Little children are wonderful scientists. They ask “why” all the time.  They are curious about what is under every rock, why the stars are so small, where the sun is at night,  why birds like bread, etc. (I’ve been asked these questions in the last 24 hours).

This morning, when we came across some deer tracks in the snow one little girl asked me “why was the deer here and where was it going?” I said, “It might be going to find some food or get warm.” The response, “but it’s cold out here; do deer go inside?”

Mountains of snow caught our attention and the conversation was dropped. But I was so excited to be engaged in this conversation. To me, this is learning.  This is the creative process.. walk outside look around and ask questions.

Darwin, Einstein, Galileo…(to name a small few) did this too and came up with some profound answers that shape the way we see the world today.

This is why I love to take children outside and although I am so excited to share games, songs, and stories with kids to jump-start play time, I really think the best thing to do is open the door and let ‘em outside.

We are in the age of information… after I publish and tweet this post… tons of folks will have access to it. There is information flying around the airways so quickly it is unbelievable.

Well, I believe that there is innate wisdom, knowledge and information in each of us and that children are most connected to that intelligence. My work has given me the opportunity to observe children accessing this innate intelligence, and I see kids get so excited as they discover new things.  To me, as an adult, I might chalk it up to some scientifically explained whatever but to my little preschoolers it’s new knowledge and experience.

This is why I think that the outdoors is the best kind of classroom for children.  For young kids, their experiences lead to new knowledge, as they access this new knowledge from within themselves and their own observations, they become more confident to pursue new ideas.

For instance… my son went outside to build a sandcastle today… with SNOW.  Imagine if I had told him “you can’t build a sandcastle, the sand is covered with snow.” He probably would have looked at me like I was an idiot and went on about him business. Instead, he experienced some similarities in two substances that are different but have some similar properties.

Here at Backyard Mama I plan to give you more of my observations of young kids learning in nature. Why? So that nature play seems less like something we need to prepare for or think about and more like a natural occurrence in the day.

I love all the blogs I read about activities to do with kids outside; I write a fair amount about it too. Then I get all the stuff together for my “plan” and out we go to do one thing and then nature has it’s own plan: baby turtles, or icicles, snow mountains, deer tracks, crocuses blooming in the snow, a red hawk.. and I have to switch gears to go with the natural lesson.

It’s through this flexibility and spontaneity that I see children thrive and grow and become curious, confident little boys and girls.

And that’s my focus for this year. Happy New Year Friends. 

What happened to you the last time you canned a plan cause a better opportunity presented itself to you?

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