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Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder: Idea Six

Nature Clubs: Backyard campouts, bug hunts and more

Kids love to join clubs. Why not gather the local gang and form a nature club? You could focus on birds, bugs, native flowers, butterflies—anything that catches the kids’ fancy. In true club form, you could pick officers or leaders of certain activities. Be sure to include snacks.

Some nature club ideas:

  • Go on a “sound hike.” Find a nearby trail, and move along it for a period of time with no talking allowed. The goal is to listen, hear and catalog all the sounds heard. You’ll be amazed at the focus and the sounds documented, both man-made and natural. Kids will realize they are surrounded by a habitat that is interesting and alive.
  • Plan a backyard overnight campout. This one is easy. Just pitch a tent, gather sleeping bags, lots of snacks and maybe a campfire. Leaders can engage in the age-old tradition of storytelling and maybe lead a campfire song or two. Kids who have never been camping will love this one.
  • Check out a few books on bugs and do a catch and release bug hunt. Kids love to turn over stones and see what lives underneath. They’ll learn to identify the most common bugs of the area and note similarities and differences. Some may enjoy drawing the bugs they find and labeling body parts.
  • Visit a local animal rehabilitation site. Injured wild animals are treated and cared for in this animal hospital until they can be released back into nature. You may observe birds and other small creatures who are getting a second chance at a healthy life.
  • Go birding. Take along field guides and binoculars to identify the most common birds of the area. It sometimes helps to make a “cheat sheet” with pictures and markings of the most common birds to make spotting them easier.
  • Take a native plant species hike. Get a field guide for your local plants and see how many you can find and document. A checklist is one way to document and drawings are another.
  • Hatch your own butterflies. Get the information you’ll need at www.kidsoutside.info/activities/btrfly.htm. You can chart the whole life cycle from egg to caterpillar to chrysalis to emerging monarch butterfly.

Your nature club meetings can be a time to boost the interest and knowledge base of the kids. Plan a short lesson with quick facts on the topic selected. Debrief from your last outing and plan the next one. Give ample time to allow kids to share their experiences outdoors and the things that interest them. Extensions might be mini-projects such as posters depicting the group on their latest adventure, drawing and labeling a certain bird, plant or butterfly, graphs of certain creatures throughout their life cycle, etc.

Nature Clubs are a great way to encourage kids to slow down and take notice of the plants and animals around them. They also teach children to ask questions and then begin to find the answers both in nature and in print information. The character of your club will be determined by the kids involved and the direction you, as leader, take. Get a nature club going and have some fun.