Sticks and Stones - Unpacking Outdoor and Risky Play
Should kids play with sticks? How high should they climb in trees, if at all? If you're risky play curious, come join us for a day of fun play and discussion. We'll dig into the merits and sticky points of outdoor play: draw connections to the core competencies, embody the continuum of play, practice conducting a site assessment, and role play risk assessing with kids. At the day's end you'll leave with new games to play, a framework for coaching and supporting outdoor play, and a list of resources for furthering your learning. Large covered area, flush toilets, fire and hot drinks provided!
Target Audience
K-6
To Bring/Important Notes
Dress for the weather
Bring a mug for hot drinks
Sessions
Bright Angel Park
This session is full.
Presenters
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The Grove
Krista Crowther
Krista Crowther has been living her dream for over 8 years: teaching an outdoor, place-based, multi-age program in the beautiful Cowichan Valley. She fuses her Attachment Theory-based practice with her passion for nature connection. Krista graduated from SFU with her BA and PDP diploma and taught in inner city schools in Surrey before moving to Vancouver Island with her family. With 15 years teaching experience and over 20 years working with school aged children (including her own energetic sons), Krista has learned a thing or two about playing and learning and knows that one of the best ways to learn is through play! She brings a variety of play opportunities to her teaching every day.
Outside of teaching, Krista is an artist and mother and loves singing and playing music with friends.She is pretty risk-averse and enjoys calmer activities alone or with her family like cycling, hiking, gardening, kayaking and cross-country skiing.
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Erika Verlinden
Erika Verlinden lives for discovering nature's joys alongside children. She was one of two inaugural teachers (alongside her close friend and fellow twin mom) of a place-based, multi-age elementary school program on Salt Spring. Erika completed her BA (2008) and PDP (2011) at UVic, and has since taught in many small and obscure contexts on the south Island and Gulf Islands. She currently takes 160+ students outside on a weekly basis, in short but very enjoyable chunks of time.
Erika's first memory of conscious risk assessment was jumping over divides in the shoreline rock on Hornby Island.