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INTRODUCTION: LET'S GET STARTED! 5
Exploring Nature in Winter e-Workshop
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0-1: Welcome! Important Things to KnowLecture1.1
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0-2: A Note From Victoria 30 minLecture1.2
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0-3: Key Reflective Questions 30 minLecture1.3
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0-4: Set Goals for You and Your Winter Program 30 minLecture1.4
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0-5: Become a “Winterscape” ResearcherLecture1.5
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Module 1: PREPARE & PLAN TO TEACH OUTDOORS IN WINTER 6
10 Nature-Based Activities
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1-1: Begin with Proper Outer Gear 30 minLecture2.1
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1-2: Discover Your Winter Teaching Routines Outdoors 30 minLecture2.2
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1-3: Make a Winter Garden Journal 30 minLecture2.3
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1-4: Create a Winter Themed Children’s Library 30 minLecture2.4
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1-5: Enjoy Wet Cold Weather OutdoorsLecture2.5
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1-6: LIVE SESSION: Natural Learning Outdoors in WinterLecture2.6
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Module 2: WINTER INSPIRED TEACHING AND LEARNING 6
10 Nature-Based Activities
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2-1: Transform Your Cold Weather Outdoor Classroom 30 minLecture3.1
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2-2: Let’s Play! 10 Nature-Based Winter Activities 30 minLecture3.2
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2-3: Behind the Scenes with Nicole Pelletier 30 minLecture3.3
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2-4: LIVE SESSIONS 30 minLecture3.4
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2-5: Inspire Outdoor Play & Learning in WinterLecture3.5
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2-6: Explore The Four Types of Gardens in WinterLecture3.6
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Module 3: YOUR COLD WEATHER OUTDOOR CLASSROOM 6
Winter Themed Children's Books
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3-1: Explore Water Research in Cold Weather 30 minLecture4.1
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3-2: Let’s Play! Ten Nature-Based Winter Activities 30 minLecture4.2
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3-3: Behind the Scenes with Peter Dargatz 30 minLecture4.3
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3-4: Establish “Moments of Science” in Winter 30 minLecture4.4
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3-5: Stay Outside LongerLecture4.5
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3-6: LIVE SESSIONLecture4.6
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Module 4: COLLABORATION & EMERGENT WINTER CURRICULA 6
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4-1: Learn through Reflection 30 minLecture5.1
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4-2: Let’s Play! Ten Nature-Based Winter Activities 30 minLecture5.2
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4-3: Build Collaboration Skills 30 minLecture5.3
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4-4: LIVE SESSION 30 minLecture5.4
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4-5: Emergent Curriculum with Megan GesslerLecture5.5
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BONUS: LIVE SESSION for GraduatesLecture5.6
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36 Comments
Being in Northern Michigan, winter gear is not too hard to for families to gather – but each classroom now has a set of good winter gloves for each child and rainsuits are coming! As the manager, my biggest hurdle is inspiring my teachers to WANT to go outside each wintery, windy day. I’m working with them on pulling a piece of their curriculum out to the outdoor space, without adding too much “additional work” for them. Germs on shared items is a big concern as is dismissing from the playground at the end of the day (how to keep school items at school).
You are doing great work! Maybe set some nature-based outdoor goals with each of your teachers. Find a way to track the goal It could be a monthly goal that can be broken down into a weekly goal. Track it, make it easy and fun, and put it in a place where they are visual. Then when each teacher reaches their goal….CELEBRATE!!! This will build momemtum. 🙂 Good luck.
We try to get on board our parents by informing them at the beginning of the year what we need for the kids to keep at school for outdoor learning (boots, rain boots, snow pants, rain pants, hat, gloves, scarf, rain jacket). Sometimes when the weather is very bad they still ask if we go for our forest walk and the answer is yes! For example today we, as teachers felt like the weather is not very nice, but we went outside and it turned a great time in the forest. We started to jump in muddy puddles and at the end of our walk it started to snow. It was beautiful! We loved to be outside.
Ahhh….I can feel the magic! The beautiful thing about being in the Forest in the winter is that you don’t have to worry about ticks. If you stay out long enough you will experience what you did today….the magic of weather shifting and changing and being in the middle of it…happy because you are wearing appropriate clothing to appreciate it.
I love the idea of a small backpack for each child to carry. It is so practical to bring their own snack and water, also when they want to take off their gloves they have a safe place to store them. It is also useful to collect and carry their own nature treasures in them.
Currently me and my teaching partner we both take a backpack each. One of us brings the tarp, magnifying glasses, clipboards, pencils, measuring tapes or depending on the activity book, paint, yarn etc., an iPad. In the other backpack we bring the first aid kit, tissues, snack and water. I love the idea of the thermos with hot chocolate or tea, I think our kids would be thrilled!!!
The day before our forest walk we always send an email to our parents to remind them of appropriate warm clothes and proper shoes. Our parents are very supportive. Sometimes they even join us on these forest walks with a younger sibling of some kids in our class.
I love that you have the forest and are using it in such a wonderful way. Inviting parents and creating wonderful memories. Can’t wait to learn how you add the new ideas! 🙂
As the Director of my school, I am not with a group of children on a daily basis. I see my role to bring ideas to the teachers and inspire them to create their own. We have a lot in place on our playground/outdoor classroom.; such as the big red wagon with the materials for the day including snack etc. Each outdoor learning center has a supply of items related to the center. The music center has a variety of instruments, the mud kitchen has a variety of cooking utensils. So for the teachers, it is the curriculum that is a barrier at this time. Instead of a curriculum kit for each room, I would like to make a deck of cards with different activities to do outside. The teacher could include the children at circle time to pick several activity cards to do outside. this is more compact for the teachers as they already are carrying Emergency packs with them. Making the activity cards will be a perfect Staff Mtg project.
I have also asked the teachers to focus on Wonder, Joy and Curiosity when planning their outdoor curriculum. They can choose one title for the month and then share with the others.
This is fantastic. I love how you have a list of supplies for each outdoor learning station. Would love to see a picture of this. I also love the idea of having activity cards outdoors. I have just created a card deck called “Seeds of Inspiration for Outdoor Learning.” They are just about to go to press. Here is a link https://www.outdoor-classrooms.com/2018/12/register-interest-seeds-inspiration-learning-deck/. I am curious what your teachers thought about the focus on Wonder, Joy, and Curiosity and can’t wait to see how it impacts their planning.
We have a wooden wagon that transports a wide variety of things from indoors to outdoors. It carries everything from curriculum materials, to snack and lunches. We also have begun to assemble “curriculum on the go” bags. This however is still in its beginning phase, and we are hoping to expand on a wider variety for the future.
We have an abundance of extra clothing from snow pants and jackets, to boots and mittens for those children that need warmer clothing or did not come to school with their own. It is nice that our parents understand that we go out in all kinds of weather. I like the consideration of weather as a “setting” for play, which can be expanded upon through the “curriculum on the go” kits.
You sound wonderfully organized and I love that you have support from your community. 🙂 A great foundation for expansive.
We also have a nice collection of Nature’s Loose Parts that are available for the children. Luckily we collected them before everything froze to the ground!
This makes me laugh, as I am always telling teachers to collect sticks and whatever loose parts they want BEFORE the snow and ice arrive. A bit like teachers getting ready to hibernate. 🙂
We take the kids outdoors every day. Getting them ready is a 20 to 30 minute activity in the winter beginning with the bathroom and ending with mittens and hats. It is kind of like “stations.” The toddlers are dressed by my assistant and the baby is last to get ready as it takes me a few minutes to get out his carriage. One the children are out, I let them run wild, free, and be spontaneous. They usually start right in with big body play, but simmer down after awhile and will usually find something interesting. I have several sheds full of supplies that can be pulled out as needed. Things like trays, tweezers, binoculars, paper, markers, chalk, clipboards, sit-upons, etc. can be requested or I might just pull them out to scaffold what they are doing. There is a mud kitchen stocked with pails, pots, shovels, pans, etc that they might used for “experiments.” My sheds are like a great big “curriculum on the go” kits! I take out each day a plastic tote (cleaning caddy actually) that I have put in a few books to read and an activity that we might do if time allows, kleenex, a speaker to stream music, an iPad to use as a resource to look things up, and, soon, their nature journals!
Your sheds sound like a dream. I would love to see a picture of them if you can post in our Facebook group.
Our families are very good at supplying enough changes of clothes for our children as well as weather appropriate gear so that we can go out everyday. (Although we have learned that we really want everyone to have rain pants!) Each Teacher and Each child carries a backpack on our adventures. The teachers packs include the emergency gear and supplies as well as a story book to read, tarp to sit on, magnifying glasses, field guides (Based on what we are looking for/at) track cards and activity materials. Everyone is responsible to carry their own water bottle. This way everyone has water when they need it. The children also have magnifying glasses and track cards in their bags. On the days we are going to be writing outside each child has a clipboard and crayons/pencils that they can add to their bags. If the children get hot they can put their mittens and hats in their bags. This is teaching them to care for themselves in a practical way. Teachers periodically check the children’s backpacks to make sure they have what they need and not too much. The backpacks were a recent gift and we are getting used to using them and so far the transition has been great! The kids love that they have what they need. (And so do the teachers) One of the boys calls it his survival kit!
We have a great community of parents who are advised from the very beginning to have children prepared for outdoor play in all kinds of weather. Still there are times when something is forgotten so we have a supply of clothing, snow pants, boots etc for anyone to use who needs it. One thing we invested in is rainpants for all the students. This proved to be a wise investment. The kids love playing in the rain and NEVER say they don’t want to go out!
This is music to my ears! Getting parents on-board from the get go, supplying extra gear, and investing in rain gear for everyone send such powerful messages to both your community and children. Fantastic! Preparation is half the battle!!!So exciting to read this!!
We are planning to obtain rain pants for our children!
Yipppeeee!
So much learning going on here. Fabulous to have been gifted “survival kits.” A great thing to have on the WISH LIST.
One of my teachers using an older wooden wagon to hold the curriculm materials, picnic basket with snack and any the emergency backpack. The children know it’s time to go out when they see the wagon. I like the focus on “Wind, snow, sleet and cold” for curriculum. It will foster a postive direction on outdoors rather than “I’m cold, It’s raining etc.
Oh my goodness! I love the wagon idea! Brilliant. I feel like we can write a song about wind, snow, sleet and cold.
I love your idea of an older wooden wagon! For me I think in the winter we would need to use a sled to bring items outside.
Wonderful!
I LOVED the idea of the on-the-go kit! I took a Four Winds inspired course last summer that also recommended something similar. I’ve been meaning to do it for such a long time now, this was a welcome kick in the butt to actually take the time to DO it! I put one together this afternoon while the kids played around me. They were immediately interested in what I was doing. They called it “Miss Amanda’s bag of fun surprises!” and can’t wait to head out into our woods to open it up next school day! Thank you for the inspiration! (I’ll post a photo of its contents on our Facebook page!)
Terrific! I can’t wait to take a peek at it over on the facebook page. Can’t wait to hear how it works outdoors! The fact that you have curious kids already is a welcome sign! Bravo to you for taking action so quickly!
That is awesome the kids considered it to be ” a bag of fun surprises”. Sometimes I feel the same, we have these ideas brewing around and it just takes that “welcome kick” to motivate us to get it going. I have been meaning to put together more of these kits, and this workshop will also be my welcome kick!
These curricula on the Go kits offer a sense of mystery to learning outdoors. Yea…can’t wait to see what you come up with.
I posted a photo in the Facebook group of a simple “Curriculum on the Go Kit” I set up yesterday with my own kids using the book “Time to Sleep” by Denise Fleming, a set of animal characters and empty baskets for gathering natural loose parts in preparation for hibernating. In general, I have a few things I “never leave home without.” I always have a basket and a towel in my car for planned and unplanned nature adventures. I also keep a pencil pouch stocked with some or all of the following: something to write/draw with, something to write/draw on, some magnifying glasses, prism lenses and/or binoculars, double sided tape for sticking discovered small treasures into nature journals, masking tape to wrap around wrists as a bracelet and stick on small leaves or flowers, a tiny tin of clay for impromptu nature prints or sculptures, nature guides, and perhaps a camera (or old camera phone) for budding photographers. As a teacher or when I’m with large groups, it’s sometimes helpful to have a big binder or backpack with a set of smaller prepared pencil pouches. I change out my take-a-longs every so often. I also have some basics that are helpful to always have–adequate outerwear options, snacks, water, wipes or washrags, and a method of collecting garbage or removed clothing as you go. It’s a lot easier to engage outdoors when we don’t have to haul back in for water breaks or when everyone’s basic needs can be taken care of along the way.
Your organization makes you light and ready for anything! This is what is what makes Curriculum-on-the-Go Kits so great. Thanks for sharing the details of what is in yours and how you use it. Great list! Keep up fantastic adventures!
We have made forts and I am definitely going to add the cloud study and ice bird feeders to my lesson plan.
The ice bird feeders are BEAUTIFUL!! Put them near a window so you can watch the birds enjoying the seeds. These are such simple activities that can lead to so many more activities. Happy Winter!
Even though its Jan I’ll be excited to bring some shadow activities to Ground Hog Day! We’ve done clouds/ wind in March and have brought blankets outside to lay down and just watch the clouds move, see what shapes we can find, etc. But .. why not do it in January? We did a small spring garden with shells, flowers, and rocks and allowed the children to move everything around. They loved it. I didn’t think about doing a winter one so we’ll shovel off the snow and get started! Yes, all the teachers say “put down the sticks” but we won’t be doing that now!!
Wonderful! I love the image of your group of children in snow pants outside making miniature houses with the loose parts that you just collected. Creating systems for storage to make this activity easy is important. Great to have a milk crate of loose parts near the door so you can take these materials out easily when you go. You can also make miniature stick people inside and then take them out to their NEW winter miniature garden. Fun!
I worked with the Preschool students to plant several bags of bulbs. I originally thought to focus the task on how DEEP to dig each hole, but I quickly realized that it was more important to focus simply on HOW to dig a hole. I also talked about how the bulbs were in a “resting” state and that they needed to rest underground throughout the cold of winter so that they may grow into beautiful flowers in the spring. The students worked well to complete the task. I had several bulbs left over by the end of the week and many of the kids volunteered to help plant those that remained. Overall, a successful activity.
I love planting bulbs with children! Fun things to add to this activity is: making a measuring stick with a stick and measure how deep the hole is; measure how far apart each hole is; make patterns with different bulbs; counting all the bulbs and going back to see how many flowers grew; cutting the bulb open and looking at the inside….so much fun! I did this activity with an entire school and will always remember the feeling when I saw all the flowers blooming in the Spring. It is such a simple activity. This year I planted garlic for the first time. 🙂