32 Nebraskaland • July 2025
themes, such as "Relationships in
Nature."
While we do prepare a lesson plan
for each month, we allow room for
"rabbit holes" and fully embrace being
in nature without a rigid schedule.
One day, while hiking in December, we
noticed bullfrog tadpoles swimming
underneath the ice. Of course we had
to stop and investigate. This random
encounter allowed an opportunity for
great questions: Aren't the tadpoles
cold? What do they eat when the
pond is frozen over? Why haven't they
turned into frogs yet?
Even on days when we only see
"ordinary" things, time spent in the
park with our homeschool hikers
always feels well spent. With that
said, we have had some spectacular
moments during hikes simply because
we took the time to be outside in the
right place, at the right time, with
people who are observant. A few of my
favorite Homeschool Hikes moments
include:
•
While walking on the river trail in
January, we witnessed two bald eagles
locking their talons and cartwheeling
through the sky in a mating ritual.
•
Discovering an alien-like orange,
spiky caterpillar crawling on the
underside of a leaf while looking for
Families hike on a trail following the Platte River at Schramm Park State Recreation Area.
