Making Connection

This might look like an ordinary stroll at the park, but it turned out to be a really exciting day for Le Xin as she explored nature in our neighbourhood park. Le Xin found a stalk of big brown leaves, she was really fascinated by it. In retrospect, I have to ask myself what it was in the leaves that sparked such an excited response from her and what is it that inspired her to find out more? What is it that I could learn from her?

As she looked at the brown leaves and tilted her head to look at the trees up high, I have a hunch it was the colour of the leaves that attracted her attention. The leaves on the ground looked really similiar to the ones on the tree yet somehow they are different!

I carried her to touch the leaves on the trees and explained to her. Le Xin the leaves on the tree are still growing, that is why they are still green and soft unlike the leaves on the ground that are brown and hard. These are dried brown leaves which have fallen off from the trees, they are not growing anymore!

Le Xin continued her exploration, suddently, she squatted down and looked at something.

 I walked and took a closer look too, there it was.... a cute little ant carrying a small stone.

Where do you think the ant is going to? I began to asked Le Xin. She observed where the ant was heading towards and then she stood up and pointed to me the direction that the ant was moving to.

Then I replied Mummy thinks the ant is going to build its  house, what a  busy day for the little ant maybe it will be a good idea to look at the ant again the next time we visit the park, what do you think? Le Xin nodded her head and walked back home with Mummy. At home, I revisited this idea of the nature walk and what she saw by showing her the photos that I took.

Exploring nature not only helps the children to make connections and understand the relationships between plants, animals and the environment, it is also a fantastic way to bond and share. I know how parents love to take pictures of their children engaging in an activity/learning experience but  through my work with young children, I came to realise the importance of taking photos of the objects that the child is looking at so that he/she could revisit the experience and even represent them symbolically through drawing or painting.

What is this life, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

Quoted from the poem Leisure by William Henry Davies.

Start enjoying the nature by just standing and staring. Enjoy!