Fall 2022

About the Experience:

This fall, Developmental Kindergarten (DK) students from Eastover, Lone Pine, and Way Elementary kicked off their ongoing farm-and nature-based learning experience. This collaborative experience, designed and executed by Farm/Nature Center staff and DK teachers, launched during the 2021-2022 school year. Unique to other grades who may visit the Farm or Nature Center one or two types in a school year, DK students have the opportunity to visit one of the sites every month as an extension to their classroom learning. Farm/Nature Center staff work closely with DK teachers to create an ongoing storyline that follows student interests and connects with their classroom learning.

What does it mean to be a scientist in nature/on a farm? This is the overarching question that DK students revisit and dive deeper into with each field experience. This question inspires further questioning through each visit; How can I observe these animals like a scientist? What tools might a scientist use to investigate this space? What type of scientist studies trees? … As you gain insight into our experiences through the documentation below, you may even ask yourself similar questions.

Farm

Our adventure begins with our first trip to Bowers School Farm, where students are first introduced to the site and invited to transform into scientists as they explore, observe, and investigate the site for the first time. Scientists must be able to learn about a new environment and decide the ways they need to adjust in order to thrive. This could be learning to observe animal behavior to gather information, changing your movement and behavior to stay safe, getting down in the dirt to investigate plants from a new angle, and finding mindfulness methods that best help you overcome the unpleasant smells of a farm (rhymes with loop).

Nature Name Ceremony: At the start of their first trip to the farm, students received their Nature Names. These would be their names for when they are learning in the outdoors at the Farm or Nature Center. This concept of nature names helps students connect with the experience and inspires a unique lens for their learning. They might ask them selves How would my animal move through this space? What helps my animal survive the winter? Is my animal a predator or a prey?

Nature Center

At the Nature Center, students explored ways things are connected in nature and searched for connections as they hiked the site. This could be living things that relied on others as a food source or animals using a tree as shelter. This visit was a great opportunity for them to just “be” in nature and to find ways in which they were connected to their environment. Finding a sit spot at a tree and taking a moment to observe and reflect through journaling provided an opportunity for social and emotional learning as well as literacy and creative expression.