About this event
Interested in connecting with fellow educators?
The Early Childhood Hoosiers Outdoors (ECHO) Network is designed to support education practitioners wanting to get students into outdoor learning settings. We meet on the second Monday of every odd month at 4 pm by zoom.
The purpose of this network includes:
- A group of peers: Connecting educators and administrators for support, guidance, encouragement, troubleshooting, etc.
- A common space for sharing resources and best practices
- Opportunities for professional development
- Shared advocacy and continuing education around nature-based programs
- Program observation
- and others!
The network was inspired by a surge of interest in program formats such as Nature Preschools, Forest Kindergartens, and Forest Schools; however it is an inclusive group for those working with young children in any format. Our interests center on developmentally-appropriate educational opportunities for children in outdoor settings, whether in the woods, on the prairie, or in the schoolyard.
We want this network to be dynamic and responsive to emerging needs of participants. We encourage you to join us on this journey of mutual exploration and learning!
If you are interested in knowing more, sign up below to join. Participants will be added to a Google group to get email updates for monthly meeting times and to post questions to others within the group.
Join us at ECHO Network in March to hear from Gretchen Shissler, a pediatric occupational therapist who has worked in traditional schools for 8 years. She founded Forest Academy in Lafayette in response to the significant challenges that she saw in meeting students’ sensory needs within the walls of a traditional classroom. Gretchen will be presenting on the sensory benefits of forest schools, as well as her plans on how best to integrate therapy services into the forest school model.