ISSUE #17

Written By Rain Perez

The Outdoor Insider

MAINE OUTDOOR SCHOOL'S QUARTERLY E-NEWSLETTER

The Outdoor Insider Archive

ISSUE #17
JANUARY 2021

 

Maine Outdoor School exists because we believe that personal and community resilience 
in rural Maine is essential to the resilience of society as a whole. We believe that resilient,
flourishing communities are rooted in the careful study of our history and natural surroundings
by lifelong learners of all ages, backgrounds, and occupations.

Help us make 2021 a phenomenal year outdoors! donate here.

Learning from needle ice with Mountain View 7th/8th-graders

A guided hike for some newlyweds

A guided canoe trip for a family

Soap made at a Downeast Roots Festival Series workshop

Co-Founders' Note:

Of all the years we’ve said, “Happy New Year,” this one sure feels the most meaningful! 2020 was hard for all of us in so many different ways and we are ready for that feeling of “reset” that a new year brings. However, despite the challenges of the pandemic in 2020, MOS continued to connect people with the outdoors through:

  • Standards-aligned, outdoor program series at Milbridge Elementary School, Jonesport Elementary School, Mountain View School in Sullivan, and Lubec Consolidated School

  • Building a permanent outdoor classroom at Milbridge Elementary School

  • Professional development opportunities for adults through a guest lecture at College of the Atlantic; webinars with Blue Hill Heritage Trust, Frenchman Bay Conservancy, and Community Learning for ME; a restorative practices training with Healthy Acadia; and a teacher training in Lubec

  • Community programming, including hikes, soapmaking, and winter family activities

  • Virtual programming on backyard outdoor activities, naturalist skills, and school science subjects

  • New or expanded partnerships with TREE (Transforming Rural Experience in Education), Frenchman Bay Conservancy, Women for Healthy Rural Living, Lubec Consolidated School, Healthy Acadia, and the Milbridge Public Library

  • Family-friendly guided hikes, paddling, and fly-fishing experiences

We had interactive face-to-face time (whether in person or via Zoom) with about 400 people plus thousands more who viewed our educational videos online (over 6,000 from our OWL series alone)--an impressive reach considering the challenges of the pandemic.

“MOS has been a blessing before and during the pandemic and I’m sure it will be after the pandemic too. It created an opportunity for my students to have educational experiences outside with trained educators. They are learning things I truly don’t believe I could have done without MOS.” -Ally Loukas, Milbridge 1st Grade teacher, December 2020 (see more testimonials here)

In 2021, we will continue to facilitate COVID-responsive, nature-based learning experiences for schools, community members, and visiting families thanks to your support. May you find peace and comfort in the outdoors in what we hope is a brighter year for us all.
 

~Hazel and Joe

Tracks:

  • Started new program series with classes at Mountain View School, Milbridge Elementary School, and Lubec Consolidated School

  • Continued to get great use out of Milbridge’s outdoor classroom and new chalkboard

  • Led 3 Summits & Stories hikes with the Milbridge Public Library

  • Continued providing guided hikes and paddling experiences to visitors

  • Taught community members how to make soap

  • Were highlighted in the Portland Press Herald in an article about outdoor podcasts

  • Concluded the OWL: Outdoor Women Lead 2020 virtual program series

Check out the “MOS in the News” page to see where we’ve shown up in the press!

 

Hazel guiding the photographer’s family on an educational hike

Community Commendations:

This quarter’s Community Commendation goes to CEI’s Women’s Business Center! They sent professional photographers out to a variety of Maine businesses to be able to promote these businesses through high quality photos of Maine female entrepreneurs in action. They selected Maine Outdoor School as one of those businesses! You’ll start to notice some impressive new photos of Hazel in action on our website, starting with our new-and-improved Guiding page. Thanks to the WBC for lining up photographer Bridges Aderhold to provide us with such amazing photos!

 

Biomimicry:

The plant that probably gets the most attention from our students in the fall is burdock. These tough plants have round seed heads that do an amazing job of sticking to mammal fur and clothing. It’s a great adaptation for distributing their seeds far and wide (and annoying sheep farmers and pet owners). Burdock might also be our favorite example of biomimicry: Velcro was invented and designed to mimic the grippy qualities of burdock.

Burdock reminds us that there’s always more than one way to solve a problem. If you can’t fly, walk, and if you can’t walk, then perhaps you can hitch a ride with others! Sometimes getting things done just takes a little creativity and often a bit of help from others.

 

Resilience Tip:
To stay safe and comfortable outdoors in the winter, “make sure the hands, head, heart and feet are covered.”
(Learn more about being prepared for winter outdoors here.)

 

What's Upstream: 

This winter, we will continue to provide regular outdoor school programming at Milbridge Elementary School and are wrapping up our series at Mountain View School. And, snow conditions permitting, stay tuned for some snowshoeing opportunities this winter! Meanwhile, we are making plans for spring and summer outdoor community programming with Women for Healthy Rural Living and Downeast Coastal Conservancy.

As always, we welcome your program ideas and wishes! If we can help you get outdoor programming into your local school, provide your family with an educational outdoor adventure, or provide professional development opportunities in outdoor education, please reach out to us.

All MOS programs are fully customizable and suit learners of any age. Visit our website or contact us to learn more.

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Rain Perez
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