Nature Walking: Resources

We've had a lovely couple of weeks enjoying our great outdoor weather.  I've brought a good book on a couple of occasions and set out to read and explore!  Tomorrow we are heading out to Lost Dutchman State Park to meet some friends!  If you've never been to Arizona, you should follow the link and watch the short video!

Hurray for more outdoor explorations!

After telling you all about the what and why's of nature walking and then giving some suggestions on how to do it, I thought I'd give you all some resources and ideas on finding out information about nature in your neck of the woods...

When I spoke to a homeschool group last fall about making learning a natural part of everyday life, a question came up on what to do if you (as the parent) don't actually know a whole lot about the world around you.   She pointed out that she wouldn't even know where to start talking with her children about even the plants in her own neighborhood.

I've learned so much in the last few years as I take my kids outside.  I'm embarrassed to admit now that I worked very hard to not take a SINGLE plant biology class while pursuing my degree in biology.  I was interested in human anatomy, physiology and neural development.  Plants were the last thing on my list of subjects I wanted to learn about... 

I assured her that I had been in the same boat. 

The beauty of homeschooling is that you don't need to know all of the answers. 

In fact, part of the fun is making new discoveries yourself!

So here are a few resources to get you going!

• Ask, ask, ask questions.  Don't be afraid to stop someone who looks like they might know something.  I've found that retired people love to go to nature preserves and are usually thrilled to share what they know with an eager audience!  I've scored many a mini fieldtrip by just spotting an 'expert' and asking some questions!!!
• Find local classes.  Many of the places below now offer nature related classes for homeschool students or might be willing to do a specialized tour if you ask!  Be sure and read up on the topic at hand before going so you can maximize the opportunity to learn from the cool field trip or class!

Places to try:
Your Local Nursery - Unless you are fortunate like my Canadian blog friend, Heather, whose husband owns a nursery, you may not be an expert on plants even in your own yard or those in your neighborhood.  We love to take a {free} field trip to a nursery and check out what kinds of plants they have for sale.  They are always labeled, so it is helpful to learn how to identify plants there when you can just look at the tag to find the answer.  Oftentimes if it is a slow day, someone is usually more than happy to share with you about different plants.  Just taking in the variety of colors, plant types, etc is exciting enough for the younger crowd!  I've learned a lot about plants in my neighborhood this way.

Local Nature Center - the wonderful people that work there usually are a great wealth of information and if they have a bookstore be sure to check out their book recommendations.  When we go to the Environmental Education center near our home it is always a surprise what we will find.  They have several different kinds of snakes on exhibit, plant projects going on.  On one visit, the lady at the desk was just getting ready to release some newly hatched butterflies that they had out for observation and my boys were able to help.

Audubon Society - many local chapters will have lots of resources at their fingertips and can point you to suitable books for your children.  The Audubon chapter here in Phoenix regularly hosts community events.  We've gone bird watching with experts which is so helpful, because this is an area that I know very little about. 

Local Botanical Garden - again, a wealth of information and their gift shops are usually a treasure trove of great books.  Oftentimes, you'll find me taking pictures of their book selections and then seeing if I can find any of them at my local library. 

Local Game and Fish Department - Also a wealth of information on animals in your region.  Oftentimes, there are opportunities for your family to join in some kind of conservation project which can be a great way to learn more.  I can't wait until my guys are a little bit older so we can take advantage of these opportunities!


Field Guides
Buying a field guide or two for your region will be helpful.  If you live in the southwest, I can't recommend the Easy Field Guides enough.  They are so easy that a child can navigate through them which also means that you'll be able to decipher them too!  They are small and compact.  I'm hoping to stock up on most of them in the near future!  I remember using them as a girl to identify frogs and cool insects caught while out camping.   My parents would pack a stack of them and then turn us loose identifying the trees,  mammals, desert insects, desert birds and our favorite of all Poisonous Plants and Critters of Arizona.  Last year when we studied the desert, I loved the booklet on Common Desert Cactus.  Despite being a native, I learned a lot from that 10ish page booklet on the different categories of cacti!

Audubon Pocket Guides are a great introduction to their more detailed regular field guides.  These seem to be specialized by East and West, so it will be easier to find one that fits your region!

Take baby steps.  Knowledge, especially this kind, doesn't usually happen overnight.  There is simply too much to take in at one time.  Enjoy the process and before you know it you and your children will be field experts or at the very least will have a deeper appreciation of your immediate surroundings!  Knowledge really does enhance enjoyment!

Do you have any favorite resources to share?  I love to incorporate nature explorations when I travel, so I would love recommendations for cool places or child-friendly fieldguides for your region. 

I'll share about some of our favorite picture books that inspire nature walking and exploration next...

Nature Walking Series: Part 1, Part 2