Starting from Language Arts
These interdisciplinary language arts activities are aimed for primary students to strengthen their connection with place, practice literacy skills, and develop oral language skills.
Sense Journal
Curricular Competencies
English Language Arts
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Communicate using letters and words and applying some conventions of Canadian spelling, grammar, and punctuation
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Use developmentally appropriate reading, listening, and viewing strategies to make meaning
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Use foundational concepts of print, oral, and visual texts
Science
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Demonstrate curiosity and a sense of wonder about the world
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Make exploratory observations using their senses
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Experience and interpret the local environment
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​Communicate observations and ideas using oral or written language, drawing, or role-play
Art
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Express feelings, ideas, stories, observations, and experiences through the arts
Materials: ​
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clipboards
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worksheets
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pencils
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optional: magnifying glasses
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Gather students in a meeting spot within a natural area. Discuss how you can heighten one of your senses (e.g. closing your eyes might make you hear better).
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Explain that each student will be sitting in their own spot and journaling. Invite students to inquire about about what they see, hear, smell, and touch in that spot (using the downloadable sheet).
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Explain boundaries, time limit, and hand out materials (clipboards, sense worksheet, pencils, magnifying glass).
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Send students off to explore the area (15-20 min). Encourage brave spelling and drawing in their journals.
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Bring students back together. Discuss as a group their findings for each sense, record on chart paper.
Extensions:
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Bring journals back to classroom and colour/label your drawings
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Pick one sense, write or draw your experience. Which did you find easiest or hardest to focus on?
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Tally and count how many things you found for each sense. Which has the most? Least?
Found Object Storytelling
Curricular Competencies
English Language Arts
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Engage actively as listeners, viewers, and readers, as appropriate, to develop understanding of self, identity, and community
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Recognize the importance of story in personal, family, and community identity
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Recognize the structure and elements of story
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Show awareness of how story in First Peoples cultures connects people to family and community
Science
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Demonstrate curiosity and a sense of wonder about the world
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Experience and interpret the local environment
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Recognize First Peoples stories (including oral and written narratives), songs, and art, as ways to share knowledge​
Art
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Express feelings, ideas, stories, observations, and experiences through the arts
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Create artistic works collaboratively and as an individual, using ideas inspired by imagination, inquiry, experimentation, and purposeful play
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Explore artistic expressions of themselves and community through creative processes
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Gather students in an open space outdoors. Introduce the concept of storytelling. Storytelling is a big part of Indigenous cultures, to tell others about history, ancestors, or about the land. Storytelling brings people together.
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Read a story that is familiar to them to review story elements (characters and setting). A story like The Three Little Pigs provides a great example of characters, setting, and main problem.
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Explain that students will be split into groups to create their own short story using found natural objects. Encourage students to use their imaginations, the object does not have to resemble the character. Stories must have at least 3 characters, 1 setting, and 1 problem.
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Divide students into groups of 3. Have them pick natural objects for their story (e.g. a rock can be a pig). Create a "stage" for your story (e.g. if it takes place in a forest put branches on the ground). Ask students: what does this object remind you of? What would happen if...? Then what happens?
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Have students practice their story.
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Gather students together. Ask groups if any would like to share their story.
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Reflect on the story-making process. What did you enjoy most?
Extensions:​
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Challenge students to create stories with clear sequencing (beginning, middle, and end)
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Video their story so they can rewatch them and make a sequel, write out a script, or design cover art.
Nature Alphabet
Curricular Competencies
English Language Arts
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Use foundational concepts of print, oral, and visual texts
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Communicate using letters and words and applying some conventions of Canadian spelling, grammar, and punctuation
Science​
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Demonstrate curiosity and a sense of wonder about the world
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Observe objects and events in familiar contexts
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Experience and interpret the local environment
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Make and record observations
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Sort and classify data and information using drawings, pictographs and provided tables
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Compare observations with those of others
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Communicate observations and ideas using oral or written language, drawing, or role-play
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Demonstrate curiosity and a sense of wonder about the world
-
Experience and interpret the local environment
Art
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Express feelings, ideas, stories, observations, and experiences through the arts
Materials: ​
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clipboards
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worksheets
-
pencils
​
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Explain to students that you will be going outside as a class to look for alphabet sounds. Review the letters in the alphabet as well as their sounds.
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Take students outside with their sheets, clipboards, and pencils. Have them write or draw something that starts with each letter as they come across it (e.g. bee for the letter B). Prompt students to think of more than one object for each letter, ask: what else starts with the letter ...?
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Come back together as a class and share what natural object students came up with for each letter.
Extensions:​
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Play a game of charades to act out a natural object - students take turns acting out an object, others guess what the object is. Option: teacher can prompt guesses by giving the first letter sound.
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Take a picture of an object for each letter and print it out to make a collaborative alphabet display for the classroom.