What does Environmental Education look like?

When I think of environmental education, it looks like this...

What it doesn't look like...

It makes a nice brochure right?

From Childhood and Nature by David Sobel,

"Knowledge without love will not stick. But if love comes first, knowledge is sure to follow." Too often in schools, we're trying to inject knowledge without providing the experiences that allow love to slowly take root and then flourish.

One transcendent experience in nature is worth a thousand nature facts.

A Morning in the Bush

We have been so busy enjoying nature the past few months. I have many posts in my mind. Today I thought I would write about a simple short trip to the creek we enjoyed this past week. Each week I try to plan a relaxed morning down by the creek or on a bush trail. We take a packed lunch and just go looking and discovering. This week we have been making origami boats and so we took several down to the creek to float.

 

The boats are not only lovely to watch but it gets the kids down low to the water, sometimes into the water and discovering other things along the way. My daughter noticed several water plants while she was floating her boat and she got into the shallow water to feel them and retrieve some for our tank at home. The children also pointed out half a dozen water invertebrates and are keen to return next week to catch some for identification. The boats are a nice way for children to ease into the water environment, especially if they are reluctant or not used to being in a natural environment (without play equipment etc). It gives then a reason to go and a reason to get down and close to the aquatic environment.

 



Another reason I love play in natural environments is because it tests their skill and judgment. Children need to negotiate the narrow creek bed, jump the rocks, balance on the fallen trees, dodge the spider webs and listen to the sounds of the bush. My children have excellent balance and I have no doubt it is because of all the fallen tree balancing they do. There are also enough sticks and rocks for everyone and plenty of water to play in.

Then there are the discoveries. There are new things to discover all the time in nature which provoke questions and wonder. I don't always provide the children with answers. If questions come up, I ask more questions and keep the discovery alive and exciting. Then later in the week (and perhaps after a visit to the library) I might pop an open book about cicadas on the table for them to come across and the conversation will come up again. Sometimes it's enough just to hold a new insect or touch a fungi or wear a cicada shell in her hair for a while and no conversation is necessary. Some days 20 mins along the trail is enough and other days we are there still after 2 hrs. Some days it is a planned trip and other days our time absorbing nature is very impromptu.

Sometimes my children learn about nature in a less than ideal way, when we see animals that have been hit on the road. I always pull over and get the animal off the road, I also remove animals which are alive and have the potential to be hit. Recently I removed a Cockatoo which had been hit. It might seem strange to some people but I think it gives my children an opportunity not only to see an animal that they may not otherwise see up close but I am showing them, I care enough to stop and put the animal to rest in a safe place off the road and perhaps back in the bush. We collected up the Cockatoo and took it home with us. After some thinking and talking about it, my daughter and I decided we would preserve the Cockatoos wing. We asked and took it in honour by clipping it off and preserving it in salt. Then we buried the cockatoo. We are looking forward to revealing the wing in a few weeks time and having it as a keep sake.

This morning on our way to a play date with friends I noticed a bandicoot had been hit on the road. I stopped the car and got both children out to have a look. It was a female with a baby in its pouch that had sadly died as well. Connection to nature is so important for the future stewardship of our planet. The way we treat an animal shows our children that connection. If I drive past I have no connection, no care. If I pick it up and put it safety to rest, I hold a connection that my children will see and learn from too.

Mistletoe in Eucalyptus tereticornis

The Sit Spot

"The best teacher is one place." Jon Young

Since living in Brisbane I have studied Ecology, worked in the environmental field and had a sign on my front fence to say it was Land for Wildlife. Though while my 'resume' looked like I knew about nature, I didn't. If I walked though my backyard, I could tell you only a few of the native trees, endemic to my area. Love for nature has always been innate in me but my life had become busy since moving to Brisbane. I was studying, working and now raising children. Sure we camped each season, visited National Parks and I often flipped through ID books but I still felt like a stranger in my own backyard.

I believe humans have a natural affinity with nature, which is genetically encoded in us. However our lives have mostly turned indoors. As my children grew, I knew I wanted to help foster nature connection in them but first I had to work on my own connection. I had to walk the talk and reinvigorate my passion for the natural world and my work as a naturalist.

So while I was reading one day, I came across information about The Sit Spot routine. I was planning to do the Kamana Naturalist Training and the Sit Spot is an integral part. The Sit Spot is one location you choose to go to regularly. It needs to be easily accessible from your home and a place you feel safe at. It can be as simple as a seat on your back veranda overlooking your garden. I live on 2 acres and it is mostly bushland, so my Sit Spot is down below the house.

Now I needed to make this do-able and finding time alone without children was near impossible. So rather than just not do it, I took them with me to begin with. We packed a small bag with drink bottles and apples and we went to our Sit Spot everyday for a whole month. We visited our spot in rain, hail or shine and at all times of the day. We sat on the little wooden seat for long enough to eat an apple and point out things of interest. We stayed as long as I could keep the children in one place. Some days just long enough to eat an apple, other days much longer. As the children became used to our daily routine, my daughter began asking to go. Being young and curious, they pointed to things I may have overlooked, asked questions I wouldn't have thought to ask and their zest for adventure was contagious. After leaving our Sit Spot, we would do a short bush walk through our property, down along the creek line and back up the other side of the gully. As I wrote about in Want to know Gum Trees, I paid close attention to the trees. I didn't try to identify any, just became familiar with my one place really well. By the end of the month, I knew my property so well.

After completing the Sit Spot practice last year, I had built a connection to Brisbane that I hadn't had up until that point in time. I wrote about my experience here. http://www.reconnectmagazine.com.au/index.php/8-rmipswich/73-children-in-nature

I was reinvigorated in my love of nature and by having my children along for the journey, I also reinvigorated my love of environmental education. Bush Kindy was born out of the Sit Spot practice and I hope to write a few posts in the future about Bush Kindy.

I am now a Kamana Naturalist student and hope to participate in the Sit Spot challenge every year but also aim to integrate it into my life as often as possible. You can read more about it here http://kamana.org/lessons/articles/30-day-sit-spot-challenge/ and if you want to join in, you can sign up here http://forms.aweber.com/form/13/1134286813.htm and receive daily emails of encouragement and inspiration. The challenge was meant to take place in May but has been postponed until August. So not long until I start another 30 day Sit Spot challenge and I'm really looking forward to what discoveries I make and inspirations take hold. More posts to come.

Noisy Miner nest with chicks

Last week my daughter told me three times there was a bird's nest in one of her climbing trees, before I actually stopped to look. I couldn't believe it, the nest is so close to the house. I had noticed Noisy Miners frequenting the tree but I didn't take a closer look. Life gets busy, we always have lots of things to do and even though I take time for nature, sometimes I find myself unaware. It was really great to be reminded to slow down and take some time for nature again.

The nest was of a Noisy Miner and this little honeyeater is very common throughout Brisbane. It's a native bird which has flourished in urban environments. They particularly like edge environments, where tall bushland meets suburbia. They live in territorial groups and as you have probably noticed, they are very aggressive and will mob predators in their territory.

 

The thing I like about the Noisy Miner is that they are boisterous about predators being nearby. So when I hear their 'alarm calls' I know to head outside and see what's going on. They have alerted me to cats, goannas, many different bird species and foxes.

 

The eggs in the nest have hatched now and it's been great for my children to see the birds working as a community to feed the chicks. My daughter has sat for ages just watching them. She  knows not to climb too high in the tree and disturb the nest. Pretend nest building has become a favourite play activity at the moment. We look forward to seeing the chicks grow and leave the nest.

 

You can see how close the tree (which contains the nest) is to our front door.

Sitting quietly in the tree, watching the mother and her chicks in the nest.

Gum trees at my place - Eucalyptus crebra

Eucalyptus crebra, also known as Narrow-leaved Ironbark or Red Ironbark, is a very dominant tree on our property. This Ironbark along with Spotted Gum, are the two most abundant Eucalyptus in my local area. Eucalyptus crebra really defines my area and as you pass into nearby suburbs it soon becomes less dominant or not present at all. When we first moved to Western Brisbane, Ironbark didn't rank highly in my tree appeal. Though over time I have really taken an interest in Ironbark and the many different species of Ironbark that exist. It's probably one of my favourite Eucalyptus species now but I really love them all for different reasons. Eucalyptus crebra like all Ironbarks, has deeply furrowed and dark coloured bark, so it's very easy to distinguish Ironbarks from other Eucalypts. However within the Ironbark species you need to look closer at the leaves and gum nuts to tell the species apart.

I really love that Eucalyptus crebra is covered in lichen. Ironbark doesn't shed its bark and the deep furrows provide habitat for lichen to grow, so it gains this lovely mottled appearance. No doubt this is why the Tawny Frogmouths love to roost in this tree, as they camouflage so well with it. The leaves are narrow and drooping and have a bluish grey green colour. As you can see in the photos, the canopy is fine and fairly open.

Eucalyptus crebra is the tree in the centre of the photo above. The dark coloured bark is very distinguished.

Gum trees at my place - Corymbia citriodora

Ok, so it's not a Eucalyptus but it's still a gum. Corymbia citriodora is also commonly known as Spotted Gum. It was previously classed as Eucalyptus maculata and while there is still debate surrounding the reclassification of some Eucalypts, it's now mostly known as Corymbia. I'm not going to go into depth about the difference in Eucalyptus, Angophora and Corymbia here (in this post) but if you weren't very familiar with the Spotted Gum and you came across it, you'd think it was a Eucalyptus (which it is or at least was but just not classified that way anymore).

Spotted Gum is a dominant species on my property. It's a familiar gum tree right across western Brisbane and quite easy to identify. Spotted Gum is a grey, tall and smooth barked tree. It has dimples all over its trunk, which look like someone has pressed their thumb into the trunk numerous times. It's mostly a very erect tree, with a fairly open canopy. It's present on shallow, stony soils, which makes it abundant throughout western Brisbane. The flowers and leaves are a very important food source for wildlife. It's a really beautiful gum tree and I consider the tree a major part of identifying this area as my home.

 

You can see in the photo above, this Spotted Gum is rather straight, tall and the limbs start a far way up the trunk.

 

Dimple like impressions are obvious all over the trunk. Each year, generally in Spring, it sheds its bark in patches.

 

 

 Close up view of the dimples.

 

Fairly open canopy.

 

So if you are not familiar with this gum tree, you very well might have one in your garden, street or local area, especially if you live in Western Brisbane.

Gum trees at my place - Eucalyptus major

I've been meaning to get back to my posts about gum trees. Previously in this blog I wrote about getting to know a local area, walking there as much as possible and becoming familiar with the trees. Looking at the bark and the structure of the tree but not having the need to try and identify the tree straight away. Wait until you feel familiar enough with one or two trees, that you can point them out easily, perhaps even away from the area you are frequenting. I will (still) get back to finishing that set of posts but first I really wanted to introduce you to the gum trees at my place.

So the first gum tree I would like to introduce is Eucalyptus major, also known as Grey Gum. This is not a dominant tree on my property, in fact there is only one. It is only moderately common in my area of Western Brisbane and in patchy distribution. However, I think (at certain times of the year) it is really easy to identify and it's also a very pretty gum, one of my very favourites, so here it is on my blog.

The Grey Gum has several shades of grey bark but at different times of the year it sheds its bark in patches to reveal this very distinctly orange bark underneath. Overtime the orange will fade to grey. When it rains the orange is very vibrant and easy to notice and identify. The grey bark is matte like in appearance and while the Grey Gum is a smooth barked gum, when you run your hand over the grey bark it's scaly and rough.

Because the Grey Gum is matte like, claw marks of koalas and possums are really visible on the bark, as you can see in the photos above. This gum mostly grows on stony soils in hilly areas (which is my place).

I have some gum nuts here from the Grey Gum in my collection but no photos of them, so I will be back to upload photos shortly. Isn't it a beautiful tree? I love it.

Lemon Emigrant Butterfly

We all really enjoyed having the caterpillars over the past fortnight. My daughter found five in the garden. We put all five in the cage with food and watched. Two died within a few days. Three made it to the top of the cage and all three managed to attach silk and hang upside down. One didn't form a chrysalis and died (still attached) and the last two formed chrysalis. Then of these two, one constantly twitched within the chrysalis until it fell to the cage floor. I didn't think it would make it but it continued to twitch until it hatched out of its chrysalis. Then it crawled to the top of the cage but would not sit still. It continued to fall and move and had a really difficult time getting its wings out straight to dry. The remaining one still attached to the roof of the cage, hatched out and hung upside down to dry its wings. After a few hours drying time, they both started to flutter about, so we decided it was time to release them. When we released them both, the butterfly who had a straight run so far, flew off eagerly. The other one didn't seem as confident and struggled to fly away gracefully.

It was an amazing process to watch. Of the five caterpillars, it was really only one that developed successfully to adulthood. The others all struggled or died along the way. I'd think that the one which twitched constantly may have even been picked off by a bird, had it still been outside developing in the garden. It was definitely a process of survival of the fittest.

 

The Lemon Emigrant Caterpillar

The Lemon Emigrant in chrysalis form

 



 



 The emergent butterfly

 

This is a photo of the butterfly which fell to the ground while still in the chrysalis. Its wings are still crumpled as it has only just emerged. It's making its way to the walls to climb to the roof of the cage.

 

You can see in the two above photos, that the butterfly who emerged from the chrysalis (that stayed attached to the roof) continued to sit on the empty chrysalis while it dried. Where as the one who crawled to the roof continued to move about to dry.

 



Before we released the butterflies, we had a little garden picnic and left the cage nearby. We watched other Lemon Emigrant Butterflies fly about and pointed out about 8 other species too. It was really lovely to see the look on my daughters face, as the strongest one flew away. I'm sure she will always remember raising and releasing the butterflies.

The loveliest thing about the process, is that today while in the yard my children pointed out Lemon Emigrants as they flew by in the garden. My son who can't talk yet has pointed them out numerous times and called for our attention. If anything, raising the caterpillars has helped my children form a powerful connection to these exquisite little butterflies. No longer is it just a pretty butterfly that they occasionally see flit past their day. This butterfly has a name and a whole life process they have watched and witnessed. It's brought them one step closer to nature.