Take the time to teach your kids about the great outdoors.

Nature lessons.

Late this past summer one of my little naturalists saw a small bird hit a neighbor's window and drop to the grass. We checked on the dazed little fella and inspected his crooked little wing.

I told my son that this was a Cedar Waxwing and pointed out a few of the features that distinguished the bird from others.

After a short spell, the small bird was able to fly away on its own and looked to be in good shape.

Afterwords, my son and I looked over a few of our field guides and read up on the tendencies of the species.

Encouraging a passion.

We have got to take time to encourage those sparks of interest our kids show in nature when they present themselves. Tomorrow he is starting a bird checklist to mark down the birds he has seen. You can usually find a downloadable checklist that is specific to your region by searching Google for "Bird checklist ______" (add your state).

by Dain Erickson

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