ways to “capture” in a more permanent
way what you’ve seen and what you’ve
found. Nature journaling seems to satisfy
this longing.
However, it is at this point that each
person’s observations will probably be
quite different. Each child has different
ways that he would be happiest chronicling
his adventures and the specimens he finds
along the way. Some will want to draw or
sketch in their nature journal, while others
will want to use watercolors, colored
pencils, or take photographs of what they
find. A decision to include quotes, Bible
verses, poems, or nature writings by other
nature lovers is a choice that will delight
one child, yet that choice may not be the
least bit interesting to another child.
In the same way, one child might decide
to make entries in his journal every day,
while another falls into quite a fruitful
routine of recording his or her entries once
a week or once a month. The final effort
(remember—the young start small) is the
telling factor. What a child loves, he will be
glad to do. Is he beginning to “see and
feel” and express himself in creative ways?
Since our goal is to help our children
find great joy in exploring nature, then we
should attentively observe each child and
discern how best to inspire him to grow to
love what has been created. As far as
nature journaling goes, this might not be
the previously mentioned scenario of
threatening to stay at the zoo until the
journal entries are complete. Rather,
encourage each one to explore and find his
own way to record his discoveries.
Sure, a few children will need more inspiration than others to get them journaling. For
one who has stronger interests elsewhere, a
good general hands-on knowledge of the
outdoors is still important, and though this
type of student may not have a nature journal
that is quite as creative or filled to the brim
as those of others, that is okay.
Many books on the topic of nature journaling are out there. In the sidebar, you
will find a list of my absolute favorites,
and yet, each of them is very different.
Even adults look, perceive, and express
what they see in broadly different forms—
true nature journaling!
As Mary Blocksma (one of my favorite
artists) began to look around, she realized
nature had such varied aspects that to try to
learn about them all at once was overwhelming. So she decided to seek out one
thing each day that was interesting. She
would observe it, make note of it in her
journal, possibly sketch it, and if she
became more interested would do a bit of
research on the subject and include that
information in her journal as well. She
began on January 1 and continued
throughout the year, making a new entry
each day. This method might appeal to
some journalers.
Clare Walker Leslie chronicled her
entries and drawings according to seasons
of the year, while Kristin Pratt-Serafini
filled an entire journal with observations
of her own pond and all that she discovered
there. Consie Powell sketched and made
notes of canoeing trips in Boundary
Waters, Canada. In the early 1900s, Edith
Holden painted nature subjects and
included poetry in her journals; Donald
Stokes, a modern-day naturalist, penned
his books to sound as if you were walking
along with him on his adventures. Any of
these models can provide inspiration, and
your student can go from there to determine his own style to express that which he
sees and experiences.
I’ll share a few age-related ideas that
might be helpful. Let’s begin with 3- and 4-
year-olds. Find or draw small pictures of
things you know you will see on a short
nature walk, such as a tree, a bee, a bird, an
ant, a spider web, etc. Don’t worry about
your drawing; your preschooler won’t
critique your work—a simple impression
will do.
Now, use a loop of tape to lightly fasten
your pictures to a clipboard that you will
carry. Purchase a small spiral notebook,
the 5” x 3” kind. Show your child the board
of pictures and talk about them briefly.
Then go for your walk and ask your child
to be looking for the things in your
pictures. When he spots one, get excited
along with him and bring out the little
notebook. Let him know that this is his
nature journal—just like Mommy’s.
Remove from the clipboard the picture of
the item he has found, leaving the loop of
tape on the clipboard. From your pocket,
whip out a glue stick—loved by all
preschoolers—and let him glue the picture
right on to a page in his very own book!
Continue your walk and keep gluing a
picture per page. If your child stops and
becomes captivated by a particular find—
if he spends a long time carefully
observing—then just save the rest of the
pictures for the next walk. You might ask
him if there is anything about his “find”
Below are my favorite
books on journaling
and nature journaling:
For the young: Crinkleroot’s
Nature Almanac by Jim Arnosky
For elementary ages: Salamander
Rain: A Lake & Pond Journal by
Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini
Linnea’s Almanac by Cristina Bjork
For junior and senior high students
and adults: Leave Only Ripples, A
Canoe Country Sketchbook by Consie
Powell
Keeping a Nature Journal by
Clare Walker Leslie and Charles E.
Roth (**This is my “favorite of
favorites” nature journaling resource
for the teacher and for older students
as well. It is a very thorough “how to”
book for many aspects of journaling,
and it has lots of creative ideas.)
Drawn to Nature Through the
Journals of Clare Walker Leslie by
Clare Walker Leslie (Both of the
Leslie books are available at
Amazon.com.)
Drawing and Painting Plants by
Christina Brodie
Great Lakes Nature: An Outdoor
Year by Mary Blocksma
The Decorated Journal: Creating
Beautifully Expressive Journal Pages
by Gwen Diehn
The Country Diary of an
Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden
Wildlife Painting Basics by Jeanne
Filler Scott (There are several books in
this series. Check out the titles on
Amazon.com.)
Books by Donald Stokes (Check
Amazon.com for titles; they are avail-
able at libraries too.)
Styles
