Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, July 15, 1993 TAG: 9307150441
SECTION: PARENT'S GUIDE PAGE: PGN-11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By SARAH COX
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Steve Bobbitt, assistant superintendent of Outdoor Education for Roanoke County, helps create and run their outdoor programs and adventure camps. He said the main thing he sees are that kids, especially ages 8-to 12-years old, are not getting outside as much as even he did.
"One thing we try to do, even in the adventure program, is to slide the environmental edge in. We try to keep an eye on the James River because we canoe in it," he said.
The kids, he said, learn that they can't eat the fish out of the upper James because of the sewage dumped in it. "It's not a toxic river, but we need to get people aware that it's not as natural as it can be. We need to get people aware that the environment is fragile," said Bobbitt.
That's only part of the lessons the children learn with Bobbitt. "A lot are pretty surprised that these activities are fun to do - the teen-agers that we get are pretty well in tune, but most kids think hiking is boring," Bobbitt said.
He takes them up to Devil's Marbleyard, where "they are pretty amazed to just get up and play on the rocks." He said his hikers may get pretty tired before they complete a tough hike like that one, but they find new reserves of energy.
Bobbitt said he also works with the Lewis-Gale Psychiatric Center's therapeutic recreation program, and has a chance to see people who've never had the opportunity to go outside and have fun - in this capacity. He said he helps to "redirect their energy."
Bobbitt tries to create his hikes around a theme, such as getting participants to identify 10 different kinds of trees, or laying an un-nature trail with man-made articles for them to find, or a game, Hug a Tree.
In this game, he pairs children, and one leads the other, who is blindfolded. The latter has to feel, smell and generally get to know a tree, and then is led back to the circle and the blindfold is taken off. At this point the child then has to try and identify the tree. He also gets them to draw sound maps, using their ears to identify the different sounds around them.
Bobbitt said he generally sees two different levels of children: the introductory set, who are a bit younger, just starting out, but already pretty athletic; and the older children, "most of whom are really in tune and really know what's going on, from environmentally to politically. A lot of these kids seek outdoor experience. I can't draw a conclusion, but being outdoors is where the understanding stars, especially environmentally. It'll put the spark in a lot of kids. A lot come back, year to year," said Bobbitt.
Bobbitt suggested the following reading material to get ideas for outdoor fun: Ranger Rick magazine (National Wildlife Federation, 1400 16th St., NW, Washington, D.C., 20036); Dover coloring books (Dover Publications, 31 E. 2nd St., Mineola, New York, 11501); and Sharing Nature with Children by Joseph Cornell (available in paperback).
Linda VanLuik, director of education and programs for the Science Museum of Western Virginia, has a bag full of nature ideas that'll rival Santa's any day of the week. She said most parents need to be aware of the need to stimulate interests.
She suggested going for a walk - but not just any walk. Go on a tree walk, a shadow walk, a truck walk, a windy day walk, and talk about the theme, identify all those different kinds of trucks, find shadows, and discuss the wind.
Discuss the different parts of a plant - the leaves, the stems, flowers, fruits and vegetables. Compare and contrast items - is it a one-story or a two-story house?
Introduce new vocabulary words, and look at the details: The truck - is it red, how many wheels does it have? Use all your senses to identify things in nature: What is making that sound? Does the wind feel moist, warm or cool?
Go for a walk in the dark with a flashlight and find fireflies, which are not flies or lightning bugs at all, but beetles, attracting mates. Their lights range, said VanLuik, from yellow to green and the number of flashes vary as well.
You can set a group on children on a scavenger hunt. Pick a theme - non-living things, manmade things, natural living things. Have them look for examples in the category, and limit their hunt time.
Or make an underwater viewer. This is simply a half-gallon milk carton, with the bottom and top cut off. Stretch clear plastic over one end, secure it, and lower the viewer into the water, plastic end first.
Explore insect homes - look under rocks, logs, in trees and under leaves. Talk about what insects are, and what are not insects (spiders, slugs and snails, for example).
VanLuik said that one particular kind of cricket supposedly can help determine the temperature. You count the number of chirps in one minute. Take that number and subtract 40 from it. Take that total and divide it by four. Take that number and add 50 and myth has it that you'll have the temperature, in Fahrenheit.
Or you can collect spider webs - "but it's not nice to keeps spiders in a jar or box, because they'll die," said VanLuik.
A spider's web, she said, is not its home but its kitchen. So, sprinkle talcum powder on the web, gently. Get a piece of black construction paper, and moisten it with hair spray. Gently scoop the web onto the paper, and finish it off with a spray of clear coating.
You can work with the sun by making solar prints or drying fruits.
To do the first activity, just get some photosensitive paper (available at the Science Museum shop), lay leaves or other objects on it, and expose the paper for three to five minutes. Rinse it in water, and check out the results.
To dry fruit, you'll need a screen to lay the fruit on. This should be loosely woven fabric stapled to a frame. Put a second layer of fabric over the fruit, but not touching it, and turn the fruit during the day. Of course, put the whole contraption in the sun.
To conclude your day's work, you might want to identify stars that night with the help of a star finder, also available at the Science Museum shop.
VanLuik said that Aug. 10-13 is the Perseid meteor shower, which will be coming from the Perseus constellation area.
by CNB