My kids' lives are ruled by their passionate interests. Fourteen-year-old Ethan has always loved things from nature -- fossils, rocks, bugs, leaves, shells, Pokémon, and more. He's currently in a birding phase. With twelve-year-old Aaron, it was cars, cars, and more cars for two-and-a-half years, until he developed an even stronger passion for trains, which lasted three years. Now Aaron loves birds and music most of all. 

Neighborhood Nature is about the birds, other animals, plants, fungi, and rocks the boys and I encounter in our neighborhood.

We're also on Twitter: http://twitter.com/SaltTheSandbox 
Our Twitter posts include updates on the nature in our neighborhood and information about parenting kids with deep interests, especially kids who are passionate about nature and science.

Here are some smaller Web sites we have developed:

Ethan's Dinosaurs.  This site is about how seven-year-old Ethan relates to dinosaurs, rather than about dinosaurs themselves.  It's really about understanding -- and learning from -- one particular child's interest in these prehistoric animals.

Trees Near Our School.  This site has a photographic key to trees found near our school, plus links to many other Web sites about trees.

Dad has published two articles in Chicago Parent magazine.  One is about the Islands of Expertise that kids can develop about their passionate interests. The other is about kids' collections; it's called Aaron's Treasures.

We also maintain more-or-less archival websites related to our volunteer work with nature and science programs at Wonder Works, a Children's Museum in Oak Park, and the Nature and Science Club at Irving School.

Copyright 2000-2009 Eric D. Gyllenhaal                                         Salt the Sandbox Privacy Policy
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This page was created on August 30, 2000, and it was last updated on June 9, 2009.