Adventure Tykes

(I pulled this one from the archives because I truly believe nature is one of the most important learning tools for tykes and I want to continually re-emphasize it.)

Nature is a great learning tool and it is much better than sitting in a stuffy classroom or in a boring living room.

Help your tyke explore their 5 senses in nature with these fun activities. Go for a hike, a neighborhood walk or explore in your own backyard.

See: Give your tyke a few items to find.  It can be an ant, a bird, a leaf, a rock or whatever is in the area. Make them search a bit to find them. You can also ask them what they see around them or pick a color and ask them to find 5 things of the same color.

seeing the ducks in the lake

Smell: Have your tyke smell a flower, a bush, leaves, dirt or the air. Ask them what it smells like? Do they like the smell?

smelling the flowers

Feel: Give your tyke different textures to feel. Maybe a pine needle, a rock, the grass, dirt, a branch or snow. Help them compare the different textures between each object. For older tykes blind fold them and have them guess what objects they are touching.

feeling the sand for the first time

Taste: Bring along a snack that came from the earth, such as, fruits or vegetables. Explain to them how their snack grows and if it came from the ground, a vine or a tree.

eating dried mango

Hear: Have your tyke sit quietly (that might be asking a lot) and ask them what they hear.  Birds chirping? Wind blowing? Cars passing by? Kids playing? Silence?

hearing the water rush over the rocks

“As children observe, reflect, record, and share nature’s patterns and rhythms, they are participating in a process that promotes scientific and ecological awareness, problem solving, and creativity.”
Deb Matthews Hensley, early childhood consultant

How do you use nature as a learning tool with your tyke?