The Best Summer School is Free Play


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In our connected world, what has happened to our connection to the natural world?

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It came out of the blue, one day, a lust for exploring, observing and absorbing nature. The next, the entire family can sit in the same space with a lack of contemplation of the moment, plugged into our hyper-connectivity. I unfortunately plead guilty in this matter as well. Although there is incredible supporting data & well intentioned planning in experiencing rigorous recreation & nature experiences, I currently witness, and personally struggle with: true connections with nature.  The more my students and I become more and more technological enthusiasts it seems, the less we seek and experience pure joy in the outdoors. Our minds and bodies truly need a significant connection to the natural world. Take for example the  'Solitude Spots'  once a week during our science classes. Each student goes off to be alone in the natural world. The idea is that they might see and experience things they have have never seen before thus, providing a r...
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Blended Learning, meet Outdoor Education, you're such a wonderful fit...

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As buzz words go in education, the 'blended learning' model has been steadily increasing as an accepted delivery within classroom education. Blended learning, a challenge to teacher-centered classrooms, is no more technical than it sounds, basically encompassing a fluid use of face-to-face, on-line and group collaboration of some sort. Outdoor education is a powerful example of experiential learning that is far too often compartmentalized as extra curricular. Praised by many; however, its value localized with wellness and character building.  As ironic as it seems, outdoor and experiential education stands to benefit by the current integration of   technology. Teachers concerned with blending the classroom , as Cailin Tucker recently explained in a recent NPR article: "are using technology to replace elements of in-class instruction, classroom time can be leveraged to deepen learning. [Teachers] can embrace project-based learning and create student-cen...
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Learning outside the classroom works, but how do we do it?

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4 Ways to Turn your kids into Social Demographers This list aims (for any subject you teach) to deepen one’s relationship with their community and their local natural world. Distinct from formal demography, which focuses more generally on population composition and distribution, social demography investigates the social-status composition and distribution of communities. 1) Community Visioning Take a walk; however, pose specific questions, dynamic relations are formed using mindful questioning with a sustainable lens . Activities in the module below are a few examples: How is everything interconnected? Should you care about others and/or your place? Are the current ‘relationships’ (between humans, between humans and the ‘environment’, etc.) ‘continue-able’? ie. able to persist? Are the ‘relationships’ fair? Can you change the ‘relationships’? **Simple & extremely productive activity that can be modified for any age Activity #3  Community Walk and Map p...
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