Welcome Discover nature Here
What this site offers
(1) free online science discovery course resources that build your perspectives of the natural world through journaled experiences. (2) ideas and techniques for journaling on location, making journals, journaling with objects, and journaling with others.
Discovery Courses
Courses that Incorporate Journaling
Science discovery includes exploration, description, and explanations. This is not a single method, but a larger process that builds science knowledge and community. Three courses introduce science discovery within various biological fields. EnviroBio links the incredible diversity of life to ecology and conservation biology. AnimalBio highlights animal genetics, evolution, and behaviors. HumanBio focuses on human anatomy, physiology, and disease. Each course incorporates journaling as a form of inquiry and assessment.
Field Notes
Journal & Learn on Location
Wherever (and whenever) you encounter nature, there is a potential for journaling. Explore the field, shore, tow, garden, and home. Learn how to use journals to plan safe excursions, collect rich data, and reflect on experiences for years to come.
Journal Lab
Learn to Make Nature Journals
The journal lab is a place for learning by making. Develop a variety of skills for nature journaling. Build on journal histories, experiment with sustainable materials, and utilize forms of responsible collecting.
Curiosities
Objects of Wonder
Take your journaling to new dimensions with organisms, specimens, models, trinkets, and toys. Objects can inspire wonder and act as portals to hidden worlds. Learn how to journal with and about physical “things,” including responsible handling and sustainable sourcing.
Co-Explorers
Art & Science Together
We are science teachers, artists, and also stewards and explorers of Oregon’s marvelous Willamette Valley. Each day brings something new to learn and do. Take a peek behind the scenes at our everyday experiences with nature. Also meet the historical and present-day naturalists, artists, and scientists that inspire and travel alongside us in our nature adventures.
Safety Keep safety in mind
Begin all nature adventures with a safety checklist and travel with a safety kit. In case you don’t have these already in place, or would like to review your protocols, learn more on our safety page.