Saturday, June 19, 2021
9:00 am – 4:00 pm

hosted by
Juniper Hill School for Place-based Education
180 Golden Ridge Road,
Alna, ME 04535

Morning Keynote

The Sky Above and the Mud Below:
Lessons from Nature Preschools and
Forest Kindergartens

David Sobel, Author and Professor Emeritus, Antioch New England, Keene, NH

Whew!  What a long, strange trip it’s been. And during that trip, lots of early childhood programs and elementary schools learned that outdoor learning was cool. It kept students healthier, more physically active and more engaged in school. They looked to and learned from the educators who had been doing this for decades. Lots of those stories of innovation over the past decade are captured in David’s new book, The Sky Above and the Mud Below. He willl share some of those stories collected from around the United States. From searching for pirate gold to big animal drills to singing in the rain to literacy and math outdoors, David will share compelling practices that presage the future of nature-based education.

David Sobel is a Professor Emeritus in the Education Department at Antioch University New England in Keene, NH. He founded the Nature-based Early Childhood Certificate program at Antioch in 2012. He consults and speaks widely on child development, place-based education, and nature-based early childhood education. He has authored nine books and more than 70 articles focused on children and nature for educators, parents, environmentalists and school administrators in the last 30 years. His most recent books are Wild Play:  Parenting Adventures in the Great Outdoors published by Green Writers Press and The Sky Above and the Mud Below:  Lessons from Nature Preschools and Forest Kindergartens published by Redleaf Press. And he has a young adult novel for which he’d love to find a publisher!

Afternoon Panel Discussion

Changing the Face of Education in Maine:  
21^st Century Children Need Nature

Panelists: 

• Marie Robinson, Superintendent, RSU #89, Katahdin Schools, Stacyville, ME
• Patti Bailie, Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education, University of Maine, Farmington, ME
• Zak Klein, Environmental Philanthropist, Program Officer, Quimby Family Foundation, Portland, ME 
• Nathan Broaddus, Manager, Nature-based Education Consortium, Portland, ME

facilitated by Anne Stires, Founder and Director of Development, Outreach, and Advocacy,  Juniper Hill School for Place-based Education, Alna, ME

Why does it matter if you bring students outdoors to engage in meaningful learning? What is happening in this movement across the region? How can all we help support its growth? Anne Stires will facilitate this groundbreaking, forward-thinking panel in which administrators, a higher education professional, an environmental philanthropist, and an educational consultant discuss the importance of nature-based education for all children, everywhere. The fragile planet we are living on needs children who get immersed in and connected to the natural world and their communities so that they become active, contributing citizens.

Registration Fees:

Working Professional                                $125
AUNE Alumni/.                                            $75
AUNE and College ED or ES Students       $50

Do You Have a Voucher? 

If you received a voucher from your 2020 paid conference registration, watch for an email from Peg Smeltz with instructions.  Please include (on the registration form) the voucher # or person/school to whom it was issued. 
Contact Peg if you need assistance.

603-762-0012 cell
msmeltz@antioch.edu