Family Cycling Adventures

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Family Cycling Adventures

Here’s a great idea for being active and spending time with those you love, even during social distancing in the pandemic.

child riding bicycleThe Ernsting family meet up for family cycling adventures on nearby trails.  Kids, parents and grandparents can all join in.  Pack a delicious lunch or snack as an added enticement for the trip!  Make sure everyone brings water to drink, uses sunscreen and wears a helmet.

Going exploring on bikes relates to several of the Pathway Landmarks:

  • LANDMARK 4 – Visit a favourite outdoor place every week (Age 4-5 years)
  • LANDMARK 9 – Visit an outdoor place that is special to you (Age 6-7 years)
  • LANDMARK 13 – Travel by yourself or with a friend on a familiar route (Age 8-9 years); Let the children help plan the route if you’re working on Landmark 13
  • LANDMARK 14 – Try several kinds of outdoor recreation that don’t need gasoline or electricity (Age 8-9 years)

If you live in the Peterborough region, we’re blessed with wonderful trail systems, both in town and in the county.  We also have great cycling support services.  Get started close to home with the City of Peterborough Trails Map.  Peterborough and the Kawarthas also have some great cycling route maps and other info for keen cyclists.

Keep trips short if you’re travelling with young children, and lengthen the trip as kids build strength and confidence.  Try cycling to a place where kids can explore and play, to break up the trip and give kids a rest.  Sharpen your eyes and ears while you’re travelling to listen for new sounds or look for interesting bugs, birds or animals along the way.

If you need help with repairing or finding a bike, or some guidance on how to cycle safely, contact BIKE, Peterborough’s community bike shop.

BIKE and GreenUP have changed-up their Pedal Power program, normally offered to schools in June.  This year, it’s Pedal Power from Home and is available to families online.  While the available prizes wrap up at the end of June, the excellent cycling workshops are available throughout the summer.  They’re filled with fun activities, bike drills and information focused on road safety and bike handling skills that families can do from home.

Bird of the Month

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Bird of the Month:

Meet the Yellow Warbler!

Yellow WarblerSummer is a perfect time to go searching for new feathered friends. This perky ray of sunshine is quite common in our area in spring and summer. Incredibly, the tiny Yellow Warbler flies all the way from South and Central America every spring to find places to breed in North America. Look for reddish streaks on the breast (males), a black beak and sweet black eyes in an unmarked face. Listen for its song – it sounds like it’s saying “Sweet, sweet, I’m so sweet…”

Yellow warblers feed mostly on insects, and can be found around woodland edges, streamsides and brushy areas.  Look for them in late spring and early summer, as they often start their long migration south during the month of August.  To learn the yellow warbler’s song, check out the Cornell birding website, ‘All About Birds.’  Getting to know the birds around you is part of LANDMARK 12 (Who Else Lives in Your Neighbourhood?).

Don’t be fooled by another common yellow bird – the American Goldfinch.  Male goldfinches are also bright yellow in the summer, but they have a black cap and black wings.  Goldfinches stay here for the winter, and are commonly seen all year at bird feeders.

For a bigger challenge for older children and youth, try reporting your bird sightings to eBird to help track trends in bird populations worldwide.  This is LANDMARK 22  (Become a Citizen Scientist).  Check out the Merlin website to help you learn to identify the birds you see.  Watching birds is great fun, and a good focus for walks outdoors.

Photo by Kyle Dueck

Ideas Aplenty…

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Ideas Aplenty…

Our thanks to Kathy MacMillan-Jones for sharing these ideas for summer family fun with kids of many different ages.  Remember to report what you did with the new Landmark reporting form on the Pathway website!

Early Years (0-3)

   LANDMARK 1 (Explore Outdoors) and LANDMARK 3 (Exercise the Senses)
  • Look for little things to explore that are within reach and eyesight – an ant hill, a worm, a flower budding, Worm in handinteresting tree bark, or a patch of grass. Draw your child’s attention to some detail like “the bark feels bumpy”, “the grass tickles”.  See if they can notice something as well. It’s helpful if your child can actively participate, like digging in a patch of dirt or “hugging” a tree. Make a little rhyme for the life you are noticing like “my big tree is bigger than me” or “squirmy squirmy wormy worm” that you can recall later. Try to revisit that spot once a week for several weeks to look for changes/similarities.
  • Go for a walk in a variety of weathers – rainy (look for puddles), hot (look for shade), cold (run to stay warm) etc.

Ages 4-5 years

   LANDMARK 7 (Share a Nature-Based Story, Song or Poem)
  • Make a poem about all the things you notice this week outside and pin it on your fridge.  Use a pattern starter, for instance,   “I like” X 3, or “I hear”, “I smell”
  • For example:  I like (the lilacs), I like (the wind), I like (the ants)
   LANDMARK 8 (Create a nature art project)
  • Gather some loose natural material and create a design on the grass or sidewalk using cut grass, pinecones, pebbles, sand, etc. Take a picture and share with a friend. See if your friend can make something to send to you!

Ages 8-9 years

   LANDMARK 13 (Travel by yourself on a familiar route)
  • Make a list of different ways you can go up and down your street by yourself – walking, running, hopping, etc. Predict how long each method will take and then record the actual time. Challenge a friend to try your ways and have them think of one more. Keep the game going as long as you can. How many ways did you think of together? What was the fastest way? What was the slowest? Which one did you feel most proud of? Why?

Ages 10-11 years

   LANDMARK 18 (Create a video about a natural area)
  • Choose one natural area you have been to. ReseaChild on path in the woodsrch an animal, a plant, and a tree that grows there. Make a video that highlights what you love about this place, and some cool facts you know about at least 3 things that live there – an info-mercial!
  • If it is a provincial or national park, be sure to send them an email to tell them what you have made, and share it if possible. If it is a neighbourhood place, share with a neighbour and ask them what they love about that space. Maybe you can do a neighbourhood survey to see if 10 people all love the same thing!

Great News!

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Great News!

Expanded Support from the Ontario Trillium Foundation

We have received very good news that we’re delighted to share.  The Ontario Trillium Foundation has approved significant funding for a three year expansion of the Pathway Project!  That means we’ll be able to support our goal that every young person in our region can experience the 30 Landmarks outlined in our Pathway Guidebook.  We can continue to work together to nurture the stewards of tomorrow!

Now that we’ve completed our pilot phase, we’re ready to expand our reach in a big way!  While we’ll be focusing most of our supports in the Peterborough region, anyone can participate, and work through the Landmark activities as their children/students learn and grow.

boy and girl looking in waterThe 30 Landmarks are a great place to start for anyone who doesn’t already spend a lot of time outdoors, and for those who do, we’re setting up lots of ways to share ideas – by reports submitted to the website, through social media, newsletters, magazine articles and through the regional workshops we’ll be hosting for teachers and parents.

The Pathway Project is a collective of many regional partners, directed by Camp Kawartha.  The Trillium funding will help many of these agencies provide guidance and support to schools and families as we build a culture that nurtures stewardship and kinship in every child.  We can now help with the cost of schoolyard projects, art materials, ‘loose parts’ play materials, bus subsidies and expert visits, as long as they help children with Landmark experiences.  More details soon, as we ramp up the expanded project.  It’s all very exciting!

Especially after spending so much time indoors and with limited contact with others during the pandemic, our kids need the Pathway’s Landmarks now more than ever.  Opportunities to explore and treasure the outdoors, and build meaningful and supportive relationships with others in the community, will be important steps in restoring wellbeing in our children and youth, as well as the adults who care about them!  We hope you and the children in your life will travel the Pathway with us.

 

Winter Games

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Winter Games

Getting to Know Your Local Birds!

Did you know that the average child recognizes hundreds of corporate logos but fewer than 10 local plants or animals?  Getting to know your ‘neighbourwood’ is an important first step in connecting with the natural world.

While some local birds fly south for the winter, many stay around, and can be a focus for lots of winter sleuthing, especially if there’s a birdfeeder nearby.  Here’s an activity that exercises the memory and observation skills, in preparation for going outdoors in winter, especially with Grade 1-2 children working on Landmark 12 (Getting to Know Local Plants and Animals).  Older children and adults can play too.

Winter Birds Memory Game

This idea is inspired by a Christmas gift of a game of birds from around the world, where the goal is to find matches of males and females of the same species.  This version has a simpler, more local focus, based on common winter birds in the Peterborough area.

Find pictures online of any of the following birds:

  • Black-capped chickadee
  • White-breasted nuthatch
  • Northern Cardinal
  • Blue Jay
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • House Sparrow
  • Red-breasted nuthatch
  • Rock Pigeon
  • Goldfinch
  • European Starling

(if you know of others in your area, include them too)

Paste the pictures into a template of squares (2.5” to 3” are ideal), and make sure you have two copies of each picture.  Use card stock or bristleboard if possible, so you can’t see through the paper when they’re placed face-down.  Write the name of each bird on each square.

Bird Game Template

TO PLAY:

Turn all the squares face-down on a table or other flat surface.  Every player turns over two cards, saying the names of the birds on each card, then turning the cards face-down again.  The goal of the game is to remember the location of each card that was turned over, so you can turn up a matched pair when it’s your turn.  If you find a matched pair, you take them off the table and keep them.  Whenever you find a pair, you get an extra turn.  This game can be played by various numbers of people, but 2 to 5 people are best, so you don’t have to wait too long for your turn.

To make the game more permanent, you can laminate the cards so they’ll last through many games.  For older children, you could make sets of local flowers, animals, insects or trees.  The memory challenge of the game is a great mental workout for all ages!

Survey Report Available

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Survey Report Available

At the start of pilot testing, educators, parents and grade 7-8 students completed surveys that assessed attitudes, behaviours and potential barriers to integrating Pathway Landmarks into daily life.  689 surveys were collected from local schools and homes, which provided fantastic local information about children from birth through the elementary grades.

Many thanks to everyone who helped to prepare, complete and assess the Pathway start-up surveys, and especially to Trent University Professor Lisa Nisbet and her assistants in analyzing the results.

Survey results are available in three formats:

Samples of start-up survey learnings:

  • Educators and parents reported an interest in doing more activities outdoors, but need ideas and support to help increase outdoor time
  • Parks and conservation areas were consistently mentioned as favourite places for families to visit

  • Teachers are challenged with limited access to natural areas within walking distance and high costs for bussing; 100% of Grade 5-6 teachers said that easy access to natural areas near homes and schools is very important for their students
  • Outdoor time decreases considerably during winter months in all age groups, both at home and at school; ideas for winter activities and advice on dressing for the weather could help overcome this challenge
  • Older students (grades 7-8) spend considerable sedentary time every week; opportunities to mentor younger students in outdoor activities would build their leadership skills and boost their physical health through increased activity
  • Schools would appreciate help from the community, such as:
    • Mentors to accompany primary students on walks in the neighbourhood
    • Opportunities to meet animals in primary grades
    • Help with growing food or wildlife gardens in grades 3-4
    • Finding nearby renewable energy demonstrations for grades 5-6
    • Finding opportunities for involvement in meaningful community projects in grades 7-8

Pilots a Big Success

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Pilots a Big Success

Many thanks to all the great folks at our six pilot communities who worked so hard to make Pathway Landmark activities a regular part of their day.  Three cheers to Peterborough Child and Family Centres, Compass Early Learning and Care, Millbrook South Cavan Elementary, St. Joseph Elementary in Douro, Queen Elizabeth Elementary, and Immaculate Conception Elementary for their great teamwork, super ideas, and dedication to the wellbeing of our kids and our world.

Kids on Snowshoes

Here’s a sample of success stories:

  • All elementary grades reported an increase in outdoor activities
  • Preschool and Kindergarten educators provided many new creative sensory and nature-based activity centres and opportunities to interact with living things
  • All Grade 1-2 teachers involved their class in gardening (up from 44% in start-up surveys)
  • 56% of Grade 3-4 teachers had involved their class in planning a trip (up from 0% in start-up surveys)
  • All Grade 3-4 classes tried new outdoor activities, with increases in growing food, nature art, growing wildlife gardens, tree planting, keeping bird feeders and outdoor exploration

Rock and Leaf Art

  • All Grade 5-6 classes visited a public park as well as an outdoor education centre while they pilot-tested Pathway Landmark activities
  • 80% of Grade 7-8 classes explored a stream (up from 14% before the pilot project), 100% participated in a multi-cultural event (up from 29%) and 60% helped with a habitat improvement project (up from 29%)

We were encouraged to hear that all educators said the Pathway Project benefitted their classes, with 69% responding ‘very beneficial.’  Teachers noted improved behaviour, increased physical stamina, improved ability to focus attention, increased outdoor confidence and respect for living things, and greater interest in being at school.

Based on these responses, we are working to expand the project and its community supports.

 

 

Immaculate Conception – on the Pathway

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Immaculate Conception – on the Pathway

“At Immaculate we don’t see the Pathway program as a checklist for individual classrooms. We are embracing the program and looking for ways to build relationships in the outdoors between younger and older students. We are weaving the landmarks into the fabric of our school. We are a school that is based on teamwork and providing leadership opportunities for our students.” 

Lindsay Bowen, Gr 2-3 teacher, Immaculate Conception C. E. S.
A nature walk with Immaculate Conception C. E. S. students.

January 24, 2019 – Immaculate Conception Elementary School is one of the Pathway’s pilot schools in the City of Peterborough. They’re doing so many great things! Here’s a small sample:

  • Pathway tracking sheets are posted in the hallways throughout the school. They’re a reminder of the Landmarks for each age group, and an inspiring record of what’s happening in the school, right now! 
  • Kindergarten classes go for a nature walk every week, and bring back treasures for their nature collection; they had a visitor talk to them about ants; they went hunting for ants, drew pictures and made ant sculptures with recycled materials. 
  • Grade 1-3 classes had an exciting visit from “Nature Nancy” from Think Outside; they visit favourite outdoor places every two weeks, and do activities to celebrate the season every week. 
  • Grade 4-5 classes go for walks every month to a favourite nearby place; they started plants from seed in the classroom, which they’re caring for over the winter, and they’ll take care of the school’s Food Forest this spring; they plan to borrow GPS units from a local high school and start geocaching as well. 
  • Grade 6 classes go for walks to the Art Gallery, Del Crary Park, the Museum, and they take nature walks with their kindergarten friends; they tried out a new sport – “sit volleyball” and they’ve built statues from found materials and taken pictures of changes to the natural environment. 
  • Grade 8 students have taken on a leadership role in planning and conducting projects to benefit the whole school community; they’ve been working with GreenUP to promote walking and wheeling to school, organizing a school fitness program, and they’re working on plans for an outdoor classroom and possible greenhouse. 

Keep up the great work, Immaculate! They’d like to hear what other schools are doing, so share your ideas through info@pathwayproject.ca 

Frozen Sun Catchers

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Frozen Sun Catchers

A recipe for easy mid-winter magic

January 23, 2019

Ingredients

  • Found nature objects – Twigs, leaves, berries, pine cones
  • Container to freeze the water in – aluminum pie plates are perfect!
  • Water
  • Something to hang them: twine, yarn, ribbon
  • Freezing temperatures

Steps

  1. Lay out your nature objects in the base of your container for freezing
  2. Lay the twine amidst the nature objects with a large loop or two loose ends hanging out – this will be your hang or tie 
  3. Place your creations on a flat outdoor surface where they can freeze undisturbed (window sill, picnic table, etc.)
  4. Slowly pour in water until the container is full and ensure your twine/ribbon are still submerged
  5. Set the outdoor temperature to below freezing 😉 **freeze overnight for best results

Hang this ice art from a tree branch in a sunny spot where the sun will shine through and slowly melt it away, transforming your creation throughout the day.

Tips

  • play with colours, textures, patterns… Eating oranges?  Add visual a-peel with pieces of rind or slices interspersed 
  • Make minis in ice cube trays
  • Fancy a rainbow catcher? Add food coloring
  • Use bundt pans for a frozen wreath


Warning: This recipe will quickly become a staple on your nature crafting menu!


Stories in the Soft Snow

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Stories in the Soft Snow

A lesson in animal tracking with Jacob Rodenburg

“We humans often think we’re the only ones who write stories, but in truth animals write stories in the soft snow every winter, and we can follow them and learn what they were doing…It’s just nice for us to know that animals have a life – they’re looking for food, they’re finding shelter.  It’s great to get out in the cold winter with your family and follow tracks.” 

Jacob Rodenburg, Executive Director, Camp Kawartha and co-author of The Big Book of Nature Activities: A Year-Round Guide to Outdoor Learning

January 23, 2019 – Some animals hibernate but you don’t need to!  In this lovely video lesson in Animal Tracking, Jacob Rodenburg, Executive Director at Camp Kawartha shares the joy and rich learning that arise when a fresh blanket of snow reveals the oft-hidden lives of animals all around us, through their tracks in the snow.  All we need to do is venture out and follow along.

VIDEO: A Lesson in Animal Tracking with Jacob Rodenburg

Watch as Jacob introduces us to animal tracking in the snow, demonstrating a great winter tracking activity we can all try with the children in our lives, as well as what to look for as we venture out and onto a fresh blanket of snow.  This clip is both a playful demonstration and chalk full of fun facts and important naturalist insights.

Ready to try?  Jacob shares two great steps for getting started:

Step 1 – When you look at an animal track, try to figure out what direction it was going in?  Often when animals walk they have a scuff mark at the heal which is a good hint which way it was going.

Step 2 – How was it moving? Walking? Stride is close together.  Why is this stride so long?  Was the animal running?

As you follow its trail, what was the animal doing? Look for: was it running, was it walking, was it eating?

Look alongside the sidewalks or the trails you travel.  Have you seen the tracks Jacob stamped in the snow?

Thanks to Jacob for sharing the stories of animals in the snow!

Follow an animal Pathway – where will it lead?

Want more info?  Enjoy these articles: Take it Outside: Enjoying the Gifts of Winter, by Jacob Rodenburg and How to be a Winter Wildlife Detective, by David Bree of Ontario Parks.


Parent and Educator Survey Results

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The Results Are In

Pathway Parent and Educator Surveys

January 23, 2019 – Three cheers to all the teachers, parents and students who completed surveys for the Pathway pilot sites.  What a lot of great information you provided!  We received 684 surveys that help us learn what’s important to you and the challenges in your life.  We were impressed by the thought and effort shown by the responses.  
 
Each age group had its own survey, ranging from preschool to grade eight.  We wanted to know how many of the Pathway “Landmarks” are already part of your lives, how familiar you are with our local community, and what barriers you face in including more outdoor time in your lives.  We’re still compiling and assessing this wonderful wealth of information, but here are a few tidbits to share, based on responses from the primary grades: 

  1. Parents shared lots of great ideas for outdoor activities for each season; teachers find a much bigger challenge in getting outdoors with their classes, with fewer ideas for larger groups of children. 
  2. For parents, the biggest barrier to getting outside is lack of time; for teachers, it’s lack of resources, ideas for outdoor activities, and support. 
  3. Parents indicated relatively low worries about safety when their families are outdoors; teachers are very worried about safety issues (liability concerns are huge). 
  4. Teachers love to use natural areas in their schoolyards, if they’re available.  They find it difficult to take classes off the school property. 
  5. Families love to spend time in familiar places, especially family cottages, farms or their own backyards.  They also love local parks, especially if they’re easy to get to. 
  6. Most-mentioned favourite public places include Riverview Park and Zoo, Jackson Park, Millbrook Trails, Rogers Cove and Peterborough’s trail system. 
  7. Teachers and parents want IDEAS for outdoor games, nature art, crafts and songs. 
  8. The majority of teachers and parents said that their interest in the outdoors was greater than their knowledge – many felt they didn’t know much about nature. 
  9. Most teachers and parents said that their students/kids were very interested in the natural world. 
  10. Teachers and parents who completed our surveys all agreed that physical activity, outdoor play, and play in nature are very important for children. 

Based on these preliminary responses, you’ll find some ideas for nature games, crafts and other activities on this website.

Cold, Wet, Muddy and Fun

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Cold, Wet, Muddy and Fun

January 23, 2019 – Our Cold, Wet, Muddy and Fun! workshop with Sue Ferren was so true to name!  Not only did we experience first-hand all of the chilly temps, rain, mud and snow within the span of our Saturday morning together, but we enjoyed a rich morning of learning, sharing and FUN.  Sue revealed the magic that can be found when we courageously bundle our wee ones and venture out, whatever the weather! 

All 15 folks who attended, including 2 wee ones, were led on a clear pathway to providing the invitation, clothing and materials necessary for children to explore, create and engage in any weather.  Sue shared her wealth of knowledge, beautifully curated resources, an enviable nature-themed library, and a treasure trove of hands-on activities – both indoor and out – for us to explore.  She also shared the challenges and barriers we know can keep the most intrepid explorers from venturing out, and ways to make that challenge more manageable and more fun.


In the warmth of the Camp Kawartha Environment Centre we brainstormed Barrier Breakers, models of how to bring nature in, loose parts of every description, and shared stories of mishaps and magic-making with wee ones in all weather.  Then we were invited outdoors on a beautiful story walk with the laminated pages of In the Snow – Who’s Been Here.  The story trail wove us through the cedar grove and opened to a clearing lovingly spread with activity centres showcasing simple and powerful activities to spark early years engagement.  Mud kitchens, rain-filled tube mazes, tarp painting, and making nature-found masterpieces within empty ornate frames – all ready for hours of exploration.  The wee ones who had been enjoying the morning under the watchful care of Jumping Mouse’s Martine Cleary, joined us to explore these centres.  It was immediately obvious that with a few thoughtful materials, comfortable all-weather clothing, and adults willing to venture out, cold, wet and muddy are Fun!

Want Inspirations and Ideas for venturing out this Winter? Join us Saturday February 9th for Wonder-Full Winter:  Your Toolkit for Nature Crafting and Outdoor Play with Children.