Learning from the Land (Halifax)
Thursday, May 21, 2026
10 am–12 pm
Department of Biology Outdoor Learning Space
Link to register for the event
This workshop invites participants to step outside the classroom and spend intentional, reflective time in nature, exploring what the land can teach about teaching, learning, and your role as an educator.
Before the session
- Choose a natural space that feels accessible and safe—a park, shoreline, field, forest, or other outdoor area.
- Visit this same location twice for 1–2 hours each, ideally in different weather or light conditions.
- Bring a notebook, sketchbook, or audio recorder to capture your observations.
- During your visits, pay attention to what you see, hear, smell, feel, and even taste. Ask yourself: What is the land teaching me right now? What do patience, reciprocity, or interconnection look like here?
After your visits, create a 1–2 page reflection—or an alternative representation such as a poem, drawing, audio recording, or photo essay—that describes your observations, identifies at least two lessons about teaching and learning, and suggests how you might bring one of these lessons into your own teaching practice.
During the session
Participants will share their reflections and creative representations, then engage in a group discussion to explore the insights gained from the land and consider how these lessons can inform teaching and learning in diverse educational contexts.
Facilitator
Rachelle McKay, MA (she/her)
Educational Developer (Indigenous Knowledges and Ways of Knowing)
Time
Starts:
Ends: