Nature Study For The Older Child (and exhausted mom)

It’s fall.

In Southern California, this means the nights are a bit cooler, the days are a bit shorter, but for the most part, it’s the same as summer.

My son is tired of “being sweaty.” He doesn’t want to go outside and do all the things. He wants air conditioning.

I, too, want air conditioning.

In addition to our lack of motivation for getting outside, we have also been transitioning back into a consistent school routine. My son has educational therapy twice a week and speech therapy on Tuesdays, in addition to his usual doctors’ appointments.

Scheduling in a hike or trip to the beach just isn’t going to happen right now.

nature study for the older child

While we are not in a season to do weekly trips for more immersive nature study, the other reality is that my child loves studying and being in nature.  Once he gets past the sensory experience of being outside, he visibly calms, smiles and seems to just be a bit more comfortable in his own body.

Because of this, I wanted to find a way to incorporate nature into our Friday FunDay activity this week, without causing a meltdown on a 95 degree day.

After poking around the internet, I found a little bit of genius –

Hello Nature Activity Cards.

Nature Study For The Older Child (and exhausted mom)

Please know, this is NOT a sponsored post. I was not paid to share my opinions with you on this pack. I stumbled across it on my own last week and ordered it from Amazon
as fast as you can say two day shipping. Affiliate links are however, included below.

Nature Study For The Older Child (and exhausted mom)

The Hello Nature Activity Cards have 30 different nature activities. Unlike other nature studies I have seen in the past, they are perfect for an older child (and honestly, an exhausted, doesn’t want to come up with another activity on her own mom).

Here’s what I like about them:

Age Appropriate

Because the illustrations are beautifully done and realistic, the cards do not feel “babyish” to my son. He responded well to them in our activity this week and enjoyed looking at all the different options.

Nature Study For The Older Child (and exhausted mom)

Simple Instructions With Beautiful Illustrations

The activities are very easy to follow and have pictures right alongside the instructions to demonstrate the intended outcome. This is wonderful for my son! This means, even with his struggles in reading, he can feel a measure of independence in choosing and completing an activity. He doesn’t need me to read it all to him.

Nature Study For The Older Child (and exhausted mom)

Varied Activities

Some of the activities are super simple (like the one we did this week, grabbing leaves from our potted plants and doing rubbings). Others, will require a little bit of planning (like the beach activity). I like the variety and think this will be someone we can complete, over time, with great success.

Nature Study For The Older Child (and exhausted mom)

 

Hands-On Activities are essential for my kiddo. They help him engage in learning and he retains so much more. The good news is, as I try to incorporate more and more of this type of learning into our days, I am finding ways to make it easier on all of us! The Hello Nature Activity Cards are perfect for my son to learn in a way that is fun for him and also helpful for me.


 

 

Similar Posts