I hope you’ve had a chance to get out and connect with nature over the weekend. here are some more ideas to explore today.
Out and About – Find this walk
This is a great observation game to play while you are out on a walk. Before you go out, write a list of 10 things to find along the way. They need to be as open ended as possible as you never know what will be there. The things should focus on texture and shape and will all be from the natural world and not human made. Example ideas are: something slippery, something pointy, something sharp, something smooth, something round etc. The idea is not to collect/ pick them but to identify. You could take a photo of each object found.
In the Garden – Copy a Famous Painting
This is a brilliant idea I found on Instagram. Why not recreate your favourite famous painting with natural resources. It can be as large or small scale as you like. Gather a bunch of found natural resources – sticks, leaves of different sizes, shapes and colours, stones and blossom petals. You could use sticks to create a picture frame to finish it off.
Staying at home – Build a nest
Did you know? Not all birds build a nest from scratch – some take advantage of existing holes in trees, some create simple scrapes in the ground and some birds, like the Cuckoo, lay their eggs in other birds nests to save them the job of looking after their young. However, most birds work very hard each spring to build a nest using only their beaks.
Equipment – A range of natural materials for example sticks, moss, feathers, mud, leaves, wool and grass. You can gather these on your exercise walk.
Birds come in all shapes and sizes and so do their nests! The materials the nest is made of depends on the bird and the environment it lives in. Whether built in a tree or on the ground, all nests must have the same basic components –
• Well camouflaged in case of predators.
• Strong and sturdy to withstand the weather.
• Soft inside to protect eggs and young.
Use the materials you have gathered to create the nest structure. Weave and fold the materials together. Once your nest is ready, can you make the inside of the nest a soft and safe place to support eggs and raise young birds?
Extension
• Try building a nest with one handed – birds only have their beaks and feet!
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