As I have said before this year marks our first official year homeschooling. The hardest part about this time of the year is that farming is not done yet and we are beginning homeschooling so some times activities have to be combined and time do double duty.
Last weekend we went up north to the family property. Work needed to be done to prepare is for the winter and coming hunting season. Knowing that now I have to conscientiously include homeschooling in our day to day life I planned our first “Nature Study,” ala Charlotte Mason. I was introduced to nature study through
Charlotte Mason Companion and read more about it in Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock (I bought it on Amazon but can’t find it anymore), and Pocket Full of Pinecones but had never done one with the children.
So while Proeun worked we went for a walk looking for interesting nature specimans. I didn’t tell the children what they were for and kept the sketchbooks (each has their own) and colored pencils hidden. Once I explained it to them they were so excited.
Two selected young plantain leaves to draw.
Avril chose a maple leaf.
Through drawing them they learned skills both in art and observation, including anatomy of a plant. I am so pleased with how it turned out. I don’t feel like I am good at drawing and I had hestitated introducing the idea to the children but they seem to really enjoy it. And they both have a good eye.
I bought a sketchbook for myself and did my own drawing of a blade of grass (starting easy). I was pleased with it but won’t show it here.
A couple of things I learned
1. have good lighting (we were in a cabin without electricity so it was not the best for drawing).
2. have good colored pencils. While the quality was good there were only 12 colors and in nature there are so much more then that. Proeun has a much bigger set I plan to pull out for the next nature study today of winter squash.