Becky at the OPTS Conference – Friday Report
Good Afternoon from the Our Places Tell Stories Conference in Las Vegas, NV! It is somewhat cloudy again today, and kinda crazy busy, but we are eating well and presenting handily. Laurie Gray and I presented Project Learning Tree Early Childhood curriculum and educational theory this morning to an enthusiastic audience. The definite highlight was the To be a Tree activity where participants used paper grocery bags and crayons to take rubbings of Springs Preserve tree trunks on the bags which were cut to form vests; they then made rubbings of leaves on paper which were connected in a ‘crown’ with pipe cleaners; after putting on their vests and crowns the group engaged in song to help learn what each part of the tree does! It was a lively group excited to be trees for at least a little while! It is always rewarding as a presenter and facilitator when you have a group that gets so excited to learn something new and takes pride in participating effectively so when they return to their own programs they have an accurate picture of how an activity will proceed instead of just learning a new activity to get their students excited about nature.
Today’s keynote speaker, Dr. Richard Vineyard Assistant Director of Curriculum, Assessment and Accountability with the Nevada Department of Education and an instrumental force in the creation of the Nevada GreenPrint elucidated upon the environmental literacy plan and the history of environmental literacy not only in Nevada but in the nation as a whole. Dr. Vineyard is an excellent engaging orator, who in addition to being informative on the GreenPrint for the conference attendees, took pleasure in sharing pictures of himself exploring the wilds of Nevada!
Sierra Nevada Journeys has one more presentation to go today by Jonathan Mueller, and Laurie Gray has two remaining presentations tomorrow for the OPTS Teacher Symposium. I’ll wrap up this blogging series next week with a thorough recap of the entire conference’s programming and our Las Vegas adventures! For now – RLB out
Experiential Educator
Phone: (775) 355-1688
Email: jamie@sierranevadajourneys.org
Background: University of Phoenix- B.S in Elementary Education; work in progress- M. Ed in Teacher Leadership.
Something you should know about me:
I was first introduced to Sierra Nevada Journeys as an undergraduate student. I participated in several workshops during my time as a student. After graduation I was hired to work on our campus in Portola, CA. At the end of the summer I joined the staff in the Reno office as an Experiential Educator. I enjoy working with SNJ for the opportunity to work with a variety of student populations and the chance to teach curriculum focusing on scientific concepts. The work environment is always positive and encouraging. My role at SNJ is providing me with numerous opportunities and tools to accomplish my personal and
caeegoals.