A Tiger’s Return To Nature

Inspiration for learning comes from all kinds of places, but research is showing how children without a connection to nature are losing out on a vital part of cognitive, creative and physical development.  Inspired by author, Richard Louv’s profound look at “nature deficit disorder,” his book Last Child In the Woods is the starting point for a series of weekly visits the Tiger Class takes to our local nature center at Snake Lake.  This trip, rain or shine, confronts these eager learners with a new perspective.

Asked to slow down, turn off their voices and turn on their ears and eyes, their senses awaken with the delights of the natural world.  There is a fallen log that time and again they ask to sit and relax on, just to soak in the sun and the peacefulness that surrounds them.  Here on this log they have heard a tree frog’s croaking call, the trill of a chickadee, distant ducks quack through the marsh grasses and the whispering moans of madrone branches high in the canopy.

They have lined up pine cones in patterns of size, examined twigs, leaves and rocks and discovered they have a natural desire for unstructured play within the trees.  It is becoming their favorite time of the week.  Here are some “Leaf People” the children constructed while exploring natural materials: