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Ohio Nature-Based Early Childhood Education Collaborative

 Spring News

Written by Michelle Bock, edited and posted by Meredith Florkey

ONbECECollaborative Highlights!

FIVE Amazing Years Together

created by members, established 2019

Join our FORCE OF NATURE

The Ohio Nature Based Early Childhood Education is a group of like minded educators who have either founded, are working at, or aspire to begin or work in a nature based setting with children ages birth-age 8. 





SPRING is coming!

It's Hiring Season! Dozens of applicants check out our website each year. If you have job openings for your center that you would like posted on our website, please send a description and link to ohionaturebasedece@gmail.com.



Wildflower Child & Family Center is hiring 6 positions to fill a new classroom and support staff for their nature-based preschool and childcare center located in Huber Heights (Dayton), Ohio. Full and part time, health benefits, dedicated planning and office time, discounted child care, PTO and more. Consider applying or share with people in the area!

Land Caretaker & Lead Nature Preschool Teacher

Health Caretaker & Lead Nature Preschool Teacher

Storyteller & Lead Nature Preschool Teacher

Lead Nature Preschool Teacher

Operations Support Nature Preschool Teacher

Support Nature Preschool Teacher (sub)





GET CONNECTED with our Partnered Agencies






Upcoming Professional Development
















Nature-Based Learning & Environmental Education RESOURCES

We hope that our members invest and support in Indigenous peoples around the world.  The Great Council State Park is now open-check it out!

 









MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENTS & Stories!


Lee Hamzy

Lee Hamzy is the Director and Co-Lead Teacher at Little Schoolhouse in the Woods, a nonprofit dedicated to nurturing a love of nature and helping kids build healthy relationships with themselves and others.

At Little Schoolhouse in the Woods, we embrace every season as a chance to learn and explore. This winter, we've loved all the snow in the Cincinnati area! The kids have been busy tracking footprints, setting up a trail cam to observe local wildlife, and adding to our ever-growing list of the flora and fauna that make Mount Airy Forest home. These discoveries have been a big part of our curriculum, deepening our connection to the natural world around us.

As much as we’ve enjoyed winter, we’re looking forward to spring! We can’t wait to see the spring ephemerals return and to celebrate the season with our community. Mark your calendars for the Spring Into Mount Airy Festival on April 13th from 1-4 PM—it’s going to be a wonderful way to welcome the season together.

Feel free to follow us on social media, it won’t be long before we are bringing out the Maypole and gearing up for all the fun ahead!


Meredith Florkey


Wildflower Child & Family Center is a new nature-based preschool and child care center in Huber Heights, Ohio-just north of Dayton. Serving toddlers to age 5, for a variety of hours, WCFC serves families who qualify for publicly funded child care, is partnered with Preschool Promise to provide families with tuition assistance, and can boast the Get OUTside Gear program that provides outdoor gear for all of it’s students. WCFC is a Gold rated center in the Ohio Step Up To Quality rating system and has been awarded the Connect to Nature award from the Miami Valley Leave No Child Inside Collaborative. With a 3:15 ratio and on a 900 acre historical farm, children learn, discover and play for the majority of their days. WCFC, led by ONbECE board member, Meredith Florkey, has a dedicated staff of 5 and will be hiring 5 more staff this spring as they double their enrollment for the 2025-2026 school year. If you are interested in learning more about how WCFC encourages Belonging, Growth, and Connection to Nature click here:


Carol Juergemejer

On Saturday February 1st, a small group of early childhood educators representing 4 different early childhood education programs had the chance to hike and chat while touring the grounds of Old Trail School in Bath, Ohio. We were able to see the variety of outdoor classroom spaces including the magical pines and forts and tunnels. We also had a chance to peek at how nature is brought inside to the classrooms. Each of our programs runs a bit differently, but it is always great to be able to exchange ideas with one another. This was the second meet up for Northeast Ohio/Southeast Cleveland/Akron area teachers. We are already planning another MeetUp in Spring/Summer. We are creating local connections for supporting nature based early childhood educators! 

We hope you can join us at our next event from 9:30-11:30 on Saturday April 26th as we tour Good Nature Therapy Serviceshttps://www.goodnatureohio.com/ in Aurora, Ohio.


Membership

We are welcoming new members, stories & questions.  

Please submit to ohionaturebasedece@gmail.com 


Have a question? From time to time, community members have questions regarding starting a nature-based rpgram in Ohio, business related questions, or curriculum related questions. Our board is full of folks with years of experience. New to our website is a spot to ask those questions. Our volunteer board will monitor these questions and reach out individually or provide answers from time to time on our blog spot/Facebook group.






 
 
 

Ohio Nature-Based Early Childhood Education Collaborative

 Spring News

ONbECECollaborative Highlights!




It's Hiring Season! Dozens of applicants check out our website each year. If you have job openings for your center that you would like posted on our website, please send a description and link to ohionaturebasedece@gmail.com.



GET CONNECTED with our Partnered Agencies



This year, the conference has a Nature-based track with all sessions Ohio Approved!  Here are a sample of those sessions by our Leadership Team board members!


Presenter: Carol Juergemeier & Emily Johnson

Saturday 8:30-10 am

Title: Outside Matters: How Nature Can Enable Us to Feel Healthier, More Creative, More Empathetic and Engaged as Teachers

Length: 1.5 Hours


Presenter: Rachel Konerman

Saturday 1:00-2:30 pm

Title: STEM in the PlayScape: Engaging Children and Enhancing the Environment (Part 1)

Length: 1.5 Hours


Presenter: Rachel Konerman

Saturday 3:00-4:30pm

Title: STEM in the PlayScape: Engaging Children and Enhancing the Environment (Part 2)

Length: 1.5 Hours


Presenter: Meredith Florkey

Saturday 8:00-10:00am

Title: Outdoors to Build Executive FUNction!

Length: 2 Hours


Presenter: Meredith Florkey

Saturday 1:00-2:00pm

Title: Risks Vs. Hazards in the Outdoors

Length: 1 Hour

Presenter: Meredith Florkey

Saturday 3:00-4:00

Title: Enhancing Learning with the Power of Our Senses Outdoors

Length: 1 Hour


Upcoming Professional Development




Contact Michelle Bock for RSVP sewnatural@gmail.com 440-320-1354

A big thank you to Michelle for the vision and action it takes to host this type of event!


Nature-Based Learning & Environmental Education RESOURCES

We hope that our members invest and support in Indigenous peoples around the world.  Urban Native Collective invites folks to the following local events.  



MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENTS & Stories!












 
 
 

Ohio Nature-Based Early Childhood Education Collaborative

 Winter News

Thanks for your patience on a lapse in last meeting's updates!

ONbECECollaborative Highlights!


"Nature scene" in watercolor, from Michelle Bock's class. Child, 4 yrs old.


GET CONNECTED with our Partnered Agencies

The Natural Start Alliance is hosting a webinar discussing the difference between setting up your program as a non-profit or for profit business. February 21, 2024.

Samarael.com has a 3 part webinar to help folks use the NABERS tool, a Nature-based Education Rating Scale to improve early childhood teaching.


Upcoming Professional Development



This year, the conference has a Nature-based track with all sessions Ohio Approved!  Here are a sample of those sessions by our Leadership Team board members!


Presenter: Carol Juergemeier & Emily Johnson

Saturday 8:30-10 am

Title: Outside Matters: How Nature Can Enable Us to Feel Healthier, More Creative, More Empathetic and Engaged as Teachers

Length: 1.5 Hours


Presenter: Rachel Konerman

Saturday 1:00-2:30 pm

Title: STEM in the PlayScape: Engaging Children and Enhancing the Environment (Part 1)

Length: 1.5 Hours


Presenter: Rachel Konerman

Saturday 3:00-4:30pm

Title: STEM in the PlayScape: Engaging Children and Enhancing the Environment (Part 2)

Length: 1.5 Hours


Presenter: Meredith Florkey

Saturday 8:00-10:00am

Title: Outdoors to Build Executive FUNction!

Length: 2 Hours


Presenter: Meredith Florkey

Saturday 1:00-2:00pm

Title: Risks Vs. Hazards in the Outdoors

Length: 1 Hour

Presenter: Meredith Florkey

Saturday 3:00-4:00

Title: Enhancing Learning with the Power of Our Senses Outdoors

Length: 1 Hour


JOIN US! Upcoming ONbECE Gatherings

Save the Date

ONbECE Nature Based learning Meetup: Ohio North Central Erie Shores & Islands 

FREE collaborative event directly after OAEYC conference at the Kalahari Resort

April 27th Saturday 5:30-8:30pm

12217 Chapin Road

Berlin Heights, Ohio 44814

Fellowship, Food, and fun in nature will be provided! 

Hosted by BTCC & facilitated by ONbECE Collaborative


Contact Michelle Bock for RSVP sewnatural@gmail.com 440-320-1354

A big thank you to Michelle for the vision and action it takes to host this type of event!


Nature-Based Learning & Environmental Education RESOURCES

At the 2023 OAEYC conference movement towards NBL focus in the ECE field was announced at the University of Cincinnati! Find out more here!





On Purpose Academy in partnership with Ohio Naturally enjoying the snow day. This work and gear made possible by PNC bank.


MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENTS & Stories!

Cottonwood Hollow Nature Preschool opens in fall 2024 and is currently in enrollment season! Sara Zinn, an ONbECE board member has been working towards licensing this year. Are you a family child care provider (type A or B)? Sara is looking for folks to connect with about the joys and struggles of this type of programming. Please contact her if you are interested in a dialouge. sarahjanezinn@gmail.com


Congratulations to Michelle Bock on her Environmental Education Recertification for 10 years now! Here's where you can find out more about Eecertification









 
 
 

ABOUT US >

The Ohio Nature Based Early Childhood Education is a group of like minded educators who have either founded, are working at, or aspire to begin or work in a nature based setting with children ages birth-age 8.  

© 2023 by Make A Change.
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