I am excited and proud to announce an upcoming training event on April 14 from 9-12:30 at Beverly Hills Preschool in Alexandria sponsored by NoVA Outside. The day will open with an intriguing panel on The Value of Risk. Sissy Walker of WISE Educational Services will...
We know, and an extensive body of rigorous scientific research confirms that children who have access to green and natural play and learning spaces are healthier and less stressed, concentrate and learn better, and get along better with peers. Connecting children to...
The sun was shining. The kids– lots of kids– were outside. It was simple and inexpensive and fun. Bamboo (harvested in advance from a grateful neighbor’s yard) Kudzu (pulled by kids from the edges of the schoolyard) A ball of string A bale of straw...
This post represents a summary of several talks at the recent “International Green Schoolyard Conference”. Although I agree wholeheartedly with all of the ideas described below, I cannot take credit for many of the thoughts. Because the speakers’...
From coast to coast, this is school garden tour season! This week I’m bringing you news of another city where exciting things are happening for kids. I visited 7 wonderful DC school gardens on a recent rainy Saturday. The theme of this year’s...
Let me begin by saying that Engaging Our Grounds: The International Green Schoolyard Conference was a powerful gathering. I just counted and I have 64 pages of notes and more than 300 pictures from 2 days of talks and site visits, so clearly this will take more than...
Here is the story of a natural building project I love… If you aren’t familiar with natural building, it is, basically, using natural, non-manufactured materials to create soul-soothing, sculptural structures. My favorite is earth-building, which uses in...
Children need nature. Here in the Capitol area we are rediscovering that in a big way. Natural play and learning are coming to DC, Maryland and Northern Virginia. Teachers are learning about how to teach outdoors and how to support outdoor learning; schools and...
This Montessori natural playspace opened in September 2011. The 1/3 acre lush landscape offers children a wide range of opportunities to move, explore, play and learn in a setting that is whimsical and beautiful and quite different from a traditional playground. One...
