Enhanced Educator Outdoor Learning Kit

Sit pads are a great tool for transitioning your learning outdoors year-round. This one is extra comfy, easy to carry, and the exterior is made from waterproof 600 Denier Polyester with PVC backing and filled with soft, shredded, recycled foam. Due to the larger size, it is recommended for educators and older students (grades 5+).

To accompany our sit pads we offer these excellent resources:

1. Sitting With Nature: An Educator’s Guide to Sit Spots
2. Me and My Sit Spot

Ethical Elements: More durable than our basic sit pad, this easy-to-carry outdoor seat is also stuffed full of recycled materials! Read more about our ethical policies & practices.

Our clipboards are durable, weatherproof, and made from recycled plastic!

This easy-to-write-on surface provides a simple option for turning the outdoors into your classroom. :)

"The plastic clipboards are a game changer for outdoor ed." - Teacher, Southeast Kootenay School District 5

These journals feature all-weather & recyclable writing paper that sheds water and enables you to write with a pencil anywhere, in any weather conditions. A versatile option for any conditions that Mother Nature throws at you!

Colours: We have access to both yellow and green, but access to colours varies considerably from our supplier and so we will provide you with the colour available at the time of order.

Ethical Elements: Recyclable paper. Offered in partnership with Take Me Outside, a Canadian non-profit organization committed to raising awareness and facilitating action on nature connection and outdoor learning in schools across Canada. 50% of the proceeds of this go to Take Me Outside Canada.

The Inside Scoop: We know that writing outside can be a limiting factor for outdoor learning, especially in the rainy season! So we were thrilled when our friends at Take Me Outside got in touch with a solution. We know that this will help many to take their learning outside, despite the varied weather our country offers us!

Help your students focus in on the incredible world of the small! This 3x magnifier is large, durable and user-friendly for all ages. The magnifiers are sourced from a local supplier (see below). Read more about our ethical policies & practices.  Keep track of your magnifiers by adding a lanyard to make this a hands-free carry-and-go item for your students.

The Inside Scoop: It kills us to see those cheap plastic magnifiers that schools tend to use that get so scratched up. As a result, after months of looking for a magnifier that was durable, strong, scratch resistant and super user-friendly for all ages, we found one right under our noses! Our friends Jaye & Shelli carry this one at their local office supplies shop. And Jaye knows something about strength... he is a Canadian Paralympian for track cycling! Check him out here...

Lanyards are sold separately: 

1. We offer an Every Child Matters lanyard with a breakaway function. These are designed by Strong Nations in collaboration with Algonquin artist Don Bonner. It features the message "Every Child Matters" and a feather design.
2. We also offer an Explore Your World lanyard with a ‘breakaway’ function is made from organic cotton, so have been grown without pesticides from plants that have not been genetically modified. They are exceptionally soft and 100 percent biodegradable.

The Importance of Indigenous Perspectives in Children's Environmental Inquiry

This second edition of Natural Curiosity supports a stronger basic awareness of Indigenous perspectives and their importance to environmental education. The driving motivation for a second edition was the burning need, in the wake of strong and unequivocal recommendations by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, to situate Indigenous perspectives into the heart of Canadian educational settings and curricula, most notably in connection with environmental issues. Printed on 100% recycled paper.

"The text is an excellent balance of theoretical perspectives illustrated with practical examples from a range of classrooms. I particularly enjoyed drawing on the actual transcripts from teachers and students as they engaged in knowledge building discourse and explored students’ questions. The content also complements education transformation that is occurring in British Columbia right now." - Professor, Vancouver Island University

285 pages

Ethical Elements: Printed on post-consumer recycled paper. This resource is offered in partnership with Natural Curiosity, an initiative to develop and disseminate an inquiry approach to environmental learning, reaching public school educators and making a difference in school communities across Turtle Island. Read more about our ethical policies & practices.

The Inside Scoop: We first became aware of Natural Curiosity's work at the NAAEE conference in Ottawa in 2014. Since then we've worked closely with their team to offer a variety of workshops and training opportunities for educators.

• English
• French

About the Authors:

Julie Comay is an Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream in the Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. Professor Comay studies the development of imagination, play and curiosity; children’s stories and storytelling; theory of mind; and the development of mathematical and scientific reasoning. 

Doug Anderson is a member of the Metis Nation and has worked on diverse Indigenous education initiatives for over 25 years. He is committed to supporting land-based learning for urban people of all ages and backgrounds. 

Lorraine Chiarotto is an Ontario Certified Teacher and lover of the natural world. Her favourite pastime is spending entire days outdoors with her two little boys, enjoying nature. 

This practical guide for all educators (K-12) encourages young people to connect with the natural world and create a more sustainable, ecologically secure planet. It is designed for use with any curriculum to give students opportunities to engage their bodies, emotions, and imaginations in the world around them. Cultivating ecological understanding requires reimagining the human world as part of, not apart from, nature.

Drawing on an approach to teaching called Imaginative Ecological Education (IEE),Engaging Imagination in Ecological Education includes tried-and-tested activities for students, step-by-step examples for shaping curricula by using tools of the imagination to cultivate ecological understanding, and strategies for implementing Imaginative Ecological Education in any school setting—urban, suburban, or rural.

Author Gillian Judson, PhD, is Executive Director of the Centre For Imagination in Research, Culture and Education (www.circesfu.ca) at Simon Fraser University. Her research and teaching are primarily concerned with the role of imagination in all learning, with a particular focus on imaginative, Place-based teaching practices.

"Every teacher needs to own this book! Dr. Gillian Judson shows how to keep students engaged and connected in Ecological Education by using their imagination.  There are activities you can follow and adapt for any K-12 student.  After you have read the book you will have all the tools to create your own program and the reasons why it is important to do so.  This book is full of insightful information that all twenty-first century teachers need." - Teacher, K-5 Team Lead

148 pages

The Inside Scoop: Gillian has been such a fantastic & enthusiastic person to work with! She conveys her ideas succinctly with clarity, and we were thrilled to be able to work with her on piloting our first 'Earthy Chat's podcast! (see below)

These lightweight & affordable backpacks allow learners to store & transport their outdoor learning equipment & resources. The size of main pouch is 45cm high x 32.5cm wide x 25cm deep. Straps can be manually adjusted for length. They are suitable for grades 3+ (including teachers!) but can be adjusted to make shorter for younger/smaller students.

Care Instructions: Hand wash in cold water with like colors. Hang or lay flat to dry only. Do not machine wash, do not machine / tumble dry. Do not bleach.

Ethical Elements: Made from recycled pop bottles, and sourced for a socially ethical supplier. Read more about our ethical policies & practices.

The Inside Scoop: After looking at dozens of options, this one rose to the surface as one that was affordable, modelled sustainable practices, fit a variety of ages, and have an adequate volume. And we were very pleased to work with a company that has very high ethical standards to source this!

Are your Basic Backpack straps a little long for the little ones? Never fear! The straps are incredibly easy to adjust! Watch how below!

This year, our lanyard features a Wolf design from Kwakwaka'wakw artist Daniel Puglas and the message "Every Child Matters".

The wolf represents loyalty, strong family ties, good communication, education, understanding and intelligence. Daniel's mom, Sally Williams, always said "protect your spirit" which he had in his mind during the creation of this design.

This lanyard with a 'breakaway', and can be paired with our handheld field magnifier. If you order these together we will attach them when they go out to you.