Professional Development
NatureConnect Central Oregon offers professional development for PreK-12 teachers and out-of-school program providers in Central Oregon. Our workshops provide curriculum and skills to help educators make outdoor learning a regular part of their classrooms and programs, benefiting youth across Central Oregon.
Upcoming Workshops
The Restorative Practice of Nature Journaling Workshop Series
Nature journaling is a flexible and engaging practice that helps students develop NGSS-aligned science skills, nurture curiosity and wonder, and strengthen their relationships with the land and with each other. Join us for a workshop series to learn about this wonderful practice! The series will begin with basics of nature journaling and navigating art mediums, application and technique. We will then introduce Project WILD lessons and curriculum and nature journaling activities that apply to specific curricular areas that you might use in your classroom. The series will wrap up with a planning session for implementing nature journaling with your students and a celebration of learning and community sharing.
We will meet once a month during the school year at green spaces located in schools throughout Bend. All supplies will be provided. No art experience or artistic skill is needed. We will offer self-paced work between sessions. Participants will receive How to Teach Nature Journaling and Project WILD’s K-12 guide. The exact sites are to be determined as they will rotate through the naturehoods of participating educators (school sites and adjacent parks).
Details
Wednesdays – 10/16/24, 11/20/24, 12/18/24, 1/22/25, 2/19/25, 3/1/25, 4/23/25, 5/21/25
1:30-4:00 pm
Location – varies each week
Audience: 3rd-5th grade teachers
Cost: Free, $100 stipend to teachers who attend at least 6 sessions
Curriculum:
- Project WILD’s K-12 Curriculum & Activity Guide
- How to Teach Nature Journaling by John Muir Laws and Emilie Lygren
Register here: https://onrep.forestry.oregonstate.edu/workshops/being-big-and-looking-little-restorative-practice-nature-journaling%C2%A0
Benefits for Educators
- Personal Wellness: Being allowed the time to attend this workshop provides educators with an opportunity to learn a routine wellness
practice steeped in mindfulness. - Professional Development: PDU’s are made available through Oregon Natural Resources Education Program and each session we will cover an aspect of Oregon Model Core Teaching Standards.
- Curriculum Guides: Each participant will receive a free copy of Project WILD and How to Teach Nature Journaling Guides
Benefits for Students
- Transformative Social and Emotional Learning: Self-Awareness, Identity, Self-Management, Agency, Responsible Decision-Making, and Curiosity
- NGSS Science and Engineering Practices: Asking questions, developing and using models, communicating information
- NGSS Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns, cause and effect, scale, proportion, and quantity
Workshop Facilitators:
Molly Alles: NatureHoods Coordinator, NatureConnect
Kirin Styrker: Oregon Natural Resources Education Program
