Qingming Outing Season | How to have fun in nature without going wild?

Audit expert: Li Guangwang

Director of the Natural Education Department of Beijing Children's Palace, Senior Teacher

It is spring now and it is the Qingming Festival holiday. There should be many parents planning to take their children to have an "intimate contact" with nature and learn scientific knowledge in the beautiful scenery.

However, while we lead children to appreciate the beauty of nature, we cannot ignore a grim reality: the traces of human life will have an indelible impact on nature. Over time, children in the future may no longer be able to appreciate such rich natural beauty.

When we take our children to experience the beauty of nature, how can we ensure that they can experience the fun of nature while protecting our green home?

Want to combine education with entertainment in the wild?

You need to learn these few small experiments

Source: AI generated image

During the Qingming Festival, take your children to the wild, play and learn at the same time, and small experiments are a great way to add fun. Here are a few small experiments you can experience with your children:

"Light and Shadow Tracking" Experiment : On a sunny afternoon, use small sticks and paper to make a simple sundial, observe and record the changes of the shadow cast by the sun over time. Children will intuitively understand the rotation of the earth and the passage of time.

"Homemade compass" experiment : Use a magnetized needle to pass through a thin piece of paper, put it into water, and observe the direction of the needle tip. Children will be surprised to find that it always points to the north, and thus learn about the earth's magnetic field.

"Plant Pigment Extraction" experiment : Pick a few colorful flowers, crush the petals and soak them in water, and watch the color of the petals gradually blend into the water. Children will learn about the natural pigments in plants. These simple and interesting experiments can not only allow children to gain knowledge in outdoor activities, but also stimulate their curiosity and desire to explore, making the Qingming holiday more meaningful.

In outdoor activities, we should guide children to observe nature carefully. We can let them find various plants and animals and observe their growth habits and behavioral characteristics. At the same time, we can also teach children how to distinguish different plants and animals, so that they can understand the diversity and complexity of nature. Such observation activities can not only cultivate children's observation skills, but also make them cherish natural resources more.

What behaviors occur when experiencing nature

Harm to the natural environment?

Source: AI generated image

When experiencing nature, some inadvertent behaviors may cause considerable harm to the natural environment. For example, the careless disposal of domestic garbage is a common problem. Children may throw plastic bags, beverage bottles and other garbage on the grass or in the woods while playing. These garbage not only destroys the beauty of the natural environment, but may also be eaten by wild animals by mistake, threatening their lives.

Outdoor picnics are also a way to feel the beauty of nature, but garbage disposal is also a big challenge. After a picnic or barbecue, disposable tableware is often left in place. These garbage are difficult to degrade in the natural environment and pollute the soil and water sources.

In addition, trampling vegetation is also a hazard that cannot be ignored. When children explore nature, they may step into sensitive areas such as grass or wetlands. Their footsteps can damage vegetation, affect the structure and stability of the soil, and may even disrupt the local ecological balance.

These seemingly minor behaviors actually cause considerable harm to the natural environment. Therefore, when taking children to experience nature, we should always remind them to pay attention to environmental protection, respect nature, and jointly protect our beautiful home.

How to explore nature

Protect the environment while having fun?

Source: AI generated image

Protecting the environment while exploring the joy of nature is the responsibility of every parent and child. From the perspective of children, protecting the environment means that they should do the following:

First of all, not littering is a basic code of conduct. Children should carry garbage bags with them, collect used waste such as plastic bags and beverage bottles, and place them in appropriate places. This can not only keep the natural environment clean, but also prevent garbage from causing harm to wild animals and plants.

Secondly, not climbing trees and breaking branches is a sign of respect for the natural environment. Trees and flowers are part of nature, and they provide habitats and food for animals. Children should learn to observe with their eyes, listen with their ears, and smell the beauty of nature with their noses, rather than destroying it with their hands. They can appreciate the lushness of trees and the beauty of flowers, but they should not climb and break branches and leaves, which would destroy the harmony of nature.

In addition, we can also teach children

The first step: Be an environmental detective .

During the Qingming Festival, we can organize an outdoor adventure, bring magnifying glasses, collection bags and other tools, and look for "treasures" in nature. However, these "treasures" are not gold, silver or jewelry, but garbage on the ground. By picking up garbage and sorting it, we can make the environment cleaner. At the same time, we can also observe the growth of animals and plants, understand their living habits, and thus cherish natural resources more.

Source: AI generated image

The second trick: Play with green technology .

As technology becomes more and more advanced, we can use some green technologies to protect the environment. For example, we can use solar chargers to charge our mobile phones and reduce our dependence on traditional energy. We can also try to use environmentally friendly materials to make handicrafts and turn waste into useful things. This can not only exercise our hands-on ability, but also cultivate our environmental awareness.

The picture can jump to the ticket booking link

Source: Beijing Science Center

The third trick: spread green ideas . Protecting the environment is not only an individual behavior, but also the responsibility of the whole society. We have the responsibility to guide children to correctly understand and treat nature, and let them cultivate environmental awareness from an early age. The survival exhibition hall of Beijing Science Center is an excellent educational platform. This exhibition hall shows the beauty of nature from a narrative perspective of organic coexistence and harmonious coexistence between man and nature, and also presents the current situation of human survival on the earth and the changes and crises of the living environment. Through vivid displays and in-depth explanations, children can deeply understand the mutual influence between man and nature and realize the importance of protecting the natural environment.

Source: AI generated image

Nature breeds life. We acquire scientific knowledge about life by getting close to nature, and we have an obligation to protect this beautiful planet. Let us start with small things to protect the environment, so that generations of young people can have the opportunity to experience the beauty and knowledge brought by the spring scenery.