Into the Woods: Families Making Art in Nature

Discover your family's inner artist in the great outdoors!  In Into the Woods, artist and teacher Sue Fierston has created 12+ chapters of family-friendly games and art activities designed to engage the senses and get your family in touch with nature at any season.

From fish prints to outdoor meditation, Into the Woods makes it easy to go outside with your family and have fun, whether your kids are 5 or 15. You'll try:

Printing with real fish and making a t-shirt in an afternoon

Relaxing and meditating with your kids as you silently sit on your porch or in a park

Becoming a citizen scientist and investigating nature's patterns

Playing with contour drawing and color in a nature sketchbook

Building a stomping press and a walking press for printing leaves

Many of the simple and inexpensive activities are right for kids of all ages and include instructions on how to adapt each activity for age, the season, and the time available, so it is easy for families to discover the fun and peacefulness of being outdoors. Let STEM education turn into STEAM as you combine the science of close observation with the tactile fun of printing fish and leaves together.

Each chapter contains a complete materials list, clear step-by step instructions, and photographs of the process and finished work. The activities are open-ended, designed to be explored over and over, often with different results.

Geared toward being taught or guided by adults, Into the Woods is also appropriate for kids 12 and older to use independently, and it will enrich kids at wide range of skill levels.