Spring Book Club: “Preschool Beyond Walls: Blending Early Childhood Education & Nature-based Learning”

Spring is a time for rebirth and rebuilding. What better time to go back to the basics of nature-based pedagogy?! 

The Spring Book Club will focus on the book Preschool Beyond Walls: Blending Early Childhood Education & Nature-based Learning by Dr. Rachel Larimore. 

About the book…

Rachel wrote this book to help early childhood educators develop and implement a nature-based curriculum to support children’s holistic development. Whether you’re refining your nature-based teaching or transitioning to nature-based pedagogy from a more conventional approach, with this book you’ll learn how to: 

• Identify the key features of nature-based pedagogy

• Create a program philosophy

• Infuse nature into all aspects of your program

• Support teachers to implement a nature- and child-centered approach

• Provide a rich physical learning environment across three spaces–Inside, Outside, and Beyond.

• Set families up for success

Here's how the Book Club works…

• Beginning March 9 you’ll receive a weekly accountability email from the author which will include a short video and guiding questions to hold you accountable for the reading.

• You’ll have a chance to connect with the author and fellow educators in 3 live conversations. These will include small- and whole-group discussions to reflect on the material discussed in the book chapters for those weeks and how it applies to your context. Rachel will also share her thoughts on how her thinking has changed or refined since she wrote the book.

• The rhythm for reading is as follows:

• March 9-18, Chapters 1-4

• March 19-April 1, Chapters 5-7

• April 1-15, Chapters 8-9

What you’ll get out of participating…

• Deep professional learning about the foundations of nature-based education to kick start your journey or to refocus your work if you’ve been on this journey for some time

• Vibrant online community of other like-minded educators, so you feel less alone doing this important, challenging work.

• Digital (PDF) copy of the Preschool Beyond Walls Reflecting on Practice workbook so you’ll have a place to capture your reflections to questions at the end of each chapter.  

• Certificate of completion*

Please note, the registration does not include a copy of the book. If you need a copy, add the book to your cart at registration and automatically receive a 15% discount on the book.

*Licensing requirements for early childhood educators vary significantly, so we cannot guarantee this time will be accepted for your requirements. We recommend that you contact your certifying or state licensing agency for clarification.

About Rachel Larimore

Dr. Rachel A. Larimore is an educator, consultant, speaker, researcher, and author. Her work focuses on the intentional integration of nature to support young children’s holistic development by learning with nature to expand their worlds and live rich, full lives. She has written multiple books including Establishing a Nature-Based Preschool, Preschool Beyond Walls: Blending Early Childhood Education and Nature-Based Learning, and Evaluating Nature: Evaluating Natureness: Measuring the Quality of Nature-based Classrooms in Pre-k Through 3rd Grade. Her newest book is Reimagining the Role of Teachers in Nature-Based Learning: Helping Children be Curious, Confident, and Caring.. Rachel is the founder and Chief Visionary of Samara Early Learning, an organization focused on helping early childhood educators start nature-based schools or add nature-based approaches into their existing program. Prior to founding Samara, she spent more than a decade starting and directing one of the first nature-based preschools in the United States.