Ontario Educator Wellness Retreat

ONTARIO EDUCATOR WELLNESS RETREAT

Restoration through deep nature connection. A new kind of professional development.

Our first Educator Wellness Retreat took place in Muskoka, Ontario May 30th to June 1st, 2025! You can read a recap below.

Please feel free to email us at info@takemeoutside.ca if you have any questions!

RECAP

Take Me Outside held our first ever Educator Wellness Retreat at beautiful Camp Wenonah in Muskoka, Ontario May 30th-June 1st, in partnership with the Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO). Elder Christopher Stock from A Journey Begins opened and closed the weekend in a good way, joined by his daughter Keana and wife Jackie. Carolynne Crawley from Msit No’kmaq and Turtle Protectors facilitated All My Relations and Forest Therapy sessions, along with an incredible Storytelling Campfire. Shehla Khan from Yoga with Shehla led yoga therapy, meditation and mindfulness sessions rooted in authentic cultural practices. Samantha Wood from Maison Rosewood offered massage therapy throughout the weekend. Angel Suarez Esquivel and Lee McArthur from the COEO Board of Directors generously offered their help and support throughout the Retreat.

An amazing group of educators from across Ontario gathered to connect deeply to nature and each other. We had a lot of fun in a summer camp setting- canoeing, singing, nature journaling, reading for pleasure, mindful birding, dancing, doing archery, going on nature walks, doing sit spots, playing board games and so much more. Plus we enjoyed all the delicious food at Camp Wenonah! We shared stories, tears and laughter, while healing and restoring together in nature. A huge thank you to everyone who came together to co-create a magical weekend and make this Retreat such a success!

“The Educator Wellness Retreat was truly a life changing experience. As educators, we are always looking out for others but rarely take time to look after ourselves. This weekend was an amazing chance to connect with like-minded people and do incredible programming centred around a shared love of nature. It served as an important reminder that nature is not just a place to visit, it’s truly where we belong.”– Ontario Retreat participant

“The Educator Wellness Retreat was transformative. As educators, we rarely recognize that we need time to pause, recharge, and reconnect with nature. The retreat was thoughtfully planned and executed. I left with my heart filled with gratitude, and a renewed sense of purpose. So much healing took place in a short time – I appreciated every moment. Do not hesitate to sign up for the next one! I will definitely be there.” – Ontario Retreat participant

OVERVIEW

Dates: Friday, May 30th to Sunday, June 1st, 2025 (Friday evening to Sunday afternoon)

Location: Camp Wenonah, 1324 Bird Lake Rd, Bracebridge, ON

Spots Available: 40

Open to: All educators

Location details: Camp Wenonah is located in the stunning Muskoka area, just east of Bracebridge. It is approximately 2 hours from Toronto or 4 hours from Ottawa by car. The Camp is uniquely situated on 100 acres between two beautiful lakes – Saw and Clear.

We are very thankful to be gathering on the traditional territory of the Ojibway, the Chippewa, the Algonquin and the Odawa, land which has also been walked on by the Huron-Wendat and the Haudenosaunee. This land is covered by the Williams Treaty of 1923, the Robinson Huron Treaty of 1850 and the J. Collins land purchase of 1785. This region is home to the Wáhta Mohawks First Nations, Moose Deer Point First Nation and Moon River Métis. We want to express our deepest gratitude for their ongoing care for this land and the opportunity to gather here.

Accommodation details: Accommodations will be shared with 5-8 other adults in small cabins with bunk beds. Each person will have a whole top and bottom bunk bed to themselves. There will be an option to stay in a single gender or mixed gender cabin, depending on your preference. The cabins can be heated as needed. Participants have the option to bring whichever bedding they prefer- a sleeping bag or twin sheet set and a comforter.

Washroom and Facilities: All gender group washrooms are available throughout Camp Wenonah. Kindly note, there are no washrooms inside the cabins themselves. Both the washrooms and shower house facilities are a short walk away from the cabins.

Food: Camp Wenonah will provide delicious food throughout the weekend and can accommodate a wide range of dietary needs. We will send out the weekend’s menu 2 weeks prior to the Retreat. Meals included are: Friday dinner; Saturday breakfast, lunch and dinner; Sunday breakfast and lunch. Water, coffee, tea, fruit and granola bars will be available between meal times. Please note: Camp Wenonah is a nut-free facility.

Accessibility: Camp Wenonah is a rugged outdoor setting which operates as a camp for children throughout the summer. There are roots on the walking trails, and only some of Camp Wenonanh’s newer buildings include ramps. They do have golf carts available that Camp staff can use to help transport people with limited mobility to further locations. This can be arranged ahead of the Retreat weekend. Most buildings (cabins, washrooms, etc.) have 2 – 5 steps at their entrance.

Suggested Packing List: Click here for our suggested packing list of what you might want to bring to the Retreat! If you would like support in acquiring or borrowing any of these items, please email us at info@takemeoutside.ca.

What to Expect:  This document will also be emailed to everyone who registers and will cover all the details for the Retreat, including directions, community guidelines, wifi access/cell service, etc.

Note: There will be a small school with 30 students at Camp Wenonah the same weekend. We will make an effort to stagger meal times. As such, no alcohol or smoking will be permitted on-site over the weekend.

Partners: We’re very thankful to be partnering with our friends at the Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO) for this Retreat! Two COEO members who are experienced in outdoor learning will generously provide additional support throughout the weekend. COEO is a wonderful volunteer-based, non-profit and a community of outdoor educators. They offer retreat-style conferences in the fall and winter, a monthly newsletter, the Ontario Wilderness Leadership (OWL) Symposium, Pathways: The Ontario Journal of Outdoor Education and more offerings and resources for educators. You can learn more about the COEO community and membership here.

Are we missing anything? Please feel free to email us at info@takemeoutside.ca if you have any questions or requests for support!

MEET THE FACILITATORS

Carolynne Crawley, founder of Msit No’kmaq and cofounder of Turtle Protectors, is a woman of Mi’kmaw, Black and Irish ancestry and is from Mi’kma’ki territory, also known today as Nova Scotia. But Tkaronto has been her home for the past 50 years since she was a young child. She grew up with a deep relationship with Mother Earth that was fostered through her upbringing and cultural land based teachings. She is dedicated to social and environmental justice and focuses her work upon reconcili-action with the land. Carolynne is passionate about reconnecting people with the land, waters, and all beings as there is no separation between us. She is a Forest Therapy Guide and was a Mentor and Trainer in the practice for five years. She is a Holistic Nutritionist, Storyteller, Public Speaker, a Co-Producer of a documentary, a Facilitator of the Blanket Exercise, and a member of the Indigenous Land Stewardship Circle. Carolynne also worked in food security for 12 years and previously worked as a Child & Youth Worker for two decades. Carolynne currently leads programs that support the development and strengthening of healthy and reciprocal relationships that focuses upon reconcile-action with Mother Earth.

Please visit the session descriptions section below for details about the amazing sessions Carolynne will be facilitating!

Shehla Khan (she/her) is Tkaronto based movement lover, cyclist and mother of two teenagers. A certified yoga therapist, an instructor, an educator and a firm believer in the simplicity of the timeless tradition of yoga Vidya. Shehla is lifelong student of yoga, considers herself a multi-lineage facilitator and blends classical practices with contemporary twist, she draws from Eastern philosophy, Indian mythology, ancient Sanskrit texts and her present and past teachers. Her sessions are heavily informed by the Yoga therapy principals in the tradition of Sri Krishnamacharya, Ayurveda, mindfulness and meditations rooted in yoga psychology of yoga sutras and storytelling. She has facilitated numerous public, corporate and private sessions, workshops, retreats and outreach programs in the past 18 years in and around the GTA. As a senior faculty for several yoga training certification programs including Downward Dog Yoga Center and Iam Yoga Studio, Shehla shares knowledge of Yoga Philosophy, Humanities, Ayurveda, Tantra and Yoga Therapy. She has worked with several community-based organizations offering accessible programming to marginalized and racialized groups including chair fitness and trauma informed yoga, mindful movements and meditations for individuals with brain injuries and kid friendly yoga Nidra for managing Anxiety at a pediatrics clinic. It is through her work with marginalized communities that has allowed her to witness the healing power of healthy movements, mindfulness and community connection. Shehla wanted to pay this forward and founded a non-profit charitable organization: The Healing Collective. She is passionate about sharing some of these ancient teachings and modern derivatives to serve the underserved communities to overcome the socioeconomic barriers restricting access to many living with trauma, isolation, and disconnection. She wholeheartedly believes that self- care and wellness is not a privilege – it is a right.

Please visit the session descriptions section below for details about the sessions Shehla will be facilitating.

Julie Read (she/her) is Take Me Outside’s Program Manager and an outdoor educator, primary/junior elementary teacher, Forest and Nature School practitioner and enthusiastic naturalist with over 15 years of leadership experience within non-profit organizations. Her relationship to the Land is central to her health and well-being and she continues to deepen her connection to her Celtic roots by spending time in Scotland and learning more about the knowledge of her ancestors, especially through her relationship to the more-than-human world, storytelling and music. Julie loves helping people of all ages connect to nature and has experience leading nature wellness sessions, creating and leading a naturalist club for adults, organizing and leading accessible birding events and leading annual Birding with Pride walks in Point Pelee, home of the Caldwell First Nation. Julie is deeply passionate about social justice, removing barriers and increasing equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility in outdoor learning. Julie created the Fanshawe Nature School while working as the Community Education Supervisor for the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority and has previously worked as Community Programs Coordinator at the High Park Nature Centre in Toronto and as Program Manager at The Guelph Outdoor School.

Julie is very thankful to live on Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant and Between the Lakes Treaty 3 land, the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit, land which has been and continues to be stewarded by the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabeg. She is committed to Truth and Reconciliation, learning Indigenous history and languages, honouring Indigenous Knowledge, and building reciprocal relationships.

Please visit the session descriptions section below for details about the sessions Julie will be facilitating.

SCHEDULE

The Sample Schedule below shows an example of what the Retreat schedule could look like. The exact Retreat schedule is currently being confirmed and will be shared soon. Participants will have a chance to build their own customized, spacious schedule before the Retreat weekend by choosing which morning and afternoon sessions they would like to participate in each day.

One optional add on will be a massage, which participants will have the opportunity to book directly with an on-site massage therapist for an additional fee.

SESSION DESCRIPTIONS

All sessions will be optional but we encourage all educators to participate in the whole group sessions.

A reminder that participants will have a chance to build their own customized, spacious schedule before the Retreat weekend by choosing which morning and afternoon sessions they would like to participate in each day. One additional optional add on will be a massage, which would be booked directly with an on-site massage therapist for an additional fee.

Group Meditation & Gratitude (whole group)

Each morning we will gather in a circle outside, where we will be led through a relaxing guided meditation before being invited to share our daily gratitude with each other.

All My Relations with Carolynne (Saturday morning and afternoon)

Carolynne will share her experiences and learnings from the land along with common threads of Indigenous perspectives around the Earth that have guided her to build responsible and reciprocal relations with the lands, waters, and all beings since a young child. She will create opportunities for reflection by breaking down colonial and capitalistic ways of thinking that can disconnect people from the Earth. She will offer guided sensory experiences to tune in and connect deeper with all of the beings.

Forest Therapy and Wellness for Body, Mind & Spirit with Carolynne (Sunday morning)

Carolynne will guide a Forest Therapy session and share Indigenous perspectives to support participants to slow down and to connect with All Beings using all of their senses. Carolynne will share the importance of self care and coping strategies that support educators’ wellbeing as people recover and continue to experience challenging times of the impacts of the global pandemic, climate crises, and injustices. Carolynne will share about western science, holistic nutrition, and the practice of forest therapy/bathing all to destress and to support one’s immune system and overall well-being. This will be an interactive session with guided sensory experiences.

Yoga As Sleep Hygiene with Shehla (Friday evening)

Shehla will lead a short evening routine with guided relaxation/Yoga Nidra to support deep healing sleep.

Morning Flow with Shehla (Saturday and Sunday morning)

This 30 minute morning practice for energizing the body and optimizing Prana/vital Energy will include an accessible and classical morning flow from yoga tradition: the Sun salutation, a practice to honour the light of heart mind and wisdom in all beings. This session will include a short spinal warm-up, breath work with even ratio, and slow mindful practice of classical sun salutations with modifications using chairs and variations for deepening an understanding of eastern traditional yoga.

Self Care and Self Compassion with Yoga and Mindfulness with Shehla (Saturday morning and afternoon)

The intention for this session is to downgrade the nervous system, using floor based postures and a self massage therapy ball to release deep connective tissue, allowing oneself to feel tenderness in the body and mind, and taking time to deepen breath organically by cultivating the connection with Mother Earth. Participants will be invited to build a short practice routine for self care using long held hip release poses and melting tension from the upper back, along with establishing breath work
as a self compassion practice.

Mindful Movements and 5 Element Practice with Shehla (Sunday morning)

Classical yoga recognizes 5 Elements as part of the building blocks in the cosmos within and around us: Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space. This session is designed to ignite Fire in the belly, wake up the fluidity of Water in the spine and the flow of emotions, open a sense of freshness in the heart as Air, and connect with Space manifesting as spirituality, all supported by the gross Earth element within oneself and all around, with all elements grounded in the beauty of tall trees, shimmering lakes and the fresh breeze. This practice consists of mindful movements, breath work, static poses for contemplation and grounding the senses and includes practices from the yoga tradition and a reflection on cultivating a micropractice inspired by the 5 elements.

Mindful Nature with Julie (Saturday morning and afternoon)

In this session, you will be invited to slow down, breathe slowly and open up all of your senses to nature. Julie will invite participants to explore the natural world with heightened awareness and observation, sharing curiosities about what we discover, in an effort to foster a deeper relationship with nature and enhance our sense of relaxation, joy and interconnectedness. We will also share our wonder, questions, knowledge about and experience with the beings we encounter during our wander, such as animals, plants, fungi and more.

Bird Language with Julie (Sunday morning)

Lifelong birder Julie will share her love of birds, along with the many ways we can enjoy getting to know our feathered neighbours and kin in a deeper way. Educators will learn how to expand their awareness to include the world of birds and tune into bird language, as well as how this awareness can enhance our overall well-being. Julie will share her knowledge of birdsong, behaviour and interconnections to all other beings- and invite other educators to share their knowledge too- as they go on a birding walk together. Note: binoculars are not required for this session but you’re welcome to bring some if you’d like to!

Educator Wellness Strategies and Intention-setting (whole group)

This session will invite educators to assess the current levels of stress they are experiencing in their lives and teaching practices, along with reflect on how they respond to stress and the strategies they already utilize to support their wellness. Educators will then be invited to explore what new wellness practices they might want to try, before setting intentions for integrating nature connection and wellness into their daily life and teaching practice.

More session details coming soon!

REGISTRATION

Thank you for your interest in our 2025 Ontario Educator Wellness Retreat! Registration has sold out. We are blown away by the response from educators. On behalf of the team, we really wish we could accommodate everyone who wants to attend! You can sign up for the Ontario Educator Wellness Retreat waitlist. We’ll be in touch if spots become available.

We are committed to supporting educators from underserved or underrepresented communities to attend our retreats. If you face financial barriers and/or identify as Black, Indigenous, a Person Of Colour, have lived experience with a disability, are part of the 2SLGBTQ+ community or a member of another marginalized group, please feel free to reach out to info@takemeoutside.ca for the potential of a subsidized registration or to request other types of support to attend this Retreat.

For educators experiencing financial barriers, please feel free to email info@takemeoutside.ca to request a subsidy.

Cancellation Policy: Please notify us as soon as possible at info@takemeoutside.ca if you need to cancel your registration. Cancellations made at least 14 days before the date of the Retreat are fully refundable.