Description
There is plenty of children’s literature that focuses on nature, yet little of that literature encourages children to think about nature in terms of mindfulness or as an artistic experience and expression. The theories and tools that have been developed in practices such as nature-based art therapy encourage individuals to think about nature in artistic terms. The findings from these practices have shown to increase the overall wellbeing of individuals while simultaneously facilitating a healthy spiritual relationship to the natural world. The research shows that the spiritual health of humans and the health of our environments are connected. There is a lack of education in teaching children how to become spiritually healthy or connect with their natural environment. The canon of children’s literature ought to be expanded to include more works that encourage children to view nature in terms of artistic experience and expression so that children can benefit in four significant ways: they can gain the health benefits of mindfulness, they can grow spiritually through realigning themselves in “a sensitive way to the shapes and expressive forms of more than human nature” (Stoknes, p.14), they can become more equipped to creatively confront the environmental challenges of our times, and they can gain greater motivation to spend time in nature. Spending time with nature is essential for building a deep relationship with it which can result in environmental stewardship becoming a stronger human value. My storybook assists in this project by utilizing a poetic language that is accessible to children, by representing ecosystems in a way that highlights their artistic forms while employing mindfulness techniques through their engagement with those naturally artistic forms in nature. Additionally, this paper will be accompanied by a lesson plan that can help to encourage teachers to incorporate more of this type of practice into their pedagogy.
Keywords: children’s literature, nature, artistic experience, artistic expression, mindfulness, environmental challenges, land stewardship, nature-based art therapy, pedagogy
