Our Curriculum

"I expected to learn about a unique nature education model and ended up taking away so much more! ...I learned about bringing a student to their edge and guiding them towards a better understanding of nature, themselves and where they fit into the world."
-Stephanie Etley

Wilderness Awareness School has developed a unique curricular model for education and organization over the past 20 years which we call "The Six Shields of Awareness."

We are also very excited to be nearing completion of our new curriculum book, Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature: for Kids of All Ages and their Mentors. This 400-page guide distils into print over twenty years of oral tradition and active practice in connecting kids with nature. (More about Coyote's Guide)

Wilderness Awareness School's curriculum allows students to experience a powerful set of nature skills that awaken a deep understanding and relationship with the natural world.

Our instructors guide students in field studies ranging from wildlife tracking techniques to medicinal plant preparations to wilderness survival crafts. Students come away with a strong foundation of knowledge and the ability to apply these outdoor skills in their personal and professional lives.

Our core curriculum consists of six fields of study that are interconnected with elements of each running throughout all of our courses:

The Skills of the Naturalist

Get to know the flora, fauna, and ecology of the Pacific Northwest. In this component of our programs students develop a rich understanding of plants, trees, mammals, and birds, as well as the identification, taxonomy, and natural history of North American species, coming away with the background necessary to succeed as a well-rounded naturalist.

The Science of Tracking: Interpreting Patterns of Life

Unravel the mysteries of tracks and sign left behind by wildlife. This part of our curriculum is designed to give students a holistic grounding in the art and science of animal tracking. Emphasis is placed on the development of accurate track and sign identification and interpretation skills, as well as applications of tracking in biological research.

Working with Native Plants: Ethnobotany and Stewardship

Gather and prepare wild plants to use for food, medicine, and tools. This aspect of our curriculum is a hands-on study of the diverse uses of native plants and trees. Students learn field identification, edible/medicinal preparations, and plant technologies. Some courses also covers modern and indigenous principles of forest stewardship, permaculture, and restoration.

Natural Mentoring: Nature-based Models of Education

Learn Wilderness Awareness School's unique educational model and mentoring techniques. This part of our curriculum teaches students the principles of our nature-based approach to education and community development. Students come away with the knowledge and experience necessary for being an effective instructor, leader, and mentor for youth and adults.

Wilderness Survival: The Technologies of the Hunter-Gatherer

Practice skills that can save your life. This component of our curriculum engages students in the practice of indigenous wilderness living skills, including the key elements needed to survive in the outdoors unaided by modern tools. Students learn to build shelters from natural materials, locate and purify water, create fire from friction, and master wilderness crafts.

Nature Observation: Bird Language and Sensory Awareness

Develop the awareness of a wild animal. This aspect of our curriculum focuses on nature awareness skills. Students practice activities that build greater sensory acuity, train the body to move gracefully and silently in the forest, and cultivate the ability to interpret predator disturbance patterns displayed in bird behaviors and vocalizations.

As students study all six of these areas of knowledge in concert, they develop a truly holistic sense of place within the natural world, as well as a greater understanding of their role in their community, and a clearer awareness of their own passions and vision for their lives.

Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature - for Kids of All Ages and their Mentors

By Jon Young, Evan McGown, and Ellen Haas; foreward by Richard Louv author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder

The Art of Mentoring and Coyote Teaching workshops have long been an electrifying training program of Wilderness Awareness School and our sister schools. But we've always known we needed something more, something written, something with a wider reach.

Responding to requests of educators and parents, Coyote's Guide distils into print over twenty years of oral tradition and active practice in connecting kids with nature. This 400 page guide is a long-awaited step toward fulfilling our vision "to reach out with our teachings until there's a related school in every region, a mentor on every corner, a field guide on every table, and a sparkle in every eye."

Coyote's Guide tries to be faithful to the tradition from which it springs, while translating it to a wider circle of teachers, parents, and outdoor educators. The Guide is not simply a book of "recipes" for working with kids in nature. Rather, it lifts the lid off the mind of a mentor and lets the reader see behind-the-scenes into the intricacies of how it schemes, designs, and implements activities with multi-layered purpose. It passes on the felt sense "invisible schooling" so educators can create natural learning cycles that fit their ecosystems, their group of kids, and their specific goals.

Coyote's Guide begins with a foreward by Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder. Louv's foreward helps identify Coyote's Guide as an essential resource in helping educators and parents realize the vision of the worldwide “No Child Left Inside” movement.

Then, the Mentor's Manual distills key principles of The Art of Mentoring and Coyote Teaching

• Coyote and the Art of Mentoring addresses the goals and the "coyote mentoring" attitude.
• Core Routines describes the foundational habits of awareness that you will instill every day in every way.
• Child Passions offers tools for engaging excitement and attention.
• Book of Nature displays the panorama of lessons that nature teaches.
• Natural Cycle draws a blueprint for designing your students' learning experience.
• Indicators of Awareness profiles the desired learning outcomes in a nontraditional way.
• Growing a Mentoring Community offers suggestions for encircling students in a mentoring culture.
  

Next, the Activities Guide offers sets of games and activities correlated to the key principles. Each activity is expanded beyond "How To" with primer stories, notes on what's going on in the mind of the mentor, and ways to extend and apply the activities to different situations.

Parents, teachers, counselors, guides, and mentors, all of you out there who have been asking for it, this book is for you.

Available 2008!

Want to track our progress and be sure you stay updated when the book is available? Subscribe to our free monthly FoxDen e-newsletter featuring fun and inspiring natural mystery photos, articles, news and program updates, and more... FoxDen signup