We enjoyed a sunny afternoon of exploration and new connections this past Thursday for the Fiddlehead's first outing of the spring season! Before coming together for Opening Circle, we played a round of "All my friends who...", an energizing getting-to-know-you game to reconnect with one another and discover the common interests we share.
During Opening Circle, we reviewed some of the motto's that we would put into practice throughout the day. For our Safety First motto, a couple of girls helped teach and act out our S.T.O.P. safety principals (Stop, Think, Observe, Plan). We mapped out our travel plan for the day and discussed our motto, It's About the Journey, Not the Destination! This outing would be about the journey, but we also did have a destination (Whatcom Falls!), so collaboration and compromise would be an important tool to get us to our pick-up spot.
The girls Stretched their Edge by pairing with someone they didn't know well in the group to be their trail buddy for the day before we set off. The day unfolded with new discoveries, sharing of nature knowledge, free exploration, and connections made within our group and with the many different places, plants, and animals we saw along the way. Read on for some highlights of our day. You can find our words of the day, the mottos that guided us, and the full photo album below.
During Opening Circle, we reviewed some of the motto's that we would put into practice throughout the day. For our Safety First motto, a couple of girls helped teach and act out our S.T.O.P. safety principals (Stop, Think, Observe, Plan). We mapped out our travel plan for the day and discussed our motto, It's About the Journey, Not the Destination! This outing would be about the journey, but we also did have a destination (Whatcom Falls!), so collaboration and compromise would be an important tool to get us to our pick-up spot.
The girls Stretched their Edge by pairing with someone they didn't know well in the group to be their trail buddy for the day before we set off. The day unfolded with new discoveries, sharing of nature knowledge, free exploration, and connections made within our group and with the many different places, plants, and animals we saw along the way. Read on for some highlights of our day. You can find our words of the day, the mottos that guided us, and the full photo album below.
* We stopped to admire the wonders of wetlands at Scudder's Pond: redwing blackbird's brilliant markings and song, beaver's chew marks on trees, cattails' many talents (food, shelter, insulation, medicine, multiple uses in every season), and wetland plants' skill at removing toxins from water before releasing it beyond...
* We observed trailside plants, such as nettle, oregon grape, and lady fern. We smelled the sweet blossoms of thimbleberry and tasted the leaves of indian plum.
* We played the nature game Metamorphosis where we mimicked the lifecycle of the butterfly, first wobbling as eggs and finishing as "Supreme Beings", rock, paper, scissoring our way through the cycle. Some girls stayed in a chrysalis, while others broke their wings free, but all enjoyed time to act, dance and play on the busy trail.
* We observed trailside plants, such as nettle, oregon grape, and lady fern. We smelled the sweet blossoms of thimbleberry and tasted the leaves of indian plum.
* We played the nature game Metamorphosis where we mimicked the lifecycle of the butterfly, first wobbling as eggs and finishing as "Supreme Beings", rock, paper, scissoring our way through the cycle. Some girls stayed in a chrysalis, while others broke their wings free, but all enjoyed time to act, dance and play on the busy trail.
* We learned how to identify cottonwood trees, with their curvy branches and heart-shaped leaves. We stopped at a particularly large cottonwood tree and saw how many girls it took joining hands to wrap around the trunk. We thanked the cottonwoods for providing us with yellow sticky sap, which can be used as an antibacterial remedy for the skin. Some glued their hands together, while others simply enjoyed the sweet smell.
*The girls used their Collaborate and Compromise skills to navigate their way towards Whatcom Falls Park, stopping to make a group decision whenever we reached a fork in the trail.
* We meandered down "Lichen Lane", discovering the variety of dust, crust, scale, leaf, club, shrub, hair and other types of algae/fungus relationships! So green and hairy, and lots to observe with our Owl Eyes.
* Played the nature game What Does Redwing Blackbird Need?, trying to meet our bird needs for food, water, and shelter while surviving in the wetland ecosystem. Oil spills, cold winters, and overpopulation served as teaching tools for our play time.
* Found serenity in Whatcom Creek, and sat along the slow calm edges for Peaceful Place, watching waterfowl, writing, sketching, imagining, sitting still...
*Made it to "Licorice Fern Bridge" near the main falls where we watched the churning water below.
*In closing circle, we followed the EC Motto "Attitude of Gratitude" by giving thanks. We were thankful for sunshine, trees, sticks, cattails, wetlands, clean water, redwinged blackbird, and each other.
Enjoy our full album of the day here.
Enjoy our full album of the day here.
Our words of the day? Water, Trails, and Redwinged Blackbird Sticks
Mottos that guided our day together:
Be Prepared, Widen the Circle, Collaborate & Compromise, All things are Connected, Make sure you Meet before you Eat, Leave No Trace, Attitude of Gratitude, and Stretch Your Edge!
Be Prepared, Widen the Circle, Collaborate & Compromise, All things are Connected, Make sure you Meet before you Eat, Leave No Trace, Attitude of Gratitude, and Stretch Your Edge!
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