On Friday January 31, CBEEN supported the East Kootenay Local Chapter of Environmental Educators Provincial Specialist Association (EEPSA) (EKEEPSA) in getting 20 totally engaged teachers and outdoor educators from across the East Kootenay out with Dave Quinn at Jim Smith Lake Provincial Park! They explored winter activities and ideas related to place-based, community-centered education, and shared cross-curricular ideas including winter forest surveys, winter survival activities, as well as a host of other tips and tricks for successful outdoor winter programs. In addition to some excellent discussions around varied approaches to a suite of K-12 winter activities, the group also discussed frameworks to ensure safe, engaging winter activities with their programs.

Feedback from participants:

What did you appreciate most about this workshop? 

• Actually being outdoors as we learned about learning outdoors. It made all the learning much more relevant and enjoyable.
• The hands on, outdoor, movement activities.
• Great ideas to get students outside, moving, inquiry, collaboration, social skills, life skills and mental well being for them and myself
• Getting ideas to take kids outdoors
• Meeting friendly colleagues and networking
• The chance to be outside with like-minded teachers, plus Dave’s passion and knowledge for the local environment.
• The amount of prep that seemed to go in
• It was a nice mix of practical ideas, historical insight and pleasure
• I highly appreciated how Dave gave ideas linking his outdoor activity/information about the local environment to applications in writing/reading/debating, all of which can connect to my area of teaching
• I felt that the pacing of the workshop was perfect and gave a good idea of what would be possible to do with students in a day
• Dave is highly knowledgeable and I felt that I learned a great deal about the local flora & fauna that I did not know before
• I appreciated how Dave made many connections to the Ktunaxa language and culture during the day

What is one action you will take as a result of this workshop?

• Collaboration with other SD5 school to share bus costs and bring classrooms together to interact with new faces
• Creating new acts of kindness outdoors meeting new people
• Taking my kids outside more in the winter even if just for a short period of time
• I will try to include at least one trip to Jim Smith each year and make use of this fabulous site that we have just kms away from TM Roberts
• To learn more about the First Nations’ connections with the landscape, the flora and fauna, and how this knowledge can be imparted to the students when they are outside.
• Being involved in outdoors ed every time I get the chance!
• I am looking into how to connect the Social Studies curriculum at middle school to some of the outdoor possibilities offered through CBEEN

Facilitator Dave Quinn is an acclaimed wildlife biologist, certified teacher and a certified wilderness guide who lives in Kimberley. He is a Wild Voices for Kids Community Educator, and is the Program Director for the Know Your Watershed Program. He has a passion for wilderness and wildlife, and works hard to connect the next generation to the world-class wild right here in the Kootenays. If you’d like to book this workshop for your community you can find out more here: https://cbeen.ca/book-a-workshop