A couple of weeks ago I started a post about birds that I never finished. I noted what was happening outside our house in the city. Now I realize that I although this shows some understanding of the local ecology that with deeper investigation, observation, and a good mentor I could understand so much more.
Fall is an amazing time for birds in the city. If you listen the trees are alive with them calling one another. This past week I have seen a flock of cedar waxwings eating our grapes. A Towhee under the Hawthorne. Bushtits flying through the cherry trees in the side yard. Black capped chickadees inspecting the empty bird feeder: as though they are saying "it is time for you to feed us again!" Flickers calling loudly & eating the grapes as well. Meanwhile squirrels are scurrying all about: All but one of the sunflowers in our yard have been beheaded. The crows are heading home to roost earlier and earlier.
Last night I attended a talk by Jon Young on Nature Connection. He has been working on getting children connected to nature since he was a youth and in 1983 as a culminating research project found common elements from cultures that exhibit nature connection. From that he named attributes and developed a model of Nature Connection that he utilizes in programs across the US and Canada and founded the local Wilderness Awareness School. Although he now has moved to California he continues to study and write books such as Coyote Mentoring and What the Robin Knows as well as be a speaker and consultant.
This consulting has led him to his newest endeavor a project called Bird Language Leaders with the National Audubon which will be trying out a new program in the coming year with twenty launch sites. It is already being tested in places including a preschool in the Presidio in San Francisco to great success. One of the reasons that Jon says it works so well is that as part of the sessions not only do the kids watch birds they also gather together afterward in what he calls a structured layered gathering where everyones voice is heard. It also includes mentoring which Jon points out is a very important part of cultures that connect people to people, people to ancestors, and people to nature. He is working with UC Davis to test and accredit the program. In April there will be an opportunity to take a workshop on the is program at Wilderness Awareness School.
I love the idea that even young children can learn the language of birds. It is also critical that young children connect to nature. Richard Louv identified in 2005 in his book Last Child in the Woods that our children are losing this connection. He continues to research this problem with the Children and Nature Network. He also seeks out solutions. Jon knows him and says that even though in the years since the "nature deficit" problem has been identified and many people have tried to create programs to counter this,-- that really the best way that has been to get children connected to nature is for families to gather together for potlucks in the park and let their children run off and play on their own.
This talk inspired me to continue to work on creating great livable neighborhoods that offer gathering places and nature in their midst so that families can gather, connect and build experiences for sharing and learning together. It also reminded me that I am still working on watching the TED talks that were gathered on placemakers which I discovered when I was recently sent an article about what makes a strong community.
It is all about CONNECTION!
Showing posts with label unstructured play. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unstructured play. Show all posts
Monday, November 17, 2014
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Stayed Awake to Finish this book
I just finished reading In Defense of Childhood: Protecting Kids' Inner Wilderness by Chris Mercogliano. It seems as the author has been influenced by almost all of the same researchers that I have been inspired by in these last few years of studying the benefits of nature, what schooling should look like, and the dangers of a society that is too plugged into electronic media. Although, my own personal conclusions may not always be the same as the authors. I do agree that we can do a much better job giving children a childhood that prepares them for adolescence and then adulthood as separate stages in life. It all begins in the basis of unstructured play, letting children follow their "inner voice" - which he calls wildness, and more time outside.
Something that really resonated with me was were when he described some of the memories he had of biking through huge piles of leaves with his friends, seeing who could get the farthest through them. It reminded me of how my children have recently taken to riding their bikes into the bushes at the bottom of our hillside. I feel so lucky that my children have the opportunity to play: that they have a safe yard. That they have balance bikes in good safe condition, and that they have adults around them who are able to find time to be with them.
Chris Mercogliano also has a chapter on the importance of solitude. This is something I value and yet have not always given my children. They are so often the direct focus of my attention that it is a practice to give them that space. I am trying more and more often to leave my children to have their own experiences, often in the peace of our own yard. I must admit that I still watch from behind the bushes or I leave the door open enough so that I can hear their banter while I wash dishes inside the house- but I try to leave them in peace so they can find their own passions and imagine without interruption.
In all I highly recommend this book. He has wonderful research. He writes in an honest way that shows he has been working with youth most of his life.
Something that really resonated with me was were when he described some of the memories he had of biking through huge piles of leaves with his friends, seeing who could get the farthest through them. It reminded me of how my children have recently taken to riding their bikes into the bushes at the bottom of our hillside. I feel so lucky that my children have the opportunity to play: that they have a safe yard. That they have balance bikes in good safe condition, and that they have adults around them who are able to find time to be with them.
Chris Mercogliano also has a chapter on the importance of solitude. This is something I value and yet have not always given my children. They are so often the direct focus of my attention that it is a practice to give them that space. I am trying more and more often to leave my children to have their own experiences, often in the peace of our own yard. I must admit that I still watch from behind the bushes or I leave the door open enough so that I can hear their banter while I wash dishes inside the house- but I try to leave them in peace so they can find their own passions and imagine without interruption.
In all I highly recommend this book. He has wonderful research. He writes in an honest way that shows he has been working with youth most of his life.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Kids Learning to Play
The twins are four years old and it seems like there is less time for writing and more time of doing. It also seems like of late we have been doing more urban outdoor adventures than "natural" settings. We live in a neighborhood with a great walk score. It means that within a mile the boys and I can do most everything we want and not even need to get in the car.
My contemplations these days are: how to make great unstructured play for kids work. Lately one place we have been going to for unstructured play is the neighborhood farmer's market. I have noticed that many young children are either in school group clusters already or they are kids who are hoping to connect with others, but may not have great social skills or know how to have appropriate play on their own.
For example, some children I have noticed will immediately use sword play and play fighting as their way to connect. Although, I applaud the outreach of those children I really think that it has often been influenced by too much tv/ possibly video game violence and it is not creative or even friendly. It is certainly not appropriate around young children which the market is full of or my children who have not yet had screen time.
So far my antidote to troublesome play has been to start some creative play. Last week I taught the kids a game of "everybody's it" and then a variation of "hospital" tag. It worked for a while and in fact there were probably fifteen children running around playing at once, but for the youngest children they didn't necessarily understand when to stop or when to go. "It" is still a new concept & more appropriate for slightly older children.
Play then gravitated to playing in our wagon, which was fine until the child pulling the others decided to "let go" while passengers were on a hill. We may be "helicopter" parents in that we are very attentive, but it was a good thing as my husband was able to run and "catch" the wagon. This is when I helped coordinate the play by being the train engineer. I would let two children on at a time and the rest would follow behind. When we would get to the next stop- which the kids named as California, and Chicago, Seattle and China, the two riders would get off and two more would board the train. Meanwhile all the rest of the line of kids was pushing the wagon or holding onto each others' waists as freight trains.
I realize that allowing children their own space and voice is very important. As a parent I want to give my children tools to find their independence successfully. I want them to know it is great to meet all sorts of friends, but that they make their own choices about what types of play they do and that they feel heard and valued when they have ideas. My boys' preschool practices this on a daily basis as the kids learn to play together. Larger public spheres are harder to maneuver, but my children are learning- and so am I about what role we each have in making unstructured play work.
As the boys fell asleep last night T was explaining a game he wished he could have played with the kids at the park the other day. It was a game involving a couple of wildflowers that he had gathered from the field. In the game he would give the flowers to someone and then they would hide holding the flowers. He would find them. They were not supposed to crush the flowers.
His game sounds simple and sweet. I hope that he can find friends with whom to play it!
My contemplations these days are: how to make great unstructured play for kids work. Lately one place we have been going to for unstructured play is the neighborhood farmer's market. I have noticed that many young children are either in school group clusters already or they are kids who are hoping to connect with others, but may not have great social skills or know how to have appropriate play on their own.
For example, some children I have noticed will immediately use sword play and play fighting as their way to connect. Although, I applaud the outreach of those children I really think that it has often been influenced by too much tv/ possibly video game violence and it is not creative or even friendly. It is certainly not appropriate around young children which the market is full of or my children who have not yet had screen time.
So far my antidote to troublesome play has been to start some creative play. Last week I taught the kids a game of "everybody's it" and then a variation of "hospital" tag. It worked for a while and in fact there were probably fifteen children running around playing at once, but for the youngest children they didn't necessarily understand when to stop or when to go. "It" is still a new concept & more appropriate for slightly older children.
Play then gravitated to playing in our wagon, which was fine until the child pulling the others decided to "let go" while passengers were on a hill. We may be "helicopter" parents in that we are very attentive, but it was a good thing as my husband was able to run and "catch" the wagon. This is when I helped coordinate the play by being the train engineer. I would let two children on at a time and the rest would follow behind. When we would get to the next stop- which the kids named as California, and Chicago, Seattle and China, the two riders would get off and two more would board the train. Meanwhile all the rest of the line of kids was pushing the wagon or holding onto each others' waists as freight trains.
I realize that allowing children their own space and voice is very important. As a parent I want to give my children tools to find their independence successfully. I want them to know it is great to meet all sorts of friends, but that they make their own choices about what types of play they do and that they feel heard and valued when they have ideas. My boys' preschool practices this on a daily basis as the kids learn to play together. Larger public spheres are harder to maneuver, but my children are learning- and so am I about what role we each have in making unstructured play work.
As the boys fell asleep last night T was explaining a game he wished he could have played with the kids at the park the other day. It was a game involving a couple of wildflowers that he had gathered from the field. In the game he would give the flowers to someone and then they would hide holding the flowers. He would find them. They were not supposed to crush the flowers.
His game sounds simple and sweet. I hope that he can find friends with whom to play it!
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