Electronic Newsletter – October

COEO NEWS

COEO Awards

Our annual awards provide an important opportunity to recognize both individual and group efforts, celebrating the many and varied expressions of outdoor education within our membership and throughout the province of Ontario. These awards also allow us to recognize members who have gone above and beyond to support the work of COEO; their contributions are invaluable to COEO, who depends upon members stepping forward to carry out the important mandates of our organization.

Our next set of awards will be given out at our 50th Fall Conference in September 2022. We are accepting award nominations throughout the year, and the deadline for submissions is September 1st. Since we did not distribute awards in 2020 or 2021 due to the pandemic we will likely give out 2-3 of each award category, depending on nominations.

For information about each of the COEO awards visit the Recognition page of our website.

Know a deserving outdoor educator or organization? Nominate them using this form: https://forms.gle/7SB8grn6qyXQznun9

COEO Outdoor Learning Tips Document – Now available in French!

CLICK HERE to check out the French translation of our popular Outdoor Learning Tips document – Conseils pour faciliter l’apprentissage en plein air. Many thanks to Jennifer Bernier from Ecole La Fontaine, in Kleinburg, ON, for translating the English version and to Danielle Barrett (current COEO Board member) for editing. Feel free to download and share this version of the document with any French speaking colleagues!

C.W. Jefferys tragedy

OTHER OEE & RELATED NEWS

Book of the Month

The fourth edition of Teaching Sport Concepts and Skills: A Tactical Games Approach adds four new chapters, more lesson and unit plans, and more detailed guidance in addressing broad ranges of student abilities than ever before. It offers the same stellar foundation for understanding the principles behind the approach, and instruction in applying the approach, to help students learn the concepts and develop the skills involved in a variety of sports.

Elementary school teachers will use games to teach the basic concepts and tactics of invasion sports, net and wall sports, striking and fielding sports, and target sports. Middle school and high school instructors will guide students in developing sport-specific technical skills for 12 sports, including soccer, lacrosse, flag football, tennis, basketball, and volleyball.

For more information, click here.

Use code B541 to receive 40% off regular price.  Offer expires 10/31/2021

National Certificate E-Course for Student Teachers in Environmental & Sustainability Education

We are excited to share the launch of a national online course in Environmental & Sustainability Education (ESE) for preservice teachers and ECE students this September. This responds to the call for urgent action from the International Panel on Climate Change this summer which declared a “code red for humanity”, and aligns with the upcoming launch of the ACDE’s Accord on Education for a Sustainable Future.  We aim to bring those studying to be K-12 educators together to learn about ESE collaboratively, ensuring that they have access to ESE at the start of their teaching careers. The course is open to students registered in Faculties of Education and Early Childhood Programs in Canadian post-secondary institutions. Details about the E-Course and how to sign up are found here.

Introducing the Kaymayquinn Youth Paddling Fund – Paddle Canada

Applications are now open for youth, up to the age of 18, to apply for a small grant to help pay for their fees to participate in a Paddle Canada course. Alternatively, a group representing youth could apply for a small grant to help hire a Paddle Canada instructor to deliver a course to their group.

Requirements for application:

• Open to those up to the age 18, as of December 31, 2021
• Applicants will be asked to submit a short essay (up to 500 words) on why they paddle.
• Applicants will be asked to provide the name of the Paddle Canada course they wish to take, and name the instructor (please note, the course must be offered before the end of 2021)
• Applicant must list the amount of the course tuition.

To find out more, CLICK THE LINK HERE

Family Experiences Study

Are you a parent/guardian (18+) with any children under the age of 16?
Tell us about your family’s indoor and outdoor activities during the pandemic!
We are researchers at Trent University, and we need your help to better understand the recreation and play time experiences of parents and their children during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Complete our short (25 minute) anonymous online survey and be entered in a $200 cash prize draw!

To access the survey CLICK HERE

Employer Survey – from CANOPA

Please fill out our survey to help us gain understanding on how we can all work together to make change in the outdoor industry. Employer Survey (surveymonkey.com)

Memoire website for the Bronte Creek Project (BCP)

We are very excited to share with you the Bronte Creek Project Memoire Website.  BCP Founder, John McKillop, has been hard at work reflecting and writing on everything from BCP’s guiding principles, to the curriculum, to the different decades of BCP and Trailhead.  This digital memoire is a time capsule of sorts, designed to be a template for when someone may wish to resurrect the amazing program, or do something similar.  We also hope that those who were involved in the program will find in this memoire a refresher of the experiences and values that were a part of their learning while at BCP/Trailhead. 

We hope you can pass this along to any other Creekers you know, and even to organizations that you think may benefit from this documentation. Share your testimonials, stories and photos of BCP/TH in the ‘Mailing List’ section at the bottom of the website.  Check it out: https://www.brontecreekproject.ca/ 

Survey Request for Outdoor Activity Leaders

Bringing a group outside is a beautiful role filled with important responsibilities. Properly preparing group leaders requires good and accessible training options. To do this, a working group preparing for the Canadian Outdoor Summit in 2022 is developing a proposal for a framework on competencies and training for Led Outdoor Activities. To create something that will work for the sector and honor the quality training already in existence, they have prepared a survey to better understand the scope and distribution of training providers in Canada.

If you have worked and/or volunteered for an organization bringing people outside, your participation in this survey is important and meaningful.

CLICK HERE to complete the survey!

TDSB Launches New Outdoor Learning Website

We are excited to launch a new outdoor learning website for staff and families in the TDSB. This portal brings together information, ideas and resources to help support and encourage learning in the outdoors. While many educators regularly integrated the outdoors into their daily learning, the pandemic has encouraged all staff to look beyond the walls of their classroom and find innovative and creative ways to learn outside.

This portal provides valuable and current information for educators, including research, resources and best practices, to help them get started or explore new ideas. Staff are also encouraged to share their outdoor learning in action with #TDSBoutdoors on social media to inspire other educators interested in trying new learning opportunities outside.

The Family Resources area of the site provides tips for preparing for the weather, resources for why and how to get started as well as a comprehensive list of activities for families to enjoy together in the city. The website will continue to be updated with new information and resources and will continue to serve as a hub of ideas and innovation that educators use not only in the coming months, but for years ahead. Check out the website HERE.

OEE P.D. OPPORTUNITIES

Outdoor Learning Webinars, hosted by LSF:

• A series of webinars designed specifically for and by secondary teachers
• Tips for getting outside even in cold winter months!
• Connecting primary and middle school math curriculum to the outdoors

Check out the recorded webinar sessions for each grade group:

• Kindergarten/Early Years: Webinar recording | Webinar slides
• Grades K-6: Webinar recording | Webinar slides
• Grades 4-10: Webinar recording | Webinar slides

Webinars from Natural Curiosity:

Recordings for all past Natural Curiosity webinars series are available through a “pay-what-you-can” model on the University of Toronto Press website! CLICK HERE to access these webinars.

Webinar on Digital Technology and Outdoor Education:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNKweK1omU8

Norwegian School of Sport Sciences – Facilitated by Simon Beames, Featuring Imre van Kraalingen, Jack Reed and Dave Hills

“Across the globe, the COVID-19 pandemic has boosted a large-scale uptake of digital and mobile technologies as learning tools in education systems. It follows that the field of outdoor education has been influenced in a variety of ways by the continuous development of digital technologies. There is a need to better understand these new layers of complexity and to optimize the regulation of digital technology in this sector. At this Digital Technology and Outdoor Education webinar, three PhD researchers discussed different perspectives on the complexities, pitfalls, and potentials of employing digital technologies in outdoor education.”

Canadian Institute of Forestry Teachers’ Tours

Established in 1908, the CIF-IFC is the oldest forest society in Canada. The Institute serves as the voice of forest practitioners representing foresters, forest technologists and technicians, ecologists, biologists, educators and many others with an interest in forests and forestry.  The CIF-IFC prides itself in providing national leadership in forestry, promoting competency among forestry professionals, and fostering public awareness of forestry issues.

Forestry Teachers’ Tours are meant to provide a valuable professional development opportunity for teachers and educators to meet professionals and practitioners in the field of forest science, research and management, as well as visit forestry operations and product mills. Teachers and educators from all levels are welcome to attend!

The tours will aim to involve a mix of presentations and hands-on learning in the field. The tour will inform teachers about basic forestry concepts, including sustainable forest management, Indigenous participation in forestry/traditional ecological knowledge and the links between forests and climate change. Teachers and educators will also gain an understanding of tools and resources they can bring back to their classrooms.

Please consider sharing this information to your membership and/or promoting these tours through your networks.

Registration for each tour is subject to a $20 administration fee, however  the rest of the tour is fully subsidized. The Institute will be hosting, in collaboration with it’s regional Sections the following upcoming Forestry Teachers’ Tours:

• October 22, 2021 – Thunder Bay, Ontario (CIF-IFC Northwestern Ontario Section)
• November 19, 2021 – Waterloo, Ontario (CIF-IFC Southern Ontario Section)

Stay tuned for more information! Additional tours will be planned across Canada.

Please find attached a promotional infographic as well as the posters for the two upcoming Forestry Teachers’ Tours above.

For more information and to register, please visit: www.cif-ifc.org or Northwestern Forestry Teachers’ Tour | Forestry (cif-ifc.org).

Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me, Sarah Keating CIF-IFC Forest Education Coordinator at skeating@cif-ifc.org. 

UPCOMING CONFERENCES

Canadian Outdoor Summit

FALL 2021 – Virtual conversations covering 7 objectives will be taking place this fall. Conversations focusing on four of the seven objectives will occur one Monday per month. Conversations focusing on the remaining 3 topics will occur one Wednesday a month.  Your role is to participate in the conversations, springboarding from what the workgroups created for you to develop tangible action plans to be adopted at the Summit in September 2022. Want to join a conversation? Find out more HERE.

Topics

Create a national framework of competency training for outdoor leaders

Synthesize accepted practices, structures, and systems related to running an outdoor program in Canada.

Promote greater access to the outdoors for individuals with differing mobility.

Design an Anti-racism plan for the national outdoor community

Develop a consensus statement about the value of Led Outdoor Activity in Canada.

Support the development of learning outside in k-12 institutions.

Increase capacity for inclusion for 2SLGBTQ2 in outdoor programs

This inaugural event is about bringing people together to celebrate contributions and tackle some key structural challenges affecting all outdoor programs from coast to coast to coast. This national gathering is aimed at celebrating our contribution to Canadian society and solving key challenges faced by outdoor programs. This project is a collective effort of the outdoor sector, therefore your perspective and contribution offers tremendous value. More information can be found on the event website: http://canadianoutdoorsummit.com/ and social media channels. Please follow and share: Instagram, Facebook, Canadian Outdoor Summit Promotional Video

Association for Experiential Education (AEE)

November 11 – 14th, 2021, Virtual

AEE’s 49th Annual International Conference will convene attendees to promote, define, develop, and apply theories and practices of Experiential Education. Our Conference is intentionally designed to create a collaborative environment where you can grow your career, discover valuable new strategies to integrate into your work, and develop lasting personal and professional relationships.

 Join hundreds of Experiential Educators from around the world for four days of engaging workshops, meaningful networking, and informative presentations…all from the safety and comfort of your own home!

Find out all the details and how to register HERE

Coalition for Education in the Outdoors Biennial Research Symposium

February 11 – 13th, 2022  Black Mountain, NC, USA (Virtual Option too!)

From February 11-13, 2022 an international research symposium will be held at the YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly Conference Center in Black Mountain, NC, USA (https://blueridgeassembly.org/) The purpose of this gathering is to advance the empirical, conceptual, and theoretical bases of outdoor education. Like the first fourteen CEO Research Symposia, this symposium will bring together a wide array of researchers to explore current and future trends in using the outdoors for educational and therapeutic purposes. In addition to spotlighting current research, the program includes featured presentations on timely issues and ample time for both structured and informal dialogue.

Registration is open for the Fifteenth Biennial Coalition for Education in the Outdoors (CEO) Research Symposium to be held February 11-13, 2022, at the YMCA’s Blue Ridge Assembly Conference Center in Black Mountain, NC, USA just following the Wilderness Education Association’s International Conference on Outdoor Leadership to be held at the same location February 9-11, 2022 (register for the WEA conference at: www.weainfo.org) This year, for the first time, CEO will offer an exciting option. The presentations will be live streamed for those unable to attend in person. Attendees will register for the livestream option ($55). All research presentations must occur onsite. There is also an option to arrive Thursday night, February 10, 2021 to support those traveling from greater distances and those wishing to enjoy the Asheville and Black Mountain, NC area and the YMCA grounds prior to the symposium.

To register, go to 15th Biennial Coalition for Education in the Outdoors (CEO) Research Symposium | 2ndnaturetrec.

For more information: 

Registration: 15th Biennial Coalition for Education in the Outdoors (CEO) Research Symposium | 2ndnaturetrec

CEO Website:   http://outdooredcoalition.org/  (including Call for Abstracts)

Blue Ridge Assembly: https://blueridgeassembly.org/

JOB POSTINGS

Teachers, Outdoor Educators, and Counsellors, The Boundless School

We are looking for teachers, outdoor educators or those with counselling experience to join our band of merry maniacs, and help kids have the adventure of their lives.

If you are audacious enough to actually join our team, you will engage teenagers (sometimes laden with baggage) in high school education, OE and mentorship. The gig takes place on a 600-acre piece of wilderness paradise in the Madawaska Valley of Eastern Ontario. It’s a venue that will seduce your soul.

To apply, please complete this application form found at theboundlessschool.com/staff and email this, along with your resume, to steven@theboundlessschool.com

Outdoor Centre Program Coordinator, YMCA Wanakita

YMCA Wanakita is hiring for our full-time Outdoor Centre Program Coordinator position! We are situated in the beautiful Haliburton Highlands and are looking for a dynamic individual to join our team.

To View the Posting  CLICK HERE

Multiple Positions, Adventureworks! Associates, Inc.

Hiring now! Challenge Course Installers and Program Facilitators. To see complete job postings, CLICK HERE

Including 2021 Fall Facilitator Positions: 2021 Fall Facilitator

Lead Forest School Educator, Nature’s Calling

We are looking for an enthusiastic, nurturing educator that loves the outdoors just as much as we do. Our program follows the Forest School philosophy and is play-based, emergent, inquiry-based, child-led and primarily outdoors. We believe passionately in the benefits to everyone, young and old, of being immersed in nature.

To view the job posting CLICK HERE

Education/Program Developer, Scales Nature Park

The successful candidate can expect to:

• perform outreach and on-site programs about reptiles and amphibians for live or virtual groups
• lead the development and post-pandemic re-launch of a nature-focused children’s day camp, home school programs and other on-site public activities
• lead the initial stages of development of a forest school
• perform child care tasks, ages 6+, whenever children are on site including extended hours activities
• develop educational resources for public usage, in print or digital formats
• assist the Education Coordinator with communications to schedule and coordinate outreach events
• assist with the maintenance of a large captive collection of reptiles and amphibians for program usage
• assist with the operations and development of a nature centre and related facilities

Please complete the Google Form found here: https://tinyurl.com/SNP2021APP. At the conclusion of the questionnaire, you will be prompted to upload a resume, cover letter, and references as a single PDF file, 4 pages or less. If you can’t upload this way, you may send it to workforscales@gmail.com with “AQ complete, ED” in the subject line. Do not send resume to both locations. Cover letters should be addressed to Jeff Hathaway. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

Outdoor Educator/Forest School Facilitator, Dogwood Forest

Dogwood Forest specializes in weekly outdoor forest school programs for children ages 5 to 14 years of age, with opportunities to facilitate additional community partnerships, homeschool-groups, schools, parent & tot programs, or adult programs. We are looking for innovative & forward-thinking outdoor educators/forest school facilitators to join our growing team, with options for full-time or part-time contract work throughout our fall, winter and spring terms. We operate entirely outdoors in rain, shine, or snow from 8am to 4pm Monday to Thursday, with some Friday work and a potential of 25-33 weeks of the school year (excluding holidays).

The outdoor educator/forest school facilitator will be responsible for the care and facilitation of learning and child development in-line with organizational values, curriculum, and forest school philosophy. The outdoor educator/forest school facilitator will be required to prepare daily lessons and activities and ensure all necessary supplies are available when needed.

To view the job posting CLICK HERE

Full-Time JK-SK Teacher / Outdoor Educator, The Wild School of the Blue Mountains

We are seeking a multi-talented, dynamic and creative teacher / outdoor educator to
become a key member of our team and help us build our program beginning this Fall.

To view the posting CLICK HERE

Multiple Positions, Outward Bound Canada

Work With Us | Outward Bound

OLE Instructor and OLE Support, Pine River Institute

Pine River Institute is an innovative co-ed residential treatment program for teens struggling with addictive behaviours. We are a family-centered program comprised of 4 phases: Wilderness (Outdoor Leadership Experience), Residential, Transition, and Aftercare. Every student, upon entering the program, spends 8 or more weeks in Huntsville before moving to the residence. Day-to-day activities in wilderness include canoeing, hiking, snowshoeing, group initiatives, group and individual therapy, and journaling. Youths live and work in nature in groups of up to eight, with three staff.

Our campus is situated on 200 acres of spectacular Niagara Escarpment land near Shelburne, Ontario. The program here includes outdoor education, individual, group, and family therapy, expressive arts, athletics, and life skills, as well as the more traditional academic offerings.

To view current postings, click HERE

ONTARIO CAMPS ASSOCIATION – JOB BOARD

The OCA Job Board is always an excellent place to find job postings in the field of outdoor education. Check out their website, as many full-time positions at outdoor centres and camps are now being advertised.

Find us, friend us, like us, tag us or follow us online:

Facebook Page  https://www.facebook.com/coeo.org

Facebook Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/coeo.org

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/COEOoutdoors

Twitter  https://twitter.com/COEOoutdoors  @COEOoutdoors

ABOUT THIS ELECTRONIC NEWSLETTER

For consistency, the COEO electronic newsletter is now published on the first of each month.  Anyone having an item of interest to outdoor & experiential educators and desiring publication in this newsletter needs to submit it to newsletter@coeo.org at least two days before the publication date.

The newsletter is generally organized according to the following headings: COEO News, Other OEE & Related News, P.D. Opportunities, Opportunities for Students, Resources, Job Postings.  If your organization wishes to post information (e.g., notice of upcoming events, etc), it needs to be an organizational member of COEO.

If you would like to be removed from COEO’s eNewsletter mailing list, please send an email to newsletter@coeo.org and ask to be unsubscribed.