Nature’s Designs

LESSON 1

Children express their observations and ideas through open-ended art inspired by mini beasts. 

  • Books or photographs showing insects and mini beasts  

  • Mini beast specimens (preserved specimens, found exoskeletons, or high-quality images) 

  • Art supplies of choice for mini beast creation (paper, paint, crayons, colored pencils, oil pastels, watercolor paints, cardboard, collage materials, etc.) 

    OR 

  • Natural loose parts (sticks, maple seeds, pinecones, acorns, seed pods, leaves, bark, flowers, pebbles) 

  • Optional: glue, magnifying glasses 

Materials

Preparations

  • Gather books, photographs, and specimens for children to observe.  

  • Create an invitation space where children can observe and look closely at mini beasts.  

  • Prepare a variety of art materials or natural loose parts for children to explore and create with. 

  • Create opportunities for children to slow down and notice details in the natural world.  

  • Support children in sharing observations, questions, and theories.  

  • Provide open-ended materials that encourage creativity and self-expression.  

  • Foster curiosity, appreciation, and connection with living things.

Objectives for Teachers

  • Children practice close observation by noticing the colors, patterns, textures, and details of mini beasts.  

  • Children develop curiosity as they compare and wonder about the creatures they discover.  

  • Children express their observations and ideas through open-ended art.  

  • Children explore creativity by representing or inventing mini beasts using a variety of materials. 

Objectives for Children

Opening Invitation

Practice singing the nursery rhyme “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” with the actions you came up with.

At night consider saying the “Bedtime” poem to your child.

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,  

How I wonder what you are!  

Up above the world so high,  

Like a diamond in the sky.  

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,  

How I wonder what you are! 

Bedtime Poem

(at bedtime you can use a finger to draw the star, the sun, the moon on your child's back) 

 A star for you to wish on, 
A sun so warm and bright, 
A moon for you to sleep on, 
Happy dreams, 
A kiss goodnight. 

Collect and Connect

Gather children together and reconnect with the discoveries from the previous lesson. 

You might revisit a drawing, photograph, or memory from the mini beast hunt. 

You might ask: 

  • What mini beasts do you remember finding? 

  • Is there one you keep thinking about? 

  • What was something interesting you noticed? 

Allow time for children to share their thoughts and memories. Then introduce today's invitation, you might say: 

"When we looked closely at mini beasts, we noticed so many interesting details. Today we are going to look even closer at the colors, patterns, shapes, and textures we find in nature."

Activity Flow

Begin by gathering children around books, photographs, and mini beast specimens. 

Invite children to spend time looking closely and noticing details. There is no need to introduce every feature or name every part. Allow children to begin with what catches their attention. 

As children explore, encourage observations through questions such as: 

  • What colors do you notice?  

  • What patterns do you see?  

  • What shapes can you find?  

  • What feels similar between these mini beasts?  

  • What feels different?  

  • Which mini beast caught your attention?  

 Encourage children to notice: 

  • Spots, stripes, and markings  

  • Shapes and textures  

  • Wings, shells, legs, and antennae  

  • Repeated patterns or symmetry  

 Allow children to share their ideas and theories as they explore. 

 

Nature's Designs Invitation 

Invite children to respond to their observations through art and design. 

Offer a variety of open-ended materials and explain: 

"Artists often look closely at the world around them and use what they notice as inspiration. I wonder what you might create from the details you discovered today." 

Children may choose to: 

  • Draw a mini beast they observed  

  • Create a mini beast inspired by nature  

  • Explore colors, patterns, or textures they noticed  

  • Build or arrange materials into a new design  

Children may paint, draw, collage, sculpt, or arrange natural materials. Some children may create a realistic representation of a mini beast. Others may create something completely new inspired by the shapes, colors, and patterns they discovered. There is no single way the creation needs to look. 

As children create, invite conversation: 

  • Tell me about your creation. 

  • What inspired this part? 

  • What details did you notice? 

  • What does this remind you of?  

 Encourage children to revisit books, photographs, or specimens as they create if they would like additional inspiration. 

 

Reflection 

Gather children together and invite them to share their creations. 

You might ask: 

  • What inspired your creation?  

  • What details did you notice today?  

  • What mini beast caught your attention?  

  • What patterns or textures did you discover?  

  • What are you still wondering?  

Invite children to share stories, observations, or ideas about their work. 

You might say: 

"Today we looked closely at the tiny details found in the world of mini beasts. We discovered that nature is full of colors, patterns, and designs that can inspire our own ideas.  

I wonder what other details we might notice when we keep looking closely."