Reclaiming Nature Connection
Fire, Knives, Sticks, and Bones
TBD 2027
Earthaven Ecovillage
Near Asheville, NC
Join us for hands-on learning in Nature’s playground! Gain educational tools, songs, games, and much more while learning the importance of risk to healthy childhood development of confidence, competence, and self-regulation.
Learn the importance of risk to healthy childhood development of confidence, competence, and self-regulation.
The RNC instructors brought evidenced-based information, personal stories and a wealth of experience. The content felt relevant to both the brand-new forest kindergarten teacher, at the same time met the needs of an experienced facilitator.
This annual workshop is a program of The Academy of Forest Kindergarten Teachers and is co-sponsored by SOIL.
About the Workshop
Reclaiming Nature Connection (RNC) is an annual outdoor workshop based on forest schools, wilderness awareness, and early childhood education. RNC is designed for beginners and experienced educators alike, as well as therapists, administrators, homeschool families, camp counselors, grandparents, and parents who have an interest in developmentally appropriate nature mentoring for children.
Reclaiming Nature Connection is a weekend of hands-on, research-based, and anecdotal learning. The rhythm of each day moves between active and contemplative learning, dynamically weaving the lecture teachings into the experiential learning components. As always, the conference will be infused with songs, games, stories, and deeper nature connection.
The conference was formerly called “Reaching Nature Connection Conference.”
Learn more about nature connection and RNC in this interview.
RNC is a program of The Academy of Forest Kindergarten Teachers.The Academy offers a variety of workshops and classes designed to enrich and inspire individuals who want to share their knowledge, enthusiasm and wonder of nature with young children. For incredible mentorship and opportunities to connect with a diverse community of naturalists and educators, visit their website to check out all of their offerings.
Schedule
Saturday (Day 1)
8:30 am – workshop check in begins
9:00 am–4:30 pm (break for lunch) program
Evening: Dinner followed by Doug Elliott storytelling concert
Sunday (Day 2)
9:00 am–4:30 pm (break for lunch)
The Reclaiming Nature Connection Conference at Earthaven was a soul-nourishing experience. I have been a nature and play-based early childhood teacher for 20 years and I left this gathering full of inspiration, new questions about my work, a deeper understanding of what can inform it and experiences of thrill, joy, and community. I will be looking for more opportunities to engage in these trainings.
Engaging, affirming, and inspiring! This conference was just what I needed to get reinvigorated about the importance of play and connecting to nature.
Logistics
Food
Delicious, omnivorous meals are prepared by talented culinary artists from the Earthaven community. Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free options available. Snacks and beverages (tea, coffee) are provided. Participants are invited to help with meal clean-up. Many hands make light work.
As much food as possible is sourced from Earthaven and its surrounding farms and gardens, with some ingredients sourced from grocery stores. Our meals are created with seasonal, local, fresh, wildcrafted, humanely-raised, and organic ingredients.
***If you have dietary needs beyond the ones listed here, please be prepared to bring supplemental food to support your nourishment and well-being. Our kitchen cannot accommodate all diets.
*** Although we would like to know if you have any allergies, we cannot provide an anaphylactic safe meal. There is always the chance of cross contamination.
Click here for more information about food.
Program Specific Info
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are included, Friday dinner through Sunday lunch.
About the Instructors
Reclaiming Nature Connection Faculty Lia is a storyteller, naturalist, herbalist, parent educator, mentor, and education consultant. Using the arts of storytelling, song, poetry, movement, and play, she is dedicated to helping children and families develop their powers of imagination, and through these powers, discover their relationship with all of life. Lia is a co-founder and co-director of the Academy of Forest Kindergarten Teachers, which offers formal training for forest kindergarten teachers, and the founder and director of Wild Roots Forest School, a preschool and kindergarten roofed by the sky and carpeted with the living woodland floor.
Lia Grippo
Reclaiming Nature Connection Faculty Erin grew up freely exploring the pastures, creeks, and high deserts of California's Eastern Sierra mountains. Erin is a co-founder of the annual Reclaiming Nature Connection Conference and a co-founder of The Academy of Forest Kindergarten Teachers. She is an artist and designer that seeks to fuel the creative spirit in herself and others everyday.
Erin Dews
Financial Co-responsibility and Scholarships
Because some people have more financial means than others, we have created a sliding-scale fee system to accommodate a range of economic realities. We offer several price tiers and leave it to you to select the most appropriate tier. The price range aims to take into consideration economic disparities, historical injustices, and personal circumstances. The system is designed for those with more resources to support those with less.
At Earthaven and through the School of Integrated Living (SOIL), we strive to practice a culture of financial transparency, authenticity, and generosity. Trusting each other to assess their needs, what is within their ability, and when to ask for help. We are excited to include you in our experiment with financial co-responsibility.
We are now offering self-selected scholarships for many of our programs. No proof of need, no questions asked. Just the clear intention of trust that registrants can assess whether the cost of a program is truly a barrier to attendance and the growth of self and community our programs seek to foster.
In addition, we offer partial scholarships (50% of the middle of the sliding scale) to black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) with financial needs who otherwise would not be able to afford to attend, even with the self-selected scholarships. We understand that BIPOC may experience more financial and institutional barriers to participation, and this is one way we are able to create more access. If you identify as BIPOC with financial needs and would like to receive a deeper scholarship, please contact us.
SOIL endeavors to support the healthy flow of all resources; whether that be monetary or the skills and information that seed cultural change; and widen the doors of accessibility to what we offer.
Cost
Tuition Sliding Scale: $TBD
Scholarship rate: $TBD
BIPOC rate: $TBD
Tuition includes meals, instruction, and all materials. Camping and indoor lodging are available for an additional cost.