Nature's Wonders, Ages 3-4

Explore, Create, and Discover the Great Outdoors!
Your child will fall in love with nature during this exciting week of outdoor adventures and creative crafts! Campers will explore the beauty of the natural world with nature walks, wildlife observations, and fun activities like rock painting, leaf rubbings, and building fairy houses from twigs and flowers. They’ll create nature crowns, dreamcatchers, and plant their own mini gardens. With a mix of outdoor exploration and artistic projects, this week will inspire curiosity and creativity while connecting kids to the wonders of the environment!

Special Feature: Visit from Jacksonville Zoo

Daily Activities

Day 1: Nature Explorers

• Activity 1: Nature Walk & Treasure Hunt
  Explore the campus to collect leaves, flowers, and small twigs, identifying different plants and trees.
• Activity 2: Leaf Rubbings
  Use crayons and paper to create colorful leaf rubbing art with collected leaves.
• Activity 3: Bug Hotel Building
  Build small “homes” for bugs using recycled materials, twigs, and natural elements.

Day 2: Garden Day

• Activity 1: Plant a Mini Garden
  Each child plants a flower or small herb in a decorated pot to take home.
• Activity 2: Rock Painting
  Paint and decorate rocks with nature-inspired designs like flowers, butterflies, or animals.
• Activity 3: Garden Scavenger Hunt
  Search for items in the garden (like a yellow flower, a butterfly, or a shiny pebble) using picture clues.

Day 3: Forest Adventures

• Activity 1: Fairy Houses & Gnome Homes
  Build miniature homes for fairies and gnomes using sticks, leaves, and pinecones.
• Activity 2: Animal Masks
  Create and decorate masks of woodland creatures like foxes, owls, or raccoons.
• Activity 3: Storytime in the Forest
  Listen to a fun nature-themed story under a shady tree, followed by imaginative play as the story’s characters.

Day 4: Water Wonders

• Activity 1: Nature Watercolors
  Paint outdoor scenery using watercolor paints and explore blending colors inspired by nature.
• Activity 2: Natural Tie-Dye
  Use flowers, leaves, and natural dyes to create tie-dye patterns on small pieces of fabric.
• Activity 3: Nature Splash Play
  Explore water through fun outdoor activities like scooping, pouring, and floating natural objects.

Day 5: Celebration of Nature

• Activity 1: Dreamcatcher Craft
  Create dreamcatchers using twigs, string, beads, and feathers, inspired by natural materials.
• Activity 2: Nature Crown Parade
  Decorate crowns with leaves, flowers, and ribbons, then parade around showing off their creations.
• Activity 3: Picnic & Reflection
  Enjoy a picnic with healthy snacks while talking about their favorite parts of the week and showing off their crafts.

Take-Home Items

1. Leaf Rubbing Art
2. Bug Hotel
3. Planted Mini Garden
4. Painted Rocks
5. Fairy or Gnome House
6. Woodland Animal Mask
7. Nature Watercolor Painting
8. Natural Tie-Dye Fabric
9. Dreamcatcher Craft
10. Nature Crown