30 things to do in the spring!
It's reminding ourselves of the little things in life that we really enjoy!
Thanks to a colleague who shared the wonderful family blog "Finding Joy: Beautiful Connected Life". My inspiration for this blog post and some of the ideas came from Rachel's list of spring things.
1. Document the leaves budding on the trees - what changes do you see?
2. Dance in the spring rain.
3. Watch the birds return and talk about where they might be going.
4. Make bird feeders for the birds - talk about what they'd like to eat and why.
5. Draw with chalk all over the sidewalk and get messy.
6. Jump in the puddles (and if you're really brave let it be mud!)
7. Have strawberry shortcake for dinner. With whipped cream.
8. Go to the park, ride a bike and/or walk outside.
9. Make cleaning up the yard fun by sorting everything - great way to stay organized.
10. Go through old toys and clothes and donate them.
11. Have a yard sale - great opportunity to talk about numbers and money and even make some!
12. Paint pots for the garden.
13. Plan a garden and start seedlings.
14. Plant a garden.
15. Talk about what your garden will need to grow.
16. Plant flowers.
17. Read your favourite stories under a tree outside.
18. Have a picnic lunch and talk about healthy eating.
19. Fly a kite!
20. Learn about butterflies and try and spot some outside.
21. Order caterpillars and watch them turn into butterflies!
21. Read about bugs.
22. Find bugs outside and talk about where they might live and why.
23. Blow bubbles outside and count them!
24. Go rollerblading somewhere you haven't explored.
25. Have some "technology" free days (no t.v., iPads, social media, cell phones, etc).
26. Go for Nature Walks and talk about what you see, smell, hear, and wonder.
27. Wash the bikes, trikes, cars and outdoor stuff!
28. Look up at the sky and talk about what you see, hear, think and wonder.
29. Do messy science experiments outside.
30. Write a list of things you want to do in the summer.
What are some of the things you like to do in the spring with your students, as a family, or by yourself?
Love the list - on my way to making it happen! This is truly my favourite season.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing,
Kim
Hi Kim,
DeleteSo glad to hear you loved the list and making it happen! This is a great season to truly enjoy Mother Nature and how incredible she is! Would love to know what you plan to do with your kiddies :)
Happy learning!
Jocelyn
Hi Jocelyn,
DeleteWe are well on our way to sending home morning glory starters to our mom's for Mother's Day. While we have also started out own indoor flower garden. Amazingly we already have some flowers sprouting above the soil. Very exciting.
Once these grow a little more, we will be taking them outside to our school Eco garden to do a little digging, weeding, and planting. This is where we will continue to watch out plants grow in the outdoor community.
I am hoping we will start to attract some bugs and butterflies and bees. This is another one of my favourite topics to delve into. I would love to do an inquiry into insects. As we actually caught a bug last week and observed him the whole day and the kiddos were excited - I am planning on reading some insect books and making bubble maps during my read alouds to hopefully spark and interest. In the playground we already have fights over those wo want to step on ants (ewwww they say) and those who want to capture them to bring in as pets. Personally I don't want to kill them but I prefer to observe them outside.
Hoping this is our next inquiry - so fascinating.
Although that said I birds could be very fun too.
Just not enough time to get into everything I love :-(
What are you plans with your kiddos?
Hi Kim,
DeleteI absolutely love your idea of an indoor flower garden! This is such a wonderful opportunity to bring the outdoors inside the classroom and I'm sure it opens up many doors for conversation, writing and observational drawing! Very exciting! I am loving that your school has an Eco garden - this is something our school is exploring and hopefully will have in the works next year.
Spring is certainly the time of year where everything truly comes "alive" - for us teachers, it's a perfect opportunity to dive into environmental provocations and explore them with our students through inquiry.
I couldn't agree more that there isn't enough time in the day and with the weeks blending into one another the end of the school year is closer than we think!
As for our current spring explorations, we have been focusing on signs of spring and creating our "We Can See" book. Some of our students have also shown interest in birds which is great and some have even started making their own books on the birds that they know - so we will see where it takes us!
Thank you so much for sharing your "Spring Happenings" and I look forward to following you and your class on your journey!
Sincerely,
Jocelyn
Oh now this is fantastic. I would love to share it too, with your permission of course, on my PDSB class page. Like Kim, on my way through the list!
ReplyDeleteHi Laurel!
DeleteThanks for the comment and of course you have my permission to share on your class page :) If you come up with any new ideas please let me know because I'd love of add them to the list!
Happy Monday!
Jocelyn
Pure joy and awe...what a great way to start a new week.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing.
Marlina
Hi Marlina,
DeleteThanks so much for visiting my blog and leaving a comment! I'm so glad you enjoyed this post because I certainly enjoyed writing it!
Here's to spring and outdoor learning!
Jocelyn