I Sense Spring Activity - Raising Hooks

March is that magical time when you can start to sense that things are changing. We discovered some signs that Spring is here while adventuring through our property over the weekend. All the snow has melted, the warm smell is in the air and, in our area, something super special happens. Hundreds of thousands of Snow Geese migrate from the south. They stop in our area of upstate New York to rest and eat before continuing their journey north to the Arctic for the summer. It’s truly an amazing sight!

Of course, every place is different – different plants, different weather, different animals. What’s special about your area at the start of Spring?

I printed out the worksheets below and brought the kids outside to talk about what changes were happening. We used our five senses (sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste) to discover signs that Spring was here!

What do you SEE? Is the snow melting or melted? Is the ground wet? Are there flowers or other plants growing? What animals or insects can you find?

What do you HEAR? Are there birds chirping? Is the rain pitter-pattering? Do you hear the trickling of a stream? Are insects buzzing?

What do you SMELL? Can you smell flowers? Do you smell the Earth’s damp dirt? Is someone cooking on the grill? Do you smell fresh grass or leaves?

What do you TASTE? Can you catch a raindrop with your tongue? Did you taste fresh syrup from a maple tree? Have you sipped on a Spring Tea?

What do you FEEL? Can you feel the wind on your face? Is it warm, cool or cold? Can you touch a flower petal? Did you feel a slimy slug? Can you feel mud between your fingers or the stream beneath your feet?

A Few Tips

Grab Sticks – Sticks are a fun way to touch things that might be wet or gunky. They can also reach a lot further than small arms! The first thing my kids do when we get to the trails is grab a stick to hit and touch things with.
Close Your Eyes – You’ll be amazed how different everything feels and sounds with your eyes closed!
Bring A Change Of Clothes – Fully enjoy the experience. Stomp in puddles, dig in the mud and walk through a stream. Just make sure you have something clean and dry to change into.
Wear Rainboots – Keep your feet dry so they don’t get chilled!
Assign Jobs – If your kids are feeling bored, give them an important mission. Maybe you need twigs for a fire, stones for a dam or a leader on the trail. This will make them feel an important part of the team.
Bring A Bucket and Shovel – We always bring at least one bucket with us to put nature findings in. Spring is the perfect time to gather items for a Nature Tree Craft! We also LOVE to catch crayfish in the river.
Embrace The Journey – It’s easy to forget to stop and smell the flowers. If the kids stop, stop with them and truly appreciate what they are discovering. Or maybe you need to be the one that stops and points out something really cool!

I made 2 worksheets for this activity. One is a writing activity for those with writing experience. The other is for the littles to draw a picture of each sign they discovered. If pictures are still a bit tough, have them scribble the colors of what they are trying to draw.

You can bring the worksheets with you to fill in as you go along or print them when you get home to look back on your experience.