are grateful for. This can be a perfect assignment for older children to work on as morning work or as a reflective way to end the day.

Weekly birdcall

Children love learning new birdcalls! By featuring a new birdcall each week, your students will gain extensive knowledge of different birds and their calls! It is so fun to witness their excitement when they recognize a birdcall outdoors or share an experience during circle time!

Materials

• Bird field guide
• A book such as Backyard Birdsongs by Donald Kroodsma or an app such as the free Merlin app by The Lab of Ornithology at Cornell University at https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/

Activity

• Each week, select a bird species that is local to your geographic area. Research a few interesting facts about the bird and locate a picture. This information is easily found in a field guide or online. Locate a recording of the birdcall.
• During the meeting, play the sound for the class. Remind them that if they think they know what bird it is, they should not shout it out, so that others can listen. Play the song several times. Then you may ask the group if anyone guesses what bird makes the sound they just heard! After hearing a few responses, reveal the bird's identity, show the picture, and share a few facts with the class.
• For the remainder of the week, play the birdcalls during meetings. You can also share more facts about the feature bird or review past birdsongs as time allows.

Extensions

• Occasionally review and do a quick informal birdsong quiz to see how many songs they can remember/identify!
• Find books and resources about the bird of the week and place them in the classroom library for children to explore.
• Students can further research the bird during the week in writer's workshop or science.

Calendar of firsts

Watching the seasons change can be a magical experience for children. We often notice the events marking seasonal shifts such as the first snow or summer vacation, but do your students notice the smaller hints that time is passing? Do they note the first time a robin appears in spring or the first tinge of orange in the maple tree in the fall? By keeping track of these “firsts,” students will expand their awareness of the relationship between the cycle of the seasons, time, and the calendar year. If your geographical location does not have four distinct seasons, subtle changes can still be found that showcase the passage of time and the cyclical way they happen each year. This type of activity gains momentum with time and ignites excitement in a classroom with children eagerly observing nature at home and school hoping to spot a first and share with the class!

Materials

• Chart paper or large blank calendar for recording observations

Activity

• Introduce the idea of a calendar of firsts to your class by modeling something that you noticed during the past week or two that is an excellent example of a “first.” A first is when you observe something for the first time that is a sign of the forthcoming season. For example, in the spring, you might glimpse the green tips of the daffodils poking through the leaves after the snow melts. This is an excellent example of a first because it is a sign that spring is on the way and is the first time you have observed it this year. Other examples might be a dandelion blossom, frost, pumpkins for sale, icicles dripping, or buds plumping on branches of trees in the spring.
• Decide how you would like to record these firsts throughout the year. The simplest way is by making a list on chart paper and listing the date. You can record the firsts from each month and then display the past months or bind them into a large book. Some teachers like to record them on a large blank calendar. Dedicating a bulletin board to this project and constructing a timeline can also be a unique way to display the data.
• Students can occasionally become overcompetitive in finding the firsts. This can be mitigated by recording the student's name next to the observation and making sure to call on different students each time you add to the list. By recording the name next to the student's observation, you can easily track who has yet to share. Placing a checklist of student names on the back of the chart can be helpful.
• At the beginning of each month or the official start of a new season, spend a few minutes looking back at the list of observations and invite students to reflect on their observations. Ask questions such as, What do they notice? Were there lots of signs that the season was changing or only a few? Was there a time when there were many firsts and other periods with only a few?

  

• The answers to these questions will vary with your geographical location. Sometimes what we observe does not match up to the date on a calendar or a current year's weather pattern. Where I live in the Northeastern United States, signs of spring can be hard to find on the spring equinox! Yet, if I look beyond the snow on the ground, I often see small signs that spring is on its way.

Variations

• Individual calendars: Having students keep their calendar of firsts can be a wonderful extension of this activity. Print blank calendars and have children fill in their observations of firsts (see Figure 5.3).
• Narrative writing: The first signs of the seasons can make an excellent topic for narrative writing. Ask students to expand on this small moment using descriptive language.

Tracking the weather

Observing and tracking the weather is a great way for children to begin noticing the natural world around them. Weather can affect what we wear, our activities outdoors, if school is closed or open, and even how we feel! Keeping track of the weather changes is an excellent opportunity to integrate math and science concepts into your morning routine. Consider tracking temperature, measuring precipitation, or tallying the number of sunny vs. cloudy days. Upper grade students can track percent humidity, wind speed, and atmospheric pressure.

Materials

• Outdoor thermometer(s)
• Rain gauge (DIY or store‐bought)
• Large graph on chart paper or interactive whiteboard
• Clipboard
• Simple data recording sheets (date and measurement for each)
• Advanced weather data such as humidity, wind speed, and atmospheric pressure can readily be found on the internet or from a weather station in the schoolyard

Activity: Graphing weather statistics

• Recording data and constructing a class graph can be a fantastic way for your students to practice graphing skills in a practical, real‐life context.
• This activity works best if the data is collected by a student in the morning before the morning meeting. Appointing a daily or weekly “Weather Reporter” allows each student in the class to collect and graph data multiple times over the school year. Before the meeting, the students collect weather data and record them on a data sheet. Using a simple data sheet will guide students when recording and graphing the data and provide a historical record of all the data. This record is a helpful reference when presenting to the class, as well as a physical record of measurements over time. During the morning meeting, the weather reporter shares the day's weather statistics and adds them to the graph and/or calendar.

Adjusting this activity

• For lower grades, have students measure and record the temperature, note the amount of precipitation, and observe if the day is sunny or cloudy. Creating a line graph on chart paper or an interactive whiteboard that students add to each day works well. Using a line graph to track temperature, a bar graph to track precipitation, and a tally chart to track sunny vs. cloudy days give students practice with reading and graphing three different graph types.
• In the upper grades, the weather report can be more complex. Measuring the percent humidity, wind speed, and atmospheric pressure connects science and higher‐level math concepts such as percent, speed, weather fronts, and pressure. You may wish to integrate different statistics as they are introduced in math or science. For example, you may have students begin tracking percent humidity after introducing percentages in math class to provide real‐life practice using and interpreting percentages. Be sure to periodically examine and discuss the data, asking students to look for patterns or changes. Encourage them to make weather predictions or forecasts and use the data to support any predictions. For example, after looking closer at the data, students may notice that the weather becomes drier and sunnier after the pressure rises and steadies.

Variation

• Weather observations are an excellent activity for all children to complete in the morning before the morning meeting. For this, create packets with monthly data sheets and graph outlines for students in lower grades or who need more support and graph paper, Excel, or Google Sheets for recording weather statistics. Some teachers find it helpful to put weather data on the interactive whiteboard for students to record in their booklets. In this scenario the weather reporter simply reviews the data during the morning meeting and may add in their interpretations such as, “The pressure is dropping, and there is a lot of wind. I think there might be a storm coming!”

Creating a class nature journal

Creating a class book that records nature sightings and observations, reports on treasures found and samples collected on nature walks or field trips, documents a significant or exciting weather event, and other shared nature experiences help make nature study a part of the community and classroom culture.

This activity pairs well with individual nature journals. It allows students to contribute to a larger classwide project in the form of the classroom book as well as record personal experiences in their nature journals.

Materials

• A class book (this can be a sizeable blank notebook or artist sketchbook, or thick paper bound together with binder rings or placed in a binder; 9 × 12 inches or larger works well)
• Old magazines with nature or animal photos for cutting and pasting
• Access to a printer or provide printed photos to add to the book
• Heavy books, or flower press for pressing flowers and other natural specimens to add to the book
• Glue sticks or tape
• Colored pencils or markers

Activity

• Class nature journals can take many forms and sizes. A larger format provides plenty of room for children to write, draw, and add pressed plant samples, photos, or magazine clippings. This larger‐sized book also allows multiple children to work on or read the book simultaneously. Pages may be left blank with the design of each page left up to the students or you may wish to provide more structure by having lines for writing and an area designated for art, samples, and photos.
• Once you have obtained or constructed the blank book, model how to create a page based on a nature experience that the class shared. You can make the example page ahead of time and simply share your entry, your process, and its components with the class or model creating the page and taking suggestions from the class on what to include and explaining components and options as you go (see Figure 5.5).
• Once students have an idea of what the potential is for the book, there are several different ways that you can integrate the project into class time:
  • After a nature walk, choose a few students to work on the class book, while the rest of the class works on recording their experiences in their nature journals.
  • Provide time for rotating groups of students to work on the book during writing workshop, morning work, or science. It often is best to have only two to three students working together on the book at a time.

    

  • Allow students to add to the book if they finish work early or during “free time.”
  • Allow students to read the book during silent reading time, free time, morning time, etc.
  • Display the book in the classroom for children and visitors to see!
  • Notice and share ideas to put in the book when outside, on nature walks or when sharing nature sightings. For example, you might say to your class, “How exciting that we saw a flock of geese flying south today during our neighborhood walk! What a fantastic sign that fall is coming! We should record this in our Class Nature Book!” Then follow up by providing time for a few students to record the sighting.
• After pointing out and recording several examples, you will notice that your students will start making suggestions about what to put in the book and take more ownership of the project. Encourage their enthusiasm by providing time and space for recording and creating these nature experiences. If many students have ideas all at once, encourage them to make a rough draft of what they want to include (to serve as a model when it is their turn to work on the book) or make their entry in their nature journal. Once you fill one book up, create another and introduce the idea of volumes to your students.

Extension

• Have groups share the pages they created with the class to practice public speaking skills!

Creating self‐portraits with natural materials

Many teachers begin the school year by having children construct self‐portraits. Elementary students are typically starting to develop their self‐concept and understand their personal strengths. This project is a beautiful way to gain insight by seeing the child through their eyes. Here we give self‐portraits a nature‐inspired twist by using natural materials (see Figure 5.6).

Materials:

• Natural materials (such as sticks, grass, flowers, moss, pinecones, small rocks, and seeds)
• Containers to gather materials in (recycled containers such as gallon milk jugs with the top cut off or sour cream containers with the top work well)
• Glue
• Cardstock or pieces of upcycled cardboard
• Optional: small mirrors or several mirrors for children to see their reflection

Activity

• Prepare for this activity by gathering cardstock or upcycled cardboard pieces and containers for children to collect materials. You can also ask children to look for and collect natural materials at home and bring them in. Before beginning, ensure that you have a safe space to spread out the self‐portraits for them to dry.
• Explain to your students that they will collect natural materials from the schoolyard and neighborhood to construct a self‐portrait. Share an example or model making your self‐portrait using natural materials. Allow children ample time to create their self‐portraits.

  

• After they have completed their self‐portrait, have students add writing to the piece. If needed, provide a sentence starter such as, “Three words that describe me are …” Older students may write a paragraph or two describing their personalities, likes, dislikes, and hobbies.

Extensions

• Year‐end reflection: Consider repeating this activity at the end of the year. Save or take digital pictures of each self‐portrait, including any writing. At the end of the year, have children create another self‐portrait and writing piece. When finished, show them their work from the beginning of the year. Have them reflect on what aspects have changed and what has remained the same. How has their appearance changed? What about their description? Has their art technique or writing improved? This is an excellent activity for students to see tangible evidence of personal growth!
• Earth‐based professional artist: Artist Andy Goldsworthy uses natural materials to make art. You may wish to introduce some of his art to your students. Find more about Andy Goldsworthy from this article on the Living Your Wild Creativity website at https://www.livingyourwildcreativity.com/art-gallery-1-mitchell-
• Read aloud: The Anywhere Artist by Nikki Slade Robinson

Create a classroom nature collection

Devoting a space in your classroom to a nature collection is a physical way to show students that you value nature and think it's important. Encouraging students to add to the collection as the year progresses creates excitement about nature that is contagious (see Figure 5.7)!

Materials

• A space to devote to the nature museum or collection such as a few shelves, table, bulletin board, or windowsills
• Index cards or slips of paper for labeling specimens
• Container, or a small basket to hold blank notecards

• Completed notecards for your students to serve as a model for completing their own
• Small containers, bowls, baskets, and jars to hold specimens
• Field guides are helpful to have available for children to identify their specimens and find the scientific name
• Optional materials: magnifying glass, ruler, microscope

Activity

• Begin by identifying and creating a space for the nature collection. Shallow shelves and windowsills work particularly well. Make sure to account for the future growth of the collection!
• Decide if you want this to be a “museum” where children look at the items mostly with their eyes or a “collection” that they are allowed to touch and interact with. Choose what works best for your classroom. Whichever approach you take, discuss any expectations with the class. If touching materials is permitted, it is wise to lead a class discussion about being gentle with the materials, noting the possibility that some objects could accidentally get broken.
• Once you have identified an area to display the collection, find and add some nature treasures of your own. They can be simple objects such as acorns, pinecones, feathers, and pretty rocks. You may wish to also add in some more unique finds such as bird nests, rocks, crystals, bones, etc. Part of the fun is finding new things to add to the collection! You just need a few things to start the collection so that children can get excited about the project!
• Fill out an index card for some of your nature finds. These can include the date, the item's name, scientific name if applicable, where it was found, and who found it (see Figure 5.8). These cards will serve as models for students to complete their own cards.
• Place a small container with index cards nearby. These index cards will serve as a way for children to add labels to items they wish to add to the collection. Placing a model card nearby or hanging it above the container helps students to complete cards independently.

  

• When you are ready to introduce the idea of a classroom nature collection to your students, consider introducing the concept of nature collecting by reading one or both of the following books aloud to the class.

• The Collectors by Alice Feagan
• What's in Your Pocket? Collecting Nature's Treasures by Heather Montgomery

• Next, give your students a tour of the classroom collection or museum area, and explain that this is the class's nature museum. Invite children to bring in nature finds that they find at home, on nature walks, or during outdoor time at school. Explain how to fill out a card for a specimen and why they are helpful. Discuss whether the materials in the class collection are for looking at like in a museum or if they will be able to touch them. You may also wish to lead a discussion about some simple guidelines and ways to respect nature when collecting (see the Outdoor Learning Tip: Respecting Nature When Collecting).
• If you find your collection beginning to take over your classroom, consider cleaning it out every few months or seasonally. Send the specimens and their cards home with students or return them to the natural environment.

Using natural materials for classroom activities

Bringing natural materials inside the classroom is a great way to encourage children to use, learn more about, and observe these materials in different ways. Natural materials can be used as manipulatives in math lessons or centers instead of plastic materials. You can include natural materials in literacy and writing centers, independent work choices, and science areas. Adding natural materials to sensory bins and sand and water tables can be another fun way to incorporate natural materials if you have these areas in your classroom.

Materials

• Natural materials
• Trays and/or bins
• Paper with a question that invites the students to engage with the material

Activity

• Set out some natural materials that you wish for your students to explore further or in a different way. For example, you may set out flowers for children on a table with a sign inviting them to make patterns or a variety of leaves and items found during a walk or prior activity outside (see Figures 5.9 and 5.10). This could be an option to work on during morning arrival, math centers, independent work time, or after finishing an activity.

Variations

• Montessori‐style activity bins: Create bins containing activities that incorporate natural materials. These bins can work well as an activity for children to work on as they arrive in the morning instead of traditional “bell work.” Each student or pair of students selects a bin to work on. These boxes can also be used for early finishers, centers, or during choice time. (See Figure 5.11.)
• Math manipulatives: Using natural materials for math is not just for outside – you can bring them indoors as well! Try using them for lessons or centers instead of plastic manipulatives.
• Sensory activities: Many early childhood classrooms have sensory bins or sand and water tables. Try adding natural materials to these areas! Some fun ideas are acorns, pinecones, wood, and shells to the water table (some sink and some float!). Try seeds and dirt, petals and water, leaves, or rocks in sensory bins.
• Science materials: When possible, have materials that pertain to your science unit, nature study, or season available for exploration in your science area or other location in your classroom. Don't forget that you can also integrate them into science lessons! (See Figure 5.12.)

Phenology wheel

A phenology wheel is a simple way to document nature observations and seasonal changes. It shows the year in the form of a circle, highlighting how the year's seasons are cyclical. Phenology wheels are easy to implement in your classroom because they only need to be completed once a month. This is an excellent way for children to reflect on nature sightings they had during the month or heard about during sharing time during a morning meeting. You may wish to devote a permanent place in your classroom to display the wheels and update them each month.

Materials

• Printed phenology wheel available at discoverwildlearning.com/wild-learning-book-resources
• Pencil
• Colored pencils or watercolors

Activity

• Introduce the activity by explaining what a phenology wheel is. You can show students a finished example or some pictures of phenology wheels. Model filling in the current month and then have students complete their own. Keep the phenology wheels in a safe place or display them and revisit them each month. If starting at the beginning of the school year, you may wish to have students complete the prior months (summer vacation) so that the whole wheel will be completed at the end of the school year.

Adjusting this activity

• Have older students construct their own phenology wheels using a compass and a ruler. This is a great way to integrate geometry and fractions. Adjust the guidance given for this activity based on the age and experience of the students. You may provide step‐by‐step directions with modeling or simply a few hints on how to do it and let the students figure it out!
• Students can write a summary of their nature observations and seasonal changes for each month. At the end of the year, ask students to make a small book with their entries and phenology wheel (see Figure 5.13).