Skip to main content

The Great Outdoors


 

In a fit of desperation I have moved out to the back patio in the hopes that whatever is blocking my ability to write this morning will be jogged out of the way. The air is filled with birdsong. An occasional car drives by. So far two planes have crossed overhead. When I’m in the house I don’t hear any of that. We have extremely solid windows, I guess.

Plane number three.

I just got a quizzical look from a catbird who probably wonders why I haven’t refilled the birdfeeder yet this morning. 

It feels like a good day to think of all the different groups and institutions that care for our natural environment and/or promote enjoyment of nature and provide nature education in Columbia/HoCo. There are a lot of them. 

  • The Howard County Conservancy
  • Robinson Nature Center
  • Columbia Association 
  • Howard County Recreation and Parks 
  • Community Ecology Institute, (Nourishing Gardens, Freetown Farm, Families in Nature, Farmacy Garden…)
  • Multiple Columbia Village CARES groups
  • Yards Alive!
  • Oakland Mills Interfaith Center Green Team
  • Howard EcoWorks
  • Live Green Howard
  • Upcycled 
I’m sure I’ve forgotten some. If I have, please clue me in and I’ll add to my list. 

Some years ago an educational theory developed by Howard Gardiner called Multiple Intelligences was all the rage. True confession: I was a fan. Here’s an infographic that explains the concept.

Image taken from University of Tennessee Health Science Center website 

Like most popular theories, it was applied in ways that it was never meant to be and many folks these days consider it to be facile and passé. 

I’m sharing it here because it was the first time I ever saw love of and connection with nature identified as a unique expression of intelligence. You see it above labeled as “Naturalist”. We often reward verbal and mathematical intelligence first and foremost. But I definitely taught students over the years whose connection with the natural world was exceptional. 

The world really, really needs those people. Parents need to recognize and value this intelligence in their children and schools need to give students ongoing opportunities throughout the K-12 experience to explore and build on their innate “naturalistic” motivation. Making room for that can be time consuming and messy. And I’ve often noticed that the most hands-on, experiential science programs draw from the pre-identified GT population. 

That means that the students have met certain verbal/mathematical standards first. What if the thing that makes you brilliant isn’t verbal/mathematical? In all likelihood you will be given more of what you are not particularly good at in hopes you will improve and there will be no time in your schedule for the kinds of learning that truly light up your brain and motivate you. 

I was not that kid, by the way. I was allergic to everything and consequently my interactions with nature were limited and heavily medicated. I grew up loving nature at a distance. 

I’ve written so much here about the importance of arts education and I wouldn’t change one word of it. But I have become such an admirer of local environmental advocates and I realize how crucial their work is to the survival of the planet. 

How do you connect with nature? If you have children, have experiences in nature been a priority for your family? 

One more question: where is your favorite place to be outdoors in Columbia/HoCo?


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...
1 comment
Read more

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...
1 comment
Read more

Columbia Chance Connection

  Last night, as my husband and I were about to sit down to dinner, our front door swung open and a cheery voice announced, “I’m ba—ack!”  We weren’t expecting anyone. Clearly the only people who’d walk right in to our house would be one of our offspring. I had my reading glasses on so I wasn’t seeing too clearly. It seemed too tall for our youngest, but we knew our eldest was at work. I took off my glasses to see a friendly but confused face scanning our living room. When her gaze landed on us we all had a sudden realization. We didn’t know eachother. “Oh I’m so sorry! I’m in the wrong house! My daughter just moved in and she needed hooks for the kitchen so I ran out to get them.” She waved the package. “All these houses look the same and I don’t know the neighborhood yet. I thought this was my daughter’s house.” We were all getting a bit giggly. “That’s okay. For a quick second we thought you were our daughter,” said my husband. I told her our names and said she should defin...
Post a Comment
Read more