Conference Registration

Past Conferences

One-Day Conference 2011
Engaging Students in the Outdoors – Workshops

Take a look at the list of workshops for our one-day conference Engaging Students in the Outdoors, on October 1st. Please note:

• There will be no pre-registration of workshops. Workshops will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
• This schedule is a working document and is likely to change slightly as we receive input from workshop presenters. Please check back.
• All workshops are outdoors and will run rain or shine. Please bring a light jacket, sweater, boots, hat, sunscreen, and water to outdoor workshops.

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Keynote
Will Gadd is one of the top outdoor adventure athletes in the world (Outside and Explore say so anyhow ...) Will is best known for wild outdoor adventures, but he's most proud of his ability to complete those adventures safely. He most recently hosted a prime-time series for Discovery, "Fearless Planet." He is an award-winning writer (New York Times, Men's Journal, and more), filmmaker, and dad (no awards for that).

Experiential Excursions - taking EE 'off-trail'
Putting the reins of the program into the participant's hands, this immersive style of program, and the techniques used, excite the senses, creates constant opportunities for self-made discoveries and allows students to get "off-trail" into authentic, natural surroundings. Come familiarize yourself with experiential excursions and learn the simple techniques used during a demonstrative program. Presenter: Graham Thursfield - Alberta Parks

Ready – Set – Grow Food!
This session is about quick and easy techniques to define growing spaces for children and getting plants in the ground. A simple raised box, cattle trough, or bag garden allows teachers to extend learning into the outdoors in spring and fall. Presenter: Claudia Bolli - Evergreen

The River is Everything
Join The City of Calgary Water Services as we discuss ways to help students really feel their connection to Calgary's rivers. Through place-based environmental education tools and city-wide campaigns, learn how The City connects the river to the tap and how you can do this in your own classroom. Get your hands wet as we test the water quality in Fish Creek and play some fun water games you can take back to your classrooms. Presenter: Amy Ross - City of Calgary

Biodiversity Conservation and School-Community Collaborations
Celebrate native species and spaces by immersing in their own particular places. Active engagement in place-based biodiversity conservation will be modeled, while hearing and sharing stories of school and community participation with the City of Calgary Adopt-a-Park program. We will share examples of integrating curricula with ecological education opportunities. Presenter: Polly Knowlton Cockett - Natureground.org

Integrated Curriculums in an Outdoor Program
Join this walk/talk demonstration of this Grade 7 field trip for the Science Unit, B on Plants as food and fibre; which also integrates Social Studies concepts from the founding of Canada into an authentic adventure for students. Discover how knowledge of our native plants can be used in the schoolyard or in the classroom to talk about history and culture of the early Canadians. Presenter: Julie Walker - Full Circle Adventures

Using Guided Inquiry for High School Biology Field Studies
We'll step into the outdoor laboratory, develop a hypothesis, and move through the scientific process in much the same way as we do in our programs at the University of Calgary Biogeoscience Institute school programs. You too, can struggle with creating an answerable question, and all of the mess that makes real science fun! If you're ready to teach in a different way, with lots of possibility for discovery, this is the session for you! Presenter: Sue Arlidge - University of Calgary Biogeoscience Institute

Take Me Outside
This workshop will demonstrate how the outdoor classroom can be used to meet your curriculum needs through practical, exciting, and never-fail outdoor activities! If you're a teacher that really wants to take your students outside more often but feel reluctant or you're a teacher with a lot of environmental or outdoor education experience to share ... then this is a session for you! The workshop will culminate in a dialogue on how we can work together to provide training and resources to support teachers getting students outside. Presenter: Andrea Barnes - Alberta Parks

The Outdoor Classroom
Grounds for Change, the Calgary Zoo's schoolyard greening program, has been assisting schools with outdoor learning since 1998. This workshop will have you participate in activities that can easily be delivered outside, whether a school has a naturalized area or a few shrubs and trees around the grounds. Presenter: TBA - Grounds for Change

More session to come!