Mushroom spore prints

This is an activity I did with my Gran as a child. Collect a few mushrooms on an autumn walk. When you get home, remove the stalks and lay the mushroom caps with gills facing down on dark cards or paper. Leave overnight and in the morning lift the mushroom caps to reveal some magic.

Make a mushroom dish

I love seeing the way many families have a book party after studying a certain book. Why not have a nature themed party after studying a species or topic! When studying mushrooms you could have a mushroom pie. I just love seeing all the beautifully decorated pies Instagram, especially those of Josie @onwillowsbend. Josie uses natural materials such as dried and ground beetroot to colour her pastry and I think that is such a fun idea. Get creative, spend an afternoon on it and have fun at your mushroom party!

Mushroom Storytelling

In our Field Guide To Mushrooms and Fungi we have a sweet little mushroom home for the little mushroom folk to live in. Let your imagination flow as your family tells stories to one another. When thinking of my own story I like to let the story flow from me. I see where the story takes me. If your children are old enough they can help you with the story- a collaboration. Here are a few prompts to get you started..

Have you ever seen a mushroom house before?…

Once upon a time there lived a kind old lady in her mushroom house…

Down at the bottom of the garden, just behind the old log, is a tiny little mushroom house, and inside the mushroom house lives…

Make an album of different mushrooms that you see

Spotting a mushroom can feel very exciting.  But there isn’t always the time to stop and look up the species in our book each time we see one. It’s an idea to take a quick snapshot of a species that you want to look up. Then at home, you could make a journal of all the different species you see, either by printing photos or by drawing pictures. 

Mushroom Nature Journal

Nature Journaling does not have to be one specific way. You can do it in any way that works for your family. When studying a topic like mushrooms, have fun with your nature journal- you could use it almost like a topic book. A few ideas for your mushroom nature journal:

Notes and drawings on the different types of mushrooms that you see.

Observing mushroom parts and anatomy. 

Writing or drawing imaginary worlds of mushrooms

Writing questions that come up about mushrooms and then coming back to the questions later. 

Painted Mushroom pebbles

I like the idea of taking these pebbles with you in a little pouch to play a game of ‘naughts and crosses’ or ‘tic tac toe’. Some sticks found on the ground can easily make up the ‘board’. Simply paint your pebbles with acrylic paint to look like little mushrooms. Don’t you think these would be a sweet birthday gift for a friend?