Sunday, October 13, 2013

Education Through Outdoor Adventures


Visiting intertidal creatures at Blakely Harbor, inspecting macro invertebrates at Mac’s Pond, investigating fungus in the forest, answering questions about flora and fauna, and looking over the bog from the tree house are just a few examples of the adventures experienced while leading a team of ten fifth graders through the 255 acre campus.

The adventures in the forest, bog, marsh, pond, estuary, and stream are only accents to our purpose as graduates because we are also instructors while in the field.  Islandwood’s Education for Environment and Community (EEC) graduate program is going strong with a new group of graduate students, and I am very excited to be part of the 2014 class. 

I am originally from Texas, and I have lived in Seattle for a little more than a year.  After graduating from Texas Tech in 2008 with a major in Kinesiology and minor in Education, I taught eighth grade science for a couple of years before relocating to Seattle.  I am certified to teach middle level science in Washington State, and after completion of my Masters in Education from the University of Washington, I plan to return to the classroom. 

A focal point for my blogs will be on the experience and instruction at Islandwood as they intersect the outdoors, science, art, and theory.  I am particularly interested in the connections between Islandwood's outdoor instruction and the application of educational theories.  

This will be an amazing year, and I am very excited to share it with you through the EEC blog.

Jennifer

3 comments:

theresapple said...

The connection between theory and practice is very fascinating indeed. I look forward to hearing more about your journey this year!

Emma said...

I miss my "adventures in the forest, bog, marsh, pond, estuary, and stream". I am excited to hear more from you about connections in and out of the classroom. Keep up the great blogging!

Unknown said...

I look forward to the refresher course in Educational theorists. :)