Tracks and Howls by Sarah Hatfield

Tracks and Howls by Sarah Hatfield

For a few nights, the coyotes had been howling and yipping close to the house. We’d even heard foxes barking much closer than usual. One morning, after the evening snow had created perfect tracking conditions, we wandered down to see what we could find. First, a lone...
Fish are Friends by Emily Rechin

Fish are Friends by Emily Rechin

I’ve always been intrigued by the creatures that live underwater. Their adaptations that allow them to live, breathe, and flourish under immense pressure underwater is fascinating. When I relax by the television, an episode (or six) of ‘River Monsters’ on Animal...
Monkey-faced Scars on Trees by Jeff Tome

Monkey-faced Scars on Trees by Jeff Tome

I once took a workshop that evaluated children’s knowledge of nature based on how they drew trees. As their experience outside grew, their trees went from looking like green lollipops to developing rougher edges, some branches and then some animals in them. The...
Evening Adventures by Katie Finch

Evening Adventures by Katie Finch

Even in the coldest of winter, getting outside is a possibility and, for some, a necessity. Curling up inside is appealing, but after a time I must go out and “get the stink out”. And this time of year, it often means at night. Outside adventures at night are a choice...
No Two Are Alike by Margaret Foley

No Two Are Alike by Margaret Foley

When I was working as an environmental educator in Syracuse, one of my all-time favorite programs to teach was all about a man named Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley. During our program we would teach first graders how as a boy little Willie Bentley loved snowflakes more...
Ripple Effect by Sarah Hatfield

Ripple Effect by Sarah Hatfield

Have you ever tossed a pebble into a pond? Or a stick, or a pine cone… anything really. Those ripples that result continue to go out, and out, and out. And sometimes back in toward the point of origin. The ripple effect is the idea that one action, or word, emotion,...