We all remember all of the lessons we got to study as small children. Some of the definitions, such as the cell definition, are sick in our minds even years after we first read them. We cannot guarantee it would be the same for our kids, but there are some methods and techniques that may help you teach your children to love studying, and the best way to start the journey is to teach them how to love nature. When you encourage your children to love nature, you will provide them with a lifelong gift. Studying nature will show them how to be more insightful, will help them feel a connection with their environment, will make them healthier, and will provide them with an adventurous spirit as well.
Some research shows that long exposure to ideas and activities like this at a young age will make your children continue to value them all their lives. By having this in mind, it is simply never too early to start teaching your children about nature and the value it has in our lives. Even though you live in urban areas, you can still cherish nature by teaching your children about small creatures, growing plants, and going out of town to familiarize them with natural phenomena and wonders. Programs such as National Geographic and Discovery will also help you on this quest. Inspired by this story, we have prepared a couple of tips on how to teach your children about nature.
Start by Reading Together
Reading with your child has a lot of different benefits, and some of them include future literacy as well, which will influence the development of social skills and will help them to fire up their imagination a little bit. However, the books you choose to read together will help you instruct and direct them in the right direction. The next time you decide to pay your local bookstore or library a visit, you can get them books about nature and how it functions. There is a whole variety of books exploring different topics such as weather, animals, seasons, plant growth, continents, mountains, volcanoes, and all other stuff that your children at a very young age can find interesting.
By reading all of these books together, you will teach your children in an amazing way about nature. An even better idea is to use the books as the starting point for some further discoveries, either through some other books or hands-on learning. The best way to present your children with what you have discovered in the books is to show them all of the things in nature and ask them questions about them. For instance, you can go to the zoo park and see all of the animals in the pictures. This way, they will see the purpose of the material, and you will pave their path for further studies.
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Watch Documentaries
Why not use family time or even family movie time as one of the means for teaching your child about nature? Luckily, today you will be able to find a whole bunch of interesting documentaries and videos as guides on the water cycle for kids, which are very enjoyable, and you will even find yourself learning new stuff. What we intend to say here is that videos, documentaries, and doc series about some natural phenomena will have a strong impact on your children since they will have a chance to visualize all of the natural things you want to show them. Depending on your child’s sensitivity, beware of the documentaries showing animals in the hunt, as they can get upset by a little fawn being killed by a tiger. Yet, there are alternatives, such as documentaries about migration, unusual species, and animal habitats, that they may find surprisingly enjoyable. Another thing they would certainly enjoy is watching documentaries about the stars and the universe, and they will be more than excited to spot stars and the moon by themselves whenever they get to see them.
Explore Together
Nature is such a fascinating environment, containing endless opportunities for exploration. As well, there are many things you can do on your behalf that are neither complex nor time-demanding. A stroll in nature’s art project, talking about what you see and notice, and cooking with unfamiliar fruit and vegetables will help both of you experience nature in a completely different way. In addition, you can make an at-home exploration as well and use the resources that you can find in your town. We have already mentioned zoo parks, but parks and newly opened aquariums are also very interesting journeys you can take together. Whenever you have time, such as on weekends, you should make the best use of your time and spend it somewhere in nature. If there is a national park nearby your home or even an exploration center, it would make memorable lessons for your child, and most importantly, all of you will have a very good time.
Give Them Experiences
When you want your children to be exposed to the natural environment from a very young age, it is desirable to start from your own backyard. You can allow them to learn more about the texture and weight of the soil in the backyard, and plant flowers together, letting them make mudpies and play with leaves. You can move a piece of nature into your home as well. Collect some buds and leaves and press them together. You can make a journal of the plants you have learned about and call it your small project.
Show Them How You Enjoy Nature
In the first years of their lives, children learn based on their role models, so you need to make sure to set a good example for them. Show your child how much you love and enjoy nature, and they will try to impersonate you. Point at the trees where you find beautiful, fragrant flowers and let them smell them too. Teach them about the plants and changes in nature, and let them feel and touch all of them. Not only will they learn about the environment, but they will also learn how to respect it more.
IMAGE SOURCE: https://www.pexels.com/photo/boy-wearing-green-crew-neck-shirt-jumping-from-black-stone-on-seashore-939702/
Volunteer
If you have read a lot of stuff about nature, learned new things, and experienced some of its wonders, then it is high time for you to give it back somehow. Even though it may be challenging for you to find some free time for volunteering, a great number of organizations do offer flexible hours and will allow you to come and volunteer as much as one hour per month. There are many different volunteer options that are completely natural, and bringing your child with you to do the same things would be super exciting and memorable. You can go to the animal shelters together, pick up the garbage from nature and clean up the open spaces, work in community gardens, and do many other things.
Teaching your children about nature and its wonders must be one of the most enjoyable experiences you will ever have. Seeing them excited about those things will give you a serotonin boost, and your being happy with them is yet another benefit of this educational journey.