Washington Nature Preschool Association
  • Home
  • About
    • About WaNPA
    • Leaders
  • Upcoming Events
    • 2024 Symposium >
      • COVID Policy
    • Webinars
  • Membership
  • Resources
    • Professional Development
    • Past Events >
      • Outdoor Care & Learning Initiative Webinars
      • 2021 Symposium
      • 2020 Symposium
    • Licensing
    • Environmental Hazards Washington
    • Blog
  • Contact

Nature Preschool and a Sense of Place

8/24/2017

2 Comments

 
by Caroline Cook

One theme from the conference that surfaced again and again was the “sense of place” that we seek to develop in our children, and how the nature we grow up with shapes our values and character throughout our lives.
 
What, exactly, is a sense of place? Anthropologists, geographers, historians, and other social scientists have different definitions, but in general, a sense of place involves a connection to the land that involves both knowledge and emotion, and connects to the environment’s cultural history as well as its nature.
 
Our classroom already values place-based education; our daily observations and experiences in the park frame our literacy, math, and science curriculum. However, this year, I want to be more intentional about teaching my students that the Mercer Slough, specifically, is a special place.
 
Here are some changes we’re making to our curriculum:

  • We’re going to talk more about place names. Why is it called “Mercer” slough? What other names has it held in its history? Who lived and worked here before our classroom was built?
  • We’re going to “adopt” a specific tree and visit it to take a picture every week, for the whole school year. The pictures will hang in our classroom, so we can see and remember how it changes throughout the seasons.
  • We have some classroom books specific to the PNW, or about animals that could live here, but we’d like to have more. Are there any books you’d recommend? I’d especially like to share stories by native authors.
  • We’re going to learn more about traditional plant uses. I’m not sure I’m ready to serve skunk cabbage for snack, but I’m researching other less-intimidating options.
 
I’m excited- as a transplant to Washington, I’ve been hoping to develop a deeper connection to Washington’s natural and cultural history, and now I have an excuse to be more intentional about it! Do you have special teaching practices that help children develop a sense of place? Please share them in the comments!

2 Comments
Jess Brewer
8/25/2017 09:18:44 am

Love this article! I am really interested in incorporating more ethnobotany in our seasonal explorations throughout the year, too. Maybe Western Hemlock tea? I also like your idea of incorporating PNW specific books. A resource I have used in the past is americanindiansinchildrensliterature.net. It isn't PNW specific but has a great searchable database. Thank you for starting this conversation!

Reply
Reddit R4R Maryland link
12/13/2022 10:15:58 am

Greatt post thanks

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    April 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    June 2018
    August 2017

    Categories

    All
    Administration
    Annual Symposium
    Documenting Learning
    Environments
    Natural Start Conference 2017
    Safety
    Teaching
    Updates

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • About
    • About WaNPA
    • Leaders
  • Upcoming Events
    • 2024 Symposium >
      • COVID Policy
    • Webinars
  • Membership
  • Resources
    • Professional Development
    • Past Events >
      • Outdoor Care & Learning Initiative Webinars
      • 2021 Symposium
      • 2020 Symposium
    • Licensing
    • Environmental Hazards Washington
    • Blog
  • Contact