Wild and Free Nature: 25 Outdoor Adventures for Kids to Explore, Discover, and Awaken Their Curiosity

by Ainsley Arment

Overview

The companion to The Call of the Wild + Free: styled in the lush aesthetic of the Wild + Free brand, a four-color book offering outdoor activities and essays, that parents, educators, and caregivers can use to inspire their children.

Wild and Free Nature is a beautiful, four-color resource book for parents, educators, and caregivers to enjoy doing hands-on activities outside with kids. One of the core philosophies behind Wild + Free is the belief that nature is the best classroom we could ever hope for. It unlocks the imagination and inspires creativity in ways that a schoolroom never could.

Being out in nature has a number of benefits. Studies show that children are more likely to interact with kids of different ages and learn to problem solve in natural settings. Being in natural settings stimulates the brain and restores cognitive function. Children who spend time in natural settings also interact better with kids of all ages and learn to solve problems more easily. They build muscle and coordination and fend off obesity. It cultivates a sense of responsibility for caring for the earth, not to mention, encourages imaginative play, curiosity, and other qualities necessary to spark a love for investigation and learning.

This resource book will help equip parents and adults who work with children to get them outdoors with activities such as:

• Build a treehouse in the woods.
• Cultivate a garden plot.
• Make land art and nature crafts.
• Create a mud kitchen in the backyard.
• Go for a nature walk each morning.
• Find a secret swimming hole.
• Go to the creek to learn about the water cycle.
• Plant a garden to see what will grow in your backyard.
• Raise monarch caterpillars and feed them milkweed until they transform into butterflies.
• Set up a birdwatching station in your front window equipped with binoculars, notebooks, and bird guides.
• Make a wilderness fort with the fallen branches from trees.

With the same lush photography as The Call of the Wild + Free, this book includes step-by-step pictures that show parents how to do the activity, and essays on the importance of nature in a child's life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062916570
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/30/2021
Series:	Wild and Free Series
Edition description:	Supplement
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	674,475
Product dimensions:	7.30(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Ainsley Arment is the founder and leader of Wild + Free and co-host of the weekly Wild + Free Podcast. As she leads this movement of raising her kids and homeschooling in a new way, she thinks deeply about making the most out of life and ensuring that her children have a fertile seedbed for their own uniqueness and creativity. She and her husband Ben are raising their five kids, Wyatt, Dylan, Cody, Annie, and Millie, in Virginia Beach.

Table of Contents

The Wonder of Nature Ainsley Arment ix

Wander

Wandering Close to Home Hannah Mayo 2

Foraging in Nature Kristin Rogers 6

The Lost Art of the Family Walk Jennifer Dees 10

Savoring Winter Alisha Miller 14

Growing into a Nature Mama Renee Huston 18

Capture

Nature Journaling the Museum Kristin Rogers 24

Painting with Nature Rachael Alsbury 28

Nature Journaling Squirrels Heidi Eitreim 31

Plein Air Painting with Kids Jennifer Dees 35

Wildflower Adventures Kristin Rogers 38

Nurture

Nurturing Outdoor Play (with a Mud Kitchen) Rachael Alsbury 44

Cultivating Patience (and Mushrooms) Suzi Kern Kristin Rogers 48

Keeping Chickens Kristin Rogers 54

Nurturing Slow in the City Jennifer Dees 59

Edible Flower and Herb Cookies Naomi Ovando 62

Gather

The Naturalist at Home Kristin Rogers 70

A Kitchen Scrap Garden Mogli Loftus 74

Creatinga Backyard Haven Nichole Holze 80

Heirloom Seed Exchange Suzi Kern 85

Foraging Dandelions in Your Backyard Mogli Loftus 89

Explore

Nature Study in the City Jennifer Dees 96

Exploring the National Parks Naomi Ovando 101

The Magic of Field Trips Suzi Kern 105

Camping for Beginners Brit Chambers 109

Forest Games Rachael Alsbury 113

Contributors 119

About Wild + Free 124

Credits 125

Editorial Reviews

03/01/2021

From founder of the Wild + Free Movement Arment (The Call of the Wild and Free: Reclaiming Wonder in Your Child's Education), comes the third book in the "Wild + Free" series. Arment, along with the help of several contributors, suggests 25 activities that involve nature in some form or another. Presented in full color, the activities are grouped into five areas: Wander, Capture, Nurture, Gather, and Explore. From simple trips (taking a nature walk in your neighborhood), to more complex projects (growing your own mushrooms), the wide variety of adventures includes painting, camping, foraging, growing, cooking, exploring, and collecting. Each activity stimulates multiple senses. Designed to help children fall in love with nature and develop a healthy love of the outdoors, this book will give adults and their kids many great ideas to help achieve this goal. VERDICT Although geared primarily toward homeschooling parents, this book will also be useful for teachers, babysitters, and anyone else who cares for children and wants to get them out into nature.—Holly Hebert, Middle Tennessee State Univ., Murfreesboro

Library Journal