Nurturing Nature Play
Attendees spent a Saturday at Tracy Aviary learning how to connect children of all ages to nature, all year long! Tracy Aviary educators shared insights from their current programs, including Nature in the City (USEE’s 2017 Environmental Education Program of the Year), and addressed common barriers to implementing nature programs. Focusing on the importance of nature play, the pitfalls of “ecophobia,” and ideas for incorporating nature-based learning, attendees left with new energy to get students outside, bring nature inside, or think creatively to provide youth access to the natural world.
When: Saturday, November 4 | 9:00 am - 1:00 pm. Where: Tracy Aviary | 589 East 1300 South Salt Lake City, UT 84105 Registration fee: $50/person
Tracy Aviary Educators and STEM Saturday Facilitators:
Michelle Mileham is the Director of Education at Tracy Aviary in Salt Lake City. Prior to moving to Utah, Michelle was a graduate student at Oregon State University where she finished her master’s and Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences and Education with a specific focus on museum education. She is interested in how museums use storytelling to understand their visitors, staff, and volunteers and studies how to provide the most engaging environmental education learning experiences for all audiences.
Cooper Farr leads Tracy Aviary’s Conservation Science Program. Her research is focused on developing strategies to mitigate negative anthropogenic impacts to wildlife, especially in areas that are highly impacted by development and disturbance. Cooper specializes in creating outreach and monitoring efforts to inform and encourage support for biodiversity conservation, including numerous citizen science programs focused on local avian field conservation and research.
Kylie Jones-Greenwood has a B.A. in Theatre Arts from the College of Idaho and is currently working toward a B.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences at Oregon State University. She spent three years teaching 3rd grade before coming to work at Tracy Aviary last summer. Kylie enjoys birding, zip lining, and knitting.
Marina Astin graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. in Biology and a minor in Environmental Science. As an intern at Tracy Aviary, she was introduced to environmental education. Marina especially loves working with Tracy Aviary’s Nature in the City program, providing fun, educational activities to get families outdoors exploring nature.