CCC554

Earth Day is Everyday
by Donna M. Duresne
Director, Ragged Hill Woods
4-H Environmental Education Program, Brooklyn CT

Young people are increasingly aware of an concerned about the environment. As parents, teachers, and day care providers, we can help them to explore the outdoors and develop their environmental awareness. The iridescent wings of a Japanese Beetle; a spider's web draped in dew; the inconspicuous hole made by a meadow vole, are some of the magical discoveries children can make in their own backyard.

Their enthusiasm for the smallest details can be infectious. Sharing the outdoors with children heightens our own awareness and inspires young people to nurture a sense of respect for the world in which they live. The following activities can be accomplished in a backyard setting, or a city park. Most can be duplicated in an urban area. Wilderness is not necessary to the discovery of wildness!

ACTIVITIES AGES 3-5

Sensory Development-Blind As A Bat?
Actually bats can see quite well. They use echo-location to help locate and identify flying insects in the dark. Blindfold games can help young people develop their sense of hearing, smell, and touch.

Blind Walk

Divide the group into pairs. Give each pair one blind fold. The person wearing the blindfold is led around a designated area by the seeing person. The seeing person must realize that they are the eyes of the blind and they must help the blind person to find their way around. What would it be like to be an animal that does not see very well? What senses would you rely upon?
The seeing person can lead the blind person to a quiet place, or a special spot. Ask them to count all the different sounds they hear. How many different bird sounds do you hear? Do you hear any insects? Do you hear any cars or motors?
The pairs can switch and repeat the activities above. To end the blindwalk, have the whole group wear blindfolds and form a line by placing their hands on the shoulders of the person in front of them. The leader of the line is the only one without a blindfold, and the eyes of the caterpillar. The rest of the line represents the feet and body of the caterpillar. They must try to walk without losing any body parts (breaking the line apart).

Follow that Smell
Prepare several small pieces of sponge soaked in strong scents such as perfume, rose oil, lavender, or cedar oil. Divide the group into pairs. Give each pair a blindfold and a sponge. Like insects, the blindfolded person will have to follow the scent trail while the seeing person leads them around "by the nose". This activity should be done on hands and knees.

Touchy-Feely
Prepare a magic nature box or bag by collecting things from nature. Acorns; pinecones; feathers; rocks; moss; bark; and a trickster such as a paper clip or pencil. Sitting in a circle, blindfold the group and pass an object from the box around. Each person should describe how the object feels. In the end, they should try to guess what the object is.

ACTIVITIES AGES 5-7

Describe Me
Use the same magic nature box or touchy-feely bag. Sit in a circle and blindfold one person. Have the group choose an item from the box and pass it around. Each person must describe the obejct to the blindfolded person. What color is it? What does it feel like? Is it hard? Is it rough? etc. The blind person can try to guess what the object is.

Shapes in Nature
Prepare some basic shapes (triangles, circles, rectangles, squares), and give each child one or two shapes to find in their backyard. Variations: look for basic textures. "Find me something rough. Find me something soft, etc." Use paint swatches to find colors in nature.

Meet A Tree
Working in pairs, give each pair a blindfold. The seeing person leads the blind to a tree. The blind must hug the tree, and get to know it in as mnay ways as possible. Does it have any lower branches? Is it big, or small? Is the bark rough or smooth?? When the blind person thinks they know their tree, they are led back to the starting point to remove the blindfold. Now they must find their tree with their eyes! Older children can adopt the tree and visit it every day or throughout the year to record seasonal changes. They can use the tree to explore wildlife that might live there, and to inspire writing.

ACTIVITIES AGES 7-9

Scavenger Hunt
Collect only things that you can return safely and without damage(a feather, one seed dispersed by the wind, a maple leaf, a thorn, evidence of an animal eating, three different kinds of seeds, one camouflaged animal or insect, something round, part of an egg, something a bird would eat, something fuzzy, something that isn't important in nature, something that makes a noise, something a rabbit would eat, something you don't like, five pieces of non-biodegradable human-made litter, something a frog would eat, something perfectly straight, something that remonds you of yourself; a sun trap.)

Bat and Moth
Remember, bats use echo-location to locate their food. What would you do if you had to depend upon your ears to eat?
Form a large enough circle for two people to move around in the middle. One person will be the bat, the other will be the seeing moth. Every time the bat calls out: "Bat!", the moth must reply: "Moth!". The bat must try to catch the moth while wearing a blindfold.

Have to Have a Habitat
Listen to the Bill Steel song: "Habitat", and learn to sing it as preparation for this activity.
Have each person choose a nearby habitat (a stream, pond, field, forest, swamp, sidewalk). Each day, they should visit their habitat and keep a habitat journal to record activity and changes. What evidence of animal and plants are in your habitat? Who has visited your habitat lately, an ant? a spider? the tracks of an animal? How is your habitat connected to other habitats?

Besides the activities above, day care providers can help to cultivate a healthy environmental attitude by separating and recycling trash, and composting food scraps. Young people can be encouraged to swap old toys and to hand down their clothes rather than discard them. Choose an animal or habitat of the month to study and talk about and Native American Storytelling resources for outdoor activities with young people, but first, read Rachel Carson's book A Sense of Wonder!.

REFERENCES

Baylor, Byrd, The Other Way to Listen. Charles Scribner's Sons, N.Y.
Caduto, Michael J. and Bruchac, Joseph, Keepers of the Earth. Folcrum Press, 1988, Golden CO.
Columbe, Deborah A. The Seaside Naturalist: A Guide To Nature Study at The Seashore. Prentice-Hall, Inc., NJ, 1984.
Cornell, Joseph Bharat, Sharing Nature With Children. Ananda Publications, 1979.
Hunken, Jorie, Botany For All Ages (Discovering Nature Through Activities Using Plants). Globe-Pequot Press, Chester CT, 1989.
Sisson, Edith A., Nature With Children Of All Ages. Prentice-Hall Inc., 1982, NJ.
Rockwell, Robert E., Sherwood, Elizabeth A., & Williams, Robert A., Hug A Tree: And Other Things To Do Outdoors With Young Children. Gryphon House Inc.,1986, MD.