One of American literature's most significant writers and thinkers, Henry David Thoreau's work continues to impact writers and philosophers to this day. As Thoreau says in his book Walden: "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."
Like Thoreau, we will complete our nature journals. We will deliberately go to the fields, forests and ponds behind LHS to see what they have to teach and gain the personal experience necessary to begin to truly understand Henry David Thoreau, his world and his Transcendental philosophy. Nature journaling also provides students with the opportunity to develop their observation skills - an essential component of great writing.
Out study of Thoreau will extend through each semester this year. Once every month, we will explore nature and record our observations. We will also pair this with reader's responses to passages from Thoreau's Walden. This will give us the opportunity to ponder the connection between our observations and Thoreau's transcendental philosophy.
In May/June, we will complete the Final Nature Journaling Project. In this project students will communicate their understanding of Thoreau's transcendental philosophy through the prism of their nature journaling experiences.
Where can I learn more about the connection between writing and nature journaling? Check out these links:
