Teaching Nature Part II of II – Learning Styles, Age Considerations: Preparing & Leading Classes, Camps, Lessons & Programs

… Continued from Teaching Nature Part I of II – Outdoor Education Tips & Tricks of the Trade: Prep, Safety, Discipline & Building Community

Learning Styles: Teaching To All Individuals

My teaching philosophy was largely re-shaped by experience teaching at the Whatcom Hills Waldorf School during a time when I would have gladly put any child into any of those classrooms with any of the teachers who were there the two years I taught Spanish to all grades. The pedagogy of Waldorf Education really emphasizes teaching to age level. One of my mentors from that era was Janet Jewell who helped extrapolate the following information for use in wilderness educational settings.

First, remember that students learn in multiple ways. In Waldorf Education, they call it teaching to the head, heart and hands. Perfect for outdoor education, but also great to remember when teaching math, for instance. I remember the Waldorf teachers having the students clap along (obvious use of hands) with verbal recitation of their multiplication tables (hands and head) after hearing a story (heart and head) about how math is used in life.

Similarly, and depending on subject matter, remember that some people excel at verbal/auditory learning, kinesthetic (action-based) learning, visual learning and the somewhat-related learning through the written word. As in Waldorf Education, all those methods should be used to teach any subject, so while practicing on their own, students can use any method to deepen into the material. Notably in outdoor education, we sometimes verbally explain things that are kinesthetic experiences, so it’s best to keep verbal explanations to a minimum unless you need to impress a bossy student.

Remember How Old Your Students Are

All students need a healthy, hot breakfast, plenty of sleep, time outdoors, seasonal activities, and meaningful work. However, different ages generally need different teaching methods, except when affected by issues listed in my previous blog article in which case the “age” gets mixed up a bit.

When teaching children under 6, provide them the following experience, presenting yourself as a “benevolent monarch” so they feel a sense of wonder about the subject, perhaps with literally whispered anticipation:

• Pentatonic songs and flute music;
• Physical warmth;
• Natural fibers;
• Gardening;
• Naps;
• Time with pets;
• Peaceful atmosphere;
• Simple, consistent routine;
• Long-term bonding opportunities;
• Learning by example, not with verbal expectation: have them simply imitate you – that’s what they do;

When teaching youth between the ages of 7-13 who have not been too exposed to adult themes in their lives yet, so therefore able to still “be kids,” then the following learning atmosphere is most healthy. Yes, there is a big difference after age 9 when most kids have started to “awaken” to the outside world and discover that grown-ups aren’t perfect, but you can still get away with unequivocal authority as a “benevolent dictator” and it’s a great time for fast-paced learning, especially outdoors, when this age group is almost as capable as any adult in that setting, yet still willing to go along with what you suggest:

• Loving boundaries, with declarative sentences;
• Ample, skill-building activity;
• Lots of physical exercise, including a lot of swimming or water play;
• Beauty of nature and literature spoken aloud;
• Peer group bonding;
• Dress code including protective clothing but good to expose to the elements by this age;
• Consistency, with compassionate lessons on flexibility when change occurs;
• Indigenous craftwork, making clothing, and learning to use tools;
• Collecting things;
• Structures to build;
• Routines, including short periods of free time;
• Caring for pets and other regularly set chores and small responsibilities to take care of around camp, classroom or home;
• Playing musical instruments – even just using voices or rocks to learn to tap gently along with music;

When teaching teens, there is a big difference between maturity levels, especially considering gender. 15 year olds tend to be as capable as any adult in most regards – just inconsistent due to their frontal cortexes not being completely formed/fused yet. Now you can’t be a dictator, you have to be the president of a democracy which has to deal with a supreme court, congress or parliament that has almost as much power, doing a lot that the president doesn’t want. Basically, you have to be a great negotiator or you are going to have a coup d’etat. If you’re not going to be an exemplary adult, figure out how to surround teens with exemplary people because except for that 1-in-100 person, they are absolutely subject to the atmosphere they are in. So:

• Respect them with appreciative commentary, and be honest in all information they request, except when it comes to your own emotions, in which case you either have to act cool when you are angry, for instance, or act angry even though you know how to control your emotions, so that the teen learns the lesson.
• Choices and opportunities. Two choices are fine for a 9 year old, with increasing numbers of choices the more capable a teen becomes.
• Demonstrably safe environments, with clear boundaries around bodies, speech and behavior. Stand 5 feet from a the cliff, and let them know that the class will never return to a cliff again if anyone steps within 4 feet of the edge.
• Exposure to experts, and biographies that show what one person can do.
• Facts that challenge beliefs. Just think of all the adults who have not learned to accept facts which contradict their beliefs! We need to learn this about ourselves as teens. Fortunately, we now have tools to show teens how true this can be, like brain-scan studies demonstrating how chemically stupid we are when in love.
• Discussion with humor, and serious moral debates. Sometimes, facts really don’t matter, like with end-of-life decisions. These moral debates are the best way to engage teens. Be ready to challenge them toe-to-toe without offending them, showing them how an adult debates responsibly.
• High standards. Always challenge them to reach higher, like toward a star they can never touch but always must keep in mind to learn more and more. On the other hand, don’t give them a perfectionist complex: reward them when good enough is good enough.
• Do it, don’t just watch it, and this goes for all ages. If you are leading a plant walk, have a volunteer cut the leaves of stinging nettle and put them into the bag, then show them the correct way if not done right. Always have them doing, but not repeating wrong ways so as to not develop bad habits.
• Individualization and specialization, even apprenticeships with mentors as they get older. Kids should do group presentations, but teens should be given individual projects to develop.
• Profound music.
• Patience and forgiveness.

When teaching adults, especially young adults, be sure to prepare a lot, because if you promise 100 things and only deliver 99, that’s what they will dwell on. Teens are way easier in this regard because they are used to everyone around them promising a lot and failing a lot. Young adults are idealists and perfectionists, generally not having enough heart-breaks in life yet to forgive others, especially teachers, for our insignificant transgressions.

Those who continue to have a chronic perfectionist complex – like youth with the myriad diagnoses we medicate nowadays – you just have to accept when they give you a 2-star rating, but generally, older adults are wonderful to teach. If they learn 1 thing they can bring into the future, they are happy because they have sat through many-a-waste-of-time-conference and learned that everything is remedial at a certain point, so you just have to find that “one thing they were missing” and as a teacher, it’s up to you to find that for each individual.

When teaching mixed-age groups, something that happens a lot in outdoor education, like when children and parents are present together, things get more tricky. Experience – or exactly copying what you observed a veteran teacher do – is finally key. For the first ten years of my career, teaching parents and kids together drove me bonkers, because it was difficult to know when to take leadership with children, and when to allow parents to intervene. Even just knowing what tone of voice to use was tricky.

Nowadays, teaching mixed-age groups doesn’t even phase me, and I’m not sure why, other than having years of experience. Maybe I just see parents and children as equal students, and sensitively know how to gently prevent disciplinary situations. Or maybe parents are different now (discipline is back “in” whereas during the 90s it was all about allowing kids “choices”). Sometimes I prevent awkwardness in advance by asking parents to simply allow me to direct the kids. And certainly, I often remind parents to fully participate in class, rather than hanging back and observing – something that really drains energy out of the experience and causes other problems.

Let’s Prep This

1. Review what was promised: course description, website, policy manual, emails, private contract proposal.
2. Group similar skills together on a list.
3. Determine the best flow of skills. For instance, to teach animal tracking, you gotta start with general awareness.
4. Draft a guess at your timeline to facilitate efficiency. Be as realistic as possible, and decide which skills are absolutely necessary so you can cut or deprioritize what’s “too much” if time doesn’t allow for more. Remember the FAF Factor (Farting Around Forever) during transitions from one activity to another. Pee breaks! The more authority you have with the kids right away, a fundamental skill as described in my previous article in this series, the less FAFing there will be during transitions, and you’ll get more done, i.e. the students will learn more and that’s often the mark of an excellent teacher.
5. Refamiliarize yourself with the material, and for each activity you plan to introduce, make a list of • all necessary materials, and • supplemental safety measures for risk mitigation.
6. Take a look to see if you have balanced your lesson/program between the head, heart, and hands appropriately for the age group and kind of students you have. Finally, do you allow for “in-breathing” and “out-breathing” as they say in Waldorf Education, or is everything you do require constant concentration, or too much excitement to control behavior? Revise your timeline accordingly.

Let’s Teach This

1. Get everyone into a circle. This facilitates much better learning in most cases, but especially outdoors where you don’t have any other way to focus attention. If even one student hangs back, bring them in, stepping closer if necessary to help them form a perfect circle or oval. My one-liner to my staff is that it’s “all about the circle” if you want to be an effective teacher.
2. Start with introducing yourself to each student, how you are today, shaking each hand if a small group, or surveying a large group by asking how many people feel like a “10” today, 9, 8, 7 and so-on to “1” being worst so you can keep an eye on those who might need more attention.
3. Give an overview of the lesson/program – not so much that you bore everyone, but enough to satisfy the Asperger Spectrum students who just have to know what to expect. This is a great moment to redirect an unfocused student, to transition into rules.
4. Set the rules, and by all means, use a list. If you forget even one rule, you will regret it. No matter how long you’ve been teaching, use a list. You can often skip most of the list since you will already have a sense of whether the group is an easy one by this time, often only 5 minutes into it. For an example of general rules, see our Agreements for Participation in day and overnight camps. We read each agreement, requiring participants to say “aye, aye” after each one.
5. Tell a story. For adults, it needs to impress with copious information. For kids, you can just read a story, but make it a magical one. The story should introduce the skills.
6. Reiterate the skills with specific information, instruction and/or demonstration.
7. Have the students experience the subject through an activity that teaches itself to them.
8. Review the lesson and give your students tools to practice on their own – homework if you want to call it that.
9. Test your students in a way that puts it all together, and helps you assess how much they understood or embodied the lesson, the learning, maybe engaging them in a “why it matters” experience: possibly a participatory monologue or song.
10. Have them evaluate your lesson in a way that helps them learn it yet again.
11. Don’t expect them to “get it” until the following day. Come back to it and you will see what one night’s sleep can do for understanding.

Positive Parental Relationships

The other thing you are going to have to know as a first-time teacher is how to deal with parents and other influential family members of your students. Some of the best reminders are well-summarized by Expert Online Training:

• A great drop-off at the beginning of the day is important because it sets the tone for a positive start to the day for children and parents, starting the day in a professional way that reassures parents and children
• Proper drop off at the beginning of the day includes welcoming body language, a positive tone of voice, interacting with parents, and being on time.
• The main idea of an organized pick-up at day camp is to offer specific praise, monitor safety, and openly communicating important information about their child.
• Staff debrief of the day will always include an immediate recounting of essential events that are shared directly with parents at pick-up.
• Parents may be particularly difficult to deal with because they might feel overwhelmed, so be sure to personally guide them through orientation, helping them complete key tasks.
• Anxious parents need reassurance, firm boundaries, and a calm tone. An example of being interested and understanding would be asking a parent how their drive was and what their questions are. Being a soothing presence for overwhelmed and anxious parents entails helping out, providing reassurance, and setting limits.
• Anxious parents are easy to spot because they express worry and have a hard time saying goodbye.  If a parent promises a child “I’ll pick you up if you feel homesick” then it’s usually best to ask if there is a particular reason why they are feeling anxious, reassure the parent, discourage the pick-up deal and encourage a full-session stay.
• To work effectively with an unhappy parent, consider the “customer service” angle by listening and problem-solving. If staff members argue with a difficult parent, it can “fan the flames” of the parent’s anger. A skillful approach to working with difficult parents focuses on customer service, listening, and preserving policies.
• Remember, defiant parents have broken the rules and may want your cooperation. To work effectively with defiant parents, be strong, kind, and interested, especially regarding rules.
• In comparison, bossy parents have a picture in their mind about how the summer program should be different, and in that case, you can respectfully consider realistic ways to collaborate and compromise.
• Finally, always remember that having a parent conversation in front of their child depends on whether the intensity and/or topic is appropriate. Usually it’s not wise.

Ready To Lead?

I think the best way to explain what’s needed to gain competence before taking responsibility to lead nature programs, is to read the Wolf Camp Summer Training Requirements policy for staff:

1.0 Staff such as lead instructors who do not require direct supervision to care for students attending programs, in addition to past trainings equivalent to graduation requirements for the Earth Skills Teaching Apprenticeship, must complete at least one of the following trainings earlier in the same calendar year, and all of the following trainings within the past 3 years:

• Wilderness Conservation, Navigation & Risk Management or equivalent 60 class-hour outdoor risk management training at another institution.
• Teaching Nature: Training for Environmental Educators & Nature Guides or equivalent 60 class-hour teachers training at another institution.
• Wilderness Skills Sampler including Daily Classes or equivalent advanced remedial continuing educational training on an overview of the earth skills subjects we teach.
• 24 class-hour emergency rescue training such as Wilderness First Aid or Lifeguard Training that includes CPR in addition to wilderness medicine or lifeguarding skills.

1.1 Staff such as apprentices and underage assistant instructors who do require direct supervision to care for students, must have attended at least two of the above courses (or equivalent) within the current calendar year, and must be part of an apprenticeship, internship, or outdoor mentoring training program.

2.0 Within the current calendar year, all staff must have read the entire outline of the camp’s policy manual, as well as read all policies and procedures relevant to the courses in which they are participating.

2.1 All staff will have immediate access to the camp’s policy manual and procedures at all times whenever responsible for students.

Comment below or email me to extend or amend this list, and let’s get out there, spreading the love of nature through the generations!

Chris Chisholm founded Wolf Camp & School of Natural Science in 1996, and he is author of the Wolf Journey Earth Conservation Courses. He grew up in the north woods of Minnesota, spent his high school years in Germany and tromping around the Alps, studied in the Ecuadoran Andes for his college junior year abroad, and moved to the west coast after earning a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin in 1991. From 1992-95, Chris worked as a Level II Certified Youth Counselor at Sea Mar Community Health Centers. He taught Spanish from 1995-97 at the Whatcom Hills Waldorf School, and was an active member of the Whatcom County Chapter, Washington State Music Teachers Association from 1996-2003. In addition to running Wolf Camp, he has taught for the The Mountaineers, North Cascades Institute, Sierra Club and various other organizations up and down the west coast. Chris is considered an inspirational storyteller, musician, teacher, counselor, outdoorsman, conservationist, cooperative businessman, and friend to all who have shared time with him at Wolf Camp.