Naturally Teaching Elementary: A Podcast for Teachers and Homeschool Families

Victoria Zablocki, Elementary Teacher turned Outdoor Educator
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Are you an elementary teacher or homeschool parent that wants to add more value to your lessons? Do you know the value of cultivating science skills in your students but feel like you don’t know the best way to incorporate them in your classroom? Then this is the perfect show for you! Naturally Teaching Elementary is a podcast designed for the elementary teacher and homeschool parent with too much on their plate but a desire to best serve their children. Each week Victoria Zablocki and her guests will cover ways to integrate science into your ELA studies, demystify scientific concepts, and share tips and tricks to take learning outside. Victoria Zablocki is a former elementary educator with 10 years of experience integrating outdoor education into science learning. You can follow her on Instagram @naturally.teaching. To get more access to great content, head to https://www.naturallyteaching.com/

  1. 3d ago

    83. 7 Picture Books for Going Back to School

    It's time to go back to school! Whether you've been looking forward to it or not, school is either right around the corner or you're welcoming it full force this week! So let's get you feeling prepared to take on another year. Books are a great way to ease your learners back into the swing of things and really set them up for success when going back to school. The books in this episode can help introduce your learners to outdoor education, stewardship, and new perspectives; so let's check them out! Books in this episode 📚 Let’s Go Rock Collecting by Roma Gans, illustrated by Holly KellerThe Salamander Room by Anne Mazer, illustrated by Steve Johnson & Lou FancherWe’re Going on a Nature Hunt by Steve Metzger, illustrated by Miki SakamotoThe Hike by Alison FarrellMy Forest is Green By Darren Lebeuf, Illustrated by Ashley BarronSky Color by Peter H. ReynoldsDiscovering Nature’s Alphabet By Krystina Castella, Illustrated by Brian Boyl Want to view all of these books in one place? Check them out here! (Disclaimer: as an Amazon Associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you) Resources mentioned 💚 “Teaching with Books: How to Integrate Science and Literacy for Elementary Classrooms.”Ep. 82: 6 Classroom Decoration Ideas: How Research Can Help Us Design Student-Centered Learning SpacesEp. 81: 5 Strategies for Bringing Nature Into Your Classroom and Learning Spaces Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode83 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

  2. Aug 10

    82. 6 Classroom Decoration Ideas: How Research Can Help Us Design Student-Centered Learning Spaces

    You may already be back in the classroom or you may be getting ready to be in the classroom shortly. What's the first thing on your mind? Your classroom or learning space! What will you decorate with this year? Will there be a theme? All these questions may be causing you to sweat, but don't worry, I'm here to help! Let's help take some of that back-to-school stress away! In this episode, we'll talk about 6 classroom decoration ideas that are backed by research including: Changing your mindset to view decorations as teaching tools.Selecting decorations that have purpose.Using color intentionally.Leaving room for students to contribute.Thinking about how you want students to use the space.Thinking about students’ needs. Resources mentioned 💚 Episode 81: 5 Strategies for Bringing Nature Into Your Classroom and Learning SpacesForest Classroom Decor GROWING BundleNaturally Teaching Activity Index Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode82 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

  3. Aug 3

    81. 5 Strategies for Bringing Nature Into Your Classroom and Learning Spaces

    It's back-to-school time and some of us are stepping back into the classroom as early as today! To help you feel more prepared and excited for this year, I put together this episode to give you concrete strategies to include nature into your classroom environment. In this episode, we'll talk about 5 strategies for bringing nature into your classroom and learning spaces including: Creating a nature collection tableCollecting and preparing nature manipulativesUsing your windows as a bridge from inside to outsideIncluding indoor plantsUsing natural colors Resources mentioned 💚 Naturally Teaching Activity Index Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode81 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

  4. Jul 27

    80. What Butterflies Eat: Interactive Activities for 2nd and 5th Graders

    It's summer and butterflies are in the air! Even though you likely don't have learners with you for a bit, I've got some interactive activities to share with you today to investigate what butterflies eat and how that relates to pollination and food chains. Press play to hear descriptions for a butterfly food snack for 2nd graders and participating in the Monarch Butterflies Journey North project with 5th graders, both aligned with Next Generation Science Standards. During the episode I share the standard that inspired the activity, how the activity relates to what butterflies eat, and a description of how to implement the activity with your learners. And make sure to listen all the way through the episode; you may find yourself inspired to adapt one of these activities or use an activity for a different grade level. Next Generation Science Standards addressed in this episode: 2-LS2-2: Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants.5-PS3-1: Use models to describe that energy in animals’ food (used for body repair, growth, motion, and to maintain body warmth) was once energy from the sun.5-ESS3-1: Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment. Resources mentioned 💚 Episode 79: Are Butterflies Insects? Investigation Activities for 1st and 4th GradersEpisode 6: 5 Outdoor Education Safety Tips for Teaching OutsideEpisode 15: 6 Citizen Science Projects for Elementary Students and TeachersJourney North registration pageNaturally Teaching Activity Index Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode80 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

  5. Jul 20

    79. Are Butterflies Insects? Investigation Activities for 1st and 4th Graders

    Summer is when butterflies shine! They're out in full force, making it a great time to highlight butterflies and how they're insects. So let's get you inspired by some butterfly activity ideas this summer! Press play to hear descriptions for a thinking board about insects and butterflies for 1st graders and a set of butterfly senses centers for 4th graders, both aligned with Next Generation Science Standards. During the episode I share the standard that inspired the activity, how the activity answers the question "are butterflies insects?", and a description of how to implement the activity with your learners. And make sure to listen all the way through the episode; you may find yourself inspired to adapt one of these activities or use an activity for a different grade level. Next Generation Science Standards addressed in this episode: 1-LS3-1: Make observations to construct an evidence-based account that young plants and animals are like, but not exactly like, their parents.4-LS1-2: Use a model to describe that animals receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways. Resources mentioned 💚 Episode 78: Butterflies with Orange and Other Adaptations for Kindergarten and 3rd GradersInsect Characteristic BookletNaturally Teaching Activity Index Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode79 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

  6. Jul 13

    78. Butterflies with Orange and Other Adaptations for Kindergarten and 3rd Grade

    July is when the North American Butterfly Count happens, making it a great time to highlight butterflies and their amazing adaptations! So let's get you some butterfly activity ideas to noodle on over the summer until you're back in the swing of things! Press play to hear descriptions for designing a host plant and caterpillar pair for kindergarteners and a research project about butterfly survival adaptations for 3rd graders, both aligned with Next Generation Science Standards. During the episode I share the standard that inspired the activity, how they relate to activities about butterflies with orange and other adaptations for kindergarteners and 3rd graders, and a description of how to implement the activity with your learners. And make sure to listen all the way through the episode; you may find yourself inspired to adapt one of these activities or use an activity for a different grade level. Next Generation Science Standards addressed in this episode: K-ESS3-1: Use a model to represent the relationship between the needs of different plants and animals (including humans) and the places they live.3-LS3-1: Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists in a group of similar organisms. Resources mentioned 💚 Episode 77: 6 Butterfly Books to Introduce Characteristics, Adaptations, and Life CyclesHow Butterflies Grow: 8 Picture Books About Butterfly Life CyclesWhat Butterfly Looks Like a Monarch and 4 Other Butterfly Survival StrategiesA Raising Butterflies Kit for the Classroom: A Conservation ConversationButterfly Life Cycle and Heredity Mini Unit for 3rd Grade (ELA & Science Activities)Naturally Teaching Activity Index Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode78 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

  7. Jul 6

    77. 6 Butterfly Books to Introduce Characteristics, Adaptations, and Life Cycles

    July is the month of butterflies thanks to the heat of the summer and the North American Butterfly Count! Butterflies are a high-interest topic that many adults and children get really engaged with. So this month I'll be focusing on butterflies and all their mystique. Books are a great way to introduce butterflies, their characteristics, adaptations, and interesting life cycles. In this episode, I give you a brief summary of butterfly books and my thoughts on how they can help you with your learners. Books in this episode 📚 Waiting for Wings by Lois EhlertAre You a Butterfly? by Judy Allen, illustrated by Tudor HumphriesPapilio by Ben Clanton, Corey R. Tabor, and Andy Chou MusserButterflies Are Pretty…Gross! By Rosemary Cosco, Illustrated by Jacob SouvaThe Mystery of the Monarchs: How Kids, Teachers, and Butterfly Fans Helped Fred and Norah Urquhart Track the Great Monarch Migration by Barb Rosenstock, illustrated by Erika MezaButterflies Belong Here: A Story of One Idea, Thirty Kids, and a World of Butterflies by Deborah Hopkinson, illustrated by Meilo Sol Want to view all of these books in one place? Check them out here! (Disclaimer: as an Amazon Associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you) Resources mentioned 💚 “Teaching with Books: How to Integrate Science and Literacy for Elementary Classrooms.”How Butterflies Grow: 8 Picture Books About Butterfly Life CyclesEp. 9: Exploring Invertebrates: 10 Picture Books to Introduce Animal Characteristics Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode77 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

  8. Jun 29

    76. Teaching with Photographs: 6 Research-Based Benefits to Elementary Learners

    This is a topic I've been excited to dive into for some time, and summer seemed like the perfect opportunity to introduce it. If you've never thought about how teaching with actual photographs can help your learners in science, this episode is a must-listen. I'm an avid collector of nature photos because you just never know when you'll need that random pic of a raccoon track in the mud. In this episode, we'll talk about 6 research-based benefits to teaching with photos including: Why teaching with pictures even matters.How teaching with photos helps build accurate mental models.How teaching with photographs supports inquiry.How photos can be used for scientific evidence.How teaching with photographs can build a sense of place and community.And how student-created pictures develop scientific skills in children. Resources mentioned 💚 Canva for TeachersWikimedia CommonsUnsplashPixabayNaturally Teaching Activity Index Show Notes: https://naturallyteaching.com/episode76 🗂 Find activities easily with the Naturally Teaching Activity Index 🛒 TpT Shop: Naturally Teaching 💚 Get more tips and tricks on the website: NaturallyTeaching.com 📸 Follow along on Instagram: @naturally.teaching 💻 Check us out on Facebook: @naturally.teaching

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Are you an elementary teacher or homeschool parent that wants to add more value to your lessons? Do you know the value of cultivating science skills in your students but feel like you don’t know the best way to incorporate them in your classroom? Then this is the perfect show for you! Naturally Teaching Elementary is a podcast designed for the elementary teacher and homeschool parent with too much on their plate but a desire to best serve their children. Each week Victoria Zablocki and her guests will cover ways to integrate science into your ELA studies, demystify scientific concepts, and share tips and tricks to take learning outside. Victoria Zablocki is a former elementary educator with 10 years of experience integrating outdoor education into science learning. You can follow her on Instagram @naturally.teaching. To get more access to great content, head to https://www.naturallyteaching.com/

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