If you're a frequent reader of this blog or if you follow me on Instagram then you'll know that I'm all about sustainable living (or I'm trying to be, at least) so it will come as no surprise that I've already been thinking about how to get my toddler equally interested in the planet. I definitely don't want to force him to be interested or be overly pushy and he's obviously far too young to understand sustainability so I'm starting with the basics; nature.
I adore being outside and I've also always loved animals so I think a tendency towards more sustainable practices comes naturally to me. My little boy has always loved the outdoors so I'm making an effort now he's a toddler to help him spend time in nature and to learn about it as we go along. My thinking is, if he loves nature as much as I do then his tendency may be to want to protect it too.
Get outside every day // This is definitely easier said than done because hello England and hello rain, but so far this year we've actually managed to get outdoors every day. I'm trying #1000hoursoutside, which is a challenge where you have to spend 1000 hours outside throughout the year (duh) and it's really motivated me to get us outside for at least an hour every day.
On the days where the weather has been less than desirable it's actually still doable to pop outside quickly simply to explore the weather. Wind and rain may be my worst enemy, but for my toddler they're actually pretty fun (he finds wind hilarious) and it's all learning.
Collect things to bring home // As I've mentioned before, Bobby got a tuff tray for Christmas and it's so handy for doing sensory/exploratory play in. While we're out and about we try and collect small things like sticks and different leaves so that we can use them for sensory play at home, either mud kitchen style, for painting or simply for exploring. I'm trying hard to leave my 'mud is dirty' mindset behind and let him explore the outdoors properly!
Go for toddler led walks // These are walks where Bobby is basically in charge (sort of). I let him choose the way (within reason), we can stop and look at whatever he wants, explore whatever he wants and talk about what he's interested in on the way.
Find some local wildlife // We are very lucky in this respect because we live right next to a river where we can see ducks, geese and swans then around the river there are fields with horses and sheep aplenty. There was even frogspawn near the river last spring. Bobby loves a little trip to see all the animals and we often do a little loop to see them all. If you're not as lucky in terms of variety as us there are at least birds to see everywhere!
On the to-do list // There's still so much I'd like to do with Bobby to get him interested and learning about nature; forest school, mud kitchen play with the tuff tray in the garden, more farm trips. If there's anything you think I should add to my list please let me know!
Amy x
Comments
Thank you so much for taking the time to read and comment on my blog, I read them all so remember to tick 'Notify' if you want to see my reply!