This past weekend we celebrated the Spring Equinox. The weather was windy, drizzly and a tad chilly, and we found delight in this. We took our celebration to the River where we gathered fallen catkins, the last of the usena from winter storms, fallen cedar leaves and spotted Nootka rose, maple and trillium buds. We foraged small amounts of cleavers, chick weed and miner’s lettuce to share in our equinox meal gathering. We talked about the darkness of winter and how we spend time snuggled up with shorter days and longer nights, and the dreams we were nurturing through these dark months and how they are beginning to blossom as Spring welcomes renewal and birth. At Grassroots we teach with a seasonal/sun cycle throughout the seasons and throughout each day. The direction of the East represents Spring, renewal, birth and a new day as the sun rises in the East. The South represents Summer, abundant energy and hard work, the energy of mid-day when the sun is at its highest point in the sky. West represents Autumn, harvesting, gathering and letting go, the softening to the end of a day as the sun sets in the West. Finally, North represents Winter, rest, reflection and conception, as we cozy up at night and the sun goes to rest until it wakes for another day.
Connecting to nature and being into tune with these natural rhythms is known within our blood and bones, but many of us have forgotten how to trust and connect to these cycles. We need to re-remember how to work in unison with these rhythms to find abundance, rich meaningful experiences and a quiet feeling of content grown from within. Children have more of an innate ability to connect to these rhythms compared to adults, but how often do we offer our children the opportunity to explore these connections? I know firsthand how difficult it can be to create space and time for connection with a laundry list of to-do’s that need to be crammed into a single day.
This is why Grassroots works with the natural cycle. It opens something up within all of us that is already there and needs to be given permission to be explored. At Grassroots we start our day in the East with a short game and flow into an opening circle, here we do a short breathing exercise to ground and arrive on the land with our mind, heart and spirit we then go around the circle offering a gratitude to the day. The beginning of the day is such a beautiful time to practice this as a new day is rich with possibility. After our opening circle we find our sit spot, a place on the land that we connect with daily, to listen, feel, and learn. The wonderful thing about a sit spot is that you see it change over time, and as you observe these changes you get to know your spot in a way that not body else ever has. This is one of our greatest teachers. This can be a short practice or a long practice. It depends on the day and the child. From our sit spot we move into the business of our day, the direction of the South. We get curious, investigate, play and imagine! All of these experiences, with our gratitude and sit spot experience set the stage for a multi-dimensional story to be told. We end our time together in a closing circle where everyone is encouraged to reflect on their day and share their story of the day. Here, we settle in the direction of the West as we gather and soften into the experiences we shared. Children have an uncanny ability to recant the smallest details of their day that are sure to fascinate any listener. The sensory awareness and knowledge of place that children develop while spending the day out in nature provides them with a vibrant ability to recall intricate details of their day that otherwise may have been forgotten.
Our days at Grassroots are deeply guided by the rhythms of nature. This is done intentionally to provide a rich, experiential and mindful learning environment, but also to unlock the innate wisdom that is already deep within all of us.
Grassroots Forest School 