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| www.childrenandnature.org |
The Children & Nature Network's mission is to support children's growth and development through a connection with the earth. As a resource, the Children & Nature Network provides information for families, educators, and community leaders in the form of publications, research, news. programming, and more.
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| http://www.nwf.org/What-We-Do/Kids-and-Nature.aspx |
Similarly, the National Wildlife Federation champions active, outdoor lifestyles that respect and restore natural habitats. NWF is another source of information for families, children, educators, and program administrators. Their website offers resources such as lesson plans and curriculum, activities around growing a schoolyard habitat or garden, webinar series for educators, and links to movements such as the Be Out There campaign and the Great American Backyard Campout annual event. There are publications for adults and children, funding opportunities, service learning projects, and news and guidance from a national perspective.
These national organizations support my philosophies around the importance of play in nature in early childhood. There are no jobs listed with the organizations at this time, however, there are opportunities to join the work they are doing by participating in initiatives to increase children's access to nature in my own community. This is a goal I will be incorporating into the response I create for my capstone challenge! The skills and experience I will need to incorporate the missions of these organizations into my work include an understanding of the role nature plays in child development, the negative impact a lack of nature has on growth and learning, an ability to design indoor and outdoor environments that provide access to natural elements and nature-based experiences, and an understanding and respect for the need for open-ended loose-part materials, the ability to get dirty and wet, and the lengths of time required for children to reap the benefits of play in nature. I will also need to utilize skills around communication and partnerships with parents and other early childhood professionals as I act as an advocate on behalf of children and the importance of this kind of play.
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| http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/ |
I cannot locate any open positions at the national level with CSEFEL at this time. However, I see that positions within CSEFEL include Key Investigator at the Department of Education, Vanderbilt University, and Project Coordinators at both Vanderbilt University and University of Illinois at Champaign/Urbana. Work at the national level does not interest me as much as work that directly impacts children, families, and professionals in my own community. I am much more interested in participating in CSEFEL work by facilitating and instructing trainings in my area. I have done both several times over the past few years and have found that this work requires strong skills in teaching adults and facilitating group discussions, an understanding of both typical and more challenging social and emotional behaviors in infants and toddlers, knowledge of national and state resources as well as local services that support the social/emotional development of young children, and a keen awareness of current research and best practice.
Lisa,
ReplyDeleteI am a kindred spirit in that I also believe that children can learn so much from being outdoors and experiencing nature. Unfortunately, many children spend a lot of time indoors with video games or watching television. I applaud your efforts to expose your students to the great wide world. I grew up on a farm in Missouri and remember many days walking through the pastures, watching wildlife, or just enjoying the sun. Even today, too many days inside gets me eager to take a walk or go for a bike ride. Good luck with your project and thanks for a great post.