Nature Explorer: Get Outside, Observe, and Discover the Natural World

Empower children to become nature explorers with this full-color guide that features beautiful watercolors, tips on becoming a naturalist, and engaging activities.

Whether you live in the middle of a big city or along a rural countryside, nature surrounds you the moment you step outside. It’s the air you breathe and the ground beneath your feet. It’s the birds, the bugs, the grass, and the trees. Celebrate the great outdoors, and become a nature explorer with acclaimed artist and naturalist Jenny deFouw Geuder. Nature Explorer is a kids’ guide to observing and interacting with the natural world.

The book begins with a chapter on how children can become naturalists. It outlines how to observe, identify, and record, as well as tips on staying safe in nature. In the next section, young readers learn how to use their various senses during observation. That’s followed by an introduction to backyard wildlife, including butterflies, chipmunks, frogs, squirrels, and more, along with a selection of common trees, wildflowers, and other types of plants. Nature Explorer also includes 17 crafty activities and hands-on projects, such as starting a home terrarium, pressing flowers, and painting rocks.

Jenny’s stunning watercolors captivate kids’ imaginations, and the fascinating text teaches about the world that surrounds them. Plus, the tried-and-true projects are sure to get kids interested in the great outdoors. So get Nature Explorer, and start your children on a path to becoming naturalists. Use it on its own, or pair it with the Nature Explorer Sketchbook for drawing, sketching, and recording observations.

Jenny deFouw Geuder is an artist and educator from Michigan. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Art Education (and she minored in English). She has always loved nature and being outdoors. She especially loves gardening and hiking and, over time, began sketching the objects she discovered outside. She bought a bird feeder, and she was charmed by the many visitors. That one bird feeder grew to two, four, and now about eight—along with multiple bird baths! As she immersed herself in bird watching, she started fine-tuning her garden by introducing native plants that benefited birds and other wildlife.

By day, Jenny has taught art at the middle-school level for 16 years. Each year, she includes an art lesson and project based on the famous prints of John James Audubon. Jenny emulated this work at home, and she began painting her backyard finds, everything from leaves and flowers to birds. This soon became one of her favorite pastimes. She loves observing, and she found herself constantly learning more about the subjects of her paintings. To record those discoveries, she started taking notes about her observations. That process led naturally to her debut book, Drawn to Birds. She has continued her own artistic interests in commissioned work and personal topics. She primarily works in watercolor, but she also enjoys oils, ceramics, and graphite.

Artists are professional observers, who tend to see things in a different way, by focusing on colors and shapes, textures or lines. But a person doesn’t need to be a professionally trained artist to observe like one, or to make their own art. In fact, if her book projects have taught Jenny anything, it’s that naturalists are a lot like artists in that they look more closely at the world and recognize all of the diversity that nature has to offer.

Jenny lives in the country with her husband, two small boys, a dog, five cats, a hedgehog, chickens, and occasionally two ponies. She spends most of her summers at a rustic log cabin on a lake in northern Michigan, where she hikes, fishes, and enjoys the natural beauty of the area.