Spend a few moments wondering together as a family about the story:
Note to parents: The Genesis 1 creation poem is a beautiful poem celebrating the intrinsic goodness of all God’s creation. However, the male gendering of God throughout the text and the gender-binary used for humany (verse 27) is limiting language and may feel exclusive. Please feel free to play with the text, find more expansive language (e.g., alternate she/they/he for God), share your questions and your wrestling with your children, and invite them to share theirs.
View the guide. At first, walk around this place the way you normally might be in nature. Notice what it feels like in your body to be in a place while only casually connecting to it. Now, barefoot if possible, feel the weight of your body through your feet and toes. Let your feet sink into connecting with the earth, and pay attention to how it feels in each foot.
active, observational, playful, all ages
Try our playful, interactive scavenger hunts!
creative, reflective, calm, ages 6+
Download journal page with creative prompts for reflective engagement with the outdoors.
creative, calm, ages 2+
Download sweet coloring sheets, hand-drawn by Dylan Welch, to bring you up close to the natural world.
creative, playful, calm, ages 4+
We rely on pollinators and other insects to keep the web of life connected. Build these small friends a cozy place to live using recycled materials!
Learn how to repurpose would-be waste into crafty supplies.
Create space in your home to store items that either can’t be recycled or can easily be repurposed before being recycled. Then encourage your children to use their imaginations, turning this would-be waste into something new.
Participate in a shared space where people of all ages can get involved with the scientific process and scientists can crowd source new data.
Choose one among hundreds of research projects searchable through SciStarter.com. Some are online only. Others get you out into nature. Still others put you to work analyzing results.
active, creative, playful, 3+
playful, observational, creative, 4+
How to Play: Using follow-the-leader rules, take turns selecting an animal (or better yet, an inanimate object, like a leaf!) and invite everyone to move, ‘talk’ and interact like that entity. Invite noticing: Do we all create our animals the same? What differences do you notice between our pretend leaves? How might our butterflies talk?
reflective, engaged, all ages
Prompts to invite reflection and conversation about our environment and natural world.
elementary +
For each prompt give yourself at least 1-2 minutes to write or draw in response to these prompts.
Tips: ✐ When you get stuck, keep coming back to the prompt and re-write it to start your next sentence or drawing. ✐ Try to keep your pen moving and don’t overthink your words! ✐ Feel free to speak your truth or write your fictions.
Buy these titles online at a local bookstore! Some we recommend in the Twin Cities: Red Balloon, Mager’s and Quinn & Moon Palace Book.
