Recently I was asked by a Kindergarten teacher who works and teaches in India to give a talk to her class about plants. I decided to bring them on a virtual nature walk using Zoom. How did I do it? I went to a local park near where I stay and took a close walk... Continue Reading →
Making Better Teachers Podcast Episode 6 – Getting Students Outdoors to Play
Why should teachers focus more on getting kids outdoors to play? How does outdoor play benefit us all? In Episode 6 (Chinese New Year holiday bonus episode), host Kevin O'Shea goes solo to advocate for more outdoor play and nature education for children! Everyone wins when our little ones get outdoors to play and discover... Continue Reading →
Outdoor Learning: Preparing Kids for Adventure
You’ve now made the decision to help get your children or students more connected to nature. It’s time to get them outside and let them explore and inquire. Kids can of course simply do this using their own senses and that is a theme that will appear throughout this series, but there are some basic... Continue Reading →
Citizen Scientist Students: iNaturalist
About a year ago I decided to check out a Birding Beijing social event here in Beijing, China. I do a great deal of work within my school with regards to environmental and nature education, but I wanted to meet people from outside the international school world who like-minded. It was a fantastic event and... Continue Reading →
Math Outdoors: Even and Odd Numbers
I have always been a huge advocate of outdoor learning and outdoor play. I think it stems from my upbringing in rural Canada and I grew up with a close connection to the outdoors and nature. That coupled with the sadness I have felt my entire international teaching career, working in large cities where... Continue Reading →
Making the Pivot Away from Tech in the Classroom
Tech has become more and more prevalent in classrooms across the world in recent years. It has become a wonderful way to connect students with others around the world, give them new avenues of creativity and access to knowledge may not have had in the past. I personally think it has also become a way... Continue Reading →
Put down the tech and get outside
On the eve of Earth Day 2018, I have been thinking a lot about the concept of too much tech for young learners in the classroom. Actually, this is a topic I think about every day. Where do we find a balance? To tech or not to tech? Technology in the modern classroom has an... Continue Reading →