PCFC Pathway Pop-Ups

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PCFC Pathway Pop-ups

Peterborough Child and Family Centres (PCFC) are racing down the Pathway with PSK Pop-ups.  Ellen Mortlock shares how the Pathway has “popped up” within their 6 drop-in hubs – bringing creative and fun opportunities for exploration and play that engage young children and their families with the Early Years Landmarks.

130 families + 6 locations + 1 month + 9 ‘pop-ups’ = 23 total hours of playful Pop-up fun!

By Ellen Mortlock

The Peterborough Child & Family Centres were excited to be picked as a Pathway to Stewardship & Kinship pilot site. As the Early ON Centre for Peterborough City and County, we provide rich play and learning environments for children ages 0-6, their families and caregivers.  During the month of February, to highlight the three landmarks for children ages 0-3, we hosted uniquely designed Pathway Pop-ups.  These special events ‘popped’ up within our regularly scheduled programs.

130 families + 6 locations + 1 month + 9 ‘pop-ups’ = 23 total hours of playful Pop-up fun!

The families dressed up like animals, explored animal tracks and fossil rocks, played in a ‘frog pond’, among many other nature based activities. The nests, snake skins, and skulls on the touch table sparked many great questions and engaging conversations.

Another of our programs, the School for Young Moms, embraced the winter weather and the Pathway landmarks.  Our pregnant and parenting teens were encouraged  to “Go outside and play” with their infants. Each family was asked to take part in a nature scavenger hunt and the young women rose to the frosty challenge.  They documented their experiences to share with the group at the end of February. Pictured below is a young mom who brought her daughter outside to enjoy the cool air and bright sunshine while she searched for animal prints in the snow.

We have enjoyed snowy fun in our outdoor spaces and are looking forward to the warmer spring weather and the mud that comes with it. We’re ready to trade in our snow pants for splash pants and embrace the gooey, dirty, mucky exploration. Our staff are excited to implement more great nature-based activities with our families as the season changes.  Bring on the rubber boots!

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.

 

The Day Starla Came to Stay

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The Day Starla Came to Stay

Fostering empathy by fostering a turtle

What could be the title of a children’s picture book became a Pathway Landmark brought to life, when a PSK pilot kindergarten class at Millbrook/South Cavan Public School were treated to a special long-term guest in their quiet corner – Starla the red-eared slider – a foster animal provided by the Riverview Park and Zoo.  

Landmark #5 reads:  Look after an animal. Develop empathy by watching and caring for living things.  Jenny Todd’s Kindergarten class, part of our Pathway Pilots, did just that.  But affording children positive interactions with animals in the classroom requires extra care and consideration.  With the generosity of Zoo curator Jim Moloney, The Riverview Park and Zoo helped bring Landmark #5 to life, and into the classroom.  For Pathway pilot kindergarten classes, the zoo has offered short term animal fostering.

“We had a wonderful experience with the turtle” said Jenny Todd.

Matt Dixon, a zookeeper from Riverview Park and Zoo, brought Starla and her habitat,  food and cleaning supplies.  While showing Miss Turtle around, Matt provided guidance on safety and hygiene, animal wellness and maintenance to Jenny and her students, to make the experience safe for both the human and non-human animals.  The kids were captivated by his set-up, and as he explained all the necessary care and concerns, he was treated to many enthusiastic turtle stories the kids were keen to share!

The awe, care and empathy nurtured in children when they foster an animal was obvious as Jenny Todd’s class cared for Starla – a moniker decided after the class held a vote on their new classmate, the former “Miss Turtle”.  As the class became more comfortable with Starla and she with them, she could be found basking under the sun lamp as children came to gaze at her in the quiet corner, admiring her and drawing her likeness. Every student also had the opportunity to feed her, and the once-a-week raw fish feed was a favourite!

Starla has moved onto yet another kinder class at Millbrook/South Cavan and the children were sad to see her go.  But Ms Todd and class are already looking towards possible future fosters. What other pals might join Ms Todd’s class on the Pathway? 

Thanks to Jim, Matt and the Riverview Park and Zoo for this incredible Partnership on the Pathway!