Kindergarten Nature Walk With Anja

Going on a nature walk!

A couple weeks ago all the kindergarten classes at Anja's school went on a nature walk on a trail near their school.  Parents were invited to come along, and I was there!  Each student had a bag in which they could put things they collected along the way (with some ground rules:  must stay on trail, may not pick up rocks, sticks, or anything alive).  It was great fun to watch the kids be tuned in to what is around them and amazed at nature.

Ready for the nature walk!

Anja's greatest find of the day, a tuft of
animal fur.

All the kindergarten classes were tromping through the woods, pretty much single file.  At one point, the line stopped and I could see ahead a little bit that a group of kids and adults were bunched up on the side of the trail looking at something.  After they moved on, we came up and one of the teachers pointed out a toad in the leaves.  She told the kids to stand back and give it plenty of space.  The kids didn't listen and got too close, so the toad leapt away a bit.  I was looking on the ground to see where it had gone, with kids crowded around me, spotted it close to my foot right as a foot went STOMP! right on the toad.  I screeched "AAAH!  What did you DO?!"  I look over and it is a little boy from Anja's class.  He paused for half a second, then just kept on walking.  A teacher came over and scooped up the toad ( who was not dead, fortunately, the leaves and grass underneath it must have cushioned the blow).  She held the toad so the kids could take a look, then set it down back into the woods where it would be more safe.  We caught up to the rest of Anja's class and I told the teacher what had happened and she shook her head and said "boys."  What?  "BOYS"?  REALLY?????  I don't think all boys would have done that.

The nearly murdered toad

Imagine my surprise when that same boy turned up at Anja's birthday party a couple days later.  He was one of the kids Anja had invited to her party.  I know they are only six, I know they are still learning and I should be patient and understanding, but I kept my eye on that toad assassin during the whole party.