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Puget Sound Explorer's Guide (Fall)
Outdoor activities for families, teachers and kids in fall
Puget Sound Explorer's Guide
The Puget Sound Explorer's Guide is an all-season activity guide that classes, families and just plain folks can use to learn about Puget Sound and have fun. Activities are divided into "Walk Outside" and "Help Out" activities.
Fall -- Walk outside!
Now that school has started, you'll only be able to get outside to look at the trees on afternoons or weekends. What changes are you noticing? There are usually a lot more spider webs this time of year. Have you ever watched a spider catch a bug in her web?
Leaves are turning colors, and berries and nuts are ripening. Pick up a few nice looking fallen leaves and save them for a rainy day (see below). If you planted a garden, have you harvested anything yet?
The squirrels and chipmunks are busier. Listen for birds in the morning and afternoon. Do you hear as many as you did in Spring? See as many? Keep an eye to the sky for Canada Geese migrating.
The days are getting shorter and the weather is starting to cool off. You don't have to stay up so late to see raccoons anymore. Remember that bird nest you found? Is it empty yet?
Fall -- Help out: Learn the three R's!
As you get ready to go back to school, remember to reduce, re-use and recycle! It's not hard to find recycled notebooks and filler paper. If you look for them, you can even get recycled pencils and binders made out of recycled pop bottles.
Get a pen with refillable ink cartridges, so you don't have to throw away lots of empty pens during the school year. Check out the labels on back-to-school stuff to see how it rates.
But be on the lookout for stuff that tries to fool you, like notebook paper that says it's "100% Recyclable." You already knew that. You want some that has already been recycled!
Fall -- Help out: Take the earth to lunch!
Taking your lunch to school? Do it with a "litterless" lunch kit that you can use over and over!
A paper bag will do to carry it, but a cloth bag or a lunch box will last longer. Carry your food in plastic containers. You don't have to go out and buy fancy ones, just save yogurt and margarine tubs, deli food containers and things like that.
Fill a re-usable empty bottle with something to drink and bring a cup to drink with instead of using non-recyclable juice boxes.
And finally, take a cloth napkin that you can wash and use again instead of a paper one you can't recycle. Be creative! By the time you're done, you'll have the neatest looking lunch kit in the whole school!
Fall -- Help out: Getting there
And speaking of school, how are you going to get there? Maybe you ride a bus? Terrific! That saves lots of gas and helps to prevent air and water pollution.
A carpool with other kids from your school? That's good, too!
Can you walk or bike? Going that way means there's no pollution at all!
What other ways could you get to school? Skateboarding, roller blading, skipping, walking on your hands...what else? Pick one and go!
Fall -- Help out: Leaf prints
It's raining, it's cold, and it's Saturday. What to do? Remember those leaves that you picked up when you took a walk outside? Well, go get them and some paint, and make leaf prints.
What you need: Leaves (not so dry that they're brittle), paint, paint brushes, a bottle, rolling pin or dowel; waxed paper and paper to print
How to do it: brush a thin coat of paint on one side of the leaf and put it on the waxed paper, paint side up. Put the paper you want the leaf print to be on over the leaf. Carefully roll over the top of the paper with the rolling pin, bottle or dowel. Now slowly peel the paper back, and you have a print of a leaf from your tree outside!
You can use leaf prints to make wrapping paper, pictures, decorate your school notebooks or add an artistic touch to letters. You can even decorate clothes with them if you use fabric paint. Use leaves of different sizes to make neat designs.
If the weather is really gloomy, use bright colors to remind you of Spring!
Fall -- Help out: Wipe your mouth!
Make a re-usable cloth napkin for your litterless lunch kit!
Cut a good-sized square of fabric, fold over the edges and do a simple running stitch with a needle and thread, or use a sewing machine. Ask an older friend or relative to show you how if you need help.
Then you can decorate it any way you like, with fabric paints and glitter or beads and buttons.
Sets of matching napkins make great holiday gifts, too! You could also make custom-made napkins for each member of your family, in their favorite colors or designs.
Continue to Winter Explorer's Guide.
Continue to Spring Explorer's Guide.
Continue to Summer Explorer's Guide.