Bright Ideas - The Natural Start Blog

Natural Start Forum: Outdoor Preschool Policy Action Framework

March 31, 2021

Advocates of nature-based learning! View a recording about the newly released Outdoor Preschool Policy Action Framework and find your unique pathway to make nature-based & outdoor preschools available to all children. Read More

Natural Start Forum: Mindfulness with Alison Cohen

March 3, 2021

Join Natural Start for a live workshop facilitated by certified mindfulness instructor Alison Cohen. Participate in guided meditation, better understand the practice of mindfulness and its value, and learn new tactics for practicing mindfulness, geared specifically at educators. Read More

Natural Start Forum: Mid-Year Check-In

January 15, 2021

Join Natural Start and two nature preschool directors for a mid-year check-in to discuss what's working this year, what isn't, and what lies ahead in the coming weeks and months. Read More

Natural Start Forum: Holiday Book Fair

December 8, 2020

Get comfortable and gather your favorite children’s books to share with friends and colleagues near and far during Natural Start’s Holiday Book Fair on December 16th at 12 pm ET! Read More

Natural Start Forum: Flourishing in Nature

November 2, 2020

View a recording of a forum featuring Professor Julie Ernst's research on the impact of nature preschools on young children. Read More

NatStart Forum: Taking Preschool Outdoors

September 8, 2020

Join Natural Start on Tuesday, September 29 at 4 pm ET for a conversation about reopening nature preschools during the pandemic. Hear from several program directors who have transitioned their schools to be 100% outdoors this fall, followed by Q&A and discussion. Read More

Safety and Healthy Risk-Taking in Nature-Based Education

September 4, 2020

Enjoy a two-part session on safety and healthy risk-taking in nature-based programs, presented by Anne Stires and Amy Butler. The goal of these two sessions is to provide examples of the practices outlined in the Safety section of the Nature-Based Preschool Professional Practice Guidebook, which was written collaboratively by Anne, Amy, and Kit Harrington. Read More

Resources from the Community

August 6, 2020

Browse resources shared by organizations in the field of nature-based early learning and environmental education. Read More

Outdoor Learning: A Solution for Schools During COVID 19

August 6, 2020

Hear from a panel of experts who share the hows and whys around outdoor learning as a response to reopening schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read More

Nature preschools continue impressive growth across US

July 7, 2020

A new report from Natural Start reveals outdoor, nature-focused preschools have grown 25-fold over the past decade. Read More

Pages