Urban Nature School

Nature and forest schools are all the rage these days especially with COVID 19 being such a big part of our lives. Learning Bug has always focused on nature and outdoor play as part of our homeschool experience. I am often asked how can I replicate a forest or nature school in the middle of a subdivision. Well, I can’t. We do not have access to a private wooded space that can allow for nature exploration. However, what we do have is access to an amazing backyard that allows us to connect to elements that can be found in our students’s backyards. We see all types of wildlife here. Butterflies, hummingbirds, hawks, rabbits, and various insects.

We spend the largest and most important part of our day outdoors in all types of weather. Our space has two huge child height picnic tables so we can share meals or do fun activities at. Our water table and access to running water outdoors allows us to cool off during the heat of the summer. We have a chalk table that the children have various art material at so they can safely explore chalk, paint, dirt, foam soap, etc. Some of our favorite tools includes water and wooden hammers. The children use these materials to bust up the chalk to make chalk paint to paint various items (including themselves).

Chalk Table Art

Having access to art in many forums allows our students to express themselves in a positive way. The chalk table, art easels, fence, side of the school, and driveway are all blank canvases to create on. Parents may not take those art projects home (well maybe they do on their child), we provide many photos of each child to the parents. In our classroom we use photos as part of the documentation process. One of the primary features of documentation as practiced in Reggio Emilia is a focus on how and what children learn. Documentation typically includes samples of the children's work, photographs of the children engaged in the project work, and comments and transcripts of conversations.