Solstice: Celebrating Winter

Mid-winter or Solstice (December 21) is upon us. Here in Wisconsin the sun is already setting at 4:30pm and not rising again until 7:30am.That's a loooong winter night! Winter Solstice, the time of nature's darkness, has long been celebrated by humans around the world. In Northern climates celebrations often include fire and light to signify welcoming back the sun, and turning toward the renewing days of spring.

While the nights are long, the days of mid-winter in Wisconsin are often sunny and bright.  Taking long walks in the winter sunshine can be rejuvenating and so very interesting. What do you see, hear and find? Where are all the animals and what are they doing to stay warm?  Where do they shelter and what do they eat? How are the trees living through the cold?

To supplement your winter wonderings (and wanderings) you might check out these amazing books. There are some for adults and some for children.

Winter World by Bernd Heinrich

Stokes Guide to Nature in Winter by Donald Stokes

The Longest Night by Marian Dane Bauer

Dear Rebecca, Winter is Here by Jean Craighead George

The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper and Carson Ellis

Indoors there are many ways to continue to observe nature. A favorite is feeding and watching the birds outside your window. Young children can have an up-front seat to bird observation in the comfort of their homes. Many hours can be spent observing the ways that birds use their beaks to eat seeds, how they preen their feathers and how they chase away intruders at the feeder! KVR Instructor Barb Duerksen wrote a great post with tips and reminders about bird feeding back in October.

Collecting bits and pieces of nature and bringing them inside can be another wonderful way to observe and explore winter in the warmth of your home. Create an ever-changing seasonal nature table in your home! For more about creating nature tables, check out The Nature Corner: Celebrating the Year's Cycle with Seasonal Tableaux by M.V. Leeuwen and J. Moeskops.

Stargazing after the sun sets continues to delight during the winter season. Tonight, if the skies are clear from your corner of the world, check out this rare event with Jupiter and Saturn that is happening on solstice. If skies are cloudy in your area, there is a livestream available on the link. KVR Instructor and Astroeducator John Heasley also wrote about Winter Solstice Great Conjunction here. 

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The Learning Outside blog will take a break until the week of January 11, 2021. We wish our readers everywhere opportunities to notice and appreciate the light of the new season. Thank you for joining us in 2020.

NEW at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve: Education Packs for Outdoor Adventures

KVR instructors Barb Sydnor and Julie Hoel have been hard at work creating adventure backpacks for children and families. We encourage you to check one out on your next visit to the Reserve. These education packs offer opportunities for deeper engagement with natural features and experiences, and they've been created with fun and learning in mind.

There are 3 preschool activity packs and one water critters pack for older children (4th-5th grade). The water critters pack is also suitable for younger children with adult help.

Packs will be available outside the Kickapoo Valley Reserve Visitor Center on weekdays from 8 am until 4:30 pm. Please use the sign out sheet provided by the packs.

Let us know how you are using the packs with photos and comments.

Camp Covid

Guest post by Julie Hoel, KVR Instructor and Grandparent Extraordinaire

No one whined more about the cancelling of KVR Summer Camps than I did. Just ask our camp director! I was the lone voice crying FOR the wilderness. It’s an OUTSIDE activity! Outside can be safe! Pleeease! My four-year-old grandkids were signed up for their first KinderCamp. We had all been looking forward to their time at KVR and Nana and Poppa time at our house. Their working-from-home parents had been looking forward to a break. We couldn’t let them down, so the cousins came anyway and Camp Covid was born.

There is plenty for them to do here…pond to swim in, trampoline, tree swing in a huge oak, a play set fort and my toy room. (Other retirees use their spare bedroom for a sewing room, an art studio or an office. Mine is a toy room filled with three generations of vintage family playthings and classroom toys from my mom’s first grade room and my kindergarten.) Our tendency would have been to hang out here, but I took my own advice to my Forest Friends session parents, and we headed to the woods anyway! Each morning we packed up for a new adventure. I ignored certain four year-old behaviors just to get them in the car and on our way. Don’t want to wear your long socks? No problem, I’ll just put them in my backpack. Still hungry? I have a car snack ready. Can’t find your water bottle? I’ll share mine.

Our first adventure was to the Ice Cave Trail at Wildcat State Park. In a moment of unplanned genius, I bought them each a pair of rubbery garden gloves for climbing and other muddy encounters. These came in handy right away as they scampered up the rocks by the waterfall. Letting them lead the way was also important. You really can’t get lost, and it put them in charge. They stopped and threw sticks when they felt like it. They followed the “beautiful butterflies” that caught their eyes. We splashed in the little creek. I pulled some plastic food containers out of my backpack and turned them into boats. I took a little video of this exploration. My grandson says, “Nana, do you have any other toys?” I don’t remember saying this, but I hear my response, “I thought this would be enough.” Turns out, it was more than enough.

Day Two destination was KVR. I was hoping to play at the stepping-stones on the Visitor Center Trail, but they were underwater. We headed to the climbing trees in the flood plain, but they were overgrown without the usual trampling by school groups. The cave by the river didn’t excite them. But finally the magic of the pine plantation caught their fancy. They explored all the shelters that kids have made there. I was shocked to hear that they did NOT know the story of the Three Little Pigs. Explaining the tale led to a spirited game with Poppa huffing and puffing and the little piggies dashing from one shelter to another oinking all the way. They could have played this for hours.

Day Three was at the Valley of the Elves. Something about that little stream inspires nakedness. Every time I take a group of Forest Friends there, someone ends up removing their clothes one soggy piece at a time. The embarrassed parent asks the group if everyone is okay with it and the fun continues. This day it was my grandson ripping off his shirt in the summer sun. They went upstream and discovered a small sandy bank. They proceeded to climb up and jump into the water making up songs as they went again and again. The trip back up to the rock shelter required cooperation and determination, but it was all worth it.

I could continue explaining each adventure, but I think you see the pattern. Ignore any resistance and get to the car. Get to some place wild. Follow their lead. Nature did the rest of the unfolding.The boy who is go-go-go and sports-sports-more sports settled down a little in the woods. On one hike he was just sitting in the brush up on a little hill. I asked him what he was doing. “I’m a deer.” The girl that loves beautiful sparkly dresses and won’t touch a cobweb ended the week proclaiming, “Dragon flies are my friends!” Most of all, it was magical for us watching them.

In the end, it felt like it might have been even better than KVR camp because they had our undivided attention in a class of just two. So, thanks, Covid, for that.

Where the Wild Things Are

Guest post by Cathy Chybowski, Where the Wild Things Are Camp Instructor

Welcome Summer Campers and Parents! 

Because we cannot meet daily for the “Where The Wild Things Are” Summer Camp, below are some ideas and suggestions about how to get outside and look for special things. Included are some rainy day activities too.

I encourage each of you to take your sense of wonder and adventurous spirit outdoors every day this week and beyond to explore your backyard, your neighborhood, a nearby park or green space or the trails at the KVR!  The only tools you need to have fun outdoors are your five senses, a little curiosity and a sense of imagination to become an explorer, scientist, poet, artist or whatever you wish to be! 

Walk quietly, look and listen carefully, and stop often. Take time to observe, watch, and investigate. Look up, down, straight ahead and even behind you as you move along. Kneel down to get a closer look. These actions are what lead to discovery. You will be amazed at the diversity and quiet beauty that surrounds us every day.  You never know what you will find or what might find you!

No matter where you are, be respectful of nature and follow the KVR “leave no trace” policy.  Leave the place in as good or in better condition as when you arrive.

Sit Spot

Do you have a favorite place to sit outdoors?  A sit spot or secret spot?  A magical place where you can connect with nature? If not, find a place that is special for you; a safe place where you can sit alone and visit often so you can get to know it well. A place where you can sit still and quietly observe everything around you. If possible, visit during different times of the day and night; visit in different seasons and weather. You will likely sense things you have not noticed before. It may be difficult at the start to sit still for long periods of time but you can gradually increase the time you sit so that eventually you will look forward to it; like visiting a good friend.

Nature Journal

A nature journal is the place for your personal notes, sketches, data, or creative writing. It does not have to be complicated!  It should be a fun way for you to record what you have experienced in nature using your senses. You can include both observations and feelings. For example, maybe you discovered a robin’s nest in your backyard. You might sketch it in your journal and color the eggs. Or describe the nest and its habitat; then sit quietly to watch for any bird behavior.  If an adult robin is carrying food to the nest, the eggs probably hatched out and there are hungry nestlings to feed.  Or maybe the adult birds are still incubating the eggs. 

Perhaps you have visited your sit spot and wish to record your observations or feelings in the form of a poem. Some objects that you discover on a hike like a leaf or a feather could make interesting patterns or rubbings on a page in your journal. Or tape it to a page in your journal.  Record lists of birds, insects or flowers you have seen or heard on a hike. Take your journal on vacation and add to it.  Describe the weather; draw the cloud formations you see.  There are no rules! 

Use sturdy paper with front and back covers to protect your work inside.  Choose a binding to keep the pages together and don’t forget to decorate it!

For more ideas on nature journaling, visit 
https://blog.nwf.org/2014/01/how-to-make-a-unique-nature-journal/

Birds Are Unique!

What do an ostrich and a hummingbird have in common?  All birds have feathers and wings.  Even a flightless bird like an ostrich has wings.  Most birds have hollow bones with braces inside making them lightweight for flight but really strong. Each bird has a different shape of beak depending on the type of food it eats. Hummingbirds have a beak shaped like a drinking straw to reach nectar deep inside flowers. A cardinal has a short thick beak for cracking seeds. Most birds have a keen sense of hearing and sight. Many birds sing a song different from other birds; this can help us identify them.  A good resource for birds can be found at:

http://kvr.state.wi.us/Natural-Features/KVR-Birds/KVR-Bird-List/  or

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/

Did you know the robin is our state symbol?  Elementary school children voted on it. It is familiar to most people and the return of the robin after the winter season is a sign of spring. It is fun to watch and list the birds that visit a place like your backyard. Besides their color, try to observe their size, shape, and behavior. What are they doing? Feeding? Singing? Chasing another bird out of their territory?

It is easy to do something to help our feathered friends.  Make a simple pine cone feeder by smearing peanut butter or lard on a pine cone and rolling it in bird seed. Then hang it where the birds will find your tasty treat!

Do you see any birds whose name describes how they look? Red-winged blackbird, black capped chickadee, and red-headed woodpecker are examples. After you list the birds that you have seen in your nature journal, imagine a bird and draw it. Like all birds, your drawing should have feathers, 2 wings, 2 feet, and a beak. It can be funny, scary or beautiful. Use your imagination and then name it. The name can describe its shape, color, behavior, what it eats, or where it lives.  Write the name on your picture. Take a photo of your drawing and send it to: audubonmagazine@audubon.org

Other Nature Activities

 Story Stones – Find several smooth light-colored stones and make a picture of an animal, plant or other nature related scene like a rainbow or mountains on each one.  This can be done with siblings or friends. Use sharpie pens or acrylic paint.  Put the stones in a bag.  The first child takes a stone from the bag and starts a story.  The next person takes a stone and says, “and then . . . “ and continues the story until each child has had a turn. Or if working alone, line up all the stones and tell a story with as many stones as you can. https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/raise-a-reader-blog/inspire-creative-storytelling-story-stones.html

          Flower Pounding – Collect flowers or leaves or a combination.  Tape them down  to paper or fabric with masking tape. Leaves should be vein side down.  Flip over the paper or fabric onto a hard surface and pound all over lightly with a hammer or heavy object. Flip back over, remove the tape and admire your work! For another technique see: 
     https://www.instructables.com/id/Flower-Pounding/

       Toad Abode – Make a shelter for toads using a flower pot and paint a design on it.  If you want to get creative you can decorate the outside of the flower pot with a nature scene. Or paint the words "Toad House" on your container, or paint your new shelter green so it blends in.  Find a shady spot in your garden and dig a hole that is large enough for the flower pot when it is lying on its side.  Set the pot on its side and bury the bottom half in the soil.   Be sure there is a solid, straight dirt floor.  Put a handful of leaves inside the container.  For ideas check this: 
      https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-make-a-toad-house-1388582  https://www.greenkidcrafts.com/toad-house/

      Insect Sculpture –  Make realistic or imaginary insects using homemade modeling dough that hardens over time.  You can add food coloring to the dough or after your white sculpture is dry (bigger, thicker insects take more days to dry; 3-4 days) you can paint or decorate it.  Use your imagination and have fun!  Recipe for Insect Dough: 2 cups flour, 2 tablespoons oil, 1 cup salt, 2 cups water, 4 teaspoons cream of tartar, vanilla or peppermint to make it smell good. (National Wildlife Federation’s Nature Scope Incredible Insects).

More About Cathy
Cathy Chybowski has been an instructor at the KVR for several years. Previously, she taught high school biology, ecology, and environmental science. Her work as a DNR naturalist helped her realize how much fun it is to work outdoors with kids of all ages.

We asked Cathy about her favorite place on the KVR. Here's what she shared:
Any place at the KVR can be a special place! I think any of the ponds and surrounding wetlands along Old 131 can be exciting places to visit. Wildlife is attracted to water and if you approach quietly you might catch a glimpse of something special. Like a turtle sunning itself on a log, a bird singing "witchity witchity witchity." a frog leaping away as you bend down to take a closer look, or a snake coiled up in a dogwood along the shoreline.

Nature Nuts

Guest Post by Nicholas WazeeGale, Nature Nuts Camp Instructor

Hello Dear Campers!

It is a big old bummer that we won't be doing any camps at the KVR together this summer. I will miss seeing you all and roaming the grounds by the Visitor Center and getting to see the world up close through your clear youthful eyes! The good news is that the amazing natural world we all cherish is still around us for exploration and discovery. We just need to make some time and get out there.

I thought I would send you some ideas and remind you of all that we love to do during our Nature Nuts weeks so that you and your families can make the most of the summer. Here goes the greatest hits as I recall:

Swimming and Creek Walking! 

Nothing makes a hot day enjoyable like water, and we have lots of it around. Favorite places where we have all loved to explore water have been down at the little creek under the footbridge behind the Visitor Center, and swimming in the river down there (with life jackets and adults!) and also walking back to Weister Creek behind "Ma and Pa's" campsite on Hwy P. Also there is lots of good swimming, wading and creature catching to be had at the new Weister Creek project further up Hwy P from Ma and Pa's campsite.

Hiding and Seeking! 

Games like Hide and Seek, Camouflage, and Fox and Rabbit are easy to adapt to any site. You can hide in your backyard or the local woodlot or even in your own living room and not even be noticed if you observe where people look and don't look. Just don't get carried away and scare your parents too badly. See if a brother or sister or parent will play in the backyard and see how creative you can get. Or a park in town! And the next time you are taking a walk in the woods take turns running ahead and hiding just off the trail and see if you are noticed and what works and what doesn't. (It is, of course, always good to let your parents know where you're are heading off to, and always be aware of plants and insects you need to be careful of like wild parsnip!)

Exploring Natural Spaces.

Nothing feels more like summer in the Driftless area than finding and eating raspberries right off the cane or sneaking up on a katydid making its insect music. And nothing makes us feel like we are part of the natural world like following our curiosity into wild places. Go take a walk with your parents, a sibling, or just yourself (after telling your parents you are going!) in a natural area like the KVR with the purpose of exploring and following your curiosity. Get off the path in an open area of forest or a meadow and see if you can find some insects. Look for crayfish under stones in a creek. Explore the pond edges for frogs, dragonfly larvae, rare plants, diving beetles, or snakes. Crawl into a thick area of brush and look for animal sign where no human has gone for years. Look for something of interest and follow it! Adventure awaits. Just remember to be safe and respect those whose homes you are visiting.

Games of the Earth

Our days at KVR are always filled with good games that show us more about the wild world around us in fun and playful ways. Remember Meet a Tree? Being blindfolded and led to tree in a confusing way and then led away to have to find your tree by what you felt and remembered? You can partner with anyone! Or Secret Animal Identity where you and a friend have an animal ID on your back and have to ask each other yes/no questions to find out who you are? You can play the related "20 questions" with animals too for sharpening your awareness of local animals. We do it in the car regularly. Lastly there is the fun of Animal Charades in which we have to hold our guesses while someone tries to impersonate all that they know of how an animal moves, views its environment, eats its food, where it goes in its world, and how it reacts to things. What good learning and fun to become your favorite animals! Try it out in your yard with your family and see what local animals you can impersonate!

Study of Birds, Plants, Trees, Animals and Insects.

Another thing that we all love doing and learning in Nature Nuts is studying up on all the wonderful life that surrounds us. From in the ground to the tree tops and sky above, from the marshy ponds to the nearest rotting log, our wild world is filled with life forms of every shape and size, doing their thing and living their lives. What are you interested in learning more about? There are many ways to read up and learn more on your favorite organisms, and we live in an area where you should be able to get out and look for them, see them, observe them and do some drawing of and even writing about them. And if you are seeking the elusive bobcat and not having luck, don't forget to enjoy the flowering yarrow, the nearby ant colony, the swallowtail butterfly and all the more easily observed wonders of nature as you wait! The magic of the Earth is in all of them and we can learn so much from them all if we are observant and patient.

Lastly, I would just like to leave you with remembering that the woods are a special and rejuvenating place that hold many secrets and gifts for you. Remember this and if you are feeling grumpy, bumpy or out of sorts, take yourself to the nature spa nearest you:
the woods! Go take a seat, watch the show, see who comes to visit, and see if you don't feel better when you come back to the busy world of people. People all around the world have stories of the woods making them feel better and guiding them to a better sense of themselves and greater health and happiness. Just get out there however you can, nature is everywhere, and enjoy the gift of chatty birds, hopping insects, tall green trees and all the wonder we are so surrounded by in this area of the world.

Good Luck and Great Discoveries to you! And feel free to send us your reports!

Note: For more information about Nicholas's life and work and additional great words of wisdom, check out his Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/nicholas.wazee.gale/

Plant Power and Art Sprouts

This week's guest posts are by Julia Buckingham, KVR Plant Power Camp Instructor, and Vicky Ramsay, KVR Art Sprouts Camp Instructor.

Hello, curious Plant Power friends! We are lucky that our green allies of the plant world can be found right outside our doors! This week I want to ask that you take the time to get to know a plant. This activity can take as long as you would like. It could be a one time deal or just the start of an ongoing plant(s) study.

An activity to start to acclimate you to the plant world:

1. Walk around your yard or while on a hike. Look for a plant that you gravitate toward.
2. Notice particular qualities of this plant.
3. Take note in your mind the color, how the leaves are shaped, how the leaves grow on the stem, look at the margin (or edges) of a leaf
4. Is the plant flowering? If so, what insects are visiting the flower?
5. Are there thorns or little hair-like spikes on the steam or leaves
6. Use a field guide or a phone app to identify the plant.
7. Notice where this plant is growing again. Is it wild or cultivated? Does it grow in clumps or alone? Is the plant low to the ground or tall and thin? Does it prefer sun or shade? Wet, loam, clay or rocky soil?
8. Does it have a smell?

Take time to draw your plant if you so choose. Notice all of the small details in the stem, leaves, flowers. Jot down notes about your observations. Write the date on your paper. At this point decide if you would like to continue with this activity. You can choose another plant on a different day. If you decide to do multiple plants, you can create a plant book and add to it as you discover more details about that plant. This activity could go on for months and years if you really enjoy doing it.

As my favorite herbalist Susun Weed says, “Herbal medicine is peoples’ medicine”. I think this means that many of the plants that live right outside our door have wonderful healing properties. These green allies have so much to offer us. They are free and available to us. There are so many plants out there, it can be overwhelming! Take the time to learn one plant at a time and at your own pace. Notice when the plant starts to grow in the spring, when it flowers, where it grows, and how it goes dormant in the fall.

Simple Plantain Oil
Materials: 

• small jar
• oil (like olive oil or even coconut oil or lard/tallow if you can get it to liquify in the summer heat) 
• masking tape and marker
• willingness to go outside in the hot heat to collect your leaves

Brief description of plantain: Plantain grows in almost every yard, low down in the grass. They have a dark green broad leaf, kind of like a big paddle. The leaves have ribbed veins and the leaves form a rosette pattern and grow from the middle of the plant. The flower and seeds of the plantain grow from the center of the plant on a tall spear-like steam.

Collect plantain leaves. I pick them one at a time and fill the jar as I pick them. Rip the leaves up into smaller pieces. Fill a small jar to the top with fresh plantain plant material. Add oil to the top of the jar, making sure to cover all of the plant material. Note: You may have to add more oil to the top in a few days, so check it often. Create a label. I like to put mine on masking tape with the date, the plant, and what kind of oil you used. Let the plant/oil mixture sit on a towel in a dark place in a jar for at least six weeks. After six weeks, strain out the plant material. Either put the oil back into the same jar or smaller jars to give out as gifts or other family members. Use the oil on any small cuts, bruises, bumps, cracked hands or feet, pimples or bee and wasp stings.

A few things to consider: Collecting plants in the sun ensures the least amount of moisture in the plant. Make sure to protect yourself from the sun with a hat. Always check for ticks after you are out foraging for plants! Be very cautious as to how much of a plant you are harvesting. If the plant is growing abundantly, you may consider picking it. If there are only a few of the plants, it is best to leave it.

               
Hey Campers,

This week would have been our Art Sprouts week at camp together and I'm sad we won't be able to meet. But I have a couple activities for you that we have always found to be fun, whenever we do them. I hope you try out one or two and if you do, let us know how it went! Send pictures! We'd love to see your smiling faces.

With big love,
Vicki

Goon Goo
(recipe from the Mad Professor by Mark Frauenfelder)
There are lots of recipes for slime out there, but this one is perfect, in part because you can see the chemistry happening and change the quantities to see how it changes your goo.

First you need to make a Borax solution
Borax is a naturally occurring mineral salt that is left behind when a natural lake evaporates. It's often used as a laundry additive and you can buy it at most grocery stores.
To make 1 batch of Borax solution add 1 tablespoon of borax to 1 cup of warm water. Stir until it dissolves. Store the liquid in a jar with a lid and label it, “BORAX SOLUTION.”

Goon Goo Ingredients
2 Tablespoons Elmer's Glue-All or other white glue
2 Tablespoons water (purified water is best but tap water is okay.)
1 drop food coloring
2 teaspoons borax solution

1. Combine the glue and water in a glass cup or bowl. Stir with a spoon until completely mixed.
2. Add 1 drop of food coloring to the glue-water mixture. (Truly you don't need very much food coloring to stain your goo. Too much will produce an impossibly messy glob that will stain everything it touches and create strife at home.)
3. Add the borax solution to the glue solution and stir. This is where the chemistry starts to happen. The mixture will immediately start to form a blob. Keep stirring. If some of the glue-water liquid does not clump together with the rest of the blob, add a little more borax solution and stir some more.
4. Put your blob in a plastic baggie and knead it.
5. Remove the blob and play with it! The plastic polymer feels cool and clammy. It looks wet and sticky, but will snap if you pull on it quickly. It will bounce if you throw it on the ground, and slump into a puddle if you set it on a countertop.

THE CHEMISTRY BEHIND THE GOO
Elmer's glue contains two kinds of polymers: polyvinyl acetate and polyvinyl alcohol. The polyvinyl acetate is in the form of microscopic drops, and the polyvinyl alcohol surrounds the drops. When you use glue to stick things together, the polyvinyl alcohol dries up in contact with air, and this causes the polyvinyl acetate particles to clump together and become hard. When the borax solution is added to the glue-water mixture, it forms lots of rubbery “bridges” that link the polyvinyl chains. That's why you end up with a blob. This kind of chemical reaction is called cross linking.

Saucer Slime 
Use the same recipe for Goon Goo, but try using 2 Tablespoons clear gel glue instead of Elmers white glue. (not Super glue)

Frankenstein's Hand
(recipe from The Book of Totally Irresponsible Science, by Sean Connolly)
Materials:
1 glass
1 disposable rubber glove
3 Tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons baking soda

1. Pour the vinegar into the glass.
2. Add the baking soda to the inside of the glove. Hold the glove by its wrist and shake the powder into the fingers.
3. While letting the fingers fold downward, carefully attach the wrist opening of the glove onto the glass. It should be a tight fit. Try not to spill the baking soda out of the fingertips yet!
4. Now lift the fingers of the glove up, allowing the baking soda to fall into the glass. A chemical reaction will ensue, filling up the glove with some kind of gas.. (do you know what it is?)
5. Stand back and watch as Frankenstein's hand begins to come alive.

You can give this experiment a little Halloween flavor by marking the glove with bones, veins, and screws. You can also add a little ketchup at the bottom of the glove to increase the gore factor.

This video shows a pretty good reaction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIJexxbAkEY
This video shows a few challenges, but also the book the recipe comes from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqLUfwAQgDo

Stop Motion Observation

Materials
1 tablet of paper or 1 small pack of post-it notes
pencil or pen
access to plants outside

1. Go outside and find a small bud of a tree, or a flower just before it's bloomed. Sketch it in your notebook in the bottom right corner of the first page. Time 1 or 2 hours and then sketch another picture of it on the following page, again in the bottom right corner. Try to keep the size consistent and the stem in the same location. For the entire day, try to capture the bud or bloom every 1 or 2 hours in a quick sketch. If it hasn't bloomed by the end of the day, pick up your observations again the next day until the bloom is fully open.

2. Now hold your post-it notepad or sketch book at the corner between your thumb and forefinger so that you can flip the pages. You can try flipping from front to back or back to front.  As you watch, it will look like a moving picture!

The Forest School

We have some really exciting news to share!  The Kickapoo Valley Reserve and the La Farge School District have received a Department of Public Instruction charter school grant to plan and implement the Kickapoo Valley Forest School (KVFS)!  More information is available in the official press release here.

Years of developing the dream of offering nature immersion learning to our community's youngest students has paid off.  We are so excited to open the doors to a school where a world of hands-on, play-based education will help children develop their sense of place while honing the multidisciplinary skills that prepare them for a life of learning.

This week's guest post is from Ximena Puig, KVR Instructor and Kickapoo Valley Forest School founding member.  She writes of the conscious effort she takes in guiding her children to explore eagerly and wisely in the woods and how that pays off for them in huge developmental ways!

My mother, two young sons and I walk down into the woods, on a spring day. Along the way we see Jack-in-the-pulpit, and when we reach the valley we cross a shallow stream where water spiders dance, small watery shadows dart, and rocks await our admiration. There is the smell of rotting leaves, damp wood and new spring growth. These are the woods I played in every day as a child, picking berries, walking across fallen logs and creating worlds with my sister and any friend who might be visiting. Now my little boys are pushing through the briars and splashing through the creek.

We come to a place where a great big oak tree has fallen. Her root end is still up on the taller of the two creek banks, though now her roots fan out towards the sky, and her branches lie on the forest floor on the other lower side, while her thick trunk makes a wonderful, tall bridge. Right away the boys start climbing, each finding just the place to test and practice his skills. The three year old climbs up and down a thick branch over and over, narrating his every move: “Now I put my foot over here. Now I grab this branch. Now I am going down again.” The five year old goes right for the main trunk, walking as far as he feels comfortable, then expressing his fear and wanting a hand to retrace his steps. On his first attempt he cries a little as he climbs back down, but no sooner are his feet on the ground, then he is going up again, and this time he makes it all the way to the middle of the trunk reaching over the creek before he turns around. On his third try he crosses the whole bridge, some 10 ft. above the creek and climbs down on the upper bank radiant with accomplishment. It is all his. My job was to believe that he could, to stand near by and give him the space to do it, without admonishing him to be careful or telling him not to be scared, all while pretending to not pay much attention. He had to make his own way to meet the challenge, and the challenge and thrill of stretching his skills was what kept him going back even when he was a little scared.

This is what children are supposed to do. This is how they grow and learn. When you think about the long history of human development, schooling and scheduled activities as we know them today, are a really small sliver of what childhood has been about. Evolutionarily, children have been programmed to learn through observation and imitation of their parents doing meaningful tasks and through exploration and play in natural environments. Stretching their skills and challenging themselves physically is in their genes. It is how a baby is motivated to learn to crawl and then walk and then run. The multi-sensory nature of the natural world, and the inner drive to explore it, is the teacher your young child needs. My five year old boy was feeling the rough bark of the oak under his fingers, the wind and black flies on face and neck. He was listening to the birds singing and noting the commotion the dog made crashing around in the ferns. He was using his legs to defy gravity as he climbed the slope of the trunk and his inner ears to balance himself. His young elastic brain was organizing and balancing all this sensory stimulation as he worked to stay focused on his desire to cross the tree trunk bridge. On the way back up the hill for lunch there was an extra spring in his step and pride in his shoulders.  And stored deep inside him was the experience and thrill of meeting a challenge and the connections and passages his brain made to allow him to do it. The forest had proved a good teacher and he a willing and excited student. All I needed to do was take him to the woods and be near by.

Something I hope will come of this time when so many scheduled activities have been canceled is more time for undirected, outdoor exploration. Open, unscheduled time, even boredom, can lead children deep into themselves, to experiences and challenges and fun that will make lasting impressions and teach deep lessons. When surveyed about moments and places where they felt at home and held, almost all adults cite a secret outdoor place that they went as children. I hope that this summer there will be more children in the woods, listening to the birds and the wind and their hearts and bodies, and making lasting passageways in their brains that lead them to know themselves and their outdoor spaces better.

Forest Friends and Kindercamp

This week children (and parents) would have joined us at KVR for Forest Friends and Kindercamp. Since we can't gather together we decided to gather some resources, words of encouragement, and ideas for activities from our beloved camp instructors. Here's hoping you get to play outside!

Forest Friends

An Interview with Ximena Puig, Susana Ruder and Julie Hoel

Tell us about yourself. Is there anything special you want campers and families to know about you and your life?

Ximena:  I have two little boys, with whom I spend a lot of time outside. The older I grow the more I learn that there is wisdom, perfection and beauty in every living thing, and even in things we see as inanimate, like rocks and clouds. I am amazed to see how intuitive this feeling is to small children, and how their respect and love for all living things is innate and strong, especially when we don't dismiss their perspective.

Susana:  I love water so much. From tiny drops of rain collected in leaves, to rivers and lakes. Water brings me so much peace and a sense of freshness. I spent my early years swimming in a very cold spring fed pool almost every weekend or going to the mountains nearby and swimming in very warm volcanic hot springs. I think that keeps me going back to the water daily. You can find me sitting by the small and quiet spring that emerges from deep in the woods, or by the rushing river full of trout, or canoeing the Kickapoo if I get very lucky.

Julie:  I grew up playing outside, swimming and going to YMCA camp. Summers as a camp counselor shaped my character. As an adult, I worked for the YMCA, stayed home with my young children, and then was a Wisconsin teacher for 20 years. Since I retired to the Driftless, I have become more in tune with the cycles of nature. KVR has been a big part of this new learning.

What ideas or tips do you have for campers who may be missing camp this summer?

Ximena: Get outside every day! Go to wild places without an agenda. Leave your phones behind. Parents, bring something quiet to do, sit and practice being present to the beauty around you, or jump right into the play, but let your children poke around and even tell you they are bored, and then watch as they find something fantastic to do.

Susana:  Try and think of special things you can do to make your day fun. A sense of adventure can fill us with new energy and moves us to discover new things. Simple things like cooking a meal over a fire, creating a spot to observe wild life, learning basic carving techniques (try carving a stick, it can be quite a project!), learning basic fishing techniques or learning a few new wild edibles to make a yummy salad, can brighten your day. Making a simple weekly calendar were you can mark some special days for adventures is so much fun. Then the kids and adults can work together to decide where to go and what is needed for the day. This area has so much to offer: canoeing, fishing, hiking, swimming, this is a great time of the year to explore and visit new places.

Julie:  Head to the woods with your child anyway! Remember to leave your phone in the car and focus on following your child’s lead.

Do you have a favorite spot or activity on the KVR that you'd love to remind campers and their families to visit when they can? 

The rock outcroppings on Old Harris Trail are a wonderful, magical place for small children and we certainly would have visited them in camp. 

Some of my favorite spots are the deep tight valleys where we find water and coolness. I went to one today with my kids and we saw a small pond full of hundreds of tadpoles. We played by the small creek, floated boats, and then hiked up the rocks filled with tiny waterfalls. There my kids built a super cool ramp out of sand and some clay and tested how rocks could move in it. When you get home be sure to check for ticks!

Here are some favorite books for gathering inspiration to head outside with your children: 

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer (for adults)

Can you Hear the Trees Talking? by Peter Wohlleben (children)

Earthways by Carol Petrash (for adults- full of fun nature activities to do with kids)

Keepers of the Earth by Joseph Bruchac 
Keepers of the Animals by Joseph Bruchac

Sing a Song of Seasons (song book with CD of seasonal children's songs)

The Complete Book of Flower Fairies by Cicely Mary Barker (children and adults!)

Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots by Sharon Lovejoy (for gardening ideas) 

Playing the Forest School Way by Jane Worroll and Peter Houghton (for ideas on what to do in the woods)

The Organic Artist by Nick Neddo (for ideas on using nature to make art) 

KinderCamp

The Power of Just Being in Nature

By Julia Buckingham

We know that nature is a powerful teacher: a teacher for all of the good, beautiful, bad and hard to swallow lessons. Even as adults, we continue to learn these lessons. The act of just being in nature, for the young child, can be a very powerful experience.  It is our responsibility, as adults, to nurture and create opportunities for young children to just be in nature. 

Taking the time to be in nature means exactly that. Experience nature without a specific goal in mind; such as to collect mushrooms or go on a particular hike. If you make it to the top of the lookout or find a few mushrooms along the way, great, but it should not be your goal. The adult does not even have to take the time to identify the plants, rocks, animals and things encountered along the way. We want to offer the opportunity to spend time observing and just being in nature. 

We want these experiences to ignite the senses in a multi-sensory explosion. Take a moment to think of the possibilities for all of the smells, sights, sounds, and textures to be taken in all at the same time, every minute while in nature. 

Follow the child’s lead.  If they want to hike fast on the muddy trail, stop to watch a caterpillar or splash in a small creek, let them, and for as long as they want. There is a lot to take in, and concentrating on something, or focusing their attention, is important for young children to practice.  Take time to walk at a leisurely pace and stop to investigate curiosities along the way. The adult can even instigate some of these investigations. Maybe, with the use of a stick, dig below the surface to look for invertebrates; or take the time to look under a log (making sure to gently put it back when you are done observing). 

Ask questions instead of directly naming or identifying an object or living thing. Notice all of the small details, use statements like, “I notice”, “Why do you think”, “How do they...”, “Where are they...” The object of this way of observation is to spark inquiry and intrigue. 

There are numerous reasons why we offer children time in nature. One of these reasons is to help foster a love for the natural world. This love nurtures the child’s respect and awe for nature. Children who form this relationship with nature will grow up wanting to learn more about the natural world and better yet, want to help protect it. 

For now, the young child does not need to be bothered by the ills of destruction of natural resources. For now, the young child needs to be given the opportunity to just be in nature.

Through observation children can make their own connections. Asking inquiry based questions can help the child engage in a higher level of thinking. 

Next time you are planning to just be in nature try a favorite activity of mine: find a comfy spot to sit quietly. Close your eyes and count on your fingers how many different sounds you hear.

Check out Julia's Nature Report channel for a fabulous example of inquiry based questions you could ask a young child while observing nature: https://youtu.be/0ldA0PmGohI