I am speaking of the life of a man who knows that the world is not given by his fathers, but borrowed from his children; who has undertaken to cherish it and do it no damage, not because he is duty-bound, but because he loves the world and loves his children… -Wendell Berry “The Unforeseen Wilderness: An Essay on Kentucky’s Red River Gorge”
To start off on the best foot for our Kindergarten and PreK Homeschool Year I thought we should do something we love, that foot off of this proverbial cliff should be one of our family favorites, a hike. With an educational theme for science and nature, no doubt.
The State of Georgia's gemstone: Quartz { SiO2 - Silicon Dioxide}- and it's H U G E
We went hiking with friends two weeks ago through the most magical forest nearby, but I wanted to do our search for water a little differently this time, the wet stuff found even closer. A major component to a few of the curricula I am using urges us to start incorporating our neighborhood and general areas of woods and fresh water into our days with nature. Allowing time with nature to become more approachable, other than simply being in that backyard we have worked so hard to give them. Our yard is about as fun as it can get, but they know every nook and cranny by heart, now is the time for more adventure. With my new adventurous, even within the neighborhood, spirit I contacted our neighbor to let him know that we would finally be making the trek that he had offered to us for years. The descent into a large gully of one huge neighborhood block to the little known spring that happens to be right across the street. I've even been told that there was a tiny mill along the rivulet.
When I saw this slice of heaven today I could not believe that we often travel two hours to be in nature, when something so similar is directly across the street. I am finding this to be true over and over again in Athens. I searched by word of mouth and Google for ten years to find magical forests, without luck, and within the last two weeks I have found three places of wonder within 20 minutes. The exact thing I was looking for presented itself just in time for our homeschool journey, that happens to have a heavy focus on nature. Isn't it funny how the universe works out for many of us like that? Ask and you shall receive, when the time is right. The right time is now.
Our group hiked for about an hour, Meriwether, ever the champ, on my back. I was also impressed with the gusto of both Singer and Silas. They are typically hiking champions, but without a clear path there was a lot of climbing to do and brush to maneuver. We found so many treasures for our nature table, a 2 pound quartz (pictured above), an owl feather, some leaves, a few pine cones and acorns. We saw many animals in the stream including a few salamanders and a crawfish. There were deer tracks and scat a plenty.
When we arrived home I showered, the children all bathed in the pool and lunch was welcomed. Then we had quiet time, followed by working on a few water cycle worksheets. The children also drew their depictions of the spring that is almost right outside our front door. I still can't believe it! A snack, more outdoor time now, then supper will come quickly. I think we shall call it a day.
We hope you'll join us on an outing fellow Athenian Homeschoolers, we are so thankful to know many of you and have all of you here within this strong community to learn the ropes from as we grow. For more pictures of this precious place visit our flickr album or scroll through below.
