Outdoor Learning Conference 2025: Full Schedule

Welcome to the 2025 Outdoor Learning Conference

3:15pm MDT

Taking The Lorax Outside as a Literacy Dramatic Activity to Highlight the Urgency in Environmental & Climate Change Education LIMITED

Thursday May 8, 2025 3:15pm - 4:30pm MDT

Beaver

Story books can be used to teach many subject areas in an out-of-doors setting. Many books incorporate thinking and inquiry skills used in meaningful contexts and can enrich your lessons. This session utilizes Dr. Seus's, The Lorax, to actively engage learners in the awareness of the necessity to urgently increase education in schools around environmental and climate change. Using this classic literature, presenters will lead the workshop outside using an interactive drama approach to build awareness and empathetic response to environmental matters in our communities and those around the world.

Speakers

Dr. Shelley Korudz

Brandon University

Dr. Kokorudz has been an educator since 1985. She has worked as a teacher and administrator in various schools with students from K-12. She brought her experience with her to the Faculty of Education at Brandon University in 2010 as the field experience director in the undergraduate... Read More →

Sandy Margetts

Professor, Brandon University

Sandy has more than 50 years in education. She has experience as a classroom teacher and works as an assistant professor in the Faculty of Education at Brandon University. Sandy's specialty is in math methods but has an additional expertise in nature-based learning, specifically with... Read More →

Christine Michaleski

Thursday May 8, 2025 3:15pm - 4:30pm MDT
Beaver

Environmental and Climate Change Education Workshop, Environmental and Climate Education

11:00am MDT

Assessment of/as/for Learning, Environmental and Sustainability Education, and High School Learners LIMITED

Friday May 9, 2025 11:00am - 12:15pm MDT

Beaver

Join us for an interactive discussion-based workshop where we’ll explore, share, and co-create tools for assessing learning in Environmental and Sustainability Education (ESE) and outdoor learning for high school student specifically. Youth are becoming more engaged in environmental justice and critical issues in their communities. Yet, challenges persist for educators to provide rich ESE experiences with authentic assessment that matches the transformative nature of ESE. We will share and explore strategies to deepen ESE assessment that follows learners’ interests, highlights critical ESE issues but remains consistent with curricular learning goals. Participants will deepen their thinking/ approach to teaching and assessment in ways that foster meaningful connections between students, their communities, and the natural world. This workshop is designed for formal and informal educators seeking innovative ways to facilitate ESE learning for high school students and assess its depth and impact beyond the classroom.

Speakers

Janna Barkman

Seven Oaks School Division

Janna is a teacher advisor at Maples Met, a project-based learning secondary school in Winnipeg. Her teaching centers ecojustice and place-based pedagogies, designing learning experiences that build students’ connections to self, community, and the natural world. She completed her... Read More →

Friday May 9, 2025 11:00am - 12:15pm MDT
Beaver

Environmental and Climate Change Education Workshop

2:00pm MDT

Building Climate Literacy – Supporting the Climate Education Framework Through Environmental Storytelling. LIMITED

Friday May 9, 2025 2:00pm - 3:15pm MDT

Beaver

Join us for an exciting, hands-on workshop where we'll uncover the magic of Environmental Storytelling and Climate Education in New Brunswick. Together, we'll journey through the fascinating story behind the new NB Holistic Curriculum, connecting its tenets to our own personal narratives.

Get ready to dive into the Climate Education Framework with teacher supports that will empower you to create captivating environmental stories tailored to your classroom or school. Throughout the workshop, you'll craft a reflective activity journal brimming with creative ideas to seamlessly integrate climate education into your daily teaching practice.

Come ready to reflect, create, and have fun as we bring climate education to life in our learning spaces!

Speakers

Crystal Roberts

Experiential Learning Lead, New Brunswick Department of Education & Early Childhood Development

Crystal Roberts is a bilingual educator in New Brunswick who is passionate about experiential learning and taking the curriculum outdoors. During her work supporting K-12 experiential learning opportunities over the last 5 years, she has been pursuing her Masters of Education degree... Read More →

Meaghan Wilbur

Anglophone North School District- NB

With 19 years of teaching experience in Bathurst, New Brunswick and an MEd in Curriculum, Meaghan is a passionate educator with a love of experiential, hands-on outdoor learning. She has served as a STEM lead, Personalized Learning lead, and Numeracy lead in her district and brings... Read More →

Nikki LeBlanc

Nikki is a passionate educator with over 7 years of experience across high school, middle school, and elementary levels. She currently teaches Grade 3 French Immersion, focusing on hands-on, inquiry-based learning and outdoor education. Nikki believes that nature-based, experiential... Read More →

Friday May 9, 2025 2:00pm - 3:15pm MDT
Beaver

Environmental and Climate Change Education Workshop

3:15pm MDT

Deepening the Connection to Nature Through Music and the Arts (English) LIMITED

Friday May 9, 2025 3:15pm - 4:30pm MDT

Beaver

Music and the arts have a way of sharing from deep within; a wonderful way to create rich engagement to helping the earth. Using music, dance, drama, art and language arts, participants will learn about ways to inspire students to feel a deeper relationship with natural spaces in their school yards and community. Participates will engage in arts experiences that help to develop empathy and care of the land around them through creative movement, role playing, sound experiences and more.

If you attended in 2024 this workshop will be introducing new activities that expand on the 2024 session.
This session will also be offered in French in Session Block E.

Speakers

Jennifer Engbrecht

Music Teacher, Louis Riel School Division

Jennifer Engbrecht was thrilled to have the opportunity to present about learning in nature through music and the arts in 2024, and is so happy to return this year in 2025. Jennifer has been infusing various subject areas into music classes for many years - especially the environment... Read More →

Friday May 9, 2025 3:15pm - 4:30pm MDT
Beaver

Health and Wellbeing Workshop

Outdoor Learning Conference 2025