Outdoor Classrooms Training and Development Programs
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” Ben Franklin
Outdoor Classrooms inspires early childhood teachers, out of school time educators; along with, parents and families to create one-of-a-kind Outdoor Classrooms and/or Backyard Teaching Gardens. All on a shoe-string budget. One way we do this is through workshops and training.
All workshops and training are led by Victoria Hackett, M.Ed. Whether your workshop is online or onsite, Victoria blends theory with hands-on problem-solving techniques, true-to-life anecdotes, valuable tips, and lively participation. Her extensive experience as a consultant/trainer/mentor, and her background as a Natural Teacher allows her to bring a profound knowledge and a pragmatic approach to every workshop she teaches. Whatever your training and development needs may be, Victoria is ready to work with you to provide training, facilitation, and consultation in a variety of outdoor learning areas.
HOW IT WORKS:
Option 1: Open Registration Workshops for Parents & Educators: These 1-hour, 1.5 hours, 
or 2-hour online workshops are offered intermittently throughout the year via Zoom. Time, dates, and topics of the workshops vary. All workshops offer lifetime access and participation certificates.
Our collection of online Workshops are either:
- LIVE Workshops: Interactive and scheduled on a specific date and time using a Zoom Link.
OR
- PRE-RECORDED Workshops: Wherever you are in the world you can listen to or watch at a time & place to suit you.
Option 2: Customized Online Training: You pick the topic, date, time, and length of the workshop. Bring your staff and your program needs, and Victoria will ensure that everyone has a dynamic workshop experience and leaves feeling rejuvenated, excited about reconnecting children with Nature.
Nature-Based
Online Workshops
facilitated by Victoria Hackett, M.Ed.
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTIONS:
Outdoor Classrooms provides a wide variety of workshops and training for early childhood teachers, out-of-school time educators, and parent groups who are dedicated to helping children play, learn and grow outdoors. Workshops provide hands-on indoor-outdoor experiences that offer tips, resources, and new ideas to create a one-of-a-kind outdoor classroom and nature-based curriculum on a shoestring budget.
MUD KITCHEN MADNESS: ONLINE
Did you make mud pies as a child? Did you spend hours mixing and creating recipes using dirt, water, flowers and pinecones?
- What if you could use mud as a teaching tool and eliminate all the worry about messy kids after playing in the mud?
- What if there was an easy way to invite children to become scientists, cooks, entrepreneurs, and artists while playing with mud?
- What if you had Mud Play activities at your fingertips?
With a Mud Kitchen, you can stop saying “No!” and give your children the freedom to get dirty and explore without hesitation. And you get the pleasure of having happy, healthy children as a result! Take a peek inside the More than Mud Pies: Make a Mud Kitchen Master Class with this 1-hour Mud Kitchen Madness workshop. OPEN LIVE Class: July 16, 2020, 10:30-11:30
STEAM Outdoors with School-Age Childen: ONLINE
Teach STEAM Outside! Learn how to reconnect children with nature and explore how science, technology, engineering, art, and math activities can be cultivated into the outdoor classroom. This jam-packed, interactive workshop offers hands-on, minds-on ideas, resources, and playful learning, as well as Nature-Based children’s books that inspire STEAM Outdoors. OPEN: Prerecorded
Let’s Make Curriculum-on-the-Go Kits: ONLINE
Creative Ideas for Teaching Outdoors with ease during a Global Epidemic.
Alexander Bell once said, “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” If we are preparing our children to learn outdoors, then parents and teachers need to rethink how to teach outdoors with ease. Come learn the magic behind creating your own one of a kind Curriculum-on-the-Go Kits and how they can offer you and your children boundless invitations for learning outdoors. OPEN: Prerecorded
Children, Mindfulness, and Nature: ONLINE
10 Nature-Based Mindfulness Activities for Young Children.
How are your children coping with the global pandemic? Are they stressed? Are they isolating themselves in front of a screen? Are they depressed or spending less time outdoors? If you said yes to any of these questions, this workshop is for you. Come learn 10 Nature-Based Mindfulness Activities for young children (and yourself) that will encourage self-care, a reconnection with nature, and renewed hope for the future. OPEN: Prerecorded
Let’s Talk Trees: ONLINE
Trees are all around us and grow all over the world. They come in many different shapes, sizes, and even colors. Some remain green throughout the year, while others have leaves that change colors and fall to the ground. Let’s Talk Trees and explore year-round tree theme preschool activities in your Outdoor Classroom or Backyard Teaching Gardens. Activities introduced are designed for kids ages 3 through 5, but many can be adapted for younger and older kids as well. OPEN: Pre-recorded
Let’s Explore Sun, Light, and Shadow Play: ONLINE
Come learn about the elements of the science of sun, light, and shadows and how they can transform child’s play outdoors. Discover a variety of activities using different light sources and objects and how the sun’s position in the sky affects the size of shadows. Get ready to fill your “toolbox” with science-based nature experiments using sun, light, and shadow that your children will love. OPEN: Pre-recorded
The Art of Mandala Making: ONLINE
Have you ever made a Mandala with children? Did you know Mandalas enhance creativity, along with a deeper connection with the self, nature, and the universe? The word “Mandala” means circle, and in this time of uncertainty, we are exploring a variety of Mandalas, making them using a variety of different materials. Let’s get centered with Mandalas! LIVE CLASS Thursday, June 18 from 10:30-11:30 am (EST)
Let’s Talk Birds: Easy Ways to Get Kids Birding: ONLINE
Kids are natural explorers; however, not always drawn to birding. When we take a pause in our everyday life, we may hear the bird calls and see the magnificent bird behavior that is often overlooked. Come learn how to introduce birding to kids. Let’s talk birds and discover tips and games for introducing 10 easy ways of birding to children. LIVE CLASS Thursday, June 25 from 10:30-11:30 a.m. (EST)
Let’s Talk Wildflowers
Did you know that wildflowers represent joy in most cultures? In times like these, joy is what we’re lacking and longing for. Not just you, but your children also. Come learn about flowers, plants, and a variety of wildflower activities that will engage and delight children. LIVE CLASS Thursday, June 30 from 10:30-11:30 am (EST)
Get Outdoors: 10 Ways to Get Kids Outdoors Daily During a Global Epidemic: ONLINE
Are your kids stuck on screens and glued to electronic devices? The benefits of reconnecting with nature can offer both immediate and lifelong benefits. Come learn why kids need to spend time in nature and how and where to get them outdoors daily during a global epidemic. Discover how being outdoors is also essential for building up Vitamin D – an essential nutrient for our immune system that we get from being outdoors in the sun. OPEN: Pre-recorded
Explore the Natural World with Infants and Toddlers: ONLINE
Do you find it challenging to find age-appropriate outdoor activities for infants and toddlers? In this workshop, you’ll discover the benefits of infants and toddlers being outdoors and the importance of creating routines getting them outdoors daily. Discover how well-designed outdoor Sensory Gardens can inspire infants and toddlers to become scientists, mathematicians, and artists. Fill your toolbox with 20+ Nature-Based Activities for infants and toddlers that will nurture their interest in nature and benefit them for the rest of their lives. OPEN: Prerecorded
Transform Outdoor Spaces into Backyard Teaching Gardens: ONLINE
With every crisis comes an opportunity. Now is the time to look at our backyards, front yards, side yards, windowsills, and porches a little differently. Can we transform these spaces into Teaching Gardens for our children? With time on our side and support from the Outdoor Classrooms c community, we can face our fears head-on and come out the other side a little bit stronger. Let’s come together. OPEN: Prerecorded
“Pop Up” Nature-Based Curriculum using Loose Parts: ONLINE
If you’re not sure what to do with the kids once you get outdoors or if you’re looking for ways to bring the outdoors inside, this workshop will show you how to instantly create a “pop up” outdoor classroom curriculum. Discover how to use sticks, stones, feathers, and shells as curriculum tools, and explore a wide range of activities in different curriculum areas. This jam-packed workshop offers hands-on-mind on ideas, resources, and playful learning. OPEN: Prerecorded
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Let’s Grow Math Outdoors: The Workshop
Discover the many ways you can teach Math Outdoors using numbers, patterns, relations, shapes, spatial sense, measurement, data collection and more. This course, which is jam-packed with hands-on outdoor math activities, group challenges, and resources, shows you how to use math as a tool to interpret the world around us. * This course can be adapted for either Early Childhood or School Age teachers.
Let’s Grow Literacy Outdoors: The Workshop
No matter what your outdoor space, you can develop a literacy-rich environment that is conducive to talking, listening, reading and writing. In this workshop, you’ll explore ways to use nature as inspiration for songs, rhymes, and stories, and create an engaging and meaningful context for children’s learning outdoors.
How to Make and Cultivate an Outdoor Classroom using The Four Types of Gardens
Liberate your inner gardener and learn how to plan and create a children’s garden that facilitates a love of plants, gardens, and the outdoors. Discover the 4 Types of Gardens and the impact they have on children’s development as you experiment with different ways to maintain and sustain your garden throughout the seasons. Come prepared for playful learning, growing, and teaching with fellow educators!
Create Outdoor Learning Spaces for Diverse Learners
Explore how the physical environment invites a variety of teaching pedagogies, learning styles and trends. You’ll learn what kind of outdoor learning spaces actually support innovative education and how to improve your indoor/outdoor environments accordingly.
Plant a Victory Garden: The Time is Now
More than 20 million Victory Gardens were planted across the United States during WWII with more than 1 million tons of produce grown. Now is the time to plant a garden. Come learn the basics for planting a garden and take your first step toward growing your own food.
Explore Nature In Winter: The Workshop
Discover how to connect children with nature no matter the weather! Embrace the cold and the unique opportunities winter provides to explore nature and incorporate natural elements into your curriculum environment.