Reading Nature's Signs 🐾

A few years ago, I was gifted the book The Lost Art of Reading Nature's Signs. It’s a truly beautiful book, and for that reason it ended up living on my coffee table, where I could admire it often. Believe me, I had every intention of picking it up and getting lost in the stories and illustrations, but somehow I never did… until recently.

Over winter break, when life slowed down just enough, I finally opened it. I’m so glad I did. It reminded me of a connection that is always there, but one I sometimes forget to fully notice.

I often tell the students that I am like a plant. I need water, warmth, and lots of sunshine to thrive. Because I know this about myself, I naturally retreat to nature for nourishment. Spending time outside isn’t just something I enjoy, it’s something I need. Over time, I’ve slowly cultivated a relationship with the natural world, one that invites me to slow down and pay attention. I find myself entranced by flowing water and the tiny greenery on the forest floor. I pause for tall pine trees and watch birds as they take flight.

But I’ve come to realize that it’s not just the individual beings that draw me in. It’s the stories they tell. Nature is constantly offering clues about what is happening around us. It has a language all its own. It doesn’t need us to understand it. It will continue to adapt, change, and thrive just as it always has.

And yet, it still invites us in. It invites us into relationship. It encourages curiosity. It offers rest. It gives us space to slow down, observe, and learn.

This is something I find myself returning to again and again: the art of learning nature’s language.

It’s also one of my favorite things to share with students.

And so, a new series of lessons was born.

Over the past few weeks, students have been practicing observation and learning to read the signs nature shows us every day. We’ve studied animal tracks across our property to discover who shares this space with us. We’ve found feathers, examined animal scat, and explored the creek, comparing which plants grow along the banks and which thrive farther up the hill.

These small discoveries have sparked so much curiosity and excitement. Together, we are learning that nature is always speaking. We just have to slow down enough to listen.

We’ve been having so much fun, and I can’t wait to continue exploring all the stories waiting to be found outside.

– Ms. Emily

Do you think you can identify the animal tracks found around our school?