Take Me Outside Day: A Celebration of Outdoor Learning

Take Me Outside would like to acknowledge and celebrate the diverse environments and people across Turtle Island whose Lands are the places, spaces, and teachers for our work. The speakers and presenters this week come from a wide range of nations and places across Turtle Island.

We want to begin by acknowledging that outdoor learning recognizes humans as an interconnected part of the natural world, as part of relationships that have been stewarded since time immemorial by the First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and Indigenous peoples who have lived here before colonialism, and continue to live and thrive here despite it.

We begin with gratitude and the utmost respect for the Land and all our relations on, above, and within her. We offer our gratitude and respect to the many Inuit, First Nations, Métis, and other Indigenous peoples who continue to protect and share their deep relational knowledge to facilitate ongoing relationships with her. Sharing your languages of relationship, reciprocity, respect, and responsibility encourages the heart of outdoor learning.

We also acknowledge that the work of truth and reconciliation is a journey of lifelong learning and work. We commit to supporting educators in rising to the Truth and Reconciliation Committee’s calls to action numbers 6, 12, & 62 – 66.

As you explore Outdoor Learning during Take Me Outside Week with your learners, we ask that you take time to learn about and recognize whose traditional Land or territory you reside, work, play, or explore on. You can use this resource as a starting place. Tim Patterson, an Indigenous mentor and hiking guide from the Little Nicola Band, said, “It’s not just about acknowledging the Land, or the people of a particular Land, but asking what this knowledge and feeling compels you do?”.

Throughout this week, we hope the sessions and speakers inspire educators and learners from all walks of life to head outside and connect to the land. We hope you experience the way the land can love, nurture, and heal.

We are committed to creating a future for outdoor learning where diversity, equity, and inclusion are fundamental and foundational pieces that illuminate the beauty and strength of our learning communities. We recognize, as individuals and as a collective, that not every school-aged child in Canada has an equal opportunity to engage in outdoor learning at present. We also recognize that not all educators have equal opportunity or experience with taking learning outdoors, due to a wide variety of barriers. We envision a future where every school-aged child and every educator feels welcome learning outdoors.

Part of our commitment to this work in the realm of outdoor learning is to further support and educate our community on strategies to integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion into outdoor learning, and further into all educational practices.

We are developing a section of our website here where you will find tools and resources to assist you in making sure your outdoor learning can address issues of race, cultural backgrounds, sexual orientation, accessibility needs, and other marginalized identities.

Join close to 1 million learners and educators helping raise awareness about the importance of getting outside and learning!

Take Me Outside Day is now an entire week full of activities, speakers, and prizes to encourage folks to head beyond the four walls of a classroom! Continue reading to see the full lineup of speakers. Stay tuned for more ways to get involved and get outside as we get closer to October!