Mark Baldwin, Director of Education with the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History, begins to teach a session on contour sketching during the Nature Journaling Workshop at the PWLC. (Photo by Molly Stoddard, 6/17/08)

“I plan to do more journal entries – and base them from outside.”

                                        -- Workshop participant

On June 16-17, twenty-two teachers participated in a professional development workshop called “Nature Journaling and Observation Skills for the Classroom” at the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center in Fergus Falls, MN.  This workshop was sponsored by the Friends of the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center.  It explored several ways to use an outdoor classroom to enhance and strengthen a child’s education particularly in science, math, and language arts.

The workshop was presented by Dave Ellis and Chip McAllister, 5^th grade teachers with Independent School District 544; and Mark Baldwin, director of education with the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History in Jamestown, New York, www.rtpi.org.  The Peterson Institute is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to teacher enhancement in nature science education.

Participants attended from Fergus Falls, from six other communities throughout the state (Bemidji, Windom, Breckenridge, Erhard, Battle Lake, and Morris), and one from North Dakota. They work as K-12^th grade teachers, a rural Hutterite one-room school house teacher, a city park and recreation department director, non-formal educators (with the FWS and the SWCD), and art teachers.

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“I will incorporate nature journals into my curriculum.  I’ll start small, but hope to build each year.”

                                        -- Workshop participant

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The purpose of the workshop was to provide educators with:

·       a rationale for using nature journals as tools for cultivating awareness, appreciation and understanding of the natural world;

·  a set of skill-building techniques to use and teach students to more keenly perceive natural objects and events;

·       a series of exercises that model how nature journals can be applied in the field and in various subject areas; and

·       an opportunity to discuss with colleagues how they plan to use nature journals with students and colleagues.

As a result of the workshop, participants acquired a set of skills and confidence to begin or continue their own nature journal program.

Dave Ellis and Chip McAllister introduced participants to teaching in the outdoor classroom, field protocols, and field lessons.  Participants examined the works of famous naturalists including Aldo Leopold, Earnest Seton, and Rachel Carson.  They reviewed current brain research and best practice in education as related to teaching outdoors.  In the field, they experienced the use of hand signals and other attention-getting techniques, and observed and recorded data in their journals such as current weather elements.  Some of the field lessons participants practiced were the Seton Watch, Search for Small Things, Sound and Color Maps, Discovery Hike, and Favorites in the Field. By the end of the day, teachers reflected on their discoveries and on applications to teaching and planning.

Mark Baldwin focused specifically on use of nature journals and observation skills.  He showed how nature journaling fits into place-based education, inquiry-based education, and science as it combines place, inquiry, and observation of objects. _________________________________________________________________

“Journals and observation can be incorporated into so many areas and will create active learners instead of passive learners.”

Participants practiced new techniques such as Contour Sketching, Gesture Sketching, Use of Hand Lenses, Tight Framing, and Sound Mapping.  They used their journals to record scientific observations, as a tool to facilitate the writing process, to solve problems of plant identification and tree measurement (science and math application), and for gaining a sense of place.

Participants received a 10x loupe, a blank book journal, a basic sketching kit, a 15-page handout, and lunch.  They also received clock hour certificates and an option for graduate credit with Hamline University in St. Paul, MN. 

Evaluation of “Nature Journaling and Observation Skills for the Classroom” revealed that:

·       100% of participants rated the workshop overall as good or great. 

·       100% of participants rated the facilitators as good or great. 

·       95% stated they would or might change their instructional practice because of the workshop. 

·       100% of participants said they would recommend this workshop to others. 

·       When asked what they liked most about the workshop, the majority of participants answered going outside.

Participants wrote about how they plan to use nature journaling as a result of this workshop:

·       “Incorporate more journaling and nature experiences”

·       “I will use journals with greater skill and more depth.”

·       “Journaling will work well with my multi-grade classroom.”

·       “I would like to use it in my Science and English classes.”

·       “I will have my students bring their journals with when coming out to the PWLC instead of waiting to get back to add their entry.”

Educators spent most of the day outdoors in the prairie wetlands ecosystem connecting with nature.  Ultimately they will use this experience to help connect children and nature as well.

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"I have been interested in nature as far back as I can remember.  I became a naturalist when I began keeping a field journal with my own observations, questions, and conclusions."

                              -- Cathy Johnson, The Naturalist's Path