Diving Into Nature

We've had a great 3 weeks in our Dive into Nature program. This group of children is keen to learn about nature, spend time getting to know the woods, and build together using natural materials. 

On our first week, we went on a long hike out to Sunfish Pond and around the big pond. Before we went, we talked about "journey sticks" - how they have been used in the past as a sort of mapmaking tool to mark memories of places visited and experiences along the way.

We each chose a stick, wrapped some yarn on one end, and we were on our way!

We found pinecones, fuzzy sumac berries, leaves, pine needles, and turtle egg shells, to name a few things. Some children dipped their journey sticks in Sunfish Pond to remember that place on our journey. In the meadow by Sunfish Pond, we saw an antique vehicle. Some scratched their sticks on the coloured metal to remember that place.

It was our first week at our "base camp", so we spent some time making it our own. Working together, building, creating, a fort took shape. We also found a big horse to ride!

And a small tree to climb!

While we were building, we found different types of fungus on branches and trees nearby. So we started a photo fungus collection!

On our way back to the park entrance, we spied some turtles sunning themselves on a log in the big pond.