Meet Your Neighbors

The Gyllenhaals: A Family of Explorers

by Stephanie Folk

Oak Park resident Eric Gyllenhaal has been intensely interested in science, nature, and the outdoors since he was a small child. He now has two sons, Ethan, age 13, and Aaron, age 12, and he encourages the boys to explore their own individual interests. He has found fun and creative ways to help them in their quests to learn about everything from trains to turtles. Along the way, both boys naturally developed an interest in nature, and they continue to find new ways to explore the outdoors, learn, and have fun as a family.

Gyllenhaal and his wife Gail have nurtured their children’s curiosity. “They tend to develop really strong interests in things and we try to support them,” he says. “Ethan was first attracted to turtles, and Aaron’s interest was cars.” Aaron also loved animals and, in the first grade, the family got him pet parakeets. The parakeets soon sparked a family-wide passion for birds. It’s a passion that father and sons continue to explore together.

The family’s explorations of nature started out in the back yard and have expanded as the boys have grown. As they explored, the children became fascinated in collecting interesting objects found in nature, and Gyllenhaal encouraged their passion for discovery. “There are little things you can do to make the outdoor areas around your house a little more interesting,” he says. When the boys were small, Gyllenhaal would add to the backyard fun by “salting” the sandbox with treasures such as shells and interesting seeds and stones.

Ethan and Aaron have outgrown the sandbox treasures, but their fascination with birding has grown along with them. Gyllenhaal and the boys started by putting up bird feeders and trying different kinds of feed to see what sorts of birds would come. “Then it was taking them out to look for birds,” he says. “Now we have to travel further and further because they are interested in making lists and they want to see new birds.”

Father and sons often work birding into their weekend activities. They participate in the Backyard Bird Count, help monitor birds in nearby Columbus Park, and take day trips to natural areas all around the Chicago region. They say they particularly enjoy the natural areas along the shore of Lake Michigan, from Calumet Park to Michigan City and from Waukegan Harbor to the Wisconsin border.

Birding usually figures into family vacations around the Midwest, allowing the boys to expand their lists of the species they’ve seen. “One of my favorites so far is the northern hawk owl that I saw this past winter in northern Minnesota,” says Ethan.

Both boys say they may pursue careers in ornithology. Ethan has added nature photography to his list of hobbies, and this summer he plans to attend birding camp in Arizona. Eventually, the family may even go international with their birding adventures — they are considering trips to Costa Rica and the Galapagos.

The boys have some words of wisdom for other Chicago-area kids who are interested in nature. “I’d say nature is an amazing place,” says Ethan. “So if you feel like you want to go out and look at nature, do it!”

Aaron adds that it’s great to get your parents involved as well. “I think you should tell your parents about it and get them into it so they can take you places and you can build your interest,” he says.

Gyllenhaal agrees that exploring your children’s hobbies can be rewarding for parents as well. “The big thing is, you’re doing it for your kids, but you’re out there too so it can be a lot of fun for you,” he says. ““And one of the things I’ve learned is there’s nothing that you can’t get interested in if you take the time to learn about it. Just follow along with them and enjoy it yourself. You might eventually find yourself following a pursuit even after they move on.”

Gyllenhaal shares more about what he has learned about nurturing children’s natural curiosity on his blog and websites, and in articles he’s written for publications such as Chicago Parent. For more stories about the Gyllenhaal family’s adventures and ideas for fun, kid-friendly nature activities, go to the family’s Neighborhood Nature blog or their Salt the Sandbox website.