With the change of weather and the advent of summer sunshine heading our way here in the Pacific Northwest, we go to a local nature trail regularly. We often bring our Nature Journals (blank artist sketchbooks) and can sit for hours drawing the animals and birds taking up residence around the beaver pond.
Last summer, my children were thrilled to see a rare pond turtle sunning itself on a log. There were a great many Rough-skinned Newts foraging on the bottom of the pond directly beneath us as we stood on one of the observation platforms. The pair of Canada geese that called the pond "home" became old, familiar friends. My children even named them: Arctic and Shadow.
The red-winged blackbirds sent out such a wild sound as they called to each other across the pond. We never did see any females. Perhaps they were nesting in the rushes? We always look forward to seeing ducklings and goslings paddling around the pond each year.
Yes, it's often the simple things that bring the bright splashes of joy to our lives.
I was first introduced to the idea of Nature Notebooks by reading the work of Charlotte Mason, an educator in England from the late 19th Century. Many of her ideas and methods are currently experiencing a revival, especially among American home educators. For further information about Charlotte Mason's methods and ideas, go to: A Charlotte Mason Education
For people interested in trying out the Nature Notebook or Nature Journal idea (it's a great activity for both children and adults), I highly recommend the book Nature Journaling: Learning to Observe and Connect with the World Around You by Clare Walker Leslie and Charles E. Roth. The book is written and illustrated by college-level science educators who use Nature Journals as their primary method of teaching people to learn about nature firsthand. A beautiful, inspiring book!
After purchasing Nature Journaling, the book totally changed the way our family approaches our Nature Journals -- the book provided us with so many more ideas and creative uses for the notebooks. The first day we read Nature Journaling, my 12-year-old daughter and I spent two hours at the local pond. My husband has even decided to start keeping a Nature Journal of his own after seeing the newly inspired work in my Nature Notebook.
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