Nature study has become synonymous with Charlotte Mason. Her thoughts on getting children out-of-doors have inspired many a homeschooler to start exploring nature – myself included.
We have so many fond memories of exploring parks and ponds and our own backyard. In the beginning, I made nature study hard on all of us. We eventually learned to simply enjoy God’s creation, quietly look & listen, and maybe add a page to our nature notebooks.
“Nature teaches us Gratitude.––But it is not only as she helps us in our own spiritual life that Nature instructs us in our duty to God. Some people have the grace to be tenderly and reverently thankful to the author of a great book, the painter of a great picture––thankful, if less reverently so, to the discoverer of a great invention. What daily and hourly thanks and praise, then, do we owe to the Maker and designer of the beauty, glory, and fitness above our heads and about our feet and surrounding us on every side! From the flower in the crannied wall to the glorious firmament on high, all the things of Nature proclaim without ceasing, ‘Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty.'”
Charlotte Mason (Vol. 4, Book 2, pp 99-100)
You certainly don’t have to be a Charlotte Mason groupie to study nature, but she does have some words of wisdom on the subject.
These posts will give you a place to start:
- 8 Reasons to Do Nature Study @ Simply Charlotte Mason
- Nature Study @ Charlotte Mason Help
- How to Get Started with Nature Study @ Afterthoughts
- Charlotte Mason Was Right About Nature Study @ Our Journey Westward
- Nature Study, Science, and Charlotte Mason @ The Common Room
- A Charlotte Mason Nature Study Group @ Living Charlotte Mason in California
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Books of interest:
- The Outdoor Life of Children: The Importance of Nature Study and Outdoor Activities
- Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder
- Handbook of Nature Study which you can also read online for free
- Pocketful of Pinecones: Nature Study with the Gentle Art of Learning
Have you grabbed your Holiday Nature Walks yet?
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Great resource! Thank you! <3