The joy of discovering nature

With the launch of our new ‘Nature Explorers’ course, Diana Wallace from the London Wildlife Trust tells us about the joys of discovering nature and experiencing the great outdoors with little ones.

At theLondon Wildlife Trust, our aim is to protect and enhance our nature reserves tomake them brilliant for wildlife. We also campaign to protect London’s wildlifeand engage with the community to help them to discover our city’s nature. Atour Centre for Wildlife Gardening in East Dulwich/Peckham, we have five pondsand lots of mini habitats, a classroom and a pizza oven!

The ‘Nature Explorers’ course at 1st Place Children and Parents’ Centre is about encouraging people to discover the plants and animals on their doorstep. It is about connecting with nature and all of the benefits that this brings. Every week, we venture outdoors so that parents and their children can spend time enjoying autumn. There is always something to find, an activity, a story or song, and an opportunity to learn about local wildlife including going on a minibeast hunt.

Studieshave shown that spending time in green spaces has positive benefits for ourmental and physical well-being. For children, there is a wealth of learning tobe found in the great outdoors that you simply do not encounter in our man-madeenvironments. There are smells, textures, sights, sounds and uneven groundunderfoot that create a much richer experience for little ones. There are also countlessanimals that can be found, examined and counted, birdsong to hear and plants tobe enjoyed. All of these experiences can help to develop children’s language,self-confidence, knowledge and understanding of the world. So much so that somepreschools have opted to go completely outdoors!

Toptips for exploring nature with children:

• Short walks are great. Look for something as you go (5 birds, 4 yellow leaves, a smooth tree...) and find time to stop along the way to follow the children’s interests. Get some wellies for them so that they can splash in puddles and test out the mud!
• Use challenges - Who can find a leaf like mine? Can you make a house for a mouse with whatever you can find around you?
• Talk about the things that you see around you and the changing seasons.
• Tune into nature - Look closely at things together, spend time listening to the sounds around you. The more you look, the more you see.
• Do something to help nature - Feed the birds on your balcony or in your garden and don’t make your garden too tidy. Leave some space for nature so that you can enjoy it with your child.
• Take pictures and look things up online. There is so much information about wildlife that can be found and many good websites with ideas for activities such as Wildlife Trusts or Woodland Trust.
• Come along to our ‘Nature Explorer’ sessions at 1st Place Children and Parents’ Centre!

For more information and to book a place on ‘Nature Explorers’, please contact Diana Wallace (dwallace@wildlondon.org.uk or 07740 717 930).