Many teacher workshops are one-off events. Teachers leave inspired, then return to busy classrooms, test pressures and little support. How can training help teachers keep teaching outdoors and connect lessons to their own place?
The authors describe Rivers2Lake, a program at the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve in Wisconsin. They look at how the program uses three approaches: dialogue and collaboration, engaging the whole system around teachers, and active, hands-on learning.
What the authors describe and observed:
- A strong start outdoors. Each year opens with a four-day Summer Institute for about 12 teachers. They travel from the river's headwaters to the Lake Superior shore, meet local experts, do water quality projects and plan their year.
- Mentoring that goes both ways. Mentors meet each teacher at least every two weeks. Meetings are scheduled ahead, with reminders. Teachers bring knowledge of their students and curriculum, and mentors bring outdoor and place-based skills. Mentors also co-teach lessons until teachers feel comfortable. These conversations help teachers work through logistical, curriculum and administrative barriers.
- A wider circle of support. Teachers join a network of scientists, land managers, cultural practitioners and Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) leaders and elders. This eases their sense of being alone in making change.
- Working with the whole school. Mentors run short sessions and outdoor activities for teachers who are not in the program. They also talk regularly with principals and curriculum staff and report progress to school boards. Support for the program grew as a result.
- A mid-year boost and a strong finish. A one-day Winter Symposium lets teachers share progress and learn to teach outdoors in snow and subzero cold. The authors found the final two months of school were the high point. In one example, a fifth-grade class visited a local beach all year, planted cedars with an Anishinaabe elder, canoed and made art on site.
The authors conclude that long, close work with a small group may look less impressive from outside but produces deeper, lasting change.
What this means for your practice:
Go deep with fewer teachers. If you run teacher training, consider a full year with a small group instead of many short workshops. The authors suggest measuring success by lasting change, not by headcount.
Make mentoring regular and two-way. Schedule check-ins in advance and send reminders. Treat teachers as the experts on their students. Co-teach the first lessons so teachers can try new methods with support.
Build a local network around teachers. Introduce teachers to scientists, land managers, cultural practitioners and elders in your area. Invite them to see that network as their own.
Bring in the people around the teacher. Talk with principals and curriculum staff. Share progress with school boards. Offer short sessions for other teachers in the same school.
Plan for the year's rhythm. Hold a mid-year gathering where teachers share struggles and learn seasonal skills. Expect the biggest projects near the end of the school year, and plan for them.
Teach the way you want teachers to teach. Use the same outdoor, hands-on methods in training that you hope teachers will use with students.
The Bottom Line
The authors, who include the program's founder and staff, examined how Rivers2Lake helps teachers teach outdoors using their local watershed. Each year, about 12 teachers begin with a four-day field trip through the watershed. They then work with a mentor across the school year through regular meetings and co-teaching. The authors observed teachers grow from uncertain beginners to confident leaders of outdoor learning, with major projects often coming together in the last months of school. Connecting teachers with scientists, land managers, cultural practitioners and school leaders eased their sense of working alone and built support for the program. For anyone who trains teachers, the article suggests that a year of deep support for a small group can achieve more than many one-day workshops.