ESD 112 Teachers Dream Big at Outdoor Learning Workshop

FieldSTEM in Action

Outdoor Learning Workshop Inspires ESD 112 Teachers to Dream Big

The morning of an in-person PEI training for twenty teachers from ESD 112 was cold enough that rain had turned to snow flurries. Knowing that much of the workshop would happen outdoors, Integrated Curriculum Coordinator Pranjali Upadhyay was concerned.

“I was expecting some people wouldn’t show up because of the weather,” she says. “I didn’t want to force anyone to attend.” But regardless of the temperature, every registered teacher arrived, and no one complained about the temperature or snow. One even commented that it would have been great to spend even more time outside.

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Green Jobs Pathways

New Environmental Education Pathway Opens for High School Students

Chelsea Trout’s first day at PEI coincided with the inaugural meeting of the writing team for a new statewide Education through Outdoor Learning (EOL) Career and Technical Education (CTE) framework. The group’s purpose: to design a pathway for students interested in becoming environmental and outdoor educators. The collaboration included representatives from three school districts, one university, one tribe, four state agencies, and one Educational Service District (ESD). As a brand-new staff member, it was like skipping the shallows and diving straight into the deep end of PEI’s pool.

Now, the framework is complete and Trout has become adept at navigating complex waters as PEI’s Green Jobs Coordinator. “It has been awe-inspiring how many people across our state want this work completed,” she says. “There’s a vast desire to create opportunities for students to learn outdoors. Building this course with the momentum of the Outdoor Schools for All initiative has been perfect timing.”

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Forestry Education

Forest Literacy for K-5 Educators

Twenty K-5 educators gathered this past March for a regional workshop hosted by the Whatcom County Chapter of the Washington Farm Forestry Association and Pacific Education Institute focused on meaningful forest education. The day began at Nooksack Elementary School, with many of the participants joining from Nooksack, Sedro Woolley, and Bellingham school districts. Participants first learned about the history and current restoration initiatives of the Nooksack Tribe and identified ways to integrate Indigenous knowledge into their work with students. PEI South Sound FieldSTEM Coordinator and WA State

Project Learning Tree Coordinator Lara Tukarski then led participants in a movement-based activity in the school library to generate awareness of sustainably managed forests as a renewable source of raw materials. With the help of PEI Northwest FieldSTEM Coordinator Amy Keiper, participants organized their thinking around natural resource management and practiced respectful discourse tied to a spectrum of viewpoints related to natural resource management.

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Special Event

PEI After Hours: South Sound

Special Event

PEI After Hours: Eastern Washington

Tools & Tips for Teachers

Schoolyard Investigations: Toad Abodes

Many second-grade students leap at the opportunity to build playhouses or forts outdoors. The following lessons harness that enthusiasm and promote a greater sense of purpose for their construction. Students start in the first lesson by viewing a short video of a garden full of toads. Students will explore their own school campus and make a list of materials available on their school campus to build a rain proof toad abode.

Next students test these materials to determine which are the most absorbent and which are the softest. Students will then make an origami frog. Students must design, using only the materials they tested, a dwelling large enough to fit their origami frog and keep it damp in dry conditions such as sun or wind. Students will draft plans, build, test, and optimize their solutions to the question, “how do you build a natural toad abode”?

Test different materials to determine which are best for constructing an inviting space for a toad, then evaluate others’ designs.

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Upcoming Events

Date	Workshop	Location
May 4	Getting WILD with Project Learning Tree in Neah Bay	Coast
May 11	Project Learning Tree: Explore Your Environment	Pierce County
May 25	Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines: Food Waste & Regenerative Agriculture	East Sound, South Sound, Central WA
May 29 / 30	CTE Writing Workshop: Urban and Community Forestry	Statewide
May 29	K-12 Forestry Education Check-in	Skykomish
June 1 -August 30	YESS Summer Programs	Statewide
June 4	Building Teacher Confidence	Central Washington
July 10 – July 12	Engaging Communities in Forestry Education	Northwest Washington

Visit PEI's calendar for more information.

With Gratitude

Thank you to April's donors and funders!

Bill Monahan

Gail Kramer

Gareth Waugh

Grays Harbor Community Foundation

The Icicle Fund

John Ison

The Norcliffe Foundation

The Russell Family Foundation

Tim Garchow

Washington Friends of Farms and Forests

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