This past year, I have been working on a project with the Palmer Public Library called Nature Walks with Ruth. In it, I explore the outdoors and get to know the local wildlife (previously in coastal Massachusetts, now in Northern California). I tell stories about the creatures that I find, and ask questions that lead me to new discoveries. Unlike a typical nature documentary, which prioritizes spectacle over complex theory, or a typical educational resource, which teaches through a strict framework, Nature Walks aims simply to inspire children to look at the world around them and wonder.
The show introduces children to different ecosystems, from the intertidal zone (the place where the ocean meets the land), to leaf litter (the fallen detritus in wooded areas). It explores basic concepts of ecology, as well as physiology and animal behavior. For example, in the leaf litter episode I compare the limb structure of an inchworm and a wooly bear caterpillar, and show how this relates to the way that they move.
I also incorporate various multimedia tools into episodes to introduce kids to the resources they can use to answer questions about the natural world. In addition to going out and observing nature directly, I use field guides, identification apps like Merlin, and online resources such as the Cornell Lab’s Birds Of The World database to find out more about the topic of interest.
For the second half of each episode, I add a new entry to my field journal. I tend to combine the video I captured with a written description and simple sketch of the organism. However, I encourage viewers to get creative with the way they record what they observe in nature. In my episode about camouflage, I record my observations in a zine!
So much of scientific progress has spawned from observation, as I have discussed in a previous post. Observing nature also kindles a genuine enthusiasm for science, and helps kids develop a deep curiosity about the natural world. With Nature Walks, my hope is to inspire viewers to slow down and look around during their daily encounters with nature. Maybe even start a field journal of their own.