Ellie Schafer
UW Preschool Lab
Instructional Specialist
Madison, Wisconsin
I am a second year teacher working at the University of Wisconsin's Preschool Laboratory. We are an inquiry based school meaning our curriculum follows the natural curiosity of our students. A significant portion of our inquiry takes place outdoors as nature is often a place children are curious to explore. Our staff (myself included) have all taken training offered by Claire Warden and have in different ways incorporated her nature based philosophy. My classroom takes walking trips twice a week into the 'beyond' or open spaces outside of our playground. Being located on campus means most of these spaces are the landscaping areas surrounding the buildings. Our children enjoy climbing trees, searching for bugs, building with sticks and much more during these trips. I look forward to attending this conference and deepening the nature based learning I work to facilitate with my students. I hope to hear from a variety of educators also attempting this great work!
