By: Molly Zaninovich
Who: Rees Maxwell
Where: Whole Earth Nature School Founder and Executive Director.
What it/they do/does: Maxwell teaches immersive nature awareness and outdoor living skills to elementary students. The curriculum comes “from 30+ years of study into how cultures from around the world are able to promote deep nature connection with the children of their villages and communities.” [1]
Impact: The program helps children form lasting relationships with other students and nature. Parents have told Maxwell the program benefitted their children’s confidence and appropriate risk taking abilities.
Funding: Whole Earth Nature School is a 501-C3 non-profit organization, and is therefore tax-exempt. Funding comes from student tuition and direct fundraising.
Success story: Maxwell was on a trail with a group of five year olds when two of them noticed a banana slug. One student was unsure what the slug was, and the other thought it was disgusting. Even though he had a different plan for the day, Maxwell took 20 minutes for a teaching moment with the banana slug. At the end of the inquiry, because of Maxwell’s dynamic teaching, the students were inspired, engaged, and more deeply connected with the outdoors.
Parting words: “When teaching kids outside we’re respectful that they have different ideas of what they want to learn. Our day’s curriculum may be about birds. And suddenly we see deer. The deer is more interesting than whatever I’m talking about. We’re going to watch the deer, and see what they’re eating. We’ll stalk and up and watch their body movement. We’ll learn. It’s instructor inspired and child led teaching. We know what we want to cover during a term so they complete a unit, but whatever they’re interested in, that’s the real opportunity. And that’s where inspiration comes from. If kids aren’t inspired we’re not doing something right.”
[1] “Whole Earth Nature School.” Whole Earth Nature School RSS. 2011. Web. 31 Oct. 2015, http://wholeearthnatureschool.com/youth-nature-camps/coyote-kids-at-whole-earth-nature-school/.