Cedar Rapids playgrounds may be temporarily closed, but nature is still open! Whether you hit our five miles of trails, a nearby neighborhood park, or your own backyard, we know fresh air and sunshine are good for your mental health. Especially now, it’s important to take the children in your household outside.
For young children especially, learning looks like play! Our education team recommends facilitating outdoor play with the children in your household. Take them outside and let them be the guide. Try offering questions like these to support their experience:
- What is beautiful to you in nature? Can you draw what you are seeing?
- Engage your senses: What do you see? What do you hear? What do you feel? What do you smell?
- Turtles carry their homes on their back — if your backpack was your home, what would you carry with you?
- Can you build a home from materials in nature? What would your home look like?
- Can you move your body like a….. (suggest an animal or plant!)? Pretend you are your favorite animal!
We hope you enjoy the outdoors and the company of each other, and don’t forget to make time to play. When it’s time, the education team at Indian Creek Nature Center will be ready to greet you at Amazing Space.