Summer vacation is here at last! As your kids embark on their three months of freedom, you can keep their minds, bodies and souls engaged by taking them to visit a wildlife refuge. Across the country, tucked away in Bayous and canyons, estuaries and marshes, hundreds of wildlife refuges are open to the public. These pristine sanctuaries are living and breathing classrooms of ecology and are a rare opportunity to see ecosystems in there unadulterated state.
I recently ventured to the southern Maine coast and visited the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is scattered along 50 miles of coastline, but accessible in the town of Wells. A well maintained trail guides visitors through woods and along the periphery of estuaries and salt marshes. Young visitors can observe migratory birds species nesting and listen to the reeds rustle along the banks of the salt marshes. This is a great opportunity to write and draw in a nature journal, play “I Spy” with native flora and fauna or learn about the local ecosystem.
To find a wildlife refuge in your area, visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services website, and be sure to check out their ideas for visiting with kids.
Butterflies can be deceiving. Their beautiful patterns and delicate wings make them seem like they are all for show, but they are actually very important to the health of gardens. When they visit a flower to drink its nectar, they help to pollinate it by spreading pollen from one part of the flower to another. Insects who do this are known as pollinators, and ensure that our plants continue to grow month after month and year after year.
Did you know that you can observe beautiful butterflies right from your own backyard? Here’s what you do…
– Butterflies love nectar! Talk to your local nursery to find out which nectar flowers are native to your community. Plant a variety in your yard or in in pots on your window sill.
– Slurp, slurp. If you look very carefully, you’ll see that butterflies drink nectar through their proboscis, a long straw-like snout.
– There are over 700 species of butterflies in North America, how many can you find in your neighborhood?
You can also observe butterflies at public museums and gardens all over the country. To find an exhibit in your area, click here.
Today we have great suggestion from “Sam’s Mom” about raising chickens with kids. Thanks for sharing!
When my child’s Montessori school teacher brought an incubator and chicken eggs to the classroom, we were not aware of the profound impact it would have on our daughter and the important life lessons we want for our children. She patiently watched the eggs in anticipation of the day the shell would give forth to the little fuzzy bits of life. She picked out her favorites, and helped with feeding and caring for the chicks in the classroom. We were asked to adopt some of the chickens, and couldn’t resist. Sam cared for her chicks under a heat lamp in the utility room, and once they were old enough to leave the heat of them lamp, we moved them outside to the chicken coop. Sam soon found the chickens to be less friendly with their newfound independence, and her relationship with the chickens evolved. She helped with watering and feeding the chickens and watched them mature into egg laying hens. She was proud to have a rewarding relationship with the hens she raised from chicks, and told everyone she knew about the hens she fed, who fed her in return. Wow! At three years old, our daughter learned the importance of caring for animals, and learned acceptance of how relationships with animals and nature evolve with new meaning. But, one of my personal favorite lessons, was that of sustainable living. Our chickens eat feed, and a lot of very delicious leftover bits of organic and whole foods, they live on our land, and the eggs they lay for us, are healthy, local, and appreciated. The hens are part of our daily ritual, an extension of our family, and the springboard for other green topics in our household, including recycling, composting (both table scraps and chicken poop), growing our own fruits and vegetables and water conservation. The rewards, low cost and ease of raising chickens is one every family should consider. Go green with chickens for children!
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.” –John Muir
John Muir (1838-1914), known as “the father of our national parks”, was America’s most famed naturalist and conservationist. As an explorer, he embarked on exciting wilderness adventures from Indiana all the way to Florida, among Alaska’s glaciers and throughout California’s Sierra Nevada. During his journeys he kept nature journals in which he wrote about the beauty he saw in nature. He drew detailed sketches of plants, animals, mountains and landscapes. He used these journals to compose letters, essays, articles and books that taught people, then and now, the importance of experiencing and protecting nature. His writing and activism inspired President Theodore Roosevelt’s bold conservation programs and lead to the creation of Yosemite, Sequoia, Mount Rainier, Petrified Forest and the Grand Canyon National Parks. In 1892, John Muir formed the Sierra Club and was the club’s very first president. The Sierra Club continues John Muir’s work today, teaching people about conserving our natural heritage and establishing new National Parks and a National Wilderness Preservation System.
