GET OUTSIDE:

How Nature Journaling Makes

BRUC E M USE U M the Outdoors Accessible
1 Museum Drive • Greenwich, CT

Nature Journaling
As winter draws nearer and the days
grow shorter, and colder, it can feel like
a real chore to go outside. Yet it is even
more important to get out into what little
sunshine there is during the winter months.
Artist and scientist Hara Woltz knows how
important getting outside is, and uses her
artwork as a way of connecting with the
natural world. When Woltz works outside,
doing research, she also takes notes and
makes simple drawings. After coming Hara Woltz, Field Notes

indoors and warming up Woltz fleshes her

sketches out with paint and color to create
beautiful images that help her remember
her questions and thoughts.

You Try It! Hara Woltz, Field Notes

You, too, can make observational notebooks just like Hara! All you need is a notebook of blank pages,
a sharp pencil, and a place you want to go outside. Make sure you talk to a grownup about what you
want to do first; they may want to come with you. Then take a long walk outside, making brief notes
and sketches of anything you find interesting on your walk. When you get back inside break out your
paints, your markers, your colored pencils -- anything you want to add color and detail with. Spend time
on your illustrations, and don’t forget to add notes with any questions or observations you may have.

GET
Creative!
Common Core State Standard:
ELA: Literacy: R.L. 3.3-5.3, R.L. 3.7-6.7, R.L.
3.1-5.1, R.L. 6.4-8.4, R.H. 6-8.4, R.H. 6-8.7