Social Emotional Learning Strategies

Discover how to nurture Social Emotional Learning (SEL) through playful, outdoor learning experiences that align with curriculum goals.

In this 4 x 60 minute session course, educators will learn how to use the outdoor environment around their school as a dynamic classroom for teaching self-awareness, relationship skills, emotional regulation, and responsible decision-making.

Each session offers practical strategies, outdoor learning activities to support educator wellness and tools to help students develop vital life skills while deepening their connection to the world around them. Perfect for educators seeking to weave SEL into their daily routines in joyful, grounded, and memorable ways.

Facilitated by the dynamic duo of Lauren MacLean and Jade Berrill! (bios below)

4 x 60 Minute Sessions at 4pm Pacific / 7pm Eastern Time on these dates:

1. Monday, November Nov 3: Self-awareness, mindfulness, emotional literacy through sit spots, nature observation and journaling.
2. Monday, November Nov 10: Social awareness, empathy, and communication through play, group activities and cooperative games.
3. Monday, November Nov 17: Emotional regulation, perseverance, and coping skills developed through outdoor challenges and tasks that take time.
4. Monday, November Nov 24: Ethics, problem-solving, and community-building using environmental stewardship and Indigenous pedagogies.

These will all be recorded, with the recordings made available to registrants the day after the live session for those who can’t attend live.

All registrants will receive:

1. 4 x virtual 60 min learning sessions with the dynamic duo of Lauren MacLean and Jade Berrill!
2. Access to the recordings (available for up to 3 months following the sessions)
3. A Certificate of Completion

Your contribution:

• Early Bird Registration: $120 ($30/session) until September 30 – please select this option if you are able to
• 50% Discounted Registration: $60 ($15/session) – please select this option if price is a barrier
• 25% Additional Discount: For groups of 5 or more using this code at checkout: N945QEAF
• For groups of 10 or more, we can offer larger group discounts. Please email programs@outdoorlearning.com for group rates.

Your course fee goes towards supporting our charity in covering the course costs, including ensuring that we compensate the course instructors adequately, and that we can continue to offer learning opportunities like these.

Facilitators:

Lauren MacLean is a passionate teacher, author, and outdoor learning consultant whose work inspires connection with nature and inclusive learning. She works along educators who are enthusiastic about infusing play-based learning in their classrooms.

Jade Berrill is a passionate educator and communicator of science. Building on a love for bringing people together as a mechanism for growth and forward thinking, Jade works hard to develop the best opportunities for professional development.

Optional Resource:

While not required, we highly recommend ordering a copy of Lauren’s new book, Sitting With Nature: An Educator’s Guide to Sit Spots. Organized into three parts, this handy field guide begins by introducing The Framework beneath sit spot pedagogy, grounding this work in the literature. It then builds on this foundation, blending theory with practice in a step-by-step Getting Started process to set up successful sit spot experiences with a wide-variety of learners, including connections to the First Peoples’ Principles of Learning. Educators will especially love the third part of the book with its Sit Spot Series to challenge students seasonally across 20 weeks’ worth of learning. Check out all of Lauren’s outdoor learning resources.