To say we don't all have a garden

[drspouse]

DD is home self isolating and they had a trip out on foot to look at autumn leaves planned for today so we've been sent home some fairly well planned work I have to say, I'm quite impressed especially compared to what we had in April/May.
They've sent us this from Woodland Trust

<a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2020/03/kids-nature-activities-self-isolation/&ved=2ahUKEwiy1JD918LsAhVOQhUIHRuuB-EQtwIwAHoECA4QAQ&usg=AOvVaw3ZLV8mgXRocDfBMMs-yXXH" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2020/03/kids-nature-activities-self-isolation/&ved=2ahUKEwiy1JD918LsAhVOQhUIHRuuB-EQtwIwAHoECA4QAQ&usg=AOvVaw3ZLV8mgXRocDfBMMs-yXXH

AIBU to point out (probably to the Woodland Trust but maybe also to school) that we don't all have gardens?
We have a paved yard with pots (no trees, we would have mini beasts but little to collect to make pictures) and two of her best friends live in upstairs flats.
Almost of these refer to "in your garden" or need outdoor space (we can have a picnic but her friends can't!)

The purge itself acknowledges that not everyone has a garden.
It’s really a good piece, how it even suggests things like an indoor picnic.

Why trash the ideas?

Even the ones you can’t do, are a great starter for parents who can be bothered to THINK.

Scavenger hunt? Do it from the window - how many nature colours and shapes can you see? Draw them! Right now I can see beautiful red leaves and bright yellow sunflower in my neighbours garden.
Or use the internet to scavenge.
Or write a scavenging list for when they can go out - an acorn, a flower still in bloom...

I don’t understand why you’re so bent on complaining about something that already acknowledges your point, already gives indoor ideas, and you as a parent can put some effort in yourself on the others to adapt them 🤷🏻‍♀️

So, you want to email the Woodland Trust complaining that they shouldn't assume everyone has a garden, when it says on the page you are complaining about that they realise not everyone has a garden.

Too much time on your hands?

Not sure you really understand nature, OP.

You don't need a garden to find minibeasts, your paved yard will be crawling with them. And your balcony. And your windowsill.
I am glad to report I even have some in my bathroom (snail farm! Started in lockdown to stave off stress/boredom)

You can put a bird feeder on a window sill. And grow plants indoors, including from seeds that you can collect from the food you eat. You can collect leaves and sticks and rocks and whatnots whenever you go outdoors. And you can collect them from the nature that you grow indoors

And I know all this because until recently our family didn't have a garden, and still managed to do all these things.
YABVU. Looks like you just want to be offended.

YABU, as if it's the woodland trust's problem that you don't have a garden!!

They are not responsible for suggesting ALL activities during lookdown. They are the Woodland Trust so the things theye are suggesting and in line with their key messaging. They're hardly going to suggest a duvet day or something.

I'm not preparing a curriculum, I'm following the one that school have told us to follow.

Then surely your comments need to be directed to the school? If they have set homework that requires students to complete everything on that list, in an area where students cannot adapt them (e.g. go out for a walk) or are not allowing students to adapt them and insisting they must be completed exactly as written, then this is insensitive.

Another point @drspouse - not everyone in a household is necessarily isolating.
So things like the nature art work and stamps are still great suggestions - because a parent or other child can bring home items for the isolating child.
The very simplest is a bag of fallen leaves, with are fun and easy to make paint prints from.
There aren’t many people who don’t live walkable distance from a source of a couple of fallen leaves.

school should bloody know that not every child has a garden and if you are in a flat you are not going outside for 14 days self isolation and the middle calss assumption that we all have access to a garden during self isolation just makes a crappy situation even worse. . it is the school that are the problem here. (upstairs flat dweller who gets pissed off withthis type of lack of thinking from schools) (we once had to list the facilities (ie shops) within a mile of the house. that entry was: the whole of the city centre.

how to hunt for minibeasts in a flat... leave a banana skin out, fifty million fruit flies appear from nowhere, spend the next centurary hunting the damn things down and killing them. never buying aldi cheap (for aldi even) compost again (Their ordinary stuff is ok)

Or you could look at the activities you could do and think that it's great the school has managed to find activities that you can do indoors that follow the theme of the nature walk.

Good news on the minibeast hunt: www.treehugger.com/you-share-your-home-kinds-bugs-4868767

school should bloody know that not every child has a garden and if you are in a flat you are not going outside for 14 days self isolation and the middle calss assumption that we all have access to a garden during self isolation just makes a crappy situation even worse. . it is the school that are the problem here. (upstairs flat dweller who gets pissed off withthis type of lack of thinking from schools)

didn't bother to read what you';re ranting about?

To be fair, the woodland trust isn't the sole source of info for ideas. It is understandable that a charity called the woodland trust is likely to have some ideas that are in the main, nature based... Take what you can use and leave the rest. There will be plenty of other ideas from other organisations elsewhere.

It's the Woodland Trust.

Why do you think they'd have indoor activities?

Surely the name should give you a clue that they're pretty outdoors and nature focussed.

I hung a bird feeder outside the window of my room in university halls. Sometimes you have to find a way to make something work rather than looking for ways to be oppressed.

Maybe if you can’t think outside the box you might be better off leaving outdoorsy websites like Woodland Trust to one side and looking at the websites of art galleries, cookery etc?

Yabu they cant cater to everyone all of the time, its activities that might help some kids. Do you begrudge them getting the info just because your child cant do it?

No garden?

The Woodland Trust is going to be oriented around nature. You are either lucky enough to have some nature as part of your house (so garden, patio, terrace) or you can get some in (window box, grow plants, think about getting mini-beast type pets like stick insects).

If you are in true self-isolation in a flat, and you don't have the cash for the second of these, then I don't think anything they suggest will be relevant. What can they do to suggest you incorporate nature in your isolation if you have no nature?

It really sucks if you are someone without a garden and in self-isolation. I don't think the Woodland Trust are in the wrong, and they do acknowledge what you could do instead. However, buying in plants/containers/getting a bird feeder to hang outside the window do all cost money which is another barrier. But short of suggesting you watch nature documentaries, I don't know what they can suggest.

Did ANYONE read the linked to article? Make art, pretend to be a bug, ladybird drawing, indoor picnics, make bird feeder (can be hung from window)...and you're whining about them assuming you have a garden?

Has staying indoors addled your brain?

Back in March (and through April, May, not sure how much further) the rules for self-isolation allowed you to leave the house for daily exercise.

It's the Woodland Trust, not the living room trust.

I would say do what you can. Could some not SI drop a bag of natural things at your door?

If I was have a bad day anxiety wise during lockdown that I was not a single parent in a high rise flat with four or five kids...I soon counted my blessings and pointed it out to moaners.

I’m sorry you are having a hard time. Do you have any floral fabric? Cushions, duvet cover, clothing etc perhaps you could suggest copying a design and colour it. Potato printing if you have paints. Copy a picture from a magazine or the internet. If you have a printer RSPB have lots of things for kids. We used to do the Big Bird Watch. No reason you couldn’t do it now. If you have a printer you could print it off if not just make up your own. If you contacted them and explained they might send you some freebies.

If you don’t have any luck. Pm me and I will send you some I live opposite a village green and a churchyard so lots of leaves falling, acorns, nuts etc.

Depends! Think ok for Woodland Trust as that is what they are though probably a bit of lazy rebranding of something for lockdown (when most could leave their home) to self isolating but they have at least acknowledged that not everyone can.

Re school it depends on whether they’ve said “here are some ideas, you might like to try some” or “here are 10 activities for your child to do”. Yes with a yard you can do more than someone in a flat but a single parent in a flat can’t even go out and collect stuff to do the activity so will be limited to only a couple. Alternative to sending this though might have been sending nothing which would be worse so probably just raise the issue around language used or remembering to make it clear that they know not everyone can do them.

@Palavah

Back in March (and through April, May, not sure how much further) the rules for self-isolation allowed you to leave the house for daily exercise.

It's the Woodland Trust, not the living room trust.

In March (when this was written) even those self isolating (due to symptoms or contact with positive case) were allowed out for daily exercise.

This was very quietly changed mid April (the rules and guidance do sometimes change with no record of them having ever been different, which does annoy me a little...)

Op I sympathise, but I don't think it it the Woodland trust's fault.

@DTIsOnlyForNow

So, you want to email the Woodland Trust complaining that they shouldn't assume everyone has a garden, when it says on the page you are complaining about that they realise not everyone has a garden.

Too much time on your hands?

I just couldn't find the energy myself to complain and be offended about fecking everything.

OP, go and watch telly or something.