Wild Wednesday: Playing with nature

This week we were out exploring at Sifton Bog. Wells was absolutely fascinated with these bendy branches. He was ducking under them, shaking them and eventually pretending to be a firefighter! He straddled this branch and said, “Mama, its a fire hose!” It was so much fun to watch him play. It also inspired a talk about playing with nature in a way that was fun, but gentle enough not to cause any damage. He shook the branch and said, “gently, like this”.

This was a great opportunity for Wells to grow his representational skills as he pretended to be a firefighter, creating his own exciting adventure. It was also really wonderful to see him start to understand causality and how his actions can affect the world around him. As he grasped this issue and became more gentle with the branch, he was growing emotionally using his self-regulation. It’s never too early to show your children the magic of the forest, and how to respect it.

Written by Abby Dique, Fanshawe ECE Student