👀 Nature Sit Spot – Be Still and Listen 🦉🌳

What you need:

• A blanket, log, or soft patch of grass to sit on 🧺

• A notebook and pencil (optional) ✏️

• Your imagination! 🌟

• A grown-up nearby 👩‍🦰🧑‍🦳

How to do it:

1. Find a quiet spot in the forest or garden with your adult.

2. Sit down, stay still, and just watch and listen.
   No talking, no moving around – just like a tree! 🌳

3. What can you see?
   🐝 A buzzing bee? 🍂 Leaves falling? 🦋 A fluttering butterfly?

4. What can you hear?
   🐦 Birdsong? 🌬️ Wind in the trees? 🐿️ Crunchy paws?

5. What can you smell? 🌸🍃

6. Sit for 5–10 minutes, then draw or talk about what you noticed.

Optional challenge:
🌈 Try returning to the same sit spot in every season and see what changes!

Important reminders:
🤫 Be quiet so animals don’t get scared.
🐾 Don’t pick or touch anything unless your adult says it’s OK.
🧼 Wash hands after exploring.

🌿 This activity helps Garden Pals learn patience, calmness, and how to observe nature like a true wildlife explorer! 🕵️‍♀️🐾

🐞 Bug Explorer Adventure! 🐜🔍

What you need:

• A magnifying glass (optional) 🔎

• A small container with holes (for short viewing only!) 🪟

• A notebook and pencil ✏️

• A grown-up helper 👩‍🌾

How to do it:

1. Head out into your garden, forest, or park with your adult and become a Bug Explorer!

2. Look under leaves, on tree bark, in flower beds, or under logs for creepy crawlies like:

   • 🐞 Ladybirds

   • 🐜 Ants

   • 🕷️ Spiders

   • 🐛 Caterpillars

   • 🦋 Butterflies

   • 🐝 Bees

3. Use your magnifying glass to look closely (but gently!).

4. Draw what you see, count their legs or colours, and write down what they were doing.

Bug Explorer Rules:
✅ Be gentle – bugs are tiny and delicate!
✅ Look, don’t touch – or only hold for a very short time.
✅ Always put bugs back where you found them.
✅ Wash your hands when you’re done. 🧼

🪲 Bonus Challenge:
Try spotting a bug in each colour of the rainbow! 🌈

This activity helps you become a kind and curious Garden Pal who understands just how important little bugs are in keeping nature healthy and happy! 🐝🌼💚

🧺 Garden Pals Nature Picnic 🌞🌿

What you need:

• A picnic blanket or towel 🧺

• Healthy snacks & drinks 🍎🥪🧃

• A rubbish bag ♻️

• A notebook, crayons, or a camera (optional!) 📸✏️

• A grown-up to join the fun 👩‍👧‍👦

How to do it:

1. Choose a nice, shady spot in your garden, forest, or park.

2. Lay out your blanket and unpack your picnic.

3. Take a moment to sit quietly, listen to nature, and spot some wildlife! 🐦🐛🦋

4. Enjoy your food with your family or friends – maybe even share a story or some fun nature facts!

Picnic Fun Ideas:
🌼 Play a game of “I Spy” with things in nature
🖍️ Draw something you can see (like a tree, a bug, or a flower!)
🕵️ Make a nature checklist of everything you spot while you eat!

Garden Pals Picnic Rules:
🚯 Take all your litter home
🌱 Don’t feed wild animals
💦 Wash hands before and after eating
🪑 Leave the area as lovely as you found it

This picnic is all about enjoying the outdoors, sharing time with loved ones, and learning to care for the world around us – the Garden Pals way! 🌍💚🧺

🧭 Wild Map Makers: Create Your Own Nature Trail! 🗺️🌲

What you need:

• A notebook or clipboard with paper 📒

• Pencil or pen ✏️

• Compass or phone with compass app (optional) 🧭

• Ruler or straight edge 📏

• A grown-up nearby for safety 👀

Your Mission:
Become a Garden Pals Explorer by creating your very own nature trail map in your garden, park, or forest area!

🔍 What to do:

1. Pick a safe space to explore with clear start and end points.

2. Walk the area and mark key things on your paper:

   • 🪵 Fallen logs or benches

   • 🌸 Interesting plants or trees

   • 🐜 Bug hotspots

   • 🐾 Animal tracks or signs

   • 🔄 Clear paths, turns, and features

3. Use symbols and a map key to explain what each mark means.

4. Add arrows or compass directions for a real explorer’s feel.

5. Name your trail and give it a difficulty rating (🟢 Easy, 🟡 Medium, 🔴 Wild!).

6. Optional: Create a mini guide or quiz to go with your trail!

🧠 Why it’s cool:

🧭 Builds observation skills
📍 Teaches map-making and navigation
🌿 Helps you really notice nature
💬 You can even invite others to walk your trail!

✅ Explorer Reminders:

• Don’t go too far or off-track

• Respect wildlife and plants

• Leave no rubbish behind

• Share your map with friends and family!

🌍 This is a perfect project for Garden Pals who want to lead their own outdoor adventures, practice creativity, and connect with the natural world in new ways. 🐾🧭

🍃 Nature Rubbings Explorer 🎨✨

What you need:

• Plain white paper 📄

• Wax crayons, chalk, or soft pencils (with paper wrapping removed) 🖍️

• A clipboard or book to lean on 📚

• A grown-up nearby 👩‍🌾

🌿 What to do:

1. Go on a nature walk with your adult and look for interesting textures:

   • 🍁 Tree bark

   • 🍂 Fallen leaves

   • 🪨 Rough rocks

   • 🌼 Flower petals

   • 🐚 Even wooden signs or fossils!

2. Place your paper over the object and rub gently with the side of your crayon or pencil.
   Watch the texture appear like magic! 🎨

3. Try different colours or materials for each one and label what you found.

4. Make a rubbings collage or even turn your page into a nature-inspired greeting card or poster!

🎯 Garden Pals Challenges:

• Can you find 5 different leaf shapes? 🍃

• Make a rubbing from something smooth and something bumpy – compare!

• Create a “rubbing trail map” of what you find on your walk 🗺️

✅ Nature Rubbing Rules:

🖐️ Be gentle with trees and plants – only rub what’s safe and already fallen
🚯 Leave nature as you found it
🧼 Wash hands after your adventure
🎒 Take all your materials home

🧠 This activity helps you become a true Garden Pals artist, using nature’s textures to create your own masterpiece! 🌳🎨🪵

🌍 Conservation Champions Challenge 💪🐾

What you need:

• A notebook or sheet of paper 📒

• Pencil or pen ✏️

• Gloves and a rubbish bag (if doing a clean-up) 🧤🗑️

• A grown-up to help 👩‍🌾

💚 What is Conservation?

Conservation means protecting nature – from trees and animals to rivers and wildflowers.
As a Garden Pal, you can help care for the environment in your local area!

🐾 What to do:

1. Pick a local green space like a park, woodland, or garden with your adult.

2. Spend 15–30 minutes being a Conservation Champion by:

   • 🌱 Spotting and listing wild plants or animals

   • 🗑️ Collecting safe litter (with gloves!)

   • 🐝 Looking for pollinators (like bees and butterflies)

   • 🍃 Checking how people are treating the space – is it clean? safe? looked after?

3. Write down your ideas for how we can protect and improve the space!

4. Optional: Make a poster or pledge about how you’ll help protect nature at home or school.

🧠 Conservation Ideas for Kids:

• Create a bug hotel or bird feeder at home 🐛🐦

• Use less plastic and always recycle ♻️

• Grow wildflowers for bees 🌸

• Talk to friends and family about why nature matters 🌍

• Support local rescues or wildlife charities 💛

✅ Safety & Kindness:

👣 Stick to safe paths
🗑️ Only pick up clean rubbish with gloves and adult help
🧼 Wash hands after your adventure
🐾 Be gentle with all living things

🌟 This activity helps you think, explore, and take action — like a real Garden Pals conservation hero! Together, we can make a big difference, one small step at a time. 🐞💚🌍