Seedlings: September 22, 2026

We started our Seedlings day gathered around some stories. The Sun Thief and There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly were particular favourites, before everyone drifted off into their own play for the morning.

The dig pit was a popular spot, with Earthkeepers discovering creatures, climbing around the construction supplies, and telling stories to one another as they played.

While they were busy, I decided to get a little yard work done. One of the things I love about giving children long stretches of uninterrupted free play is that I don't need to insert myself into everything they're doing. Sometimes I'll garden, open a book, work on a puzzle, or find something else useful or interesting to do nearby.

And, as often happens, it wasn't long before a few Earthkeepers wandered over to see what I was doing and asked if they could join me. There is something really lovely about this kind of learning. When children have a strong relationship with the adults around them, they naturally take an interest in what we're doing. They get to see that gardening, reading, building, fixing, or creating are simply worthwhile ways to spend our time, without being told that they have to participate.

Together we trimmed and weeded the garden beds, getting them ready for the piles of fallen leaves we'll eventually rake into them. One of my favourite things to watch was the older Earthkeepers naturally helping the younger ones figure out some of the gardening tasks. Mixed-age groups create so many opportunities for children to learn from one another, and those moments often happen without any prompting from me at all.

That continued when one Earthkeeper arrived with a drawing of plans he'd made for a boat.

A boat obviously needed to be built!

I brought out some hammers and nails, and the plans began turning into an actual construction project. Interestingly, some of our younger Earthkeepers had clearly handled these tools before and were able to take turns sharing their skills with the group. Age didn't necessarily determine who was the expert. Everyone brought different experience to the project.

Between projects, we read more stories and sang songs together while I played the ukulele, then in the afternoon we headed down to The Flats. Naturally, the newly constructed boat came along.

It turned out to be… not quite seaworthy.

Luckily, a good project doesn't have to work exactly as intended to be worthwhile. The rope they'd brought along for the boat quickly found a completely different purpose. Soon I was chasing Earthkeepers around Scorpion Field, only to have them turn the tables and use the rope to "trap" me. They were laughing hysterically while I attempted my escape. (And for the record, despite its ominous name, we have never actually sighted a scorpion in Scorpion Field!)

We eventually made our way to the shallow river for some fishing before heading back to the dome to finish our day together.

I loved how much knowledge moved between the children today. Gardening, tool use, construction, storytelling and play all gave them chances to contribute something they knew, learn something from someone else, or completely change course when an idea didn't quite work out as planned. The boat may not have sailed, but it certainly still took us somewhere.

Thanks for a great day, Seedlings!