Winter/Spring '24 Knee High Naturalists | Wednesday, Week 10

Hello one and all, welcome back to the best nature program of all! Take off the rain jackets, put on your sandals and take a walk on the wild side to see what a day in the life of your Knee High Naturalist looks like!

We started off our morning together with a sign of relief, so surprised that the sun came out, we were in disbelief! Spring ephemerals like Spring Beauty, Trillium and May Apples greeted us as we began to play, it was so nice to see so many green plants out today. We got to work digging and raking, looking for little insects who were just waking. It didn’t take long until all naturalists were here, we packed up our stuff and got into gear! Colorful banners welcomed us into the pavilion, celebrating our growth and making us feel like one in a million. We learned about the life cycle of plants and how they start from a tiny little seed and eventually grow into things that are bigger than you and me! We became sunflower seeds, crouched in a ball, waiting for the rain and sun to come out so we could grow tall.

With all of the growing we got very hungry, so we took a break to eat snack where it was very sunny. Ms. Miranda and Ms. Aspen were surprised to see all ten of us crammed on one picnic table, eating together with glee! We ran and we climbed, playing together and passing the time. It was long before jackets, rain pants and sweatshirts littered the ground, we got too hot running around! We ran from the lava monster and stayed safe on top of rocks, we found cool mushrooms and explored them a lot. Soon it was time for us to decorate our flower pots, we colored and we stamped until our little pots were revamped. One by one, we all got to plant our own seeds, sunflowers and marigolds, no weeds! Once all of our planting was done, we cleaned up and got ready to have some fun. We got to walk on the brand new Family Path and test the new outdoor classroom, we already can’t wait for class to resume! We ended our day on the nature playscape, scooping sand, climbing spiderwebs and uncovering insects we lost long ago. Soon, it was time for the show, so we packed up our stuff and were ready to go. All of our families greeted us today, here to celebrate all of the progress and growth we’ve made! Everyone clapped and cheered as we walked on by, how lucky we are to have such wonderful families by our side.

Thank you all so much for taking the time out of your day to come and celebrate all of our Knee High Naturalists growth, progress and achievements over the past ten weeks! It truly has been our pleasure to create a safe space for your children and guide them as they explore the natural world. Wednesday’s class of students have been together since September, the friendships and personalities that have blossomed over the past seven months are absolutely incredible—your children work together day in and day out to investigate all things nature related, develop games, build forts and much more. Their social and inter-personal skills have developed so much that many of your children eagerly join the class every morning, excited to see their friends. Their motor skills, both fine and gross, have grown so much with all of the bug picking, rock flipping, stick choosing and climbing we seek out! You and your naturalists have impacted Miranda and I greatly, teaching us how to be curious, resilient and how to enjoy the weather, no matter what the circumstances are. We wish you all the best, hope you have a wonderful summer and look forward to catching up soon!