Inspiring Nature Play: Reaching Wider

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

8:30 – 9 a.m. Check-in and Registration

9 – 9:30 a.m. Welcome and Overview of the Day

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9:30 – 10:40 a.m. Keynote Address

Nature Play for All: Equity, Diversity, Anti-bias, and Inclusive Nature-Based Learning 

Sheila Williams Ridge, M.A., director of the Shirley G. Moore Laboratory School at the University of Minnesota

The connection with nature is as important as it is wonderful. As studies continue to point to the benefits of time outdoors and nature education, making it accessible to all children, in a variety of settings, is of growing importance. It is equally important for the future of the environment that all citizens have a deep bond and stewardship with nature. We will discuss the benefits of nature-based learning in every domain of education and barriers programs face when implementing nature experiences. We will also discuss what an equitable and inclusive environment looks like in the classroom, among staff, and in the school community as well as anti-bias education and implicit bias training for staff to prepare them to create an equitable environment.

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10:50 – 11:35 a.m. Concurrent Sessions

Art in Nature: A Picture is Worth a Habitat, a Home, or a Feast

Jacqui Ulrich, Forest Preserves of Cook County

You will participate in an activity that celebrates the decision to help nature while making something fun and beautiful. We will explore some information about local flora and fauna and the concept of ephemeral art making. Young people like to collect leaves and sticks as reminders of their time in natural spaces. However, those same leaves and sticks are the homes and food for the animals that live there. It is always hard to tell a young person excited by a walk in the woods not to take that stick or leaf. In this session, you'll go through an activity that you can replicate that will help the children in your care understand why taking home a leaf or stick from a forest or park or other natural area affects animals and natural habitats.

Avoiding Ecophobia: How to Help Children to Love Nature Before Asking Them to Save It

Katie Slivovsky, Chicago Children’s Museum

Through audience participation and lively discussion, we will explore the research and philosophy of author/educator David Sobel and Dr. Louise Chawla—among others—as we dig into how bad news about the environment affects children. Participants will have opportunities to reflect on the value of their own nature play experiences and examine how they relate to children today—especially when it comes to the value of risk. Participants will also explore which nature activities and conservation actions are best suited to children of different ages.

Growing a Sense of Identity Through Nature

Lisa Glowski, Northern Suburban Special Education District, Winnetka Public School Nursery
Nicole Henricks, Northern Suburban Special Education District, Winnetka Public School Nursery

Come see how a simple question, “Did you know our classroom has a name?” posed by the teachers, led to a yearlong exploration around identity rooted in nature. This provocation led to a shared experience among our diverse community of learners in exploring our relationships with ourselves as well as our relationships with others and the world around us. We look forward to sharing some of the highlights and challenges we faced as we continued to hold true to our Reggio-inspired roots while ensuring we were supporting each and every one of our diverse learners in our inclusive classroom throughout this exploration.

The Importance of Child: Self-directed Play in Nature

Sue Smock Lawson, Chicago Waldorf School
Maria Fernanda Wetzel, Chicago Waldorf School

Within Waldorf education, Rudolf Steiner pointed to the importance of child-initiated play, especially between the ages of three and six. He warned about the consequences of replacing a child's self-directed play with activities planned according to programs and pedagogical standards held by adults. In addition, it is now known that child self-directed play is disappearing, mainly because children are not allowed to play outside by themselves, exploring, hiding places, collecting treasures and therefore, being immersed in their own world. With this in mind, we would like to show how the children in our school use nature to create their own play, what our role is as educators, and how self-directed play is an appropriate practice to support child development.

Kids vs. Adults: How Adult Conceptions of Nature Play Can Get in the Way of Children Actually Playing!

Robin Cline, NeighborSpace
Alex Enarson, NeighborSpace

More and more, schools, organizations, and families recognize the value of outdoor play for healthy child development and are building spaces especially for nature play. But what is really happening behind the closed doors of the outdoors? How are adult caregivers gate-keeping child play behaviors in these newly built nature play settings? Join us as we discuss the different and conflicting ways kids and adults view play, and examine the emerging norms and conventions of nature play through this lens. As adults, parents, and teachers engaged in organizational play, how can we design for the diversity of play and experience that makes a truly engaging space? In this session, we will take both a birds-eye view and an on the ground approach. We will consider how playwork as an inter-relational ethic can help us bridge the kid-adult divide, make space for free play, and have more fun doing it. We will also learn hands-on portable prompts, tricks, and approaches that help adult caregivers make important space for free play, for both themselves and the children they steward.

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11:50 a.m. – 12:35 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

Creating an Outdoor Program that Meets the Young Child

Laura Donkel, Banner School

In 2017, Laura founded an outdoor weekly nature program for children ages four to nine, offered during the summer months and over winter school breaks. The purpose is to give urban children four solid hours of daily, unstructured outdoor experiences: hiking three miles of nature trails in all types of weather, woodworking and crafting with nature’s finds, and discovering/observing the ways of nature’s habitat on the child’s terms uninterrupted. This session will equip you with the tools to meet the developing young child with compassion, curiosity, and imagination—all outdoors.

Digging for Worms: Family, Home, and Culture through Nature Play

Jessica Fong, Chicago Public Schools
Bertha Gonzalez, Chicago Public Schools

Learn about nature play and its effects on language development with general education and special education students in dual language. Engage with examples of student work including videos, dialogue, and work samples. Participants will dialogue with each other and reflect on their own settings, and analyze nature play benefits. Participants will leave with tools to implement nature-based curricula.

Going Deeper, Building Relationships: What am I Seeing Outdoors?

Kathleen Garness, Peaceful Garden Children’s House

After a long winter, children and their caretakers are anxious to get outside and explore—watch and listen for baby birds, see the first insects return to gardens and woodlands, and smell the fresh spring rains. Learning to value nature includes having a deeper relationship with it, and that can include learning names, families, and habits. Field Museum scientific affiliate Kathleen Garness will show you simple and practical but scientifically vetted materials and activities that will greatly enhance your outdoor nature curriculum. Kathleen was the first artist-in-residence for the Forest Preserves of Cook County and is author of two of the new Field Museum habitat guides: Woodlands and Duneslands.

Nature’s History of Healing

Kay Knight, Chicago Botanic Garden
Gretchen Zagzebski, Inspire Counseling Center

Nature has a deep history of healing communities and individuals physically, emotionally, occupationally, academically, culturally, and more. Access to nature provides greater opportunities for increased social emotional learning, which can lead to impacts on a broad community level but also individually. The natural world presents an important tool to combat Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) as well as bridge barriers between children and the generations before.

Nature Play Fun: Creating Temporary and Mobile Nature Play Spaces

Dr. Carla Gull, University of Phoenix, Loose Parts Nature Play

Explore approaches to creating temporary or mobile outdoor play spaces that interact with the natural space, incorporate loose parts, and cultivate creativity, imagination, and problem solving. Natural weaving, water walls, pop-up adventure play, obstacle courses, fort-building kits, and more can lead to engaging play opportunities in your space, for nature play days, in schoolyards, or community programming. Be ready to share ideas, collaborate on spaces, and maybe get a little messy!

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12:35 – 1:35 p.m. Lunch and Networking

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1:35 – 2:20 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

Community Nature Adventures

Tracy Aiden, University of Chicago Laboratory School
Michael Eldridge, University of Chicago Laboratory School

“...Nature is a destination, but you don't have to travel far to find it...” Exposing children to nature is a priority. Exploring methods for exposure in their community heightens their connections to not only the outdoors, but to their local surroundings as well. By taking children on adventures to nature spaces around their neighborhoods, children are allowed to experience a variety of nature surroundings while also having a better appreciation for their city's outdoor spaces. We will talk about how we use our Community Adventure Curriculum to celebrate all that the outdoors has to offer. By gearing up our children and taking them out into the community by foot, train, bus, and shuttle, we are discovering new and exciting places and things in the outdoors that many children may have not experienced before, and enhancing our children's outdoor nature play on a daily basis.

Exploring Movement and Nature: An Emergent Dance Study with Kindergarteners

Paige Goettel, Hubbard Woods School
Allison Greer, Hubbard Woods School
Donna Mandle, Moving Toward Meaning
Lynn White, Hubbard Woods School

Come learn about our kindergarteners’ experiences as choreographers who collaborated with a dance artist, their teachers, and each other to express their observations of relationships in nature through dance. We will share how, in the spring of 2019, four kindergarten classes and their teachers explored a natural space off-campus with their senses, and then, after learning elements of dance from dance artist Donna Mandel, created movement pieces to demonstrate their learning. This is a story of how arts-integrated project work heightens children’s perception of nature and fosters collaboration between children, artists, and teachers. We hope you will carry away from this experience some inspirations for your own work with children. This project also includes examples of the guiding practices of Reggio Emilia and the integration of Froebel gifts.

Growing Wild with Loose Parts and Nature Play Journals

Lee Alliet, Naturing in Madison
Christie Moser, Naturing in Madison

Join us for a hands-on session of nature play and reflection. We will have three different play stations to dig into some of our favorite loose parts and nature treasures; after a visit to each station, we will pause to reflect on our own play and begin to build your own nature play journal. Come get a little messy and leave with new ideas to bring back to your classroom, home, or favorite outdoor space. Activities and ideas have worked well with children from two to ten years old.

Nature and Nurture: Facilitating Sensorimotor Development Alfresco

Susan Swindeman, Wee Care Therapy

This session will use lecture in combination with experiential activities to teach you how to recognize characteristics of sensory processing challenges and demonstrate powerful sensory-based activities to support overall sensorimotor development. Special emphasis will be provided on green time vs. screen time. Photo and video samples of nature-based activities that support integration of the tactile (touch), proprioceptive (muscle), and vestibular (movement) sensory systems. Dress comfortably and be prepared to have fun.

Nature Camp as a Powerful Teacher: A Museum’s Approach to Sparking Wonder through Local Ecology, Real Objects, and Student Inquiry

Becca Brokaw, Chicago Academy of Sciences/Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
Nicole Juppe, Chicago Academy of Sciences/Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

In this session, explore how the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum Camps leverage the use of local urban ecology, real objects, and inquiry-driven experiences to allow for authentic learning both indoors and outside. Participants will discuss how student sense-making and place-based learning can promote engagement and equity through productive social interactions and positive outdoor experiences. We will also share tools and techniques for child-led outdoor play and exploration that allow children to drive their own learning and social emotional growth. Then, we will explore ways to bring the strengths and assets of outdoor play inside, too.

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2:35 – 3:20 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

Bringing Nature Inside: Fostering Meaningful Interactions with Classroom Animals

Marie Kowalski, Shedd Aquarium
Juliann Krupa, Shedd Aquarium

Experiences with animals are a powerful way to connect with nature. In this session, engage with two Shedd Aquarium educators and discuss ways to bring animals into your classroom or program, including appropriate animal selection and habitat setup. Then, explore ways to go beyond the classroom pet model to encourage scientific practices such as observation and asking questions from a young age. Finally, connect with nature yourself by meeting an animal.

Nature Exploration through Mindfulness

Lani Gerszonovicz, Banner Day Camp, A-Z Mindfulness

Nature play experiences can occur both outside and indoors. In this interactive session, Coach Lani from Banner Day Camp will teach mindfulness strategies that bring nature awareness into the classroom. Educators will practice mind, body, and breath techniques that help develop a greater appreciation and knowledge of the natural world. We will explore nature through visualization, storytelling, movement, sound, and breathing techniques. The activities are fun and engaging for both educators and students. Buzz like a bee, create rain, fire, wind, and waves through movement, take a nature break with visualization, and reflect on gratitude for the natural world. This class will have educators feeling balanced (like a tree), grounded (like a mountain), light (like a cloud), energized (like a sprout), radiant (like the sun), and powerful (like a lion) while gaining inspiration to share these mindful nature activities and connect with students in the classroom.

Pinecones and Paint: Art and Nature with the Young Artist

Melinda Lou Donelan, North Shore School District 112
Sharon Steckel, North Shore School District 112

Looking for new ways to use familiar and found objects? Come get your hands dirty and dive into art making with open-ended art invitations focused on using materials you already have in innovative ways. Two local elementary art teachers with backgrounds in art, music, special education, and early childhood art will provide multiple hands-on learning experiences for participants. Art invitations will include painting on natural objects, using textiles in combination with found objects, and creating collages with colorful materials. Presenters will share an array of resources, tips, visual supports, and favorite children’s literature. Come join us, enjoy the process, and let’s make art.

Thinking Outside the Book: Reaching Wider with Your Story Time

Sara DeTolve, Forest Preserves of Cook County

A nature-themed storybook can be the foundation for bringing environmental learning into your classroom. Let the story be a springboard. Inside your favorite stories lie the inspiration for numerous activities. In this session, experience story-guided process art, dramatic play, social activities, and free exploration that are all nature based. Review examples of program plans appropriate for early childhood groups. Plus, see how universal themes align with nature education and how developing empathy toward plants, animals, our world, and each other is a quintessential goal for young audiences. Then, practice cultivating your own ideas to make the most out of a book by reaching beyond its pages.

Transitioning from Forest Preschools to “Traditional” Schools: A Pilot Study of the Chicago Forest Playschool

Melinda Storie, Northeastern Illinois University
Teresa Weed, Chicago Forest Playschool Founder/Director

Meeting a few years ago at this conference, the director of Forest Playschool (Teresa Weed) and a researcher from an adjacent university (Melinda Storie) collaborated to design a case study examining the transition between forest preschools and indoor-based kindergartens and first grades. In this session, we will present the results of that three-year longitudinal study of Forest Playschool, formerly located on the northwest side of Chicago. We will describe the history, philosophy, and timeline of the school; site-specific data collection practices; results of the child-centered focus groups and drawings; and thematic results of caregiver interviews. Finally, we will synthesize our findings to present a list of recommendations for early childhood educators and caregivers to actively prepare forest preschoolers for the transition to “traditional” schools. Research such as this can also contribute to future empirical work addressing the rarely studied transition experiences of children in early childhood educational settings.

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3:20 p.m. Evaluation and CPDU Form Completion

Inspiring Nature Play is possible because of the collaborative effort among the Alliance for Early Childhood, BackYard Nature Center, the Chicago Botanic Garden, Greeley Elementary School, Forest Preserves of Cook County, Kohl Children’s Museum, Natural Start Alliance (a project of the North American Association for Environmental Education), North Suburban Special Education District, and Northfield Community Nursery School.