Article: Seasonal Homeschooling
This time of year in North America is brilliance
of color and the crisp autumn breezes blow in
a longing for coming together and celebrating family.
Homeschooling in nature can be a teachers dream and
a child's playground. There is so much for the senses to
behold!
The smell of fires burning and apple, pumpkins and hay.
Feeling crunchy leaves, nuts, pinecones to collect for play.
Tasting apple cider, pumpkin pie and other tasty treats inspired
by the outdoors harvest.
Allowing children time to explore and commune with nature can be
the best “teacher” around. For, what could be better than a child
learning animal behaviors, finding birds nests and eggs by actually
experiencing life outdoors.
Here's a few tips for seasonal homeschooling.
*Use what is around you- learning counting or simple math? Use acorns, rocks, shells
or whatever is locally available. Collecting is part of the fun. Besides being economical,
it teaches what bounty is right in your backyard.
*Nature Journals can be a great way to document what is happening for an older child.
They can write and draw what they see while they are outside in their favorite tree.
*Use the festivals. Fall has many great festivals to celebrate and this is a great time to make a bonfire, roast some marshmallows and explore your nature area. Invite some other homeschooling families to make it really special.
*Create a Nature Table. A seasonal or monthly table to display current findings is a wonderful way to bring a hint of nature inside. Make sure to make safe for very young hands.
*Carve out Nature Time. Give your child “free play” time to roam, explore and just “be”. It is amazing what they will learn during this unstructured moments. Sometimes learning happens in the best more organic ways. ;)
