It's one of the reasons that we live out in the boonies in W. NJ - DD's school bus waits have shown her wood ducks, ospreys, belted kingfishers, rising trout, mink, otters and even a bald eagle perched on a tree only 60 feet away on the other side of the creek.
We can also get to a reservoir that appears to be on the migration 'highway' for numerous East coast birds. Everyone thinks of NJ as being this post industrial toxic cluster of Superfund sites (and that is mostly true LOL) but there are some truly lovely spots too.
Spring, Summer and Autumn also provide opportunities to hunt for wild edible mushrooms and other foraging delights like ramps, milkweed, nuts and berries. This also provides plenty of exercise and, hopefully, has opened the door to a lifetime of appreciating the outdoors.
The downside is that PS opportunities are limited but we think that an intelligent child with the right parental guidance will learn more in Nature's classroom and at home with us anyway. School is attended mainly for social and not academic reasons, in our opinion, at her age (8).
Last edited by madeinuk; 09/01/13 08:10 AM. Reason: iPad auto speller is my bane
