This week is ‘Walk to School’ week. This campaign is organised by Living Streets and takes place during National Walking Month in May. This year the campaign focuses on the benefits of walking and sets a task for each day.
Find out more about this campaign here
This is also the year of Natural Scotland 2013. It aims to encourage everyone to explore and find out more about our nation’s stunning natural beauty.
As part of this the ‘Scotland’s Big 5’ campaign aims to get everyone talking about Scotland’s nature and joining in the fun of discovering five of the country’s iconic species – the red squirrel, red deer, harbour seal, otter and golden eagle – and the places where you’re most likely to see them.
We have been inspired by these campaigns and while you walk to school we would like to challenge you to look carefully at natural patterns and treasures. To capture what you see in drawings and photographs and to create a pattern trail map for others to enjoy and appreciate your local area. Imagine if you managed to spot one of the Big 5!
Every day we have set a different challenge
Day1: Tiny natural patterns
I thought that these looked a little bit like dragon ears!
Day 2: Tangled natural treasure
I’m still searching – I wonder what you will find.
Day 3: Fragile natural treasure
Our small Shetland pony ‘Tiny’ is casting his winter coat. The birds are collecting Tiny’s hair and weaving it into their nests.
Day 4: Gigantic natural treasure
I think this tree has a great deal of character and the branch stretching across the trunk looks like an arm
Day 5: Living natural treasure
Last year a pair of swallows built a nest above our front door and they have returned this year. They build their nest from mud. It is incredible to watch the mud being layered up bit by bit. I stood for some time waiting for them to forget I was there and return to their nest. I’m very proud of this photograph.
To help you observe carefully why not try looking through a viewing frame. Simply take some thick paper, draw the shape you wish to look through – it could be circular, square, lots of little holes etc. With an adult place the paper on top of some plasticene and use a sharp object to create a hole in the centre of your drawn shape. Use scissors to cut out from the centre to the edge of the shape you have drawn.
You can download this book below to capture sketches in, or indeed create your own.
Please upload your photographs and drawings to the appropriate page on the wiki to help create a nationwide collection of Scottish biodiversity.
