29Dec 2022 by catbird 2 Comments
What is a Hibernation Celebration?

What is a Hibernation Celebration?

Craft Project, Hibernation Celebration, Learning, Nature Art, Nature Collection, Play, Winter
Every winter we have a "Hibernation Celebration" both at school and at home. What is a Hibernation Celebration pray tell? It's a super fun way celebrate the winter holidays in a non-denominational nature focused way. It can be a full lesson block with academic content the way we do at school or it can just be a fun party. We usually celebrate at the end of December right before winter break (otherwise known as the perfect time to hibernate...) but this is a great topic for January or February-- or any snowy cold month really. If you want to skip to party ideas click here. For all of my Hibernation content click here. When we celebrate hibernation at school it isn't just a straightforward scientific discussion of bears in caves.…
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28Dec 2022 by catbird No Comments
Hibernating Seed Bears

Hibernating Seed Bears

Craft Project, Garden, Hibernation Celebration, Nature Art, Play, Winter
Many animals hibernate this time of year, and while plants don't hibernate exactly, many of them do go dormant which is similar. We observe a "Hibernation Celebration" each year in December as school winds down and we prepare for our quiet period of sorts. This year we made these sweet little seed bears with seeds tucked inside sleeping away the winter and waiting for spring. We chose seeds that are food for or have value to small mammals so that they wouldn't just look like sleeping animals, but actually help animals! I couldn't find a sleeping bear mold so we made these by hand which is time consuming, but feels right for this sleepy season. You could also try using bee friendly plants with a bee mold or swampy loving…
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12Dec 2022 by catbird No Comments
Festive Mushroom Ornaments

Festive Mushroom Ornaments

Craft Project, Nature Art, Play, Winter, Winter Solstice
I don't think its any secret that I love mushrooms, foraging and eating them, making art with them and generally just finding and observing them. They seem to me having a moment right now too. At the same time I am slowly becoming one of those crazy old ladies who has a tree in every room of her house with a different theme. I’m at three now. (Is there a threshold for when it becomes crazy? Like cats?) The family tree is in the living room and has all of our special ornaments, there is a sunny solstice tree and last is this tree. I live in an old Victorian house with a tower… so it clearly needed a tree. And obviously that tree needed to be a mushroom tree.…
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01Dec 2022 by catbird No Comments
Chrysalis Sleeping Bags

Chrysalis Sleeping Bags

Craft Project, Hibernation Celebration, Learning, Nature Art, Nature Collection, Winter
I was so inspired by this artwork from photographer Levon Biss that I knew I needed to come up with a project about insect hibernation. My brain immediately went to chrysalis sleeping bags because a chrysalis is in a way a tiny sleeping bag, and the patterns on these are so beautiful I though they would be amazing inspiration. First things first, insects don't technically hibernate. Many are inactive during the winter and undergo a state in which their growth, development, and activities are suspended temporarily, with a metabolic rate that is high enough to keep them alive. This dormant condition is termed diapause. We made our sleeping bags on a small scale for stuffies, but this would a fantastic project for an older student (or grown up...) at full…
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04Nov 2022 by catbird 1 Comment
Make Twig Stars

Make Twig Stars

Craft Project, Nature Art, Play, Winter Solstice
Make some easy stick stars one of two ways. Big ones can be used to decorate the house and small ones can be ornaments or gift toppers. You cab leave them plain or dress them up with other natural materials. Twig stars are an easy nature craft for all ages that look rustic and elegant. Twig Stars Materials: twigs twine pretty greens and other natural materials (optional) Method: Cut or break your things into 5 pieces of approximately the same length. Lay them out in a 5 pointed star shape and tie the joints with twine. Add a loop of twine to the top if using as an ornament. Add greens or dried flowers for decoration as desired. Willow Stars These will really only work with willow branches, you bend…
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03Nov 2022 by catbird 1 Comment
Naturally Scented Cinnamon Pine Cones

Naturally Scented Cinnamon Pine Cones

Craft Project, Winter, Winter Solstice
I always look forward to those cinnamon pine cones that find their way to grocery store checkouts and craft stores this time of year. Even though they are extremely artificial, I kind of love them. So I decided to make my own with natural essential oils and ground cinnamon. They smell even better and are simple to make. Use teh recipe below to make a big batch or just sprinkle some essential oil on a few! I actually used to sell these back in the day. Materials: pinecones cinnamon essential oil clove essential oil cheap ground cinnamon water freezer bag Method: Place your pinecones in a freezer bag and pour in just enough water to cover/ soak them. Start sprinkling in the essential oils-- I don't measure, just enough that…
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03Nov 2022 by catbird No Comments
Snow or Mud Faces

Snow or Mud Faces

Craft Project, Nature Art, Nature Collection, Play, Winter, Winter Solstice
Here is an easy activity for a winter day-- make snow or mud faces on trees! Collect some natural materials: sticks, pinecones, berries, leaves etc, and find a tree to make a face on! Pack your mud or snow on first and then use your nature finds to embellish the face. Easy and fun! Wet snowball type snow will work best, and if there isn't any snow where you live live will do the job too! You can think about what the spirit of the tree might look like or just make a funny face,
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01Nov 2022 by catbird 3 Comments
Winter Nature Table

Winter Nature Table

Craft Project, Nature Art, Nature Collection, Nature Table, Play, Seasonal Nature Table, Winter, Winter Solstice
Nature tables are the perfect place to store and display all those nature finds that we "just had to bring home." Honestly I am almost as bad as the kids about this... Ours is on our porch so that things can be easily added and subtracted at will and we change it out for each season. (And it substantially reduces the stray sticks in the house..) In winter, we add obvious things like holly and evergreens, but also sticks covered in lichen, crystal-y rocks, found bits of nuts, pinecones and a prized deer antler. Log slices and old shelves and add some height and you can use vases to hold the greens. The kids are always tinkering with the arrangement and moving things around which is great. This is actually…
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30Oct 2022 by catbird No Comments
Yule Tea– Guest Blogger!

Yule Tea– Guest Blogger!

Recipes, Winter, Winter Solstice
A huge thank you to Anna Reisz for today's guest post!! Check out her beautiful site The Herbology Faerie and her IG feed here. She is sharing her recipe for Winter Solstice Tea with us-- take it away Anna! The last festival on the wheel of the year, Yule, takes place on the winter solstice. This marks what is also called the Longest Night, when the hours of darkness exceed the light. We feel drawn to twinkle lights, candles, cozy fires, and warming festive spices to help keep the darkness at bay and remind ourselves that the warmth of the sun will cycle back as it does each turn of the Earth. Celebrate this occasion with Yule Tea, a cozy and warming mix of rooibos, cacao nibs, orange peel, cinnamon,…
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