Sunday, Jan. 18th – Mystic Vale

teacherpriya5

Photos via Katie Winchester

Started week 1 of the free inquiry strong by going for an on-campus trail walk accompanied by two friends.

  • Location: Mystic Vale (UVic)
  • Duration: 45 minutes
  • Intensity: Easy
  • Mood (before): Dread — Mood (after): Energized

Summary & Findings

The very first Sunday nature outing was a great one, and definitely already a little out of my comfort zone. I had to wake up extra early and commit to going on this trail walk even when I had to work a 7-hour shift 30 minutes after the walk was done.

Two friends were able to join this Sunday morning, and two others unfortunately could not make it. I found the weather to be beautiful and clear, not too chilly, and it provided me with some much-needed vitamin D to jump start the day. My mood, in general, felt uplifted going into work, and I noticed I was not as fatigued as I usually am by that point in the day when I simply stay at home.

Due to this being the first-ever outing of the term, my moods and feelings as described here will act as a starting point for me to analyze and examine their natural progression or decline.

Educational Connection

Connecting my findings back to my future in teaching, I gained some inspiration during the walk about how to incorporate teaching into the outdoors. Along the path, we noticed someone had formed a little hut out of fallen branches and leaves. I believe that could make for a great outdoor project idea to connect to a possible unit plan in science on engineering basics and stable structures, suitable for grades 4 and up.

Raina in the natural shelter/hut comprised of branches and leaves we found along the Mystic Vale trail/pathway.

Here is an interesting blog post I found, published in 2020 by Darcy Higgins, writing about “How To” build these outdoor shelters, along with some inspiration images of shelters that are suitable for kids to create: https://youngnaturalistsclub.com/2020/05/15/how-to-build-a-shelter/