Tally Ho! Adventures with Nature Cat
Tally Ho, Friends! I’m thrilled to be sharing some sneak peek details with you about some brand new episodes of Nature Cat on PBS and ways we use the them to get out in nature!
As most of you know, we limit TV watching around here and are intentional with what we do let the kiddos watch. Nature Cat on PBS is one of the shows I feel good about letting my kids watch. Nature Cat and his friends Hal, Daisy, and Squeaks go on outdoor adventures, teach kids about nature along the way and the theme of friendship shines through each episode, as well. Next week they are airing two new episodes on May 23rd: The Great Grasshopper Race and Fall for Hal. Each episode is just over 11 minutes and both have a lot of fun and nature info!
The Great Grasshopper Race.
For this episode we learn all about Hal’s grasshopper, Dustin Hopman, who has been training for the Great Grasshopper race. Within the first minutes of the episode we learn that grasshoppers are excellent jumpers and can jump up to 20x their own length. As the episode goes on, Dustin Hopman disappears from the race course before the race begins and its up to Nature Cat and his friends to go on an adventure to find him! Through their search they discuss how grasshoppers blend in to stay safe; and listen carefully to the sounds of nature that surrounds them. Through their search they discover other animals of nature. A’s favorite scene was the mockingbird copying everything Hal said. She was laughing hysterically. Once they find Dustin Hopman they discover a new noise he’s making and that he’s found a new friend! Together Dustin Hopman, his new friend, Nature Cat, Hal, Daisy, and Squeaks all head back to race course using problem solving and nature noises for Dustin’s big race where they cheered him on.
This episode was adorable and filled with fun, humor, and education. I love how along the adventures the kids are learning even more about nature planting little seeds about what to look for all around them.
Fall for Hal
In this episode it’s the First day of Fall, which happens to be Hal’s favorite day! It’s usually filled with a scavenger hunt filled with all of the items that he loves about fall. But today, Hal is sick and is very sad he can’t join go on his annual search! Nature Cat, being the great friend he is, comes up with an idea: he, Daisy and Squeaks will go on the scavenger hunt for Hal and bring Fall to him. Hal’s list of 6 items looks for sights of fall, smells of fall, sounds of fall, creatures that fly south for the winter and that hibernate, and more.
Through the adventure we find more themes of friendship and nature. The episode talks about the differences between Fall and Spring/Summer like the colors and how it’s darker earlier in the Fall. It opened up a fun conversation about how yes, it is currently Spring here in Colorado but that in about four-five months we’ll see all these changes that Nature Cat is talking about!
How We Used These Episodes to Get Out In Nature
We love any excuse to get out in nature and it’s been a bit rainy the last few days around here so we were itching to get outside! I decided going on a nature hunt to really pay attention to nature and take note of what we were finding was a great way to do it. We took along our new friend Nature Cat, our snazzy binoculars and our awesome recycled notebook and went on our way. Like we saw on the Nature Cat episodes we searched for animals we are seeing again now that it’s Spring, new colors around us, sounds and more!
We Heard: lots of birds chirping, leaves gently rustling, a train whistling, wasps and flies buzzing
We Felt: the rocks, the grass, the leaves on the trees, the wind blowing gently
We Saw These Creatures: a wasp, a fly, a bunny, a tiger salamander
We Saw These Colors & Items: Green leaves on the trees, purple flowers in the vines and yellow dandelions
We had a lot of fun out in nature and I loved how much we enjoyed really cuing into the nature around us and making note of the things we were seeing! We spend a lot of time outside and I love how much my kids enjoy the world around them. Encouraging them to get outside and see the world around them is such a great way to teach them about nature and to love the earth!
What are some fun ways that you get out into nature and really cue in with your little ones? Tell me below and make sure to tune in to your local PBS next Monday morning to watch the brand new episodes we got to share with you today! Check your local listings for the air time!
Today’s post was brought to you by PBS. They supplied us with the sneak peek episode of Nature Cat, the first ever Nature Cat plush, PBS Nature Cat Binoculars and Nature Cat Notebook. As always – all opinions and imagery are original and belong to Joyfully Smitten.
