NatureKids – March 2025
March: Discovering Animal Tracks!
Snow-covered trails and frosty mornings provide the perfect backdrop for one of the great joys of winter – finding animal tracks! Even when wildlife stays out of sight, their footprints tell a story, offering clues about where they’ve been, how they move, and what they’ve been up to. This month’s activities encouraged groups to slow down, observe, and uncover the hidden world of animal tracks, turning a simple winter walk into a fascinating outdoor adventure.
Here’s an overview of the activities:
- Tracks Match Game – Students matched animal track cards to their corresponding animals, then identified and sketched the tracks in the snow. This game can also be adapted for memory or scavenger hunt activities, adding more opportunities for learning and fun!
- Tracks Drawing – Students practiced recreating animal tracks using different materials like snow, whiteboards, playdough, or adding the details to their nature journals.
- Tracks Walk – Groups were encouraged to explore the outdoors to find and identify animal tracks using the Nature NB Animal Tracks Guide. They could observe details like track size, movement patterns, and possible animal behavior.
Here’s an update from some of our groups.
The kids at Here We Grow had fun matching animal tracks, eagerly searching for their pairs. During their nature walk, they stayed curious and excited, keeping an eye out for different tracks along the way.
The Munchkins Clubhouse had a fun time examining track cards, working together to match them to the right animals.
The Munchkins Afterschool group had fun getting creative, testing their knowledge and sharing their best guesses along the way!
Students at École des Bâtisseurs studied, found, and identified animal tracks while exploring the outdoors. They also observed snowflakes with mini-microscopes, recorded their discoveries in journals, and played in the snow!
These kiddos at Little Cubs Afterschool went into detective mode, using magnifying glasses to examine the track cards and match them to the right animals. Their most exciting discovery? Spotting webbed feet and realizing that meant the animal must be a great swimmer—so it had to be a beaver! Later, outside, the young detectives searched for real tracks or tried making their own.
The Tracks Game was a big hit with students at Sussex Elementary, especially when they discovered deer tracks in their school field. They also had a presentation from CPAWS NB on New Brunswick animals, learning how to help them and safely explore the outdoors. In addition, two maple trees on school grounds were tapped, and students got to watch the sap run, see the buckets fill, and even taste the sap. They loved this unique experience!
The Cub Club created a search-and-match game in the woods. Each day, the tracks were hidden in new spots, keeping the excitement alive as the children searched and matched them to the right animals. When fresh snow arrived, they were thrilled to find real tracks and took a long walk through the woods to discover more!
Exploring Nature Through Tracks
We hope this month’s activities helped students connect with the hidden world of wildlife, sharpening their observation skills while having fun outside. Through matching games, creative drawing, or real-life tracking adventures, participants could discover how much we can learn just by looking at the signs animals leave behind.
Thank you to all the groups who engaged with nature education this month. We encourage all to keep exploring—next time you’re outside, see what tracks you can find. Who knows what stories they’ll tell?
Check out the resources below for your own tracks adventure!
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