Today I spent time at the Sandhill Wildlife Refuge as part of the Ho-Chunk Indigenous Arts & Sciences class I took last summer (learn more about that here). Our final class was learning more, reporting our progress, and time for reflection. It was great to reconnect with classmates and hear more Ho-Chunk stories. We also had the chance to spend some time outside. I brought my rain boots since it was going to be in the thirties (that's warm in WI) and they are way cuter than my winter boots. In the summer I had read Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer so I was happy to see moss again this time. It was interesting to see the same place in a different season.
A bonus today was getting a copy of this book The Ho-Chunk Courting Flute. It's written in Ho-Chunk, English, and Spanish. I'm excited to take it back to share with students.
Because of this class, I've begun to be involved in the gardens at our school. It's been interesting to learn about and from nature. If you want to see more of what we are doing at my school, I've set up a page with some information and resources for outdoor learning. It was a lovely day and it makes me excited for spring and the learning to come.
I love your pictures, envy you that time outside. We were in the fifties today, sixties tomorrow, then a snow storm is coming on Monday-crazy winter! I spent lots of time outside with students all through the years, Crystal. How wonderful that you are learning more about outdoor ed. We did lots of field journaling, a special thing to capture what we saw. The books look good! You might like any of Claire Walker Leslie's books, especially Into The Field, but any are terrific, if you don't already know them.
ReplyDeleteThe outdoor learning you are doing is so wonderful!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful photos in your celebration post this week. I'm excited to explore the link on outdoor learning. Thanks for sharing that Crystal.
ReplyDeleteHow exciting that you are learning about outdoor education and enjoying it fully.
ReplyDeleteCrystal, you have some stunning photos of outdoor life. Please consider joining me for my winter gallery with these photos and some inspirational thoughts. Invitation is at http://beyondliteracylink.blogspot.com/2018/01/invitation-to-winter-wonderland-gallery.html.
ReplyDeleteLove your rain boots and your winter photos. I included a winter photo today (with son-in-law and grandson Jack. One of these days I'll take the ladder outside so I can capture those seed pods up close.
ReplyDeleteSnow seems so long ago! Last week was very warm here, so it was hard to know what to wear to work. If we get snow again, I give up! Great photos, though!
ReplyDelete