Children Should Be…
Author: raisinglittleshoots
A Charlotte Mason inspired home educator, person of faith, knitter, lover of the outdoors. Author of Exploring Nature With Children: A complete, year-long curriculum
Setting Up Your Calendar Of Firsts
A few days ago I shared my idea with you for keeping a Calendar of Firsts.
I have been so encouraged by how many of you shared, both here and on FaceBook, that you would like to join me in keeping a Calendar of Firsts for 2016.
I promised information on setting up your own calendar of firsts, so here goes.
I used the Moleskine Large Weekly Diary (soft cover) last year & will do so again this year. Please feel free to use any diary you like; you do not need a Moleskine to join in with me. Just beware of any diaries with a glossy finish to the page. They will not take colour well.
The paper is not great; a little thin for nice, splashy watercolour, but the layout is perfect for my needs. You can see in the photo below you have a left side with a week to view & space for each day.
This is perfect for recording the ‘firsts’ that you see in nature, and making wee sketches.
You can also see in the picture above that I also printed out tiny photographs on my printer; these made lovely additions to my sketches.
The right had side page is lined, so I added full-sized photographs to some of these pages.
To others I added a full-sized sketch
Because the Moleskine paper was so thin, I worked these full sized sketches on watercolour, or cartridge paper. This also helped with the mini sketches for the following week, as although I was working on the Moleskine paper, it had some weight to it from the paper glued in the previous week.
Here you can see my lovely 2016 Moleskine. It is a lot thinner than the book that has been well loved this year (see the top picture)
Not essential, but a nice touch, is to add washi tape to each & every page edge in your diary. This makes the pages more substantial, and the edges prettier 🙂
I have several roles of tape; here are a few. Don’t worry about this step, it is not essential.
Here you can see I have added a strip of wash tape to the first page; simply apply half the width of the tape, then fold it over, so it covers the free edge of the reverse page. (I hope this makes sense!)
Here I just need to trim the top & bottom of the tape.
You will also need a waterproof pen; I love this one. The micron pens are great too. Basic sketching supplies of your choice, be that watercolours, coloured pencils, or even pens. You might find an old post, Supplies For Nature Journaling useful.
I think that is everything! Please do let me know if I have missed anything.
I look forward to getting started with you in January. Please do share what you are up to, either here, or on the Exploring Nature With Children FaceBook group, or find me on Twitter.
November Nature Table
It’s getting colder out there!
And wetter!
What is on your nature table?
Lichen Week ~ Exploring Nature With Children
We has a lovely sunny day for nature study this week; a welcome break from the heavy rain we have been experiencing.
The pigeons were rather hungry
Very hungry
We had fun in the park; we spotted several fungus & I forgot to photograph the lichen!
We bumped into friends, and returned home to complete our journals
Happy exploring!
A Calendar Of Firsts
It is a capital plan for the children to keep a calendar––the first oak-leaf, the first tadpole, the first cowslip, the first catkin, the first ripe blackberries, where seen, and when. The next year they will know when and where to look out for their favourites, and will, every year, be in a condition to add new observations. Think of the zest and interest, the object, which such a practice will give to daily walks and little excursions.
Charlotte Mason, Vol. 1 p. 54
ETA: Setting Up Your Calendar Of Firsts
At the beginning of the year I came across Stephanie Ackerman’s Documented Faith Project.
Stephanie was using a journal to record “my life, my dreams, my prayers, my moments. A place to document my faith sometimes monthly, often times weekly possibly even daily”.
I was really moved by this idea and immediately set to work, creating my own pages, capturing daily happenings, special moments, and so forth.
I added sketches, photographs, words, stickers and other memorabilia.
This diary helped me to develop my style of quick pen-sketches, with touches of splashy water colour.
I used a Moleskine Large Weekly Diary, which has days of the week on the left hand page, and a space for notes on the right hand page.
I generally use the left hand side page for little sketches and notes.
On the right hand page, I would glue in a piece of paper to create a larger sketch. (The paper of the Moleskine diary is very thin, & not the best for water colour.)
A lot of my sketches have been nature-orientated
Which has led me to thinking…What a wonderful format this would be to keep a Calendar of Firsts, as Miss Mason advised!
So my goal for 2016 will be to use this way of diary-keeping, to keep my very own Calendar of Firsts. I intend to do this in addition to my nature journal. I am planning to use the same diary; The 2016 Moleskine Large Weekly Diary.
Each week I will record the firsts of nature as they happen in my locality; the first Snowdrops, the first time the goldfinches visit my garden, the fist visit of the hedgehogs, and so forth. I shall still continue to record special family happenings, but the focus will be Nature-firsts.
This is something that could be kept individually, or a family Calendar would be a family treasure to return to year after year.
It would be wonderful to have you journaling along with me; do let me know if you would be interested in keeping a Calendar of Firsts yourself. I will post nearer to the time some ideas for setting up your journal, supplies, tips and so forth.
Going To The Woods…
Moss Week ~ Exploring Nature With Children
This week’s theme from Exploring Nature With Children is Moss.
Today was an extremely wet day! We braved the rain to go and feed the pigeons, geese, ducks and swan at our local nature spot.
The geese & ducks were worm hunting..
Pigeon lady..
We hunted for moss..
We found a few, before the rain drove us home to warm up & complete our journals.
Autumn…
Christmas Gift Ideas For Nature Loving Children
We are fast approaching Christmas, and any parent who values their sanity, looks to buy gifts that will last long after the holiday season, rather than requiring a new set of batteries every few weeks!
To help make gift giving that little bit easier, here is a list of wonderful presents that will delight your nature-loving child.
Binoculars and Birdwatching Book
A smashing combination that will have your child out of doors over the Christmas holiday, instead of cooped up indoors. Add a small notebook and pencil if your child is writing and they can record all the birds they see.
A great way to teach respect for living creatures, whilst allowing your child to explore and observe them.
A beautiful wooden puzzle, perfect for small hands that need to be busy on bad-weather days.
A Nature Magazine Subscription
Eco Kids is a high quality nature and wildlife magazine for children aged 7-11
Flower Press and Wild Flower Guide
More useful in Spring and Summer, but your child will be able to make some beautiful pressings of evergreens over the Winter holiday.
Indoor Bulbs for Winter Forcing
Enjoy the beauty and fragrance of flowers during the dreary, cold months by giving your child build suitable for forcing indoors during winter time.
These soft toy birds with their authentic bird calls were a real hit with my children when they were younger!
Nature’s Collection 1000 Piece Jigsaw
A smashing jigsaw for older children featuring some lovely nature photography. Perfect for cosy afternoons at home after a brisk morning walk.
A more expensive option, but this would make a smashing family gift! Fantastic for filming local wildlife, and will film underwater, too.
Gardening tools and gift voucher
Get your child all fired up for spring, with their own gardening tools. A gift voucher for a local garden centre will allow them a morning choosing their very own packets of seeds; there are some types of flowers and vegetables that are particularly easy to grow & interesting for young children.
America’s National Parks – A Pop Up Book
For my American friends, or those who love America, this is a smashing book that brings the parks of America to life, whilst raising funds for their upkeep.
Finally, consider my book Exploring Nature With Children, as a gift for the whole family.
A complete, year-long curriculum designed to guide you, step by step, through an entire calendar year of nature study. Completely self-contained, this book has all the information you need to make nature study happen regularly for your family.
As an early Christmas present to my readers, enjoy a 30% discount by using coupon code CHRISTMAS15 which is valid until December 25th.
One Lovely Blog Award
I was nominated by Mommy Lanes Adventures for the One Lovely Blog Award, thank you very much, I am honoured!
Here are the rules for this award:
Thank the blogger who nominated you for the award.
Display the banner/sticker/logo on your blog.
Share 7 facts or things about yourself.
Nominate 5 bloggers that you admire and inform nominees by commenting on their blog.
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7 Facts About Me:
- I am a knitter who loves to spin her own yarn. I love to sink my hands into a beautiful Shetland fleece! I adore the whole process, from choosing the perfect fleece, washing it, preparing it, spinning it, dyeing it (though I love to work with natural colours too.) to knitting the finished item.
- I really love clothes, and I pretty much live in dresses. If you catch me in a pair of jeans, it’s a rare thing!
- My faith is very important to me, in a deeply personal way. For the last few years I have been fortunate enough to be able to go on a weekend silent retreat, in the depths of winter, which has blessed my soul immensely. And my children have a ball with daddy, watching movies, eating pizza, & generally making a mess at home 🙂
- My first job was as a beauty therapist, and before I had the girls, I worked as a national make up artist for a international company.
- I am married to my childhood sweetheart.
- I celebrate the liturgical year and special seasonal days, such as the winter solstice. I do my best to see the beauty and celebration in each day.
- My passion is seeing families exploring and enjoying the outdoors together.
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My nominees: