BOPN Internship Insights: Exploring Childhood Development in Nature

written by Laura Boyd, BOPN Intern

I learned and experienced a lot while interning with BOPN’s summer program, and want to share some takeaways from my summer at BOPN!

I’m currently a student at Carleton College, the alma mater of BOPN’s very own Sarah Besse! I heard about BOPN through friends who had worked there in the past, and it sounded like an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up. Before BOPN, I had several years of experience working with children in a variety of settings. At a young age, I started babysitting, then later went on to work at several summer camps, and in various tutoring and mentoring positions.

While I had substantial experience working with children before my time at BOPN, I had never worked with preschool aged kids, or in a completely outdoor environment. Before beginning my internship, I was excited for this new opportunity, while simultaneously nervous as I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I quickly came to love both the vivacity of the young children, and serenity of the outdoor classroom. Nature school fostered imagination, provided ample opportunities for social interaction, bolstered resilience, and promoted stewardship. This blog details my observations of student growth and development across these domains.

Imagination

Rather than relying on toys or TVs, BOPN children utilize the natural world to entertain them. You can give the children shovels, buckets, and a pit of mud and you’ll have a restaurant up and running in no time. This restaurant will not only include a fully developed menu of appetizers, main courses, desserts, and drinks, but the children will take on various roles as they would in a real-life restaurant. I would have a server come and take my order, bring it to the kitchen, then watch it be prepared before my eyes. A bucket was no longer a bucket, but instead, a pitcher of water or a tureen for soup. A shovel was now a spatula or serving utensil. The “specials'' of the day would change frequently, depending on what the kids’ current fixations were. I enjoyed countless delicious five-course meals, including any dish I could dream of and more! It is truly incredible to watch the children develop such elaborate games, and experience so much joy, simply by using what they can find in the world around them.

Sharing

At BOPN, we use different tools to explore the world around us, including binoculars, magnifying glasses, and shovels. Each day, we encounter various animals and plants that the children are curious about and want to investigate further. The children’s shared curiosity about the world around them creates a perfect opportunity to learn the importance of sharing and patience. One instance of this was a day when we encountered many different types of mushrooms while on a hike. The kids were very interested in the mushrooms and wanted to use magnifying glasses to see them more clearly. I passed out a few magnifying glasses, but there weren’t enough for each child to have their own. I watched as they all leaned in to look at the mushroom, and after a few seconds one exclaimed, “Look how cool the bumps on it are!” and passed the magnifying glass to a friend who hadn’t had a chance to use one yet. It was beautiful to see how their desire to share the wonders of the natural world motivated the children to share tools with their peers, developing empathy for the needs and wants of others.

Resilience

The outdoor world provides a perfect landscape for children to develop resilience and bodily autonomy. The weather can be drastically different on any given day, ranging from hot to cold, so children learn to regulate their own temperature with layers, water, and breaks in the shade. Additionally, we often go on side hikes that include lots of different terrain. On these hikes, we emphasize the importance of keeping track of where you’re stepping, and where your body is in relation to other children, to make sure everyone is safe. I saw countless examples of children developing resilience and independence throughout their time at BOPN. One particular child had a lot of trouble regulating their own needs at the start. They would get upset if they were too hot or cold, or just uncomfortable. Within a few weeks, they were able to succinctly communicate their needs, and come up with ways to meet them. This is just one example of the power of the natural world to inspire resilience and bodily autonomy.

Respect and Appreciation for the Outdoor World

As we spend so much time outside in nature, it’s important that children learn the importance of treating the environment with respect. They learn the impact of littering, and the importance of cleaning up after themselves, through throwing away their own snack wrappers. While BOPN promotes this respect of the natural world, kids develop it internally as well. They develop curiosity and love for the world around them, which naturally leads to an intrinsic desire to respect it. I worked with one child who started at BOPN terrified of all bugs, and a few weeks in, she saw an ant on the paper she was drawing on and exclaimed, “The ant wants to help me draw!” They learn to love animals as small as ants and as big as the great blue herons we so often see in the pond. They see beauty in blades of grass and towering pine trees. By learning to love the natural world, they naturally want to take care of it too.

During my summer at BOPN, I experienced so many joys and benefits of nature-based education. It is an incredibly unique and enriching way to develop important social-emotional skills in young children. I saw firsthand the way it encouraged growth in the kids at BOPN over the course of the summer. I wholeheartedly believe that nature education is a powerful tool in developing well-rounded kids who are ready to take on the world.

Thank you to the BOPN community for teaching me about the power of nature education!