My husband took our kids to Yosemite National Park and some nearby outdoor sites a couple of weeks ago. I sent them with some “homework” for a project: take a photo of something outdoors you see that you love.
When they came home, we printed their photos, and then they painted (one elected to use pastels instead) based on the photo and wrote a poem with the following prompt:
“If I were (outdoors thing), I would…” — repeated five times.
So, we got four poems: “If I were an alpine lake;” “If I were a volcano crater;” “If I were a snake;” and “If I were a snowy mountain.” I know it’s kind of a tease to tell you all this and not share the writing and art, but… it’s not mine to share. Instead, I can share the inspiration for the project:
I slightly adapted the “If I were a tree” project from the list of outdoor art projects you can find here: OUTDOOR ART FOR ALL AGES: A YOSEMITE MARIPOSA GUIDE. (They didn’t actually go to the Mariposa grove). I can easily see us doing some of the other projects after excursions to other places too!
SO – I promised books! We realized the younger kids didn’t have any idea who John Muir is, even though his name is all over everything here (“Hey! That’s my doctor!”). So, I got some library books:
- Camping with the President by Ginger Wadsworth, illustrated by Karen Dugan – This is a text-heavy picture book about John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt camping in Yosemite. I read it aloud to the younger two; I had used it years ago for homeschooling fourth grade CA history. We all enjoyed it. It’s good for learning about Muir, Roosevelt, conservation in general, and Yosemite in particular. At one point the back matter talks about how many acres of protected land Roosevelt added during his presidency; one of the kids said, “Isn’t Trump doing the exact opposite?” Yes.
- Wildheart: the daring adventures of John Muir by Julie Bertagna, illustrated by William Goldsmith – This one is a graphic novel biography of John Muir. I haven’t read it but I’m told it’s funny, and two of the kids were fighting over it today so it must be good. I love the increase in graphical nonfiction because it has really encouraged my kids to WILLINGLY read more nonfiction.
- Camp Time in California by Mary Pope Osborne, illustrated by A.G. Ford – Magic Treehouse series #35. We haven’t read it yet but it looks like Jack and Annie travel to California, meet John Muir, and help save the wilderness? My youngest has recently enjoyed another book in the series so I thought we’d give this a try too.
I’ve been meaning to pick up some of John Muir’s writing myself but there’s a lot and I’m not sure where to start. Anyone have a suggestion?
Kristin Houlihan, Writer 