Creekside Connections is a weekly homeschool cooperative that offers K-12 educational opportunities for homeschooling families in Gallatin and surrounding counties. Since 2018, the Gallatin County Extension Service has played an active role in this cooperative.

Back in 2018, the Gallatin ANR agent was approached by cooperative organizers because they wanted to offer an exploration class pertaining to nature. As a result, the ANR agent taught one weekly class of 5th and 6th grade Nature Studies for the fall and spring quarters. Because of the popularity of the class, many homeschool parents asked that the class become a regular part of the cooperative's curriculum and, so, has been offered each year since.

The Nature Studies class is a combination of classroom and outdoor activities. It is very fortunate that the site which hosts the cooperative has a woodlot and a blue-line stream attached to it. This gives the students many opportunities to explore nature IN nature. 

Each quarter, the ANR agent chooses a new nature theme in which to study along with the students. Examples of past themes include "Kentucky State Stuff" in which each week the students learn about the Kentucky State tree, flower, bird, reptile, mushroom, fossil, etc. Another nature theme, "Soil is NOT Dirty", totally revolved around the importance of our soils. This past year, the theme was "Signs of Nature" in which the students are learning to identify what animals are in a specific area by observing tracks, hair or feathers, dens, and even scat. The "What Scat is That?" lesson has proven to be the most popular with ten and eleven year old boys!

Field trips have also been incorporated into the curriculum. This year the ANR Agent led two nature hikes with students with their parents at Hartig Park Nature Preserve. Not only is this a great way to immerse the students into nature, but it’s also a good marketing tool for Hartig Park.

Each school week I send an email update to all the parents of the Nature Studies students; I tell them what was covered that week, what all we saw in nature, and asked the parents to quiz their kids to reinforce what was taught. Feedback from the parents of the Nature Studies students has been all positive.

Having the opportunity to meet with the same students weekly for two nine-week sessions, really allows for the students to delve more deeply into the study of nature. And more importantly, it allows the time necessary for the students to learn to observe and appreciate the natural world around them.