Make a Forest ID Kit for Kids

Kids enjoy the woods so much, but there's no doubt about it, dangers lurk. There's a fun kit that kids can make, though, which will help them identify things in the woods - whether it's something dangerous or not. The kit can be small or huge - built up over a lifetime - and will serve to show various things like poison oak, assorted leaves - even insects.

You can start the kit by gathering leaves, identifying them, then making a laminated card to contain the leaf and description. You can add things like the date you found the object, or the group you were with the day you found the item. Use a laminating machine, or just laminating paper, to create the cards.

The cards can be hung on a key ring or placed in a book. Each one will represent something found, its description, and other info. Place the items in various groups, such as plants, insects, herbs or flowers. List things like "edible", "makes great tea", or "bitter if eaten".

Things like poison ivy, or other dangerous findings, can be distinguished by placing them on a red background, using red marker to list the description, or even placing a "warning" sticker on the card. Kids will quickly learn which objects or plants to avoid.

Children can look up pictures and descriptions in books, or a park guide can fill them in on info concerning things they might find in the woods. Kids should not try to collect poisonous - or non-poisonous things like spiders or snakes, though, so instead, let them cut pictures from books or magazines to make these cards.

For things that won't lay flat, like a piece of bark from a particular tree, use zipper lock bags to contain the object, and list its description on adhesive paper on the front. The bags can then be placed in a box with dividers.