Cincinnati Nature Center

Blog

Blog Entries - Child Directed Play

Archives Tags

2023 2022 2021 2020 2018 2017 2016 2015

Ages 2-5 (2) Ages 5-12 (2) Amphibians (1) arachnids (1) art (1) art in nature (1) artists (1) artswave (1) At Home Activities for Kids (4) At Home with Nature (17) Backyard Compost (1) Backyard Habitat (7) Bee (1) Bioblitz (1) Brood X (1) Brush Piles (2) Burn Boss (1) cellar spider (1) Child Directed Play (5) Children's Saturday Programs (1) Cicadas (1) CincyNature Camp (2) Citizen Science (1) community science (1) composting (1) conservation (23) daddy long legs (1) Earth Day (2) Eastern Bluebirds (1) Eco-friendly habitats (6) Eco-Friendly Habits (2) Education (1) entomology (2) Farm (1) Finding home (1) fireflies (1) firefly watch (1) Fitness (1) Foraging (1) Gardening (12) Great Blue Herons (1) Great pinecone (1) Growing Up in Nature (3) harvestman (1) Home School Activity (4) Insect (1) Invasive Species (4) Jogging (1) Kids (8) Kids Activities (8) Knowing Nature In Your Yard (12) Landscaping (11) Long Branch Farm & Trails (4) milkweed (2) monarch butterfly (1) National Gardening Day (1) Native Plants (15) Nature (28) Nature for All (1) Nature Learning (17) Non-native plants (4) Non-native species (4) Ornithology (3) Outdoor Play (7) partnership (1) Periodical Cicadas (1) Phenology (2) Plant Identification (7) Play (6) PlayScape (4) Prescribed Burns (1) Recycling (1) Rookery (1) Running (1) Salamander (1) Soil (4) spiders (1) Summer (1) The Ripple (1) Trail Etiquette (1) Trail Rules (1) Trail running (1) Trails (3) Vernal ponds (2) Vernal Pools (1) Wasp (1) Welcoming Nature In Your Yard (8) Wildlife (2) Women in Conservation (1) Women Who Lead (1) Women's History Month (1) Yard Care (12) Yellow Iris (1) Yellowjacket (1) Zero Waste (2)

The Magic of the PlayScape

August 2, 2021 | Child Directed Play, Growing Up in Nature, Kids, Kids Activities, Nature, Nature Learning, Outdoor Play, Play, PlayScape

by Abbie Rinehart, Member The Cincinnati Nature PlayScape is a magical place to inspire wonder and curiosity in children and relaxation in their parents. We first discovered the PlayScape just after it opened 10 years

Photo of a white woman looking at the camera. She has long brown hair framing her face and is wearing a green shirt. A taxidermy skunk is being held in front of her face. — Me, as a volunteer at a station about skunks

Growing Up in Nature

July 21, 2021 | Child Directed Play, Children's Saturday Programs, CincyNature Camp, Growing Up in Nature, Kids, Kids Activities, Long Branch Farm & Trails, Nature, Nature Learning, Outdoor Play, Play, PlayScape, Trails

by CB, a staff member Long before I came to work at Cincinnati Nature Center, I grew up here. As a kid, a neighbor would frequently bring me and my best friend (her daughter) to the Nature Center. We’d tell stories

At Home with Nature: Nest Building (Ages 2-5)

March 30, 2020 | Ages 2-5, At Home Activities for Kids, At Home with Nature, Child Directed Play, Kids, Kids Activities, Nature, Nature Learning, Outdoor Play, Play

Children can have lots of fun mimicking the creativity of birds and building with natural objects! You’ll need: A nature space to find building materials and an “egg” (a stone, pinecone, or other egg-shaped

At Home with Nature: Mud Kitchen (Ages 2-5)

March 26, 2020 | Ages 2-5, At Home Activities for Kids, At Home with Nature, Child Directed Play, Home School Activity, Kids Activities, Nature Learning, Outdoor Play

You’ll need: Old kitchen utensils, a pile of soil, and a bin of water. Optional extras: Paper and markers to make your own menu. Mix the water and soil together, either in the bin or on the ground, and let your

The Power of Hmmm

August 24, 2016 | Child Directed Play, Kids, Nature, Play, PlayScape

By Anne Horne, Trailside Experience Coordinator “Mommy, will you play with me”? In my house, this request is common and it used to be followed by a quiet pause from me. It wasn’t that I