On a nature walk today, a fourth grade homeschool student stopped to examine beads of water clinging to a bare winter branch. "That's so cool," he said. "I've only seen that in photos before, never in real life."
In a recent presentation, I shared this quote from Randy White of the White Hutchinson Leisure and Learning Group: "As virtual is replacing the real, TV documentaries are conditioning children to think that nature is exotic...in faraway places that they will never experience. Children are losing the understanding that nature exists in their own backyards, which further disconnects them from knowledge and appreciation of the natural world."
Thank goodness for places like Adkins Arboretum, where the natural world continues to amaze.
by Jenny Houghton
Youth Program Coordinator
photo by Michelle Dolan Lawrence
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