Nature holds all sorts of treasures just waiting to be discovered. From flowers to pine cones to interesting pebbles, you can find numerous objects of beauty on a single trip out of doors. Simply looking for such items is a great activity for the family.
Kids enjoy finding interesting things when they’re outside. And they often want to bring some of them home. But once they get them in their rooms, they often end up in the bottom of a drawer somewhere or get lost. Making a nature bracelet is a nice way to enjoy the treasures they find and display them for all to see.
This project isn’t meant to last a lifetime. But it’s a great way for children to show off their findings for a while and keep them all together. And it’s so easy that even toddlers can do it.
Supplies
Wide masking tape
Small items found in nature
Instructions
1. Before going outside, wrap a loop of the masking tape around your child’s wrist, with the sticky side out. Make it large enough that it can slide off but small enough that it will stay put. If she is right handed, wrap it around her left wrist, and if she’s left handed, wrap it around her right wrist.
2. Go on a nature walk. The woods is one of the best places to find items for a nature bracelet. But if there are no woods nearby, try the local park or your back yard.
3. Help your child find small items such as flowers or flower petals, leaves, bark, feathers and small pebbles. Then she can stick them on her bracelet.
4. If you can take nature walks on a regular basis, you might consider making a themed bracelet each time you go out. Your child could look for feathers one day, small flowers the next time, and so on.
This simple activity is also quite educational. Kids can learn about different kinds of plants and rocks. And for younger children, it can help develop both gross and fine motor skills. The sights, sounds and smells experienced along the way provide lots of sensory stimulation as well.
Even after your outing is over, the bracelet can still provide learning opportunities for your child. When she shows it to someone, she can exercise her language skills by describing the things on it and telling where and how she found them. You might even encourage her to draw pictures of what took place and write a story about it.
Making a nature bracelet is very easy, and it’s lots of fun for both children and their parents. And if you’re on a budget, you’ll be happy to know that can make lots of them without spending lots of money. So the next time the kids get bored on a nice, sunny day, grab the masking tape and head outdoors!
About CSAHM
This sounds fun. I’d love to see what one would look like.