Yesterday we did a Fiddleheads session at the Arboretum: the theme was decomposition. Teacher Sarah always plans wonderful activities and today she had set out stations at the start of class and at one of them were some books. The boys saw a "Magic School Bus" book and that was what they wanted to read. Today part of what the boys were talking about came from that book. They actually retold the story. Yet, I know that it was also the hands on experiences in the aboretum that they took into their explorations in the yard. I know I certainly did-- gardening today was filled with more attention to all the bugs, millipedes, and centipedes
A few of the activities from the class were:
- make a worm tunnel: the adults stood with their legs apart and the kids all faced them and then crawled through their legs.
- dig in the dirt off the main paths looking for bugs, place them in a white bowl to observe then set them free
- making a segmented worm out of a hosiery stocking, cotton filler, and rubber bands for the segments
As always it was just getting out to a regularly visited place that caused the most excitement for my boys. They were especially thrilled when they found how the skunk flower had changed next to the stream.
I enjoyed seeing how the winter garden had transformed into azeala way. It was a bright pathway. The boys wondered if their paths that they had taken in the winter were still there. They were there, just narrower.
I wonder what learning will stick. All these outdoor experiences that my boys experience. Some structured- as in the arboretum classes, some unstructured- just play in the backyard with the neighbors, some laden with vocabulary- while they walk the gardens with mama, and other experiences just filled with wonder. Some experiences mediated by story, folklore, and silly songs, and other just their own imaginary play.
My guess is: whenever there are smiles and true awe- there will be a deep bodily memory.