Our Blog
Solve the Mystery Competition
To celebrate Ancient Explorer’s 3rd birthday, we are holding a Solve the Mystery Competition. Read on to find out more about it and how your child can enter. Who is our new member of Team Ancient Explorer? Here, in my art studio, I am adding the finishing...
The Sky Maiden
In the coming weeks, I will be releasing my next myths and legend video on YouTube called The Sky Maiden. The short video features a reading of an Inkan poem written by Garcilaso de la Vega in the 17th century. H.V.Livermore translated the poem into English and it...
Mama Quilla
In the ancient Andes, the Moon was a venerated as a goddess and the Inka called her Mama Quilla. Mama Quilla will feature in my next short video, which I started work on this week. This video, called The Sky Maiden, will be included in our new Myth and Legends...
Make photographic collages of your adventures
Are you looking for interesting craft activity to do while at home? In this post, I explain how to make photographic collages of your adventures. As I discovered recently, this is a fun activity that doesn’t require a lot of resources. Over the past fifteen years, I...
The Magic of the Rain Forest
Last week I released my first online reading of 'The Magic in the Rain Forest' on YouTube. This is a Brazilian creation story, which Naomi Alder retells the story in her picture book, ‘The Barefoot Book of Animal Tales From Around the World.’ ‘Magic in the Rain...
Myth and Legends Class For Young Ancient Explorers
In light of current developments in Australia, it is with great sadness that I announce that I will not be giving workshops for children for an extended period of time. However, starting during the first week of April, I will share videos featuring myths and legends...
Let’s Record The Buildings of the Inka!
Is your young ancient explorer fascinated by the majestic city of Machu Picchu? Or perhaps they need to practice converting common measurements and calculating perimeter and area?Yes? Then I have just created a resource that is the perfect for them! In my latest...
New Book
Happy New Year, Ancient Explorers! I hope you had a terrific break. I have been quiet for a little while, as I have been busy finishing a new book, a volume of papers called Yachay Wasi: The House of Knowledge of I.S. Farrington, with my fellow ancient explorers,...
Nature Art As A Portal Into The Flow State
Art is a portal into other modes of being. When stressed, for example, drawing or painting can help us enter a more relaxed state. Meanwhile, by closely studying a subject, such as a person, animal, plant or object, we gain essential information about their...
Artefact Drawing as a Creative Experience in the Classroom
Drawing and painting illustrations of artefacts are one of my favourite past times. Artefacts are objects made or shaped by people. My interest in artefact illustration developed naturally after working in Peru as an archaeologist. Later, while working with children...
How to Start a Nature Journal
Practising Mindfulness in Nature with the Illustrated Nature Journal. ‘The land is the real teacher. All we need as students is mindfulness.’ Robin Wall Kimmerer. Are you looking for a fun and creative practice to combine your love of nature with mindfulness? Or...
New Cusco Retreat Dates
It is with great delight and excitement that we announce new dates for Cusco retreat. We will be travelling to the Inka heartland in October. This retreat has been several years in the making and has been made possible by the wonderful support of my friends in Cusco...
Happy International Women’s Day
Today, 8th March 2019 is International Women’s Day. This day is observed in many cultures and celebrates the achievements of women all around the world. Over the past hundred years, this day has also been a mechanism for raising awareness of social, political and...
Book Review: Grandmother’s Song
Recently, I was trawling through the book shelves of my local library when I discovered 'Grandmother's Song' by Barbara Soros, and illustrated by Jackie Morris. This picture book is set in a village located in the heart of Mexico and focuses on the beautiful and...
Drawing Artefacts as Creative Play
Painting watercolour illustrations of ancient Andean objects is one of my favourite past times. I love to paint and draw because I find it very relaxing but recently, I discovered that that drawing artefacts also supports my own problem-solving process. As I create...
Ana Solana’s Photographic Diary of the Inkas
During the month of October, we are celebrating Ana Solana and Team Ancient Explorer’s adventures at Inka places in Peru by sharing photographs from her field diary via our social media pages. As you, our fellow ancient explorers already know,...
Planning A Retreat For Ancient Explorers
At the moment, I am coordinating our very first retreat in Cusco, Peru, which will take place next year, and I confess that I am very excited about it! For a number of years, friends asked me about travelling to Peru and when I was going to organise a tour. At first,...
Planning A Creative Adventure
At the end of a recent school holiday workshop about Mayan pyramids, a parent approached me and after thanking me, she commented that she wasn’t quite sure what the workshop would be like when she booked her children in. She also wasn’t quite...
Meet Qowa, The New Ancient Explorer
¡Hola amigos! This week my new amiga, Qowa, joined Team Ancient Explorer and I wanted to introduce you to her. Can you guess what kind of cat Qowa is? At first, you might think that Qowa is a leopard or a tiger cub because her tawny fur has black and grey stripes or...
June Celebrations in Cusco
Happy solstice explorers! I am so excited because later today I am going to the festival called Inti Raymi at Saqsaywaman, Inka ruins right above the city. June is a wonderful month in my hometown because there are lots of big fiestas (a...