Jane Goodall: Awakening a sense of wonder

World famous conservationist Dr. Jane Goodall visited Wellington last October. Goodall is best known for her study of chimpanzee social and family life. She is an accomplished speaker, you can watch her latest September 2008 TED talk here. As an environmentalist and humanitarian Dr. Jane Goodall has a firm belief that young people, when informed and empowered, can indeed change the world. She believes it is essential that parents and other mentors of children guide them to make meaningful connections with the natural world. To help accomplish this, she founded Roots & Shoots in 1991, an international environmental and humanitarian programme for youth of all ages. With tens of thousands of young people in almost 100 countries, the Roots & Shoots network connects youth of all ages who share a desire to create a better world.

Recently I came across this video, shot in 1997. In it Jane Goodall expresses the importance of enabling children to form a close relationship with nature, joined by several other environmentalists. If you have 26 minutes to spare it is certainly worth watching.



While the video was shot more then ten years ago, the concerns expressed then are very real today. The increased urbanisation and increased population around the world has strained the relationship between children and the natural world, says Goodall:"I find it terrible sad because I believe children are losing their childhood".

In the video Goodall expresses her thought that more and more people are aware of the fact that children do need to get closer to nature, but most schools and places do not take this into account. She is also terrified of what the internet is going to be, what it is going to do, with children watching more and more tv and playing more and more video games. More then ever our children do need help to reconnect with nature.

I enjoy the holidays, time seems to be irrelevant. Yesterday, after a hot sunny day, it had started raining in the evening and we admired a beautiful rainbow just before sunset. After finishing of some work and some reading I went into our spa pool, at a time the family and the neighborhood were already fast asleep. There was a silence I don't often hear. The rain had now stopped and nature seemed to be asleep. There was no hedgehog fossicking through the bushes, no insect chirping for a mate, no breeze rustling the leaves. The only sound was the occasionally raindrop falling from a leaf onto the earth and a morepork calling in the far distance. The stars twinkling above, the silence all around and the smell of the wet earth, created the perfect setting for some introspection about the year gone and contemplation about the year coming. This is the time of year we sit back, and think about where life is taking us, or where we are taking life, depending on how you view your life. Many of us will use this time to cast our minds forward into the new year and make resolutions.

I hope that nature and children will feature in your thoughts. Our children need us to take them outside, to put them in touch with nature, to let them play free. Let's go outside in the new year. While in 1997 there were Roots & Shoots groups in 29 countries, in 2008, there are well over 8,000 Roots & Shoots youth groups in almost 100 countries. In New Zealand there are currently Roots and Shoots groups in Auckland, Christchurch and Lower Hutt. Why not green your child and start a Roots and Shoots group in your area this new year?

Links:

• Children and Nature: Awakening a sense of wonder, with Jane Goodall, 1997
• TED talk: Helping humans and animals live together in Africa, by Jane Goodall, 2008

The greatest of all, our most precious resource

Christmas in New Zealand is the start of the summer holidays. Our preschool is closed until the end of January. Closing the doors for summer happens with mixed feelings as I look forward to some rest and family time on one hand, while I will miss the children and fellow teachers on the other hand.

This year especially has been a year of unforgettable memories with the children. We have watched butterflies emerge from chrysalises, observed black birds take a bath, rescued beetles from drowning,moved spiders into the garden and shared many more moments of wonder. We've also had many, many visitors to our preschool, visitors who are especially interested in our outdoor programme and naturalised environment. It has been inspiring to share thoughts and experiences with each other and to receive wonderful feedback.

For us the year has been a year of consolidation, review and reflection as we strengthened our programme of reconnecting our children with nature and created more opportunities for our children to be involved in their natural environment. We have taken a step back and worked with them to find a better balance and give them more quiet time. A time when they can just "be" and experience stillness, reflection, and calmness. A time to connect. We listen to a special story or relaxing music. Sometimes we listen to the howling wind, or the rain on the veranda roof or we move our mats onto the grass and watch the clouds. We have taken time out of our busy programme to go for "walks" in our garden and to stop and marvel at the little treasures we find on our path, a pollinating bee, a humming dragonfly, a sprouting acorn. There is so much to see and do outside, and by sharing this with our children we open our hearts to the daily wonders we can find right at our doorstep.

Its been a year full of wonders and treasured moments, many thanks to our wonderful teachers and fantastic parents. But the most joy came from our most precious resource, our children. You are the greatest off all. Thank you for sharing with me the joys of learning and a love for the natural world, teaching me to take time out and appreciate with you the beauty and mystery of the world around us.I wish you joy, love, and peace this holiday season. Arohanui.

Cricket galore

Insects play an important part at our preschool (see here and here). There isn't a day going past that we haven't stopped and marveled at one of our tiny little friends, be it a worm, a beetle, a bee or one of insects close relatives, a spider.

We currently have a cricket breeding tank set up in our classroom. I bought the crickets (teleogryllus commodus) from the pet shop where they are sold as feeding insects for lizards, frogs etc. With some help of the internet we set up a bigger home for the crickets, and included a breeding dish. We put wet sand in a small dish and kept it moist with a sprayer. Any eggs deposited into the soil need to be kept moist and warm, but not too moist and not too warm. Once we found little white deposits in the soil, we assumed they were cricket eggs, and I took the dish home to make sure it would stay warm and moist 24/7. I put the dish on my computer router for warmth and sprayed them daily. To my amazement the set up seemed to work and we now have over a hundred little "pinsize" cricket hatchlings, called nymphs. The adult crickets stayed at preschool, to great amusement of the children. We enjoy listening to the chirping of the crickets, it adds a soothing background noise to the hum of the classroom. It is also fascinating to watch the crickets so closeup, as they will come out from their hiding places and "sing", by rubbing their wings. Remember as a child, every time you would get close to the chirping cricket in your backyard it would stop singing and you couldn't locate the little creature?

Children have a natural fascination for insects. They enjoy watching caterpillars, moths and butterflies. Summer is the time of year you can listen to the songs of nature with several insect singers in your garden. Many insects sing to impress a mate. If the weather and temperature is right you can hear crickets, cicadas,or katydids. Here in Wellington the cicadas haven't really started yet, although I heard some the other day. Once the cicadas start, summer really has arrived, and we will be deafened by a cacophony of singers (click here to hear a cicada).

Below is a jukebox of insect singers from songsofinsects.com. Although these are recordings taken in the US and Canada, some of the songs are similar to their New Zealand counterpart. Why not take your child outside these summer holidays and listen to the songs of nature? How many insect songs can you identify?

The gift of lasting memories

"If a child is to keep his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in." - Rachel Carson

In this day and age we are raising a generation that is more separated from nature then ever. A separation that has made us "inside" creatures, that has led us to a fear of the outdoors and that has fostered an unease with silence. A generation that is no longer part of the natural world around us, but lives in a virtual world of online communication, online shopping and online socialising, a virtual world where we can pretend to be someone else -- without being who we actually are. We are living in a world that places importance on going, doing and becoming.

In the next couple of weeks we will run, race, shop and hunt for presents and gifts. With the festive season upon us, we will be frantically browsing through toy catologues, online bargains and watching sales for the latest fad and newest gadget. But what do our children need most? Studies have shown that nature is important for our children's health. Our children today are out of touch with our natural world and they need us, the adults to teach them to love the nature around them. Childhood is the time to discover and enjoy the wonders of nature.

From the Children, Nature and You website:

"Allowing a young child to experience the natural world is not just a nice thing to do; it is their birthright, and is essential for their academic, physical, emotional, and spiritual development."

So when you are running around, trying to find that last minute gift, stand back for a moment and think about that one gift that only you can give. The one gift you can't buy in a shop, you won't find on sale, is not available online and will last long after the plastic toys have broken. That gift is YOU. Give the gift of YOUR TIME to your child and take them outside. Spend time with your child doing things that you love -- hiking, camping, fishing, beachwalks, stargazing, cloudwatching, bushwalks. Take your child outside, and let them pick up, touch and feel a prickly weed, a slimy worm, a hard rock. Let your child get their feet wet and their hands dirty. Show them how to be respectful to all living things.

"Teaching children about the natural world should be seen as one of the most important events in their lives." - Thomas Berry

There are so many lessons that can be learned from being outside in nature, lessons that children can not learn from playing with the latest fad and newest gadget. This Christmas it is time to give the gift of lasting memories -- YOU.


Links

• Conserving land, preserving human health, by Howard Frumkin and Richard Louv (short version)
• The powerful link between conserving land and preserving health, by Howard Frumkin and Richard Louv (long version)
• Movement to reconnect kids with nature growing nationwide: Working to improve children's health, by the American Public Health Association
• Adding awe and wonder to children's lives, by Children, Nature and You

Beaver and beech replaced with blog and broadband

Adder, ass, beaver, boar, budgerigar, bullock, cheetah, colt, corgi, cygnet, doe, drake, ferret, gerbil, goldfish, guinea pig, hamster, heron, herring, kingfisher, lark, leopard, lobster, magpie, minnow, mussel, newt, otter, ox, oyster, panther, pelican, piglet, plaice, poodle, porcupine, porpoise, raven, spaniel, starling, stoat, stork, terrapin, thrush, weasel, wren.

Acorn, allotment, almond, apricot, ash, bacon, beech, beetroot, blackberry, blacksmith, bloom, bluebell, bramble, bran, bray, bridle, brook, buttercup, canary, canter, carnation, catkin, cauliflower, chestnut, clover, conker, county, cowslip, crocus, dandelion, diesel, fern, fungus, gooseberry, gorse, hazel, hazelnut, heather, holly, horse chestnut, ivy, lavender, leek, liquorice, manger, marzipan, melon, minnow, mint, nectar, nectarine, oats, pansy, parsnip, pasture, poppy, porridge, poultry, primrose, prune, radish, rhubarb, sheaf, spinach, sycamore, tulip, turnip, vine, violet, walnut, willow

These are some of the words Oxford University Press has removed from its Junior Dictionary and replaced them with words like blog, broadband, celebrity, MP3 player, voicemail, attachment, database, export, chatroom, bullet point, cut and paste, and analogue and other "plugged in" words.

In the last 30 years, says journalist Richard Louv (I wrote about his book "Last child in the woods" here), children of the digital age have become increasingly alienated from the natural world, with disastrous implications, not only for their physical fitness, but also for their long-term mental and spiritual health. Advances in technology, while opening up a wealth of "virtual" experiences to the young, have made it easier and easier for children to spend less time outside. Says Louv: "It's one thing to read about a frog, it's another to hold it in your hand and feel its life".

The loss of the names of so many plants and animals from the dictionary will hinder children's understanding and appreciation of the natural world, contributing to the disconnection with nature. Well known Canadian wildlife artist and conservationist Robert Bateman said in an interview with The Canadian Press, the decision is telling children that nature just isn't that important.

"This is another nail in the coffin of human beings being acquainted with nature," Bateman said."If you can't name things, how can you love them? And if you don't love them, then you're not going to care a hoot about protecting them or voting for issues that would protect them."

"I find it frightening what is happening, that people are losing a connection with nature," he said. "And the younger generation are losing a connection with nature much more than the older generation. That's why when it's a children's dictionary it's all the more horrifying."

Now let me share an incident that happened at our preschool today.

One of our four year olds found a bumble bee on the garden path. It was alive, but not flying. She carefully picked it up, using a piece of bark and examined it. She discovered it only had one wing. She was very concerned about the bumble bee and didn't want it to get trampled on.

So she took it to one of our outside tables. There she nurtured it. She "build a home", using pine cones, twigs, and bark. She then picked some buttercups and put those near the bumble bee. "It wants to pollinate" she said. The other children nodded in agreement, not in the slightest puzzled about the word she used.

At our preschool we teach our children the names of the plants and animals we find in our garden. Sometimes the children teach us (see here). And if we don't know the names we help the children looking it up in our reference guides. Words like "thorax", "carapace" and "lamallae" are regularly used as we teach our children about the natural world. Children at this young age love language and absorb new words easily. They are intrigued with names like "arachnid" and "invertebrate". Like Bateman said, how can we expect our children to save the earth if they can't even name a dandelion or buttercup in their garden.

How many four year olds do you know who can say "tyranosaurus rex" without hesitation? Do you also teach them words like "tentacles", "spiracles", and "pistil"?

Playing video games versus catching frogs, who is the real winner?

Watch this NY Times Magazine video from YouTube, check out the faces and expressions of the children playing video games.




Now watch this video from YouTube, one of our preschool children and his older brother catching frogs. Check out their expressions.




Which one do you think nourishes positive lifeshaping memories?

Who are going to be our environmental leaders of tomorrow?

Today, 7 years ago, New Zealand lost one of its heroes. Sir Peter Blake was tragically killed by pirates, while working on his expedition boat in the Amazon where he was monitoring global warming and pollution for the United Nations. Sir Peter Blake was the most accomplished sailor of our time, winning the Whitbread Round-the-World Race, setting a nonstop round-the-world record and winning two American cup races. When his active racing days were over, he remained at sea. First as head of expeditions for the Cousteau Society and later on his own. He sailed on behalf of oceanographic research and environmental awareness.

Together with Sir Edmund Hillary (another great New Zealand hero), Sir Peter Blake rates high on my list of New Zealand people to admire. Both have left a legacy, not only because of their unsurpassed achievements in their chosen discipline, climbing, or sailing, but for what they did with their success and fame after they achieved the highest standards. Sir Edmund Hillary devoted much of his life to helping the Sherpa people of Nepal through the Himalayan Trust which he founded. Sir Peter Blake set up his Blakexpeditions, leading expeditions aboard the Seamaster, collecting data for environmental purposes. Rather then retiring, these people worked hard and shared their amazing vision and passion. In Sir Peter's words:

"Having vision is not enough. Change comes through realising the vision and turning it into a reality. It is easy to espouse worthy goals, values and policies; the hard part is implementation."

In December 2003, the Sir Peter Blake Trust was established in his memory. The trust aims to help New Zealanders make a positive difference for the planet through activities that encourage environmental awareness and action, and leadership development.The Trust wants to carry on Sir Peter’s work and keep his spirit and values alive for future generations through a range of initiatives, including the annual Sir Peter Blake Leadership Awards.

Sir Peter Blake had outstanding leadership qualities. With our planet in dismay, it is people like Sir Peter we desperately need. People who poses the, what I call, PICC attributes, Passion, Innovation, Creativity and Curiosity. Studies have shown that our environmental leaders of today were influenced by two main reasons. First, as young children, they were given plenty of opportunity for outdoor play. Secondly, parents or another respected adult were part of that experience. Here is a short YouTube video why nature based play is vital to early childhood education.



It is these hands-on experiences that nurture the PICC attributes. Time for children to explore and discover on their own lies at the heart of childhood. It nurtures children's artistic and creative capabilities, flexibility, intuition and their ability to internalise and to think outside the box.

Children who experience nature firsthand are far more likely to develop a joy for life and grow into caring adults. Our children today need opportunities to interact with nature in order to grow into the responsible leader of tomorrow. As a parent or teacher you can give them this time and model the enthusiasm, respect and care for our environment every time you are with your child.

Nature teaches many lessons

Today I learned a big lesson from a three year old. When he was busy fishing the grass grub beetles from the water in the bucket (read previous post), I asked him what he thought the beetles were called, as I, myself, had no idea (I am learning as much as the children are). He gave me a name with this typical three year old pronunciation, and it sounded rather foreign to me, but something like “Christmas beetle”. I thought it was something he made up, as Christmas is looming, and I suggested looking it up in one of our books. He was rather adamant that it was a “Christmas beetle”, but I dismissed it and we identified the beetle as a grass grub beetle. How surprised I was when today I showed his mum one of the beetles and she called it “Christmas beetle”. In New Zealand the grass grub beetle is known as “Christmas beetle” as that is the time of the year the beetles come out and are abundant. How right our three year old was, how wrong I was in not listening to him. There are several lessons to be learned from this. It made me think, but I am very excited about the knowledge of this three year old and how much I can learn from our youngsters, no matter how old they are. Children often know more then you think they know. We are all learning from each other, we are all on this journey. The connections we are making, sharing nature with each other, are a wonder in itself.