On Being More Authentic and Choosing a Nature Name

Things are looking a little different around here! What do you think of the new design?! I love the feather! It reminds me of one of my fondest memories from preschool.

Memories of My Inner Child

I attended a little play-based preschool in the late 80’s. I have many wonderful memories of that time and one of my favorites is the day we were given Native American names. I don’t recall what the theme of the day was, maybe it was around Thanksgiving. But I still vividly remember sitting in a circle while the teachers went around the room asking us, the little students what we would like for our native names. Me, being the indecisive child that I was could not think of a name for myself, so my teachers named me “Sweet Running Fawn”.

That name suited me very well and I can still remember the little feather cut out of orange construction paper where a teacher wrote my native name in beautiful handwriting. I kept that paper feather for a long time, it seems to be misplaced or tossed now.

I love this memory because it reminds me of my innocent and free inner child that I long to be. This is why I chose the feather for my logo, to remind me not to let go of my inner child, my true authentic self.

Feather Name Tag for Your Nature Names

This memory means so much to me that I want to share it with my son and you, my readers, so I’ve had this feather name tag printable created. You can use it to record your nature names in your family, with your classroom, with a nature club or with a homeschool co-op group!

To make your own colorful feathers, just print off as many Nature Name Tag sheets as you need on cardstock. You can use watercolor paints or crayons to add color to white cardstock. Or you can print it on colored cardstock, then cut around the feathers and write your nature names in permanent marker. Then your family or group will have their own fond memories of getting nature names!

You can also punch a hole in the paper feather and hang it on a string of yarn with some beads as a necklace or display them creatively in your home or classroom! If you create a display I’d love to see it! You can tag me on Instagram or post a photo on my Facebook page!

How to Choose a Nature Name

To come up with memorable nature names it is important for it to be authentic. Be sure to take a child’s personality into consideration. It is also a good idea to start with an adjective, then a verb, and then an animal or other nature element. So for example, I would choose the name Wild Jumping Fox for my son, because he is wild, always hopping around and as curious and sly as a fox. 😉

On Being More Authentic

So after reading this lovely story, you are probably wondering what might change around here. And well, I’m hoping for many positive changes. As you can see I’ve changed my tagline to “Charlotte Mason Inspired Learning”. We are a homeschooling family, and I’ve been greatly inspired by the writings and teaching methods of Charlotte Mason as I continue to learn more and develop our own homeschool philosophy.

In an effort to become more authentic online, I’ve decided to change the focus of my blog to Charlotte Mason inspired learning ideas and activities. I feel that this fits our current lifestyle and direction we are heading in our homeschool. It will still consist of  more hands-on learning, informal nature study, and more homeschool help type posts as I learn and grow as a homeschool mom.

There will likely be no more thematic preschool activities. (I don’t have a preschooler anymore, and he wasn’t interested in many of those types of activities despite my efforts at playful learning.) Those will stay on the blog and can be found on my new Learning Activities Page.

I want to thank my long time readers for following me all these years, and I truly hope you stick around! If you are a new reader, I want to invite you to follow us on your preferred social media outlets! We are on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram and Google +! And be sure to subscribe to our email list! I’m currently sending out one email a week with the latest posts!

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