Article from Tiny Treks www.tinytreks.com

Anyone who says sunshine brings happiness has never danced in the rain. ~ Traditional Proverb

What are your fondest childhood memories of playing in the rain?  Do you remember getting on your red rain boots and your yellow slicker as your mom pushed you out the door?  Your neighbor friends were waiting for you.  First you ran up and down the street jumping in the puddles full of unabashed joy.  Then you saw the curbs along the street that were flooding with water.  You spent the next few hours creating boats out of sticks to see how far they would move though the curbs.  With my own children I tried to do the same thing.  Typically the neighbor kids were not outside, but our four children would create their own pack.  We saved on the rain boots as we felt the mud and water between our toes.  Weather permitting we even saved on the clothes.  Our corner flooded just the right amount to make for one huge science experiment of floating and sinking.  

I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and my fondest childhood memories were being outside and exploring my natural environment.  No one was plugged in and the families with television watched it together at designated times a few hours a week. 

Our country is in a crisis and that crisis is unhealthy habits and lifestyles for children of all ages. We are in a society where we have convinced ourselves that organized adult driven sports and activities are equivalent to getting children outside.  Organized sports are not a replacement for children simply exploring.  Richard Louv in his book Last Child in The Woods talks about Nature Ritalin -the unfolding evidence that time spent in green spaces helps children focus better and think more clearly.  Tiny Treks is a weekly nature exploration  program for young children. Our classes are filled with children and loving adults.  We advise everyone on a rainy day to unplug and dance in the rain. 

Here are three simple things to explore outside this week rain or shine with your children.

1. Take a rain walk and see how many worms you can find.

2. Take the same exact route on a sunny day and see how many worms you can find.  Where did the worms go?  Encourage your children to ask questions.

3. Take a shower in the rain.  Bring out the shampoo.  It is a blast for kids of all ages.  Whether they are young enough to go naked, wearing a bathing suit or full rain gear they will have great memories.

This article brought to you by Pam Worth Director of Tiny Treks the pioneer nature exploration program for young children that has been established in the Peninsula for 15 years.

For more information, visit our website at www.tinytreks.com

Do we want our kids just doing school? Dr. Ken Ginsburg asked that question at an amazing talk in Winnetka on Friday night. The evening motivated me to rethink the questions I ask my children on a daily basis. As an educator, I know not to ask "How was your day?" "What grade did you get in English?" I try to be creative, however it often does come back to academic achievement. So on Saturday morning I had a conversation with my 16 year old. She is getting her first C+ in her honors Spanish class. She has talked about dropping down. I thoughtfully decided to try a new approach to talk to her about this class. "Tell me about Spanish?" I asked. She lit up and said, "I love it. The teacher is amazing and I love how she teaches. The class is really fun. I love how I am learning in it, although parts of it are really hard for me." We talked for a few more minutes and I said, "Why would you drop down it sounds like you love this class." Relief washed over her. I realized she thought she needed to drop down because she was scared of doing poorly. After our conversation, she set a realistic goal of how she could get help in the challenging parts from the teacher and the importance of focusing on why this class got her excited and not on the grade.

Tiny Treks in the Winter...

Obviously, it is more difficult to get outside in the late fall and winter.  It is cold, dark and wet out there and sometimes I think our bodies tell us it is time to hibernate-just like the bears do.  But with the right clothes, anything is possible. 

As an outdoor education teacher, I am outside for up to 4 hours a day, most days.  Do I get cold?  Yes-if I don't prepare for the day.  Yesterday it was 45 degrees out and I was missing a layer, had forgotten gloves and found out that my jacket was no longer waterproof!  Ugh!  I won't make any of those mistakes again. 
Good outdoor clothing for you and your youngster is essential. 

I suggest buying waterproof clothes at REI since you can always return them if they don't work out.  But I also saw some waterproof pants at Target that looked just fine and they were under $20 for me and about the same price for a little person.

So-my point is-get the right clothes on and then dive into the winter with abandon.  The joys of the fresh smells of the earth and wet leaves overshadow the dark and coldness.  The hot chocolate will taste all the better for having had the deep breathing of clean air.

The Outdoor Preschool is a success!

The Outdoor Preschool-a new nature preschool in Redmond is opening it's woods to kids beginning this September and we almost are full already!  Every Tuesday and Thursday will be an outdoor exploration of a new kind-one where kids can make forts in the woods and investigate their natural world in any weather.

If you can't join the preschool-join Tiny Treks on fridays all year long.  We'll be doing what the "big kids" are doing in preschool but with a mom or dad or nanny instead.  Hope to see you soon!

Tiny Treks begins a Preschool!

As I research how to begin a drop-off preschool in the weather-prone Northwest-I ponder "what do I want these children to learn at this school?"  As a recent graduate of the University of Washington's teaching program I learned alot about how to excite children and get them motivated.  Yet when I got into the public school classroom I found the automated schedule of school wasn't what I was interested in pursuing.  I like the freedom that nature and outdoor experiences affords.  So that makes me want to start an outdoor preschool in my area.
How would this work you might ask?  Well-the kids would arrive dressed in weather-proof clothing such as waterproof pants and boots and a layers on top-fleece perhaps or wool sweathers and a water proof jacket.  Gloves and hats included for much of the year.  But as soon as the children (and I) are well dressed for the weather, we can have such fun outdoors!  We can build forts and create "art work" to hang in our forts.  We can have outdoor tea parties and make art projects from the forest floor.  We can research birds-using binoculars and a bird book.  We can create a map and then follow it.
These children would be learning about what books can teach them, how to follow maps and math using nature as their guide.  All without being told to "sit down now" and "stay still". 
Stay tuned for more inspiration-and I would love to hear any input from you!

10 individual things to do for the earth

Here is a list of 10 things to do to help the earth. I think it would be cool if everyone tried to do at least 3 of these things this week. Looking at the list there is only one that is completely unrealistic, however interesting to ponder is #9. Share what you do on our blog.

Thanks,
Pam

TEN THINGS YOU CAN DO INDIVIDUALLY TO HELP SAVE THE EARTH

1. Walk or ride a bike to your destinations.

2. Use appliances only as you need them. Turn off lights when you leave a room, for instance.

3. Buy things that can be entirely reused or recycled.

4. Start and maintain a garden.

5. Purchase products that are locally or regionally grown, mined, manufactured.

6. Adopt or mentor rather than have your own children (or more children).

7. Try to live within the average world income (about $2500 a year per person).

8. Fix something rather than throw it away.

9. Learn what politicians do for (or against) the environment, and vote accordingly.

http://richa.dod.net/surprise/helpsavetheearth.htm- Found list on this site.

Take a few minutes for the magical moments

I peeled back the bark on the dead, fallen tree as 8 pairs of toddler eyes watched. I explained how we never hurt a tree by pulling its bark when it is alive, but this tree had been struck by lightning and was across our path. Everyone lit up when we found 5 rolly polly's or pill bugs or whatever people call them under the bark. I gently held them in my hands as they immediately rolled into little balls that looked like small berries. We found a dry spot on our path and made a circle around the small, hard balls. We waited and watched and waited and watched. Each toddler and preschooler patiently waiting. Seemingly understanding something magical was occurring. After several minutes, we saw lots of little legs wiggling out of one rolly polly. We screeched in excitement as the 5 millimeter bug showed us all his wiggly legs and flipped over to walk away. A little hand reached out to touch the bug, and kazam the bug was a little berry again. We left them alone on the trail to open up when we were no longer there. Remember, the little things are the most magical. Take time to just sit and watch it is worth it.