CreekWeek: Wake Up Woods Reading and Activities

CreekWeek is an effort spearheaded by ROW’s Little Eagle Creek Committee to promote the importance of our waterways to our lives and our quality of life. While it was intended to be a week of in-person community events to bring International Marketplace and Northwest Indy residents together along Little Eagle Creek, it has now moved to the promotion of online content created by ROW Element Committee and Waterway members to inspire everyone to connect to urban natural spaces while maintaining social distancing.

Wake up, Woods: This children’s book from Indiana Native Plant Society takes you on a journey through the world of Spring ephemerals as they bloom in our urban natural spaces. Sarah Wright, Indianapolis Zoo educator, reads some of the book to inspire you and your family to connect to nature this Spring. Use the activities below to explore your environment and have fun!

Activities

Painting with Natural Items

(activity idea borrowed from Growing Up Wild)

Painting is typically done with paint and a paint brush. However, painting can be done with other things.

  • Go outside and look at the ground.
  • Imagine using the natural items to paint with – which ones do you want to use?
  • Gather the items that interest you.
    • Pine needles, pine cones, leaves, twigs, grass, seed pods, etc.
    • These should all be objects found on the ground – please leave the growing plants alone.
    • Be sure to brush or shake off any bugs or dirt before bringing the items into your house or paint outside.
  • Look at the items you have gathered and think about how you want to paint with them. You can use them individually or gather them together with a rubber band to make your own paint brush
  • Paint anything you choose! Have fun!!

Materials Needed

Paper

Paint

Paint tray or shallow tray to be used as a paint tray

Rubber bands

Natural items to paint with: pine needles, pine cones, leaves, twigs, grass, etc.

Nature Monsters!

  1. Take a walk outdoors and find 3 or 4 items out on the ground. All the items have to be items that can be glued (or taped) to a page.
  2. Bring them back inside and grab your blank sheet of paper
  3. Lay out your items carefully on the sheet of paper and start to think about what type of monster you might be able to create with the items you chose.
  4. Start by laying one item on the page and gluing or taping it to the page. Start to draw your “monster” around it.
  5. Add onto your “monster” with crayons or colored pencils for color and figure out what the other items from your nature walk will become on your “monster”.
  6. Color in the background and create a scenery for your “monster”.
  7. If you have them, you can add any other items you would like: googly eyes, teeth, etc.
  8. Allow the glue on your creation to dry somewhere safe.
  9. Once it is dry, check to see if all your natural items are still glued securely. If not, add more glue and let it dry again.
  10. Once all the items are glued securely and it is dry, hang your nature “monster” somewhere you can see it!

Here are some examples!