Well it certainly has been a shaky couple of years for the little ones. Parents and teachers have been working overtime to keep their kids healthy, and many have had to turn away from conventional education and towards alternative resources and communities in order to maintain their children's growth standards - not to mention their own sanity! To make it easier on teachers and parents, we launched 'The Magic of Nature for Early Learning' FB group late last year. Join us for fresh ideas, resources and information, and connection with fellow members and enthusiasts. You can find the link in our bio! Catch you over there folks, and best of luck with the start of the year ❤

🌲 Insight 🌲

As we discussed in our recent blogpost - the COVID era has been a catastrophe for early childhood development. Children have been stripped of their access to sunlight, fresh air, uninhibited play, social interaction, affection from other humans, physical contact and of course - education. In response to this crisis, the team here at Life Rocks has been working tirelessly to put together resources to take the burden off those caring for our children. The 'Soil Book' is the perfect thing for those looking to keep the kids entertained, educated and occupied. The reviews have been great so far - so we know you're gonna love it! Grab your copy via the link in our bio and save $5 this week with the code SOILBOOKSUMMER 📒

Ever used Bark as a canvas? We make paper out of trees, which can be easy enough to forget as we use paper every day - toilet paper, newspaper, books - but it looks nothing like a tree! Nature-based art activities can support children’s mental health and well-being. Numerous studies show the prevention and treatment of such mental health concerns as depression and anxiety due to nature-based art activities - like the study "Supporting Children’s Well-being with Art in Nature: Artist Pedagogue Perceptions". It is so easy to get outside and find natural materials to work with. It shows our children that: we are proactive, creative, imaginative and connected to the world around us. What other nature-based art have you been exploring? Show or tell us in the comments below 😉

NEMATODES are Microscopic worms that live inside many other life forms. They are all around in the soil and feed on all of life, but don’t be worried they won’t eat you! You are too big and fast. In the soil, they help to break everything down, and help the soil become a rich and fertile place. Up to 1700 nematodes have been found living inside of a single millipede - that's how small they are! This beautiful first illustration was taken from our new Children's Soil Book (link below)! Many of them are transparent so you can see their organs and digestive system working. They are mostly predatory and will feed on other insects. If you want to learn more about Nematodes and other creatures of the soil, you'll love our new illustrated children's book 👉🏼 grab your copy with the link in our bio.

Over the last weekend I was sharing and learning at @wildbeingsaustralia 's ancestral skills family gathering ! We went on an on site tour of many edible plants. In this video the amazing Will shows us some farmers friend which is a common edible "weed" which is a great addition to any stew or salad ! What are your favourite edible weeds ? Post them in the comments. Grab an edible plants guide for your local area and discover the nature around you with your children !

Check out this beautiful White Spider Orchid! This particular flower belongs to the orchid family 'Orchidaceae' and is most commonly found to be endemic to the southern coast of Western Australia. Of all the orchids this one certainly does have a most peculiar shape. If you're on the west coast keep an eye out for this beauty in the sand.

Katy Bowman - human bio-mechanics, movement expert and mother - has written this excellent book. The major themes are: - Children need movement - lots of it! - In the modern environment we are STARVED of frequent movement. - In the modern environment we are under constant pressure to do more, which means movement time gets sacrificed. - In order to get more movement, nature, family time, chores and work done - we need to STACK activities together. - Stacking activities is where we, for example, eat dinner outside on the floor (nature + food + family + healthy movement) or we forage for food with friends (food + nature + education + friends + connection + movement) - Katy mentions the modern habit of compartmentalisation as a barrier to having a healthy amount of movement in a day. We go to a gym to move. We go to this room to sit. We do work in the office. Mixing it up a little and stacking habits ( working outside on the ground on a rug = nature+work+better movement) has many benefits because it causes us to invite more nature into our lives, movement and connection. She has plenty of hot tips for parents on how to get their children moving. One of the big tips that I'll share because it is so true is this: movement culture starts with you! That's right. The parent, teacher or carer. We need to find a passion for moving, getting outdoors and connecting to our bodies and nature. Without us taking the lead the children will never follow. What children don't want to be like Mum and Dad? I HIGHLY recommend this book. Asher.

There are a lot of parents out there that are interested in connecting to nature but don’t really have the time to instill this into their kids on top of parenting and teaching now AS WELL. Well, parents - this is one for you. In our book 'Connecting Children to Nature', we've done the hard work for you, clearly laying out the easiest ways you can keep your child healthy, thriving and connected to the natural world, as well as tackling the biggest issues most parents and teachers face when trying to do so. PLUS - even the parents will benefit! Connecting Children to Nature is also about connecting ourselves to Nature. You can grab this book, plus our brand new children's book at our online store - just click on the shop link in our bio 😊