Spring is tentatively showing itself in many parts of the country. (Not where I live; we just got almost 12 inches of snow.) For many families, this means the end of indoor recreation activities and a chance to get back outside and enjoy nature. You can help your kids learn to enjoy the outdoors -- and make great family memories -- by keeping a nature journal.

Nature Journal as a Family
One of the fun things you can do together is head outside and keep a nature journal. The National Wildlife Federation offers some helpful hints for making a nature journal. Possible subjects are included, and this can help you get a good start on what to do for a successful nature journal. You can look for such items as plants, animals and rocks, as well as listen to the different sounds being made. The wind in the leaves or the sound of a stream can make great subjects for the nature journal. Older children can learn how to identify different plants, animals and rocks that are common to your local area.

A nature journal should include observations about the things heard, seen and even smelled. Have your children describe their experiences. Older children can write for themselves, and you can help the younger children. Encourage your children to draw pictures of what they have seen, using crayons or markers. You can even take pictures and add them to the nature journal. Have your children see how close they can get to drawing what is seen in the picture. You can add pages as needed, using a three-ring binder or keep the nature journal in a series of notebooks.

Remember, though, that spring can still be a little chilly. Make sure that you have jackets and hats, and are dressed appropriately for the weather. Good walking shoes are a good idea. Once you start your nature journal, you can make a new journal for every season.

Daily nature walks can be a fun and educational way to get that exercise in for the kids. Children naturally enjoy exploring. Whether it is for a physical education class of 30, or a parent with a couple kids in tow, this is a great opportunity to get those kids moving.

Daily nature walks can be a fun and educational way to get that exercise in for the kids. Children naturally enjoy exploring. Whether it is for a physical education class of 30, or a parent with a couple kids in tow, this is a great opportunity to get those kids moving. It can be supplemented as part of the daily routine or even used by itself. Either option will bring healthy benefits.

Many schools are using nature walks as a combination between a science lesson and physical education, which I think is a great idea. We do something similar at home. Some schools have great areas to explore, such as ponds, trees, or grassy fields. For schools that don't have much nature, this can be done in a neighborhood walk or a walk to the neighborhood park. Nature is all around us and is easily found.

Walking is great exercise for the heart, as well as the legs, arms, and abdominals. It is often a total body workout. To add even more exercise and fun to the walk, teachers and parents can instruct the children to move like certain animals. For instance, the children can put their arms together, swaying them back and forth like an elephant trunk. They can even jump like kangaroos, hop like frogs, "fly" like birds, or sprint like cheetahs.

Another fun way to incorporate exercise into a nature walk is by having children climb a tree. Be sure to keep safety in mind, of course. Also, if this is a class field trip, be sure all parents are aware of any activities to be done, in case of any health issues. From the tree, children can either look for creatures that may be in or on the tree or they can look down from the tree to see if they can observe anything they couldn't plainly see from the ground.

Before taking my children on a nature walk, I like to be sure we have certain supplies with us and all the children have on their sunscreen. Water is one of the most important things to bring along. Bringing along plenty for each person helps to ensure no one gets dehydrated or exhausted from the heat. One liter of water per person is probably a good amount to bring on a nature walk that lasts up to an hour.

We also like to bring along a spray bottle filled with water. We keep it on the mister setting. The spray mist helps keep everyone cool, especially if it's a hot day. Just be careful not to keep it too cold because if a child is too hot or suffering from heat exhaustion, the child can go into shock, caused by going from one extreme temperature to the next. We like to just keep it room temperature. Some other items to bring along on a nature walk are trail mix (a lightweight and healthy snack), bug collection containers, microscopes, tweezers, plastic sandwich bags, binoculars, and cameras.