When I teach nature journaling, I try not to begin with drawing technique. I begin with noticing. Asking someone to make a good drawing immediately raises the stakes. Asking them to notice one strange shape, compare two leaves, or write down something they wonder about gives them somewhere much easier to start.
That approach was reinforced for me by John Muir Laws and Emilie Lygren’s How to Teach Nature Journaling: Curiosity, Wonder, Attention. The book helped me think less about teaching people to make polished pages and more about creating situations where they naturally look closer, ask questions, and record what they discover.
Below is the structure I would use for a beginner-friendly nature journaling session with children, adults, friends, students, or a mixed group.
| Part of the session | What to do |
|---|---|
| Gather | Choose a clear meeting place and explain one simple goal |
| Observe | Use “I notice,” “I wonder,” and “It reminds me of” |
| Explore | Give one short, specific field activity |
| Record | Combine sketches, words, arrows, measurements and questions |
| Regroup | Return to the meeting point and compare observations |
| Reflect | Share one discovery rather than judging the artwork |
Teach Curiosity Before Drawing Skill
The most useful shift for me was realizing that nature journaling does not need to begin with a drawing lesson.
If someone is already nervous about drawing, asking them to sketch a bird or tree accurately can make the activity feel like a test.
I would rather begin with three prompts:
- I notice…
- I wonder…
- It reminds me of…
These prompts work because no artistic skill is required.
Someone might notice that one leaf is shinier than another, wonder why a bird keeps returning to the same branch, or say that a seedpod reminds them of a tiny boat.
Once attention is engaged, drawing becomes one more way to record what they noticed rather than the entire purpose of the exercise.
If someone is completely new to the practice itself, my main nature journaling guide explains the broader idea of combining observation, drawing and written notes.
Give Everyone One Small Mission
Open-ended instructions such as “go nature journal for twenty minutes” can be surprisingly difficult for beginners.
There are too many choices.
I find it more useful to give people one small thing to investigate.
- Find two leaves that look similar and record three differences.
- Find something smaller than your thumb.
- Record three different textures.
- Watch one animal for five minutes and note every movement.
- Find three different greens.
- Sketch the same object from close up and far away.
- Record something that changes while you watch it.
A narrow mission gets people looking quickly instead of standing around wondering what deserves to go in the journal.
For more starting points, I keep a separate collection of nature journaling prompts.
Use a Simple Base Camp
When people are journaling outdoors, I like having one obvious place where everyone begins and returns.
That might be a picnic table, bench, trail marker, large tree, or another easy-to-recognize spot.
The group can gather there, receive a short prompt, spread out for a limited period, and then return.
For one casual group outing, I used ten-minute independent sketching periods before everyone came back together to share what they noticed.
That created enough freedom to explore without making the session feel completely unstructured.
Give the Prompt Before Everyone Walks Away
This sounds minor, but it makes a difference.
If people spread out before they understand the activity, attention disappears quickly.
I would gather everyone first and explain exactly what they are looking for.
For example:
“For the next ten minutes, find something smaller than your thumb. Draw it large enough to fill part of your page and write down three things you notice about it.”
That is much easier to act on than simply saying, “Go draw nature.”
Model Nature Journaling Instead of Hovering
One idea I found particularly useful is that the person leading the session should journal too.
If I stand over someone waiting for them to finish a drawing, the activity can immediately feel like an assignment being graded.
If I sit nearby and begin looking, sketching, writing questions, and making imperfect marks myself, the atmosphere becomes much more relaxed.
It also demonstrates something important: a nature journal is a working page, not a finished portfolio.
Let People Write When Drawing Feels Difficult
I would never make drawing the price of admission to nature journaling.
If someone cannot figure out how to draw what they are seeing, they can record it another way.
- write a short description
- make a diagram
- draw an arrow showing movement
- write a question
- record a color
- measure a length
- make a tally
- draw only the silhouette
This is one reason I like nature journaling. The page can hold several different ways of thinking at once.
Teach Simple Drawing Skills Only When They Solve a Problem
Drawing instruction can still be useful, but I prefer giving it in small pieces when someone actually needs it.
For example, if a participant is overwhelmed by a complicated plant, I might suggest looking for the largest shape first instead of drawing every leaf.
If an animal moves constantly, I might suggest making several quick gesture sketches instead of attempting one finished drawing.
If proportions keep drifting, comparing negative spaces can sometimes be easier than staring directly at the object.
The technique should help someone investigate the subject, not turn the field session into a formal studio class.
Three Nature Journaling Activities I Like for Beginners
1. Zoom In, Then Zoom Out
Choose one subject such as a tree.
First record something extremely close, such as bark texture, a bud, lichen, or the edge of one leaf.
Then step back and record the overall shape of the tree.
Moving between scales encourages people to realize that observation changes depending on distance.
2. Compare Two Similar Things
Pick two leaves, rocks, flowers, feathers, shells, or other related objects.
Place them beside each other and ask:
- What is the same?
- What is different?
- Which is larger?
- How do the edges differ?
- Are the colors actually the same?
Comparison gives the eye a job and often produces more specific observations than studying one object alone.
3. Nature Treasure Hunt
Create a short list of things to find rather than objects to collect.
- something rough
- something symmetrical
- a curved line
- three shades of one color
- evidence that an animal was here
- something moving
- something you cannot identify
Participants can sketch, describe, or make notes about each discovery.
I like this because it gets people moving while still directing attention toward observation.
Do Not Correct Every Drawing
If someone draws a leaf with the wrong proportions, I do not think the first response needs to be a correction.
I would rather ask another observational question.
- Where is the widest part?
- Is one edge straighter than the other?
- How long is the stem compared with the leaf?
- What shape is the empty space beside it?
Questions send attention back toward the subject.
Simply telling someone that the drawing is wrong sends attention toward the judgment.
Make Sharing About Discoveries, Not Best Drawings
When everyone regroups, I would avoid asking who made the best page.
Instead, ask each person to share one thing they noticed, wondered about, or discovered.
Someone with a very simple sketch may have made the most interesting observation of the day.
Keeping the discussion centered on discovery makes it easier for people with different drawing abilities to participate equally.
A Simple 45-Minute Nature Journaling Lesson
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 5 minutes | Gather, introduce the location and explain “I notice / I wonder / it reminds me of” |
| 10 minutes | First observation activity |
| 5 minutes | Return and share one discovery |
| 10 minutes | Second activity, such as compare two objects or zoom in / zoom out |
| 10 minutes | Independent journaling using drawing and written notes |
| 5 minutes | Final sharing and one question to investigate next time |
I like a structure like this because the activities are short enough that beginners do not have time to become overly precious about one drawing.
What Supplies Do You Need to Teach Nature Journaling?
I would keep the first session simple.
- a sketchbook or inexpensive notebook
- a pencil or pen
- something firm to write against if needed
- optional simple watercolor supplies for a later session
The activity should still work if someone arrives with only paper and a pencil.
More equipment can be added once people know which kinds of journaling they actually enjoy. My nature journaling bag shows how I think about carrying supplies in the field.
The Book I Would Use as a Teaching Resource
How to Teach Nature Journaling: Curiosity, Wonder, Attention by John Muir Laws and Emilie Lygren is the resource that most directly shaped the teaching approach on this page.
What I like about it is that it does not treat nature journaling as an art class with nature added afterward.
Attention, curiosity, questioning, group structure, and outdoor learning are built into the practice from the beginning.
I also like that many of the activities can be adapted for children or adults rather than requiring one narrow age group.
See How to Teach Nature Journaling
You can compare it with other resources in my nature journaling books guide.
A Good Nature Journaling Session Changes What People Notice
When I think about whether a nature journaling session worked, I would not judge it by how polished the pages look.
I would ask whether people looked more closely than they normally would.
Did someone notice an insect they would have walked past? Did they compare two leaves instead of simply calling both of them green? Did a question appear on the page that made them want to keep investigating?
If that happens, the journal has already done something useful.
The drawing can improve with practice. Curiosity is what gives someone a reason to keep opening the sketchbook.