It has been a great week of nature kindergarten so far and we have had two main themes: service and visitors.
Our week kickstarted with the removal of some old and tattered restoration tarps and the planting of over one hundred various native prairie plants.
We also had some wonderful guest. First, we met with Dan and Nicole. They are great supporters of our nature kindergarten program through their tree service business. They have provided logs and stumps to adorn our learning areas. They have donated tree cookies, logs, and various wood pieces for our natural play area. They also are generous enough to collect and cut over one hundred birch bark tree cookies that our kindergarten classes turn into amazing nature art as part of our end of the year celebration.
Another set of guests weren't as local. Over the computer we connected with our forest friends form Moretown Elementary in Vermont. All year, we have exchanged letter, gifts, art projects, and stories. It was great to see them face to face and celebrate a great partnership, even if both sets of kids were a bit shy.
We've done this restoration work the last three years, giving each student an opportunity to be a part of something exciting and unique. Below is a picture of the last few years worth of child-led restoration work.
After competing another birding session, we enjoyed an experience never done before in nature kindergarten. While we were working with he tarps and the kids mentioned how much work it was, they asked who takes care of the land when school is out, After finding out it was me, they were oddly enthralled with the fact that I mow the trail and wanted to see the mower. In the afternoon, not only did I show them, I mowed a bit so they could see how it is done. They helped out by moving some branches, rocks, and stumps so that I could create a bit of a cleaner natural lay area for them. Who knew mowing the lawn could be such an exciting and collaborative experience?
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