#Earthschooling365: Day Ninety-One
Inner Work Meditation (Heart): Over the past few years I have gotten to know the groundhogs on the nature walk quite well. There are six “regulars” in total and they each have their own territory. Two of them had babies last year and I usually know when they will be out sunning or foraging. I have also learned a lot about what they eat, how they act and much more – simply by observing them. I have not read any information about them in a book or online. What is interesting is that what I have learned about groundhogs from observation is always with me sharp and clear while much information I have studied in books in the past often needs refreshed or relearned in my mind. It is always good to have a balance of information from books and experience. Take some time today to reflect on this balance in your own life or in your classroom. Are you balancing what you learn in books with real life experiences and discovery? If you are making discoveries and learning outside of books are you using resources to find answers to the questions you have about those discoveries? Think about ways in which you can balance discovery and learning in your own life or your classroom.
Nature Walk Idea (Head): Today we saw another groundhog. These creatures are so quiet and shy. They like to quietly nibble on clover and other weeds at sunset time and spend most of the day hiding in their dens. Usually they live near some kind of body of water and they always have an entrance and an exit to their dens, which are underground. They don’t come out as much in the winter but they don’t completely hibernate either. They like to come out on sunny days and sit in the sun. All of this information was gathered during a year of observing these mammals on our nature walks. On today’s nature walk your assignment is to list at least five things you know about an animal, insect, bird, tree or plant that you learned during your nature walk. Using a book or the Internet to find information is not allowed for this assignment. If you can’t find five things then make that your goal today. For younger children observing size and color can count as two things. For older children you can have them write their observations as a poem in their Main Lesson Book (like the acrostic poem “Groundhog” I wrote below).
Photography Notes (Hands): When I saw the groundhog today I took a portrait of him. He was posing so nicely on a log it made it very easy to take a classic portrait of him in the sun. The elements of a classic portrait are: soft lighting, sharp focus on the eye of the subject, blurred background, use of a longer lens, shooting the subject from the shoulders up and either having the subject look straight at the camera or off to the side. Today’s assignment for you is to take a classic portrait of an animal or person on your nature walk or at home/in class today.
Verse: Groundhog
Copyright Kristie Burns
Gentle Eyes
Run around
Oh so wise
Underground
Nibbling clover
Darkened den
Hunching over
Oh so zen
Groundhog
*These poems have been created for many purposes – from early childhood circle time verses to inspirational or expressive. They vary from day to day so you may find the way you use them or enjoy them also varies. If you would like to set these poems to music consider our tutorial: Creating Your Ow Waldorf Verses or Finding Your Inner Voice.
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What is #Earthschooling365?
This series takes you through an entire year of our nature walks and is part of our non-profit project #Earthschooling365 at www.Earthschooling.org. The photos and posts in this series are all copyrighted. Please do not share or re-print them. Instead, share the link to this blog with your friends.
Along the way I will be sharing our favorite photo of the day, an inner work meditation for the day, photography assignment/tip for the day, nature walk theme for the day and a short verse for circle time (children) or meditation (teens/adults). We invite you to “walk along with us” this year, take some time to use the inner work meditation, be inspired by the nature walk theme of the day and perhaps even start a photo series of your own. To join the community on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram please tag your photos #Earthschooling365. To receive these inspirations in your e-mail inbox daily please subscribe to our blog alerts HERE. Don’t worry about missing days – you can join us as many days as you want this year!
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Waldorf curriculum
Steiner inner work
Iowa photographer
Free Waldorf curriculum
Nature table
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