Be Great, Migrate!

Michael picked up a stick and waved it in the air.  He walked around the frame of the child-sized bird nest and promptly tossed it in.  He then ran back to the pile of sticks, struggled to lift one that was over twice his height, and began swinging it in the air.  When asked what he was doing, Michael didn't respond verbally, but instead looked around and pointed to something using the stick he was carrying.  He was entranced by the natural beauty surrounding him and, even though he wasn't more than a year old, found a way to communicate his interest in the natural world around him without verbalizing his thoughts.

Building a bird's nest in the Be Great, Migrate! play habitat

Just prior to his interest in nest building, Michael had crawled under nets, leaped over string "power lines", and acted like a bird with his two older brothers.  He was able to interact with and investigate the play habitat freely.  It was amazing to see how quickly he and the other children became interested in the bird themed play area and actually played the role of birds on a migratory journey toward warmer weather in the south.  Michael, in particular, proved that age is no obstacle when playing in and connecting with nature.

Assir Abushouk, Stephanie Rustem, and Debi Sabo

Habitat Manor (Week 3)

Cooking mac & cheese in the homestead

It was bittersweet for all of us today as our last day together in Manteo. We were challenged throughout the week and the overall product ended spectacularly!

In the Habitat Manor the children first explored an open home complete with a table set, books, and windows through makeshift wallpaper from tablecloths. Carly (later named "Mom") welcomed them in followed by Will who came upon them exclaiming, "I see you have found my home!" The kids jumped into exploration of the rest of the path just a few minutes into the half hour slot. They crossed the path to a half dome beaver dam with a seashell entrance. In front of them pointing to the right read a sign that warned, "Danger!" Some were hesitant, others dared onward. Not far down the path they came across Courtney, a worried and lost bird watcher who claimed she had been lost for 2 days after being frightened from a mysterious growl. The children immediately guided her back to their home, where spaghetti (pine needles and leaves) and water (an empty mug) were provided for her care.

Some remained to take care of the lost birder, while Carly and Will helped them search for the unknown creature, later to be determined a bear. The second group was especially creative and excited, continuously racing up and down the trail running from bears and seeking refuge in the homestead. We all made loud noises to ward off the bear (played by the 4-H caretaker ). When the bear threatened to attack again some children hid the birder under a tarp and others bravely went to fight. The play continued with massive amounts of energy and it was hard to move the children on to the next pocket.

HONEY BEARS ATTACK!

One of our final prototypes for the pilot program was a trail system of bear tracks leading up to a bear den. It was fascinating to see the different approaches each group of children took when arriving at our site. Upon their arrival, the children were asked if they wanted to become "real bears" and received paw prints on their hands to make it so.

Bear paws

The children then were given free range of the "play habitat," which allowed for 1-5 kids to occupy the den space, and afforded the other children to discover various bones, and sticks, to forage for food, or to become bears themselves.

Ferocious bears in their den

It's about ten minutes into our third play session, and a little girl is staring me down.
"Honey Bears are vicious. They are mean to all the other bears," she says. "I'm a Honey Bear, and you are the other bears." Her glare melts the log between us, giving me a hint of what is about to unfold.
"Uh-oh, what does that mean for me?" I ask.
"RAAAAAAAWWRR!"
Suddenly, I'm being clawed and hit. I collapse over the log, clearly dead. No matter, a magical bumble bee helmet brings me back to life, so that I can properly enjoy being bound. Ahead lies being a bench, a log, and a horse. It's a good day.

Captive Benji makes an excellent bench for honey bears.

Katie Johnson, Benji Palmer, and Sarah Safley

The Great Fire Escape

The scene was set: The fire at Alligator River has resulted in the mass movement of animals from their homes to a new area of refuge. But how would these animals survive? Sure, there is plenty of food and water available, however, the animals lacked homes in which they could thrive. It was up to our nature helpers to build new homes for the animals that had been displaced or become the animal travelers themselves.

Building new habitats

The initial group of children with whom we nature-played were between the ages of 5 and 8. They quickly took to the idea of the movement of animals and were inspired by the natural elements within the context of the play pocket. The children moved small, fallen branches in order to build forts and swung from tree limbs. They took on the roles of animals that might thrive in the environment and were willing to build new homes for the homeless animals. A few children travelled down a path within the confines of the play pocket and discovered a “pond” in which lily pads floated and “frog” children hopped. Instead of designing a new home for the animals that had been displaced, a number of children saw it fit to dig through a decomposing tree and discovered a world of insects that lived below.

Discovering what lives in the pretend "pond"

The forest was alive and the children were immersed in its beauty.

Will Ericson, Kara Oikarinen, Stephanie Rustem