Teaching Kids To Love The Earth

by Marina Lachecki, Joseph Passineau (Contribution by), Ann Linnea (Contribution by), Paul Treuer (Contribution by)

Overview

Teaching Kids to Love the Earth is a collection of 186 earth-caring activities designed for use with children of all ages to help them experience and appreciate the earth. This book leads you through the authors’ Sense of Wonder Circle: curiosity, exploration, discovery, sharing, and passion. Each chapter contains a story, instructions for a main activity, suggestions for related activities, and a lsit of additional resources. Teaching Kids to Love the Earth will enable you and the children you work with to experience a “sense of wonder” about the world we share.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781452906393
Publisher:	University of Minnesota Press
Publication date:	07/29/2002
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	6 MB

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

Serentripity

CURIOSITY

Curiosity is the starting point of learning.

Children are remarkably competent human beings. Sure, they spill juice, track mud across the kitchen, fuss over mosquito bites and pick fights with their brothers and sisters — but so do adults.

If given the chance, little people can also paddle canoes, discover intricate spider webs, wash camp dishes and create sensitive poems and pictures. Children can be strong partners — even leaders — in the outdoors.

If you respect the leadership of children you will accomplish amazing feats — feats like boulder jumping and agate finding and ant studying.

The success of this activity depends on your ability to become one in spirit with the children. During a Serentripity outing it is more important to be in tune with the children's feelings than to adhere to a prescribed lesson plan.

Serentripity: The Story

July 14. It was a cold summer day at Lake Superior. Frigid waves, driven by a powerful northeast wind, spilled over the shore.

But to those who were dressed to play along its shore, the lake's energy was contagious.

"I want to be leader first, Dad," said eight-year-old Galen.

"OK, go for it," said Paul.

Galen led Ben, Brian and Ramona out of the "fort" — a huge crevice formed in the granite by an eternity of thawing and freezing along the lakeshore.

Paul helped the three-year-olds up an alternate route. Once on the "roof" of their gigantic fort, Galen lay belly down to peer into a rainwater pool. "Come on, Dad, hurry up," he commanded. Paul hustled the three-year-olds over another crevice.

Sally promptly sat on a rock with a determined look on her face. And young Carolyn just held on tighter than ever to Paul's hand.

Galen and the older kids sped off to search for agates down on the pebble beach. Galen yelled, "Dad, look at this neat agate I found!"

Meanwhile, Eva had joined Sally in permanent residence on the rock. The game's fate was clearly sealed.

"Galen, you go ahead and keep being leader! I've got to stay here with the girls." Paul shouted above the roar of the waves. "They just can't keep up with you."

Paul turned around to find the little girls peering between two boulders.

"Look what Sally found!" yelled Eva. Paul lay down and joined them in admiring a spider's web that imprisoned a dozen bugs. The foursome speculated on where the spider was, how the bugs had gotten stuck, why the web was hidden down in the boulders.

Sally gained courage and scampered off toward the lake, but in the opposite direction from the older kids who were still searching for beautiful agates. She skillfully pulled her slender 37 inches to the top of a boulder twice that high and stood silhouetted against the thundering gray-green waves. "LAKE SUPERIOR!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Carolyn and Eva wandered over and demanded access to Sally's perch. Then all three of them joined in raucous chorus, "LAAAAKKE SUUPPEERIOOORRR!"

A gull flew past and landed nearby. One by one the girls slid down and moved toward the wary bird. It wisely took flight when the trio got within 10 yards. As quickly as the wind carried the gull out over the waves, the girls' attention shifted to the "fort" they had earlier discovered with the older kids.

Paul pretended not to be watching. He climbed atop the "yelling boulder" to check on the safety of the older kids. By the time he was down again, the girls were out of sight.

"I am a hungry whale looking for something to eat!" he roared. Giggles came from the crevice below him. Carefully hopping to a lower rock, he repeated his call. This time the gigglers gave themselves away.

"How did you get in there?" asked the whale. More giggles came from the girls as the whale scrunched himself up to fit into the crevice.

"Dad, we want to play hide-and-seek," came a voice from above.

Ramona, Ben, Brian and Galen clambered down to peek into the hiding place. The little girls proudly showed it off and let each of the older kids take a turn inside.

"Who wants to play hide-and-seek?" asked Paul.

A resounding "Me!" followed.

"The little girls and I will be it. We'll count to 25 — one, two, three, four. ..." Four pairs of legs danced up the rocks and disappeared onto the outcropping above. Eva, Carolyn and Sally lay their heads on Paul's lap and counted with him. Protected from the fury of wind and waves above them, the foursome gathered energy for the new adventure.

Activity

Purpose To playfully foster a child's curiosity.

Age/Number/Setting Some activities are best if spontaneous. Anyone of any age can play Serentripity.

Materials None

How-To Let a special child in your life be your leader. When a child shows curiosity about some natural object, drop everything and join in the investigation.

For example, if the child begins to follow an ant, join the excursion, offering encouraging questions like: "Where do you think he is going?" "Does he live in a house like ours?"

Similarly, follow an adult who shows curiosity. The challenge is greater here. Whereas a child will almost automatically follow his curiosity, an adult will most likely have to be coaxed into following through on an initial expression of curiosity. Suppose a friend expresses awe and wonder at the color and form of a newly emerging mushroom. Rather than being content to mutter the usual, "That is really neat!" affirmation, get down on all fours. Look underneath the cap and talk about it: "Look, it's a different color underneath. I wonder how many there are around here?"

When do you stop encouraging the curiosity of your child, spouse or friend and move on to something new? Only you can decide.

Did You Know? Parents Were Important to Famous Naturalists

Many well-known naturalists attribute the longevity of their curiosity to the presence of a playful, encouraging adult in their childhood. Minnesota naturalist Sigurd Olson recalled his first sense of wonder experience in his book, Singing Wilderness:

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The whirling masses of red and yellow filled me with excitement ... color and beauty became part of my life.

Sigurd Olson

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My first recollection came one sunny afternoon when Mother led me through a grove of maples in the fall. That day the trees must have been in full color, for the ground was deep in drifting leaves. As we walked through them we were surrounded with color, and when the wind blew we were drenched with it. The whirling masses of red and yellow filled me with excitement, and when we ran through the grove we ran and ran until we could run no more and sank laughing to the ground — color and beauty became part of my life.

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Curiosity is an emotion, a mood. Spontaneity is the key to your outing.

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Olson's life was an immersion in the sense of wonder about the wilds of northern Wisconsin, Minnesota and Canada. But his experiences, his introduction to the beauty and marvels of the world around him, began on an autumn hike with his mother.

In her adult life, Rachel Carson wrote Under the Sea-Wind, The Edge of the Sea and The Sea Around Us. But her interest in the natural world began in the lower Allegheny Valley on a 65-acre farm. The woods and fields surrounding the farm were an unending source of mystery. In The House of Life, Paul Brooks quoted Rachel Carson:

I can remember no time when I wasn't interested in the outdoors and the whole world of nature. Those interests, I know, I inherited from my mother and have always shared with her. I was rather a solitary child and spent a great deal of time in woods and beside streams, learning the birds and the insects and flowers.

Across the Atlantic Ocean lie the boyhood haunts of another famous naturalist, John Muir. He grew up in Dunbar, Scotland, a seaport facing the rugged North Sea. Grandfather Gilrye walked through town with two-year-old John to Lord Lauderdale's formal gardens. Then they rested in neighboring haycocks. As John grew older, Grandfather followed him as he raced up the brae to his favorite playground — the moss-covered ruins of old Dunbar castle. In The Story of My Boyhood and Youth, John Muir recalled:

I loved to wander in the fields to hear the birds sing and along the seashore to gaze and wonder at the shells and seaweeds, eels and crabs in the pools along the rocks when the tide was low, and best of all to watch the waves in awful storms thundering on the black headlands and craggy ruins of old Dunbar castle where the sea and sky, the waves and the clouds were mingled together as one.

As an adult, indulge yourself in the curiosity of children. Take a free-flight romp with them through a city park. Wade in a small stream. Play in a mud puddle.

Remember, curiosity is an emotion, a mood. Spontaneity is the key to your outing.

Other Ideas For Following Your Curiosity

1. A neighborhood creek provides the perfect opportunity for letting curiosity flow. Launch a toy sailboat and allow a couple of hours to follow it downstream.

2. Follow a leader on bikes. Is there a bike trail nearby, a long hill, a particularly scenic route?

3. Take a Serentripity car outing with your family or a small group of friends. In the spirit of the trip everyone gets a chance to choose a direction to travel and a stopping place of interest.

4. In the winter or after a spring rain, follow deer or other animal tracks. Where do they stop? What changes in length of stride do you find? Do they lead to a home? Were they pursued?

5. In your small group give each person 10 pieces of surveyor's tape. Let each person lay out a similar length trail through the woods. Pair up and follow another person's trail while she follows yours. Variation: Time the trail runs.

6. Follow a night sound until you locate the source (an owl, frogs, crickets).

7. Create a hiking club. Each person takes a turn selecting an area where everyone will hike. Go as a group of adults or families.

8. Blindfold someone and take him to a place he is familiar with. Guide him around until he correctly identifies the place.

9. Make soap bubbles (1/8 cup of dish soap plus 1 cup of water). Using a blow ring, become a bubble machine. Have fun following the bubbles wherever they drift.

10. Play follow the leader on a canoe trip. The leader should be in the back of the canoe. Make sure each person takes a turn in the stern.

CHAPTER 2

Abberwocky

CURIOSITY

Curiosity is the starting point of learning.

Did you ever take the time to watch children play in their world of make-believe? The play often begins with "Let's pretend that. ..." Energy builds as dress-up clothes are donned, toys are arranged, and roles are assigned. Real-world concerns like hunger, music lessons and chores vanish.

You, too, can open the door into the world of make-believe. Take off your watch. Find some favorite children and go outdoors. Follow your curiosity, your imagination.

In the following story, Ann kindles children's curiosity and imagination about the outdoors by conjuring up an imaginary creature. She invites four children to help her track the creature along a neighborhood creek.

Abberwocky: The Story

"Today I'd like to tell you a story about a very special creature who has been seen recently along Chester Creek," Ann said. "And then we're going looking for him!"

Her four students ranged in age from three-and-a-half to eight. With a brief reminder to pay attention to the story so they would know what clues to look for, she began.

"A long time ago, before your moms and dads were born, a most unusual baby creature was born in Lake Superior. His name was Abberwocky. He grew very fast. When he was as old as Brian ('How old is that?' ... 'Three!'), he was already the size of your house. His eyes were as big as 10 beachballs all glued together. His skin was green and slimy. Abberwocky looked like a dinosaur, but there was something about him that made him different from every other creature in Lake Superior. Do you know what it was? (Brief discussion, with theories ranging from 'he couldn't swim' to 'he had no teeth.')

"The thing that made him different is that he liked people. All of his aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents hated people. They would try to scare people by making loud noises. (How would a sea monster sound?) Sometimes they would make big waves and try to sink boats.

"But not Abberwocky. He just loved children. Instead of spending his time chasing human beings as his cousins did, Abberwocky spent his time exploring the streams and rivers that flow into Lake Superior. In fact, just yesterday someone reported a huge creature walking along Chester Creek right over here.

"So, I thought that today we could go exploring up the creek looking for signs of Abberwocky," Ann concluded.

The kids were on their feet and ready to race to the stream.

Once there, Ann laid down some very strict rules: "Everyone must get their feet wet. Please share with the rest of us any monster signs you see. Be careful on slippery rocks."

The first one to wade into the stream was four-year-old Keegan. The others, seeing that the water was no deeper than Keegan's knees, immediately followed. The excitement of being in the water led them upstream.

"Hey, what is this green stuff?" Ann asked.

"Monster hair," replied eight-year-old Ramona. There was lots of it growing on the rocks, plenty for each kid to hold.

"Why is it growing all over the rocks?" Ann asked.

"The rocks scraped it off Abberwocky," answered Keegan.

Under some of the rocks they found sacks of eggs covered with a jelly-like stuff. The kids decided Abberwocky had laid eggs in the stream.

In another place on the edge of the stream they found a bunch of foot-long, brown, rotten objects piled up.

"Mommy, what is this?" asked Brian, the youngest detective.

"What do you guys think?"

The kids waded out of the water and crowded around.

"Poop," said Galen matter-of-factly. "It's Abberwocky's poop."

The kids roared. Ann could see that Galen felt bad.

"I think Galen is right," she said. "Monsters have to poop just like any animal. Now that we're out of the water, what other signs can we see that show us a monster the size of a house was walking along this stream?"

The kids looked around at the birch and maple forest and were obviously puzzled. Ann asked them if Abberwocky had a tail. The conclusion was resounding: "Yes!" When Ann pointed out all of the trees that were shedding bark, they quickly decided that the monster's tail had been bumping it off the trees.

"Wow! Abberwocky knocked down this tree!" said Ramona.

"Could he do that?" Ann asked. "Let's go and see if we could knock it the rest of the way over." They couldn't, of course, but they were sure that Abberwocky could.

For 90 minutes they scoured Chester Creek, examining everything for a sign of Abberwocky. For example, a place next to the stream where all the grass had been matted down was his footprint. But then they came to the Kenwood Avenue bridge.

"Where do you suppose Abberwocky went from here?" Ann asked.

It was obvious to the kids that he was too big to go through the culvert. On the other hand, they were sure he was too scared of people to climb up the bank and walk across the road. Ann suggested they hike out to the trail and climb the hill to see if a better view would give them some ideas.

Sitting atop the hill that overlooks the stream, Ann asked, "Do you think Abberwocky can fly?" No doubt in their minds. "Where could he fly to?"

"Up in the clouds," said Keegan.

"Yeah, right up there is a cloud big enough to hold him," said Ramona.

Ramona, Keegan, Galen, Brian and Ann sat and watched clouds for some time, finding a great assortment of monsters hiding in the fast-moving summer clouds.

"Can we come back tomorrow and look for Abberwocky?" asked Brian.

"Yeah, I'm gonna bring my mom!" said Keegan.

(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "Teaching Kids to Love the Earth"
by .
Copyright © 1991 Marina Lachecki, Joseph F. Passineau, Ann Linnea, and Paul Treuer.
Excerpted by permission of University of Minnesota Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

CURIOSITY,
1. Serentripity,
2. Abberwocky,
3. By the Light of the Moon,
EXPLORATION,
4. Predator/Prey,
5. It's a Keeper,
6. In the Arms of the Cottonwood,
7. Journey Into the Past,
DISCOVERY,
8. Spring's Sweet Flow,
9. The Gift of Fire,
10. Solo,
11. Reflections in the Snow,
SHARING,
12. Chuck the Penguin,
13. On the Ropes,
14. The Bunkhouse,
PASSION,
15. On the Trail of John Muir,
16. Bulldozers and Boardrooms,
17. Wisdom's Ways,
A FINAL INVITATION,