Nature Books

What you need:

• Plastic baggies 
• Posterboard or cardboard 
• Glue 
• Plants (leaves, flowers, etc.) 
• Clear contact paper 
• Hole punch 
• Yarn 
• Markers and/or crayons 

What to do:

1. Go on a nature walk with your child, gathering plants, leaves, and flowers. Put the materials in plastic baggies for safekeeping. 
2. Back at home, glue the plants to posterboard or cardboard "pages" (no larger than 8.5 x 11 inches). Once the glue has dried, cover the pages with clear contact paper.
3. Punch holes in the cardboard and use yarn to bind the pages together, placing blank pieces of cardboard on the front and back as covers. 
4. Invite your child to decorate the covers with markers or crayons.
5. On rainy days or other days you can't go outside, pull out your nature book. As your child turns the pages, point out the different plants and flowers. Name the colors, as well as the parts. ("Those are leaves." "See the blue flowers?")

Learning benefits:

• Enhances vocabulary 
• Supports awareness of nature