Nature Walks
~ Five Special Reasons to Get Up and Get Out! ~
Nature walks are an imperative part of nature study! After all, how can you truly study God’s creation without getting out into it? There are so many reasons to enjoy nature walks with your children, but I’ve chosen to share just five with you today.
1) Nature walks will teach your child to watch everything around him. These outings will greatly increase his observational skills and his outdoor life skills. Your science lessons will become more relevant as your student is able to apply, experientially, through his time outside, the concepts you have presented.
2) Comradeship, that special intimacy that comes from adventuring and making discoveries together is another benefit of a good nature walk. Yes, you will see and learn together, and that is wonderful. But the times of quiet togetherness and the times of deep conversations along the way, are a special feature of nature outings. It is as if the Lord has provided a miraculous setting for you to “be” with your child. Planned nature walks will provide years of the type of environment that enhances rich family ties.
3) In learning to enjoy the nature around him, your child will also begin to value quietness and solitude, which is necessary for some nature viewing. Nature walks, begun simply, and continued over the years—time spent watching and thinking—will develop a “deepness of heart” in a student who learns to value these journeys together.
4) As your child grows in his awareness of the magnificence of creation, he will grow to love it. What he grows to love, he will want to take care of. Nature walks, begun early, and continued throughout your teaching days, will lead your child to an awareness of the necessity of stewardship of our nature resources.
5) A lifetime appreciation for and love of nature will also be a rich field for worship. The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness, thereof, and those who spend time outdoors, discovering the wonders there, will have a rich resource for worship of the One who created it all.
Nature walks are some of my favorite memories with our children. They were beneficial for all of us in different ways at different times. I know you won’t be disappointed when you take your children out as well!
Be sure to catch the next post in this series: Nature Journaling as part of Nature Study!
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So true! Thanks for sharing! I pinned this so I can continually remind myself to make the time for nature walks!
What a great way to remind yourself!