Nature I-Spy Bags

I have to admit, I am proud of this one because I thought of it all by myself! Normally I find ideas elsewhere and tweak them, but this came straight from my brain. I'm guessing I am really not the first to think of it though. What I love about the idea of making a nature I-spy bag is that it requires spending time in the outdoors! We were going to this when we went camping earlier in the summer, but the kids were too engaged in other activities.

First, find yourself a nice place in nature. It could be a park, beside a lake in the mountains, along the beach, or even your own backyard. Let the kids just spend time exploring for awhile.

My kids love collecting things when we go out on walks, so asking them to find "nature stuff" for the I-spy bag was not a chore at all.

We gathered some mini pine cones, sticks, pieces of bark, pine needles, and later some acorns and feathers. It is fun to have a variety of items.

Once we got home (or you can bring the supplies with you) you can assemble your bags. I had bought a way too big bag of bird seed for another project and I thought it would be the perfect base for the I-spy bag. Just fill up a ziploc type sandwich bag about 1/2 to 2/3 full of seeds. If you don't have seeds, rice works too or you could use oatmeal, couscous, popcorn kernels or even sand. One thing I like about the bird seed is that the various textures makes it just a little bit harder to find the items in the bag, creating a bigger challenge for the kids.

Fill the bag up with the found nature goodies.

So easy to see them now!

Seal the plastic bag and then put it inside of another one, just in case there are any spills.

 

Now it's time to get spying!