Celebrating Urban Nature with a March

Playgroup has still continued to have low attendance.  However, my family continues to try to get out in nature and build community.  This past month we once again put on an Urban Nature Playgroup, this time moving it to the local library.  It just happened that the local elementary schools was going to be marching in recognition of Martin Luther King Jr to very near the library and so part of our plan was to join the march.

As we gathered at the library meeting space we began with introductory activities: I had a theme in the back of my mind that we would be focusing on trees and even had some books about Wangari Maathai.   Of course we did not get to do very many of the planned activities as the local march came past in only 30 minutes.  So basically we did an introductory activity of parachute, playing a question and observation game of:  What type of animals live in trees.  I pulled several stuffed finger puppets out of my bag and handed them to the children & adults who were in attendance.  Then I asked a few questions that made them stop and look at them.  Whose animal has four legs?  Whose animal has two.  Then they would put them onto the parachute and bounce them up and down.  We then moved into a few songs before heading to the art table to make signs that we taped to sticks that we then carried as we marched.   I had hung up a picture of Dr. King & we talked briefly about why the community marches to remember him.  Children were allowed to draw whatever they wanted on their signs.

The most joyous moment was when we turned to meet up with the parade.  The police had already stopped the traffic and the marching band led the whole school.  There were people of all ages and we just blended in.  Marching and community. Donating & collecting food for the local food bank.  It seemed a perfect way to celebrate urban nature.

Since then I have been reading the children's books on Wangari Maathai--tree planter & leader of the green belt movement in Kenya  and Nobel Peace Prize winner with my children.  They are enjoying the pictures, comparing the details of her life told by one author and then another.  We have made connections to their own tree plantings at the local green space.  Joseph Cornell writes in his books  how important it is to share stories about naturalists with youth.  The story of Wangari truly is such a story.  It was especially exciting to the boys when I told them I had been lucky enough to tree plant with  her and some of my students.  T wanted to meet her, but sadly I had to tell him that she had died.  Her vision and legacy, like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s lives on.