Education doesn't begin and end at school. In fact, the first and best teachers of children are their parents! Take advantage of your first grader's natural curiosity and eagerness to explore by suggesting the enrichment activities listed below. These environmental education activities are divided into time periods with a theme and an essential question for each section to guide you and your child in your exploration of the natural world.
September/October
Theme: Harvesting
What does “harvest” mean?
- Have your child keep a chart of what he or she eats for lunch each day, Monday through Thursday. On Friday, help him/her analyze the lunches for different plant parts and then graph the information.
- Have your child cut pictures out of magazines of products that come from trees. Help him or her place the pictures in categories such as “food products,” “paper products” and “solid wood products.” Research together other products that come from trees (rubber, cork, medicines, etc.).
- Have your child adopt a tree in the neighborhood to visit and observe every month throughout the year. Have him or her record observations with pictures, words or both in a special journal.
- Set up an experiment to help your child determine what factors are necessary for plant growth: Plant seeds in three small containers. Give one of the planted seeds plenty of water and light. Deprive one of water and one of light. Observe over a period of several weeks.
- Have your child collect seeds in a number of fun ways. Then have him or her sort the seeds using various criteria. Discuss different ways that seeds might disperse based on their physical qualities.
November/December
Theme: Change
How do changes in the seasons affect plants and animals?
- Have your child focus on seasonal changes in a neighborhood tree, recording observations with pictures, words or both in their “adopted tree” journal.
- Take your child on a walk to observe several different trees. Have him or her speculate about the age of the tree and events that might have happened in its life. Then have him/her choose one tree to draw, including events in its life.
- Take your child outside to look for signs of fall. Have him or her find the brightest yellow leaf, the darkest red leaf, the leaf with the most different colors, etc.
- Find The Cat in the Hat Comes Back, by Dr. Suess, at the library and read to your child. Discuss and have him or her come up with ideas of what he/she can do to make the world cleaner.
January/February/March
Theme: Restoration
How are weather and climate connected to the forest?
- Have your child focus on how a neighborhood tree is adapted to the climate, recording observations with pictures, words or both in their “adopted tree” journal.
- Take your child for a walk and have him or her closely observe several trees for ways they are adapted to the climate.
- Have your child create a radio broadcast about the weather.
- Provide a variety of objects for your child to make different weather sounds.
- Help your child throw a rain forest symphony party, providing a variety of objects for each child to make rain, bird, insect, or other animal noises.
- Have your child write a poem about how weather affects the forest.
April/May/June
Theme: Diversity
How are living things interrelated?
- Have your child focus on the plant and animal neighbors of his/her adopted tree. Find evidence of any animal activity around and in the tree, recording observations with pictures, words or both in their journal.
- Have your child look and listen for signs of animal life on a schoolyard or park safari. Have him or her report findings to a third party.
- Have your child observe trees (leaves, bark, branches, blossoms, fruit, etc.) and other plant life on a schoolyard or park safari. Have him or her report findings to a third party.
- Take your child on a mini-safari to a vacant lot or the Children's Forest. Have him or her draw pictures of the plants and animals he/she observed. Lay the pictures out on a table and have your child use a ball of string to connect the pictures, showing interactions between the organisms.
Last Modified: Tuesday, January 08, 2008