Building Chasracter from the Start: 201 Activities to foster creativity, literacy, and play in K-3

Teaching is an all consuming profession. When not in a classroom teachers continue to constantly be contemplating new and innovative activities, topics, and instructional techniques. Teachers never stop planning and spending money on resources is just another aspect of the job. I know as an educator that one of the crazy thrills of teaching is finding exciting new resources, books and activities that make the job easier and fit into your curriculum.

School is not only a place for academic learning but more and more educators are discovering or perhaps re-discovering the importance of holistic learning. Considering the whole child and considering the significance of values and character building is becoming a regular part of the curriculum.

Susan Ragsdale and Ann Saylor have created Building Character from the Start: 201 Activities to foster creativity, literacy, and play in K-3, a perfect foundation for Character education or as an addition to a pre-existing Character building Curriculum. Building Character from the Start offers some fabulous worksheets but what impressed me most about this teacher resource is the section dedicated to literacy related activities. A great deal of time has been spent finding children’s literature with character building themes and creating discussion questions to stimulate conversation and then further exploration activities based on the stories. I always love literacy tie-ins to every theme!

Community building games and hands on activities are another fabulous feature of this resource and can easily be applied to other units and can be used as valuable time fillers for substitute teachers like myself currently. To be honest I actually have included this book in my subbing kit and used it just last week as an add on to a teaching plan about decision making and choices. Well organized in a way which allows you to easily see the connections between assets and themes for fast and effective planning I would certainly recommend this to elementary school teachers and homeschoolers. Building Character from the Start also includes a CD Rom.

Win a copy of Building Character from the Start here at Northern Mama!

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Open to US and Canadian residents. Giveaway closes March 23rd, 2010. Read Giveaway Rules for further details.

Making A Family Home

I peek over the table edge with the shining eyes full of youthful curiosity and amazement. Glimpses of pale patterned skirts and umbrellas against a heavily stitched backdrop of pink alternately catch my flickering vision as I rise and fall upon tippy toed feet. My eyes focus on the studied movement of my grandmother’s loose skinned, soft deft hands as they pushed a needle down through soft cotton then forced back upward creating discreet patterns of tiny white stitches. I still cherish the small quilt my grandmother so lovingly conceptualized and pieced together for me. It now adorns my eldest daughter’s bed and she is wrapped in my grandmother’s love when she warms herself within its folds.

Shannon Honeybloom believes we must channel our grandmothers, and the happiness which can be gained from the simple pleasures of living a life unencumbered by commercialism and technology, when making a house a home. This urge to cultivate, nurture and enrich her children’s home life and development culminated into a beautiful book, Making a Family Home. Honeybloom’s mindset:

“My grandmother imbued her household with love, simplicity, and joy. In putting together my own home, I asked myself: What makes a space sheltering, harmonious, and healthy? What kinds of materials can be used to help the development of my children? So I wrote this book to share my discoveries.”

I remember my grandmother’s love through memories of baking cookies, doing dishes in a cotton print apron modeled after her own. I remember my grandfather’s love through the memory of a wooden puzzle cube I used to take apart and desperately attempt to piece together but inevitably took to grandpa for the thousandth time to observe with amazement its solution. My mother taught me to embroider, my aunt taught me to knit and all this holds a special place in my heart as well as in my development. It is this happiness from simplicity which I yearn to pass on to my children but it has become harder in recent years. With the onslaught of technology it is difficult to tear children away from television, computers and handheld games. I refuse to let these electronics rule my home, preventing my children from developing skills and finding happiness in imagination, physical activity, the simple tasks of homemaking, and old-school practices.

Honeybloom a former educator and a mother of three like myself has captured the essence of creating and providing a cozy and enriching family home room-by-room, element-by-element. Admittedly, I lingered page by page over the captivating photographs of her charm filled house, envious of her endearing home. I realized as I read however that I had similarly set up my family’s home but could add further to my commitment to placing greater emphasis on the elements I truly value and wish to honour.

I believe we have forgotten the value of traditional living and old-school homemaking and Honeybloom brought this back with stunning observance to details easily dismissed in this fast-paced world of information overload and commercialism. It becomes as simple as relegating technology to the back burner, including natural materials and simple toys to your household, adding wooden steps to a tree, baking or knitting with your child. Including your children in the daily household tasks do not have to become chores but rather enjoyable family experiences which may form special and lasting memories. Perhaps a world of plastic toys and computer chips is not the way of the future…at least perhaps it shouldn’t be!

Follow Shannon Honeybloom's journey to Making a Family Home and perhaps find yourself nesting, re-learning, and teaching the simple pleasures of life. Phenix & Phenix and Northern Mama is giving away a copy of Making A Family Home to one Northern Mama reader.
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  Giveaway open to US and Canadian residents. Giveaway closes March 17th, 2010 10:00pm CT. Read Giveaway Rules for details.

Be Creative with Fashion Angels Fashion Design Studio from Growing Tree Toys!

Fashion is a creative endeavour! Art with function, a means of expression which is wearable. The true appeal of design and fashion has become a trend with younger and younger girls. My girls, ages 5 and 7, are fashion ingénues. Pairing pink fun fur vests with velvety skirts or flower patched jeans, accessorizing with satin flats and woven handbags of recycled candy wrappers, it is the creativity, the artistry which makes fashion fun and expressive.

Growing Tree Toys knows children grow with their toys, that they require toys that inspire creativity, learning, and development which are age appropriate and have modern appeal. I chose the Fashion Angels Fashion Design Studio Set for review believing it would be perfect for my eldest daughter Emma. Emma is a crafty kid! She loves creating and I am always looking for new materials and ideas to inspire her and keep her creations fresh and exciting. Fashion Angels Fashion Design Studio is a kit with a variety of tools for design adventure: textured plates for rubbings, 24 colored pencils and 24 markers, a pad of model silouhette templates, pads of shoe and purse templates, tracing paper, newsprint, a swatch book for fabrics, colour theory guide and style guide all in a fabulous solid magnetic closure folder.
Fashion Angels allows you to design like a pro!

This designing toy is suggested for children 8 and up. My daughter is 7 and enjoyed using everything in this crafty kit but I think a little more maturity would have resulted in even more creative uses of the templates and design tools. As it is this kit provides fun for any child who has an artsy side though I think it is best reserved for children old enough to draw more independently. The rubbings and some tracing can be simple to use but utilizing the style guide may require more developed skill. Fashion Angels admittedly has been a fun activity for my daughters and I to work on together. Being artsy and creative myself it has been a pleasure helping them select style elements, sketching out dresses, and pant suits, and piecing together the accessories to design the perfect ensembles!

Looking for the perfect gift for a creative young girl you treasure? Fashion Angels Fashion Design Studio Set is a fabulous choice and can be found along with other great educational toys for all ages online at Growing Tree Toys.

Reporting For Duty: A Day at the White House ~ A Children's Activity Book Package Review and Giveaway!

Last week as I watched Oprah's White House Christmas special I was struck by the utter magic and fascinating history embedded in the walls and foundation of the U.S. presidential residence. Though I am Canadian I believe it is a significant benefit that children be given the opportunity to learn what they can about other countries, their histories, and their political and government systems. Washington DC is rich in history! I remember visiting the White House during a high school trip to Washington and I can still recall the awe it inspired.

Bo is not the only dog in the White House...oh no, there is also Barkley Reporting for Duty! H.K. Gilbert has dreamed of writing children's books and she has now written the wonderfully interactive activity book "Reporting For Duty: A Day in the White House" about a secret service dog named Barkley. Barkley has been assigned the daunting task of guarding the White House and protecting the American first family!

Barkley leads children through the busy life of the White House, and provides children with a tour of the inside workings of the White House! Filled with fun facts and history, Reporting for Duty miraculously makes learning important historical information entertaining, exciting and enjoyable. It is often rare to find a book which can hold the interest of all my children with their ages ranging from 5-9 but Gilbert has a gift. Gilbert has the gift of creating a story which weaves factual information with a lovable and exciting character attractive to children and provides children with colouring and drawing activity breaks avoiding long narratives!

H.K. Gilbert is an advocate for literacy and a strong believer, as I am in the power of reading with your children everyday whether it be 5 minutes or an hour the combination of bonding and exposure to print is irreplaceable! "Reporting for Duty" is the perfect sit-down-together activity book for parents and children or could be utilized as a fabulous classroom resource. I truly enjoyed sitting down with my children to read Barkley's story and work through the activities. I learned along side my children and we chuckled together at Barkley's canine references and antics.

"Next we have the Oval Office. This room is not only my favourite shape, but is also a very important room."

"I enjoy reporting for duty in this room because it's the coziest room in the White House. When I've had a "ruff" day, I like to end my secret service duties by shedding my coat and curling up by the fire." (Gilbert 2009: 16)

"The next room, which cats love, is the Fish Room. This room has also been called the Roosevelt Room because President Franklin Roosevelt displayed fishing mementos and an aquarium in here... I carefully count each and every fish to make sure they're still in the aquarium, but I must say, counting the fish sure does make a secret service dog thirsty! I also make sure the most important rule of all is followed: NO CATS ALLOWED." (Gilbert 2009:17)

Care to visit the White House with your children? H.K. Gilbert is offering one Northern Mama reader a book basket filled with a copy of Reporting for Duty, Free box of crayons, and other fun filled surprises that all have to do with the White House! But what you will really be winning is an activity that will create a special moment in time and learning between yourself and your child!
To Enter:

• Tell me your favourite book to read with your child/a child special to you {Required}
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Giveaway open to all! Giveaway closes January 5th 2010, 10:00pm CT. Read Giveaway Rules for further details.

human body detectives

You want to Battle the Bugs this flu season? The best way to fight the bugs is to become educated against them! Dr. Heather Manley, N.D. knows that education is the greatest weapon and she is doing something exciting and imaginative to help children arm themselves in the "Battle With The Bugs"!
Human body detectives is an adventure series of educational activity books and Audio CDs. Starring Dr. Heather's own children Merrin and Pearl, "Battle With The Bugs" is the human body detectives second motivational, high energy, thrilling adventure full of action packed discovery of the systems of the human body.

Human body systems made exciting? You may think this is less than motivating for children but you would be wrong! Dr. Heather Manley, ND 's creative and imaginative audio adventures are amazingly interest grabbing with cool music, attention grabbing high impact action adventure, cute children's voices, and language and phrases kids relate to! There is just enough adventure, "gross" internal discoveries, and humorous situations to make this a favourite for home schooled children, classroom instruction, or just plain learning activity fun!

Naturopathic doctor and mother, Dr. Heather's philosophy is a simple one, if children understand how their bodies work, they are more apt to make healthy food and lifestyle choices! As an educator I agree but often finding motivating, inspirational, and unique educational materials which support this learning are hard to find. The human body detectives series uses the mesmerizing techniques of old radio shows to produce a creative learning experience and the accompanying workbook provides interesting seat work activities utilizing codes, puzzles, riddles, stickers, and detective stories to extend the learning, test student's knowledge, and allow them to practice what they have learned. The two detective characters, young girls Merrin and Pearl, are endearing and modelled after Dr. Heather's own children--real, relatable, and cool!

In this the human body detectives' second adventure, "Battle with The Bugs", Merrin and Pearl-- sisters who have discovered how to magically enter the systems of the body--fly to Mexico for vacation. But when their little cousin Max falls sick it is up to them to solve the health mystery by going to the source, yes by entering Max's body! Can Merrin and Pearl befriend the white blood cell warriors and battle the bacteria which is causing Max's illness? Find out by listening to "Battle With The Bugs"!

My son Gabriel and daughter Emma, ages 7 and 9, found themselves listening intently to Merrin and Pearl's adventure and laughing at the humorous references to snotty green goo and the worry of being sneezed out! This rousing audio CD also includes the catchy human body detectives theme song. What I love about this resource is the way it appeals to kids and beyond the CD and fabulously comprehensive workbook, the human body detectives website also offers accompanying downloads including colouring pages, a calendar, and an evidence box! I believe the colouring sheets illustrating Merrin and Pearl's adventures would be great for students to use while listening to the CD {excellent for children who are kinesthetic learners}.

If you are an elementary school educator, a homeschooling parent, or just a parent looking for fun learning activities to fill a day indoors you will love following the adventures of the human body detectives and just in time for the holiday season the human body detectives is having a Holiday Sale! Buy a human body detectives package as a teacher gift this holiday season! Teachers always love new resources they didn't have to purchase themselves! Be sure to check out Merrin and Pearl's past adventure of the digestive system in "The Lucky Escape" and look for the human body detectives in their upcoming 2010 adventure "The Heart Pumping Adventure"!

Eager to start following the human body detectives on their fun filled learning adventures? Start your collection with "Battle with The Bugs" by winning a copy here on Northern Mama!

To Enter:

• Visit human body detectives and tell me what you like best about the concept, something you learned from the site, or something you like about the series and/or the website {Required}
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Giveaway open to US and Canadian residents. Giveaway ends December 26, 2009 10:00 pm CT. Please read Giveaway Rules for further details.

World Wildlife Fund Canada~ Adopt an Animal this Holiday Season!

What do you buy for the person who has everything? How about a gift that gives back to the planet as well as the recipient? World Wildlife Fund has the answer to your holiday shopping woes--Symbolic Adoptions! Add to the family by adopting an animal at risk and give a little piece of environmental security.
We often seek meaning through the act of holiday gift giving! We want to give a piece of ourselves, perhaps we wish to share our good fortune, or perhaps we are just looking for a gift that transcends tangible "spoiling", looking for the intangible, a gift that truly reflects pure altruism. We all wish to be charitable to give-back to the earth but who doesn't love being presented with a beautifully wrapped parcel to unravel? World Wildlife Fund understands the significance of gift giving and has created the perfect holiday solution--a gift that will change the world for the better combined with a cuddly representation of that change! World Wildlife Fund Wildlife Adoptions, only $40 {$30 of which is considered a tax eligible donation amount}, include: an adorable stuffed toy, a reusable gift bag created from recycled plastics, a certificate of adoption, a letter identifying you as the gift-giver, and a report detailing the work your donation is helping to support! What a wonderful gift for children and adults alike.

By giving an environmentally conscious gift like a Wildlife Adoption you are giving not just to one person but rather your gift extends to everyone inhabiting this earth! And remember one small action combine with the acts of many creates change!
Two of the many precious species of wildlife you can have a hand in saving are attached to my very soul through the depths of experiences I will not soon forget! Because I hold such an affinity to these animals after living in the arctic, I received the Adoption package for the polar bear and the caribou. These species are linked to humanity through a timeless environmental dance of tradition, and mutual respect that has sometimes faltered but must never go unrecognized!

The Inuit called the majestic polar bear "Nanuk" ᓇᓄᒃ. More than any other animal, we recognize Nanuk as a symbol of the north, its vast and untamed beauty, rugged and impressive. Like the arctic Nanuk is both beautiful and potentially dangerous. It is these characteristics which command respect and the Inuit have had a unique bond with Nanuk for time in memorial.

To the Inuit the spirits of men and bears are interchangeable perhaps this belief stems from the many similarities between man and polar bear--the musculature of a polar bear is uncannily similar to humans, they eat many of the same foods and they are able to stand and walk on their hind legs, or sit and lean against something as if in relaxed contemplation! Inuit legends reflect the mythical relationship between man and bear, stories of bears living in igloos {snow houses} and secretly shedding their polar bear skins to take human form.

The Inuit also share something else with the polar bear, the destruction of their habitat! Melting sea ice, due to climate change provides a shorter hunting season for both the Inuit and the polar bear, industrialisation is devastating and shrinking their territory, and toxins and pollutants are being absorbed into the food supply, a food supply which sustains both the animal and human inhabitants of the arctic!

The caribou, "tuktu" ᑐᒃᑐ, are perhaps an animal forgotten by southerners. The Tuktu are certainly less romantic and majestic when compared to the polar bear...unless you have actually had the honour of watching a vast herd of caribou thunder across the tundra! The people of the north however, the Inuit and the Dene, consider caribou the manna of life itself.

Many subgroups of both cultures have relied most heavily on caribou for food, and clothing and at one time even shelter.

Once again Climate Change and the thinning ice present the caribou with a more precarious existence. Relying on migration patterns, traditional patterns which have provided them nourishment and safe ground for calving. The caribou are now finding travelling their traditional migration routes more challenging. Some are rerouting their migrations, some are drowning, falling through thinning ice. Warming climate patterns increase precipitation creating deep, wet snow which inhibit movement in winter and help to breed an increased number of parasitic insects in summer.

This disruption to the lives of the caribou also mean disruptions to the lives of the peoples of the arctic who still rely on the caribou for healthy sustenance. As in all ecological systems all things are connected and humanity is not precluded from this web of life!

Purchasing a $40 gift seems a minuscule price to pay to help repair the web, a web that connects all living things including ourselves! Treat a family with the Adopt a Family option or if you want to make an even larger contribution give the WWF Gift of a Living Planet--an environmentally friendly virtual gift. Yes, you can adopt a family of polar bears, panda bears, arctic fox, or even orangutans! A perfect gift for everyone on your list this holiday season--not convinced perhaps some of the other fabulous WWF gifts I will be reviewing may entice you further!

World Wildlife Fund Canada also wants to give a gift! Two Canadian Northern Mama readers will receive World Wildlife Fund Wildlife Adoption Packages!

To Enter:

• Visit the World Wildlife Fund Online Store and tell me which animal you would love to adopt. {Required}

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• Donate $5 or more to World Wildlife Fund
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Giveaway open to Canadian residents only! Giveaway ends December 4th, 2009 10:00pm CT. Please read Giveaway Rules for further details.

The Latest Suzuki Foundation Newsletter Rethinking Garbage

This is the latest article from the David Suzuki Foundation. I don't share them all but there are many that I think pertain to everyone's struggle for a better environment!

It’s Time to Rethink Our Approach to Garbage
By David Suzuki with Faisal Moola

In Mexico City, politicians recently banned the ubiquitous plastic bags that citizens use for everything from groceries to soft drinks. But that will only go part way to reducing the 12,000 tonnes of garbage the city produces every day. Only six per cent of Mexico City’s garbage gets recycled now, but the government has an ambitious plan to recycle, compost, or burn for energy 85 per cent of it by 2013.

Mexico City’s waste-management situation illustrates the importance of the three Rs: reduce, reuse, and recycle. And we should add another R: rethink. People in Canada are getting better at this, but we can do more. We recycle just over 20 per cent of our garbage. And, according to Stats Canada, each of us produced an average of 837 kilograms of non-hazardous solid waste in 2006. That’s a lot of garbage going to the landfill, and it’s a lot of resources and energy being wasted. Some European countries, such as Austria and Switzerland, are now recycling more than half their wastes, so there’s a lot of room for improvement.
After all, whatever we throw away represents a waste of resources and money – not to mention time.

Beyond the waste problem itself, landfills produce about one quarter of Canada’s methane emissions – and methane is a greenhouse gas more powerful than carbon dioxide. Some cities are now capturing that methane to burn for energy rather than allowing it to escape into the atmosphere.

Reducing the amount of trash we create in the first place is the best place to start tackling our waste-management problems. Not only does it mean we send less waste to the landfill, it also means we use fewer resources and less energy – as it takes energy to produce and transport packaging and disposable items.

Every day, more people, stores, and cities are finding ways to cut down on use of disposable plastic bags, but we still create a lot of unnecessary packaging and products. Planned obsolescence – the absurd practice of producing goods that won’t last so that the consumer cycle can continue – is still very much with us. We can all avoid buying products that are over-packaged or that are “disposable” – and encourage producers to be more responsible. When we consumers take the time to let stores, businesses, and governments know that we want less packaging and that we want goods that last, we will make a difference. Our changing attitude about plastic bags is a perfect example.

Reusing offers opportunities to get creative. People have always re-tailored clothes to give them new life. Think of the other ways you can use products that no longer function in their intended role. But reusing is an area where some difficulties arise, especially on a larger scale. Reusing waste by converting it to energy is a growing trend. The most common method is burning the garbage and using the heat to produce energy. Although the technology is improving, it still has its problems; burning waste creates emissions, for one. Other methods are also being explored, including breaking down the waste with microorganisms to produce methane and carbon dioxide for biogas.

Recycling is one of the first things that come to mind when we think of waste reduction. Most of us urban Canadians dutifully take our paper, plastic, and bottles and cans to the blue box recycling bins. Again, if we use fewer products that must be thrown away, we’ll have less stuff to recycle and send to landfills. But we should all be aware that our efforts to recycle are not in vain. If we work to ensure that our communities, schools, and workplaces have good recycling and composting programs and that producers and retailers take responsibility for their products, and if we all improve our own efforts to recycle, we will reduce our need for landfills.
Individual action is important, but legislated solutions are also effective. In Switzerland, people buy stickers that they have to attach to garbage before it is picked up. The more garbage you put out, the more you have to pay. Switzerland now has the highest rate of recycling in the world.

We can all do our part as citizens, but as can be seen in Mexico City and Switzerland, a push by governments can go a long way to creating the kind of large-scale change needed to get our waste-management problem under control.

Artist on the Edge!! Dyan Marie

I have been anticipating diving into this post for some time and I finally decided I just had to introduce my readers to Dyan Marie. My husband's aunt, Dyan Marie, is an incredibly innovative and gifted artist whom I've personally admired for many years. What inspires me most? Her art straddles art and activism while effectively embodying both! She is on the edge!Dyan Marie uses her art as a tool for social change and social awareness in a way that is unique, powerful, and provocative. A resident of Toronto, the epitome of Canadian urban settings, Dyan Marie has applied the grassroots concept of community activism to the sprawling city streets which form for her neighbourhood, and home!

My favourite of Dyan Marie's exhibitions over the last few years is that of the "Vine People". This experiment in transformative public art, fraught with symbolism marked "areas of Concern" in the city's Bloor-Lansdowne-Dupont area. For those of you unfamiliar with Toronto this area is known for its perilous nature. Dyan Marie called her "Vine People" ambassadors. The vine people images are inspired by the local flora of Poison Ivy, and weeds--beautiful in there own right and meant to transform crack houses, contaminated lands, and other signs of despair on her cities streets into areas of hope. They are meant to be ambassadors of what could be, of possibilities. Greening a community takes on a whole new meaning and Dyan Marie does not take this lightly but rather tackles this task head-on with in-your-face images approaching graffiti art! You must view her Vine People You-Tube videoclip {performance art if you will}!

This year's exhibit entitle Transmissions poses the question "Where does my body end?" Though I have not discussed with her these images and the meaning behind them, to me they represent the way we as humans exhibit a need to fill our environment; how our existence fills and inevitably effects the world around us; and perhaps symbolize our connections to a world beyond ourselves. Okay, I am a true novice at art interpretation! All I know is that her images excite emotions in me and a passion to make a difference!

Please Visit: Dyan Marie.

Images are from Dyan Marie's website.

A Fabulous Article Ahead of It's Time ~ Or maybe just back to traditional basics!

As an educator and parent I have long believed that the best learning does not always occur in a classroom! Teaching in the remote arctic communities of Canada I learned a great many things from the people I was there to educate. Though I was always a girl of the outdoors and the natural world it was the Inuit of the Canadian arctic who truly instilled in me the significance and value of outdoor education. Immersed in a culture still so intimately linked to it's environment one senses the innate relevance of nature that we all should share and embrace! Is this a new teaching concept? No in reality this dome of sky, forest, land, and sea is the most ancient of classrooms one that for a time has been given less attention.

Parenting in a rural community housing a very small school without a gym within its four walls, we are lucky that the teachers are perhaps forced into the great outdoors for physical education and have started to see the wealth of knowledge to be gained outside the school building yet experiencing nature and all it has to offer is a remarkable gift and educational opportunity which parents and family can bestow! This is why our family spends countless hours walking, biking and camping. Camping trips for us are filled with wonders! From catching tiny lake creatures to talking about the plants we see hiking woodland trails, exploring together and discovering together the secrets mother nature inevitably reveals is a cathartic and most memorable shared experience!

It was a recent David Suzuki Foundation Email featuring a 1956 magazine article, “Help Your Child to Wonder” by the now renowned Rachel Carson which inspired me to write this post expounding the value of outdoors education!

I believe, as did Rachel Carson, introducing your child the these wonders at a young age is an invaluable parenting tool instilling the values of stewardship and environmentalism, but also self-reliance, safety and survival skills, innovations, curiosity, and invention! It is also a great motivational tool for further research, study , and interest development. I am lucky to have a husband well versed in plant, bird, and animal knowledge {he was a biology major in university} and I must admit that I am not completely without similar knowledge. As we hike the trails of our National and Provincial parks we often stop to examine plants, many my children have pointed out, curious, and eager for information. I find children are like sponges when they are in an environment which offers so much fodder for the imagination! We have answers to some of their inquiries but often we have to pull out the plant book or ask others. This makes it a true learning activity for the entire family and one which enriches us all!

Here are a few tips to help enrich your family's relationship with nature and build your child's sense of wonder:

• Take regular walks and hikes {or if you prefer bike rides~but be sure to make stops along your route}. This could be a great evening or weekend activity or even set aside the same time each week for such an excursion.


• Though there are probably many wonders just outside your front door vary the experience by taking day trips, camping excursions, or trips to the shore. Research what trails, beaches, and parklands are near you!


• Invest in field manuals on flora and fauna of the region. Books on plants, birds, animals, and even animal tracks are great resources and are often published in handy compact or pocket sized editions {Peterson's and Smithsonian guides are excellent and comprehensive, though often pricey they are worth their weight in gold}.


• For younger children or those with less walking experience choose shorter hikes with easier terrain but be sure to gradually increase the difficulty of hikes to provide more exciting experiences and challenges. Older children if conditioned to hiking feel a sense of accomplishment by completing more challenging ventures.


• Be aware of possible natural hazards and safety concerns of the area you are exploring i.e. wildlife concerns such as bears, knowing poisonous plants such as poison ivy, and avoiding the consumption of unknown berries etc. These are important to teach your children and you would be amazed at how diligent they will be with the responsibility of using this knowledge effectively.


• Though it is wonderful to collect natural things and create collections of these fascinating treasures be sure to follow the rules and guidelines of the parks you are exploring and always consider stewardship and how your actions effect the environment. Preserving leaves and flowers by pressing them, keeping rocks, shells, and cones/seeds in containers divided into small compartments is great for further inspection and research! Rubbings of bark, leaves, and seeds are also fun.


• Cameras are great for collecting memories of nature. With the invention of digital cameras children can take as many photos as they wish of flora and fauna they encounter without the cost of developing. My children love their personal digital cameras! Digital photos of plants can be a great aid for looking up and comparing information on the Internet.


• If you are limited to your yard bird feeders are wonderful for introducing birds to your yard and allowing children to see them up close. Vary the types pf feeders and seed to attract varies bird species.


• Nature scavenger hunts are a great activity both at home or on outdoor trips. See my crafty ideas post on creating your own laminated travelling scavenger hunt card set!


• Nets and buckets for beach and shoreline excursions, bug collecting cages/jars and butterfly nets are great for temporary collection of living creatures to inspect up close. Small microscopes, magnifying boxes and magnifying glasses help children gain an up-close view of fascinating small water and land creatures!Remember that most children possess an instinctual curiosity and interest in the world which surrounds them. Let your children direct your inquiry of discovery. Do not set out with an agenda but rather with the mind set to explore together as friends. Don't be afraid to admit that you too have things to learn and above all enjoy yourselves!

For Educators ~ ASCD online newsletter and the commitment to a social curriculum!

A former teaching colleague of mine and a wonderful friend sent me this email for educators which I thought was definitely worth sharing!


WHO CARES?
ASCD members and other instructional leaders like you care about inspiring students to become good citizens, teaching students how to interact responsibly, and helping students understand the importance of service to their community. ASCD editors care, too, so they developed new articles for another online-only issue of Educational Leadership magazine on Revisiting Social Responsibility.

Enhance your summer reading with articles by Steven Wolk, Elliott Seif, Sanford N. McDonnell, and others and prepare for a brand new year with knowledge and wisdom from these experts.
Take responsibility for your professional development and join ASCD, your worldwide partner in learning, teaching, and leadership. Tough times like these, call for bold moves. An investment in becoming the best at what you do, will result in long-term and sustainable returns that benefit the children in your classrooms, schools, and community.
Share the articles in this online-only issue with all of your colleagues. This issue is completely open and free to everyone. If your colleagues find the information valuable, please encourage them to join ASCD and help them discover more resources that will inspire them to learn more. ASCD is more than 173,000 caring educators in 120 countries working everyday to ensure students are healthy, safe, supported, engaged, and challenged in good times and bad.
We hope you enjoy reading this bonus issue of Educational Leadership on Revisiting Social Responsibility and will share it with others.
Thank you for caring about education.
Daniel RatnerASCD, Membership Director
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Enjoy Earth Day all Spring and Summer Long!

I am tremendously lucky to have three children who adore the outdoors! With the rise of computers and video games many children have forgotten the treasures nature has to offer and the unparallelled joys of outdoor play. Here's a simple traditional idea which one Etsy artisan has taken to a new level--The Scavenger Hunt! blyken and nod is a small business I came across on Etsy which has only a few items for sale currently but they are unique! I purchased one of her scavenger hunts thinking it would be wonderful to tuck away in the van for trips to the park, road trip stops, beach and camping excursions! Hilary from blynken and nod creates beautiful 32 laminated card scavenger hunt sets featuring original colour pencil sketches, strung together with a lovely hemp string, adorned with a colourful felted bead, and enclosed in a small draw string bag! These are currently selling for $16.00 US. Blynken and Nod also sells original games and felt board play items.

If you are cost conscious you could probably create a scavenger hunt card set for your own children which perhaps isn't so elaborate. If you are artistic you could create drawings of items to find or if you are less than artistic why not cut pictures from books or magazines to create the cards. Inexpensive laminating machines are now available at department stores and are great for preserving children's art and game pieces rather than throwing them away. Laminate the cards, string them together using string or ribbon and even a wooden bead. Voila!