Week 3, the rainy week!
For our third week, our second teacher Ms. Paula starting working with us!
It was thundering at the beginning of class so we ended up staying close to the building after our check in circle. We put our gear on the tables under the deck and went a few steps to meet Sassafras! Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) is an amazing aromatic plant helpful for making fires, and using as a toothbrush as it is anti-septic.
We also ate some Honeysuckle nectar (Lonicera japonica)! Lastly, we cut down some Joe pye weed stalks (Eutrochium) to make sweet water straws! They are really fun because you can make a straw 6 feet or taller that makes your water taste sweet!
We then gathered back under the deck to test our straws while Ms. Paula brought out some materials to paint with! Some of the kids experimented using the rain drops as a mixture in their medium! I also brought over a piece of charcoal to crush up and use as well. Ms. Paula then taught us a really cool song before we headed to the outdoor classroom.
We did an exercise called Meet-a -Tree which is all about using your non-visual senses. In partnered groups, one person chooses to be blindfolded while the other safely guides them to a tree. The blindfolded person then takes their time to feel the bark, the thickness of the tree, maybe even smell the area around the tree! When they are done sensing, their buddy guides them back to a central area, and has them remove their blindfold. The goal is then to try to find the same tree! It is amazing how much more you pay attention when not relying on sight!
We ended the day with some freeplay in the outdoor classroom. Some of the kids even found a toad high up in one of the dead trees roots! It’s always amazing to see where animals will hang our during the rain 🙂
