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Copyright ©2010 Jonathan R. Young

Second Edition Printing, January 2010
First Edition Printing, September 2008

Foreword by Richard Louv

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Coyote Photo (back cover, pages 1 & 556) donated by Mark Harlow (www.markjharlow.com)
Copyright © Kristi Dranginis Photography, www.kristidranginis.com: Photo Contribution: Page No’s: xx,
xxxiv, 20, 65, 77, 78, 122-123, 169, 223, 224, 227, 285, 290, 345, 359, 417, 475

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval
system without permission in writing from the publisher. Making copies of any part of this book for any
purpose other than your own personal use is in violation of United States copyright laws.

OWLink Media formed to help Our World Learn (OWL) through all forms of media, broadcasting and pub-
lishing utilizing successful techniques gained from the Art of Mentoring. If you are interested in finding
out more about OWLink Media, visit www.OwlinkMedia.com.

Wilderness Awareness School fosters understanding and appreciation of nature, community, and self. The
School is a division of The Awareness Society, a Nonprofit Corporation recognized as a Federal Tax Exempt
organization under I.R.S. code section 501(c)(3). If you are interested in finding out more about Wilderness
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P U B L I S H E D M AT E R I A L :
Abram, David. Excerpt from The Spell of the Sensuous: Perception and Language in a More-than-Human
World. Pantheon Books, Random House, Inc. (1996)
Cohen, Michael. Excerpt from Reconnecting with Nature. EcoPress. (2007)
Cornell, Joseph. Excerpt from Sharing Nature with Children Volume 2 and Sharing Nature with Children, 20th
Anniversary Edition. Dawn Publications. (1989, 1998)
Eaton, Randall. Excerpt from From Boys to Men. OWLink Media. (2009)
Leslie, Clare Walker. Excerpt from Keeping a Nature Journal: Discover a Whole New Way of Seeing the
World Around You. Storey Publishing. (2003)
Lopez, Barry. Excerpt from Arctic Dreams. Reprinted by permission of SLL/Sterling Lord Literistic, Inc. (1986)
Lopez, Barry. Excerpt from Patriotism and The American Land. Copyright 1986 Barry Lopez. Reprinted by
permission of The Orion Society. (2002)
Louv, Richard. Excerpt from Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature - Deficit Disorder.
Houghton Mifflin, (1990)
Nachmanovitch, Stephen. Excerpt from Free Play: Improvisation in Life and Art. Penguin Putnam Inc. (1990)
Nelson, Richard K. Excerpt from The Island Within. Copyright © 1989 by Richard Nelson. Published
by Vintage Books, a division of Random House, Inc. NY, and originally by North Point Press.
Reprinted by permission of Susan Bergholz Literary Services, New York, NY and Lamy, NM.
All Rights reserved. (1989)
Olson, Sigurd. Excerpts from Open Horizons. Permission granted by Robert K. Olson on behalf of the Olson
family. University of Minnesota Press. (1998)
Philips, Mick. Caterpillar Photograph from Field and Swamp: Animals and Their Habitats. (www.dpughphoto.com)
Powell, “Ingwe” Norman. “I Revere” from Echoes of Kenya. OWLink Media. (2002) Learn to Hear Voices in the
Wind (anecdote) (1996)
Pyle, Robert Michael. Excerpt from The Thunder Tree. Houghton Mifflin Co. (1993)
Stafford, William. “Listening” copyright 1954, 1998 by the Estate of William Stafford. Reprinted from
The Way It Is: New & Selected Poems with the permission of Graywolf Press, Saint Paul, MN.
Swamp, Jake. Excerpt from The Art of Mentoring & Coyote Teaching. OWLink Media. (1997)
Weed, Tim. Coyote. (www.timweed.com) (2008)
Wilson, E.O. Excerpt from Writing Natural History, Dialogues With Authors, by Edward Lueders. Permission
granted by Copyright Clearance Center. University of Utah Press. (1989)
Young, Jon. Alarm Call Graphics from Animal Tracking Basics. Stackpole Books. (2006)

N O N  P U B L I S H E D M AT E R I A L :
Bird, Wendolyn. What does Coyote Mentoring look like when working with the 3 to 5 year old? (anecdote) (1997)
Burkett, Gail. An Imperative (anecdote) (2008)
Chilkotowsky, John. Who You Are Being? (anecdote) (2006)
Cleveland, Richard. What am I Missing? (anecdote) (2006)
Collins, Arianna Alexsandra. A-Buzzing We Will Go, Promise of the Acorn and Song Writing (anecdote) (2003)
Doran, Sol. Welcoming Song (2006)
Dranginis, Kristi. www.kristidranginis.com Photo Contribution: Page No’s: xx, xxxiv, 20, 65, 77, 78, 122-123,
169, 223, 224, 227, 285, 290, 345, 359, 417, 475
Eaton, Randall. Team Sailing (anecdote) (2007)
Forthoffer, David. Brain Patterning and Fifty-Fifty Principle (anecdote) (2007)
Grindrod, Frank. Amphibian Etiquette and A Frog Stalking Challenge (anecdote) (2007)
Kiselyk, Dale. Plant ID Lesson from Kamana journals. (2004)
Moskowitz, David. www.davidmoskowitz.net Photo Contribution Page No. 288-289
Stonefelt, Julie. Photo Contribution: Page No. 109
Thompson, Patricia. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Professional Field Report (anecdote) (2002)

CHILDREN’S CONTR IBUTIONS:

Davidoff, Addy. The Song of Nature (poem) (2002)
Helmann, Sierra. This Tree (poem) (2007)
Ross, Kim. Dabo’s Story — written by Evan McGown (anecdote) (2007)
 D E D I C AT E D TO

Tom Brown Jr., Jon Young’s Mentor

and
Ingwe, Our Beloved Grandfather
To mentors, teachers, parents, counselors and other kinds of guides
who work with kids of all ages, from one to a hundred:

This book is split into two main parts, each complementing the other.

Part One, the Mentor’s Manual, reveals through stories and discussion
the principles of Coyote Mentoring. These are “layers” of learning and
human development that underlie all practice, often invisible to partici-
pants, but alive in the awareness of a mentor.

Part Two of this book, the Activity Guide, is an offering of games and
other exercises that show how these “layers” of learning actually get
implemented into practice—without participants even realizing it.

The trick is to interweave underlying principles (Part One) with prac-

tice (Part Two). The whole book is color-coded for this purpose, linking
the principles embedded within each activity to their explanations in
the Mentor’s Manual. The color-coding goes like this:

Core Routines = Blue

Child Passions = Yellow
Book of Nature = Green
y

Natural Cycle = Purple

Indicators of Awareness = Red

Activity Guide = Brown/Beige

The Foreword by Richard Louv and our Introductions provide back-
ground information on the emergent movement of regenerative, nature-
based education. Read these if this bigger picture interests you.

After that, we suggest reading through the Mentor’s Manual. If any

one part seems too technical, just skip it for now.

Once you are familiar with the basic concepts from the Mentor’s
Manual, the Activity Guide (and perhaps any other book of activi-
ties) becomes an open tool-box—or a collection of basic recipes—fully
accessible for your own practice, experimentation and adaptation.

We don’t intend to simply provide more “recipes” for nature connec-

tion—instead, we want to help you learn how to cook. Treat this book
like a Field Guide, using the Index and the color-coded pages to flip
back and forth between principles and practice, theory and action,
study and play—as they inform and strengthen each other over time.

At the end of the book you’ll find resources that will enrich your prin-
ciples and practice even further.

The Epilogue written by Jon Young, looks at the role of Coyote

Mentoring within the big picture of societal change and regenera-
tive human living. Suggested Reading provides a long list of selected
resources, many of them regionally based. Affiliated Programs shows
organizations across the US, Canada, and the world, where these prin-
ciples are being applied. An Index helps you locate key concepts and
cross references.

Our most important advice for using this book—have fun!

Keep a look out for Coyote…and let your curiosity lead the way.
CONTENTS

Giving Thanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xiv

Foreword - by Richard Louv . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xxi
Introduction - Who are You? – by Ellen Haas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xxiv
Introduction - Who are We? – by Jon Young . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxvii
About the Authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xxxiv

Chapter 1: Coyote as our Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

COR E ROU T I N E S
Chapter 2: Shifting Routines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Chapter 3: Core Routines of Nature Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Sit Spot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Story of the Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Expanding Our Senses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Questioning and Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Animal Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Wandering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Mapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Exploring Field Guides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
 Journaling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Survival Living . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Mind’s Eye Imagining. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Listening for Bird Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Thanksgiving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

C H I LD PAS SION S
Chapter 4: Child Passions as Mentoring Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Tapping into Child Passions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
What about You? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Playing Games: The Adrenaline Secret . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Kid Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Imitating and Role Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Chapter 5: Questioning and Answering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

The Art of Questioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Three Levels of Questioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Three Mentoring Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Chapter 6: Storytelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Storytelling to Capture Imaginations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
A Guide for Telling Stories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Chapter 7: Music-Making. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Music at the Heart of Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Making Music as a Mentoring Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

BO OK OF NAT U R E
Chapter 8: The Book of Nature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Hazards: A Call to be Alert and to Use Common Sense . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Motivating Species: Things to Catch, Eat, Climb, and Tend . . . . . . . . 136
Mammals: and Other Hard to See, Yet Totally Track-able Critters . 141
Plants: Nature’s Grocery Store and Medicine Cabinet . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Ecological Indicators: How it All Works Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Heritage Species: Wisdom of the Ancestors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Trees: Tools of Human Survival. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Birds: Messengers of the Wilderness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
T H E NAT U R A L C YC LE
Chapter 9: Orienting to the Natural Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
The Natural Cycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
EAST: Excitement and Inspiration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
SOUTHEAST: Orientation and Motivation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
SOUTH: Focus and Perspiration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
SOUTHWEST: Relaxation and Internalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
WEST: Harvest and Celebration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
NORTHWEST: Release and Reflection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
NORTH: Distillation and Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
NORTHEAST: End and Beginning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

Chapter 10: The Natural Cycle of Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

Orientation for Flow Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Designing the Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
The Tracking Club Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Representative Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Shifting Direction: Adaptation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Profiling the Learning Journey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
Orientation for Larger Groups and Complex Programs. . . . . . . . . . . . 245

I N DICATOR S OF AWA R EN E S S
Chapter 11: Indicators of Awareness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Radical Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
EAST: Common Sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
SOUTHEAST: Aliveness and Agility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
SOUTH: Inquisitive Focus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
SOUTHWEST: Caring and Tending . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
WEST: Service to the Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
NORTHWEST: Awe and Reverence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
NORTH: Self-Sufficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
NORTHEAST: Quiet Mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Wrapping the Bundle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281

Chapter 12: Wrapping the Bundle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Introducing Core Routines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
Sit Spot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Story of the Day: Sharing Circle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
Expanding our Senses: Animal Senses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
Questioning and Tracking: The Six Arts of Tracking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
Animal Forms: Fox-Walking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
Wandering: Body Radar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Mapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Exploring Field Guides: Field Guide Treasure Hunt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Journaling: From the Ground Up. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Survival Living: Survival Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
Mind’s Eye Imagining: Talbott’s Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334
Listening for Bird Language: Bird Language Skits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
Thanksgiving: Circle of Thanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

Setting Up the Learning Culture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347

Nature Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Nature Museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351
Animal Calls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
Four-Directions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
Eagle Eye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358
Firekeeper. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362

Sensory Awareness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367

Blindfold Drum Stalk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
Nutty Squirrels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
The Wildlife is Watching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
Head Honcho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376
Bird Language Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378
Silent Stalker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380

Animal Form Games. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385

Otter Steals Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386
Run Rabbit Run! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
Cougar Stalks Deer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
Fire in the Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394
 Predator-Prey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397
Deer-Bounding Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399
Sleeping Fawn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
Animal Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406
Stick-Drag Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
Tracking Expedition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412
100 Tracks in a Row . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416
Track Journaling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 420
Camera Stalk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425

Plants and Wandering Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Plant Concentration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432
Eating Wild Edibles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436
Meeting Poisonous Plants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439
Songline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442
Get Lost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446
The Lost Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 448

Trees and Survival Skills. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453

Survival Priorities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 454
Meet-A-Tree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 456
Tree Tag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459
Shelter Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
Five-Minute Fire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465

Community and Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469

Blindfold Caterpillar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470
Group Secret Spot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472
Wildlife Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475
Exploration Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478
Capture the Flag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482
Ideal Ecological Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484
Epilogue: Coyote In Context by Jon Young . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489

Affiliate Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 499

Suggested Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525

Guides to Nature Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525
Field Guides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527
Guide Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 528
Natural History & Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530
Nature Writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 533
Multimedia Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 539

How to Connect with Wilderness Awareness School & OWLink Media . 555
 Many hands and hearts have touched this book. To name them
all, we must cast a wide net. We want to start with grateful
acknowledgment to everyone who has, over time and place,
contributed to the creation of Coyote’s Guide; that would
include every star or dewy blade of grass who ever winked or
wagged at us.

We send thanksgiving to the Elders who have given their sacred

guidance to our schools and The Art of Mentoring community:

Tom Brown, Jr., (who was mentored by Stalking Wolf in the

way of the Coyote, and is Jon’s mentor), for his commitment to
sharing the vision that underlies these teachings.

Norman “Ingwe” Powell & Elizabeth, Ingwe is the

Grandfather and co-founder of Wilderness Awareness School,
and gave us hope and stories.

Jake & Judy Swamp, Jake is former sub-chief of the Wolf

Clan of the Mohawk Nation. He gave us our Central Fire,
Peacemaking Principles, and the Thanksgiving Address.

Gilbert Walking Bull &Diane Marie, Gilbert was a tradition-

ally raised Lakota Sacred Man from North Dakota. He gave
us the Seven Sacred Symptoms and many good traditions.

Paul Raphael, a Peacemaker of the Grand Traverse Band of

the Odawa Nation. He warmed our sacred fires and helped
us understand how to heal grief, and how to take on the roles
of Elders.

We send thanksgiving to those who sparked and fed the fire to pro-
duce Coyote’s Guide:

Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods, who so gra-

ciously wrote our Foreword, for valiantly leading the “No Child
Left Inside” movement and the Children and Nature Network.

xiv |
Karen Dvornich, of the University of Washington’s
NatureMapping Program, and Margaret Tudor, of the Pacific
Education Institute, who passionately wanted this book for
schools and their kids.

Warren Moon, Executive Director of Wilderness Awareness

School, thank you for your depth of soul and clarity of mind,
and for your continual support.

Mark Smythe, Past Board Chairman; John Chilkotowsky,

Program Director; and Dan Rain, Outreach Director, of
Wilderness Awareness School, thank you for mentoring us
through all the stages. Chris Laliberte, Tony & Margaret
Laliberte, thank you for providing the framework.

We send thanks to our long-term moral supporters, the people who

have kept badgering and believing in this book for
years, most especially:

John Gallagher, most beloved, who has scouted us into pro-

duction for two decades.

Frank Grindrod, of Massachusetts, whose EarthWork

Programs exemplify this teaching.

Dale Kiselyk, of Alberta, who lives this teaching.

Daniel Kirchhof of Montana, whose pure spirit over lights

this work.

Amy Marchegiani, who helped us see it in the beginning.

Rees Maxwell, who dreamed it with his heart and soul.

Giving Thanks | xv
 We thank those who have moved the book from draft to production
through OWLink Media:

Deb Winters, Project Manager, thanks for diving in with a

powerfully peaceful mind and steady common sense, to get the
job done.

Mariko Schmidtauer, thanks for brightly coaxing a network

of Affiliates into naming themselves.

DixieLynn Gleason and Arianna Husband, thanks for

your persistence in obtaining permissions for copyrighted
quotations.

Josh Lane and Caitlin Williams, thanks for jumping in when

needed.

Kiliii Yu, of Question Oxygen Design, thank you for your con-
tinued support.

Randall Eaton, for navigating our team through this 2nd

Edition and providing critical feedback.

Mark J. Harlow, whose extraordinary photographic artwork

is a testimony to his ethics, his skill and his presence.

theBookDesigners team and Kit Cooley of Dream Lizard

Creations, for bringing a new level of sophistication to
Coyote’s Guide.

To the many people who helped at various points to add their

talents and bright minds, and their important critical feed-
back, including but certainly not limited to: Nicole Young,
Mark Morey, James Stark, Penny Livingston-Stark,
Nathan Meffert, Tony Deis, Kirsten Segler, Miki Dedijer,
and Alan Brisley. And to all the people that we mentor and
work with who looked this over and gave feedback.

xvi |
We greatly appreciate our many editors, knowing the time and
mental focus you gave to reviewing and revising words:

Gail Burkett, for encouragement and elegant editing of the

complete manuscript.

Nate Summers, for writing the first and last activities and
managing completion of the Activities section.

Daniel Evans, for waiting impatiently and writing many activ-

ities and stories.

Dan Gardoqui, for completing the Book of Nature chapter

and beginning the bibliography.

John Chilkotowsky, Amara Oden, and Dan Rain for editing

everything several times.

To the individual chapter editors who volunteered their insight dur-

ing winter holidays and beyond:

Wes Geitz, Margaret Alvarez, Louis Berner,

Jane Bernstein, Peter Bettman-Kerson, Dan Corcoran,
Sol Doran, David Forthoffer, Emily Gibson,
Frank Grindrod, Laura Gunion, Pam Hawes,
Corrie Hayes Stuck, Susie Hillman, Arianna Husband,
Lindsay Huettman, Mark Jordahl, Angie Jordan,
Dale Kiselyk, Jason Knight, Chris Laliberte,
Kimberly Leeper, Francine Leiphard, Pam Leiter,
Kylie Loynd, Rees Maxwell, Tony Moon,
Dave Moskowitz, Karen Dvornich, Melissa Mueller,
Todd Peterson, Mike Prince, Barbara Russell, Liz Sinclair,
Connor Stedman, Alexia Stevens, Glendora Trescher,
Lorene Wapotich, Kim Wilkinson, and Dave Wilson.

Giving Thanks | xvii

 We thank our photo contributors:

Mark Harlow, David Moskowitz, Kristi Dranginis,

Emily Gibson, Linda Bittle, Laurie Nelson, Alexander,
Kiliii Yu, Frank Grindrod, DeAnna Dailey, Filip Tkaczyk,
John Chilkotowsky, Dan Rain, Julie Stonefelt and the
Wilderness Awareness School staff.

Finally, we three authors send our personal thanksgiving:

Jon Young –
To my mentor, Tom Brown, Jr., whose commitment to Coyote’s
path, and ultimately to me, caused this book to exist and this
movement to happen. Can we ever thank Tom enough?

To Ingwe and Gilbert Walking Bull, beloved elders who have

traveled to the other side—and who gave so much to this move-
ment. To Paul Raphael for helping us tighten our Cultural
Mentoring strings, to Jake & Judy Swamp and the Tree of
Peace Society for helping us learn how to build a foundation.
To my Hawaiian Ohana who share so much with us about
love and healing.

To my parents for supporting a naturalist in the modern days.

To my family elders, Grandmother Nanny Cecil and Great
Aunt Carrie, who held my hand when I was a toddler and just
let me listen to the birds, and hear the sounds of the gentle
waves of the bay on the shore, encouraged me to catch things
and bring them home and care for them with love. To my wife
Nicole and all my children, thanks for loving, supporting and
believing in me too! To all the committed folks who dared to
set down an anchor in their communities.

xviii |
Evan McGown –
To my family: Joe & Henrietta Foster for their financial sup-
port and belief in me, Hewitt & Jane McGown for their musi-
cal selves, Great Grandma B.B. for opening nature’s doors to
me, and my mother & father, Jane & Jim McGown for their
unwavering love and support. My brother Todd for inspiring
me to search out my own path.

To my many mentors, who collectively embody Coyote:

Terry Nestor, Dorothy Granham, Sally Krisel, Harry
Sims, Marianne Causey, Peggy Lowry, Chris Mason, Kirk
Duncan, Steve Brooks, Tony Rucker, Carl Lindberg, Whit
Browne, Tim Smalley, Chris Laliberte, Jason Knight,
Angie Jordan, John Chilkotowsky, Warren Moon, Walt
Hoesel, Sol Doran, all my friends and teachers at Wilderness
Awareness School and Power of Hope, Soasis Sukuweh,
Michael Meade, Allison Holmes, William Stafford, Victor
Wooten, and most especially Ellen Haas and Jon Young for
hooking me with that old Art of Mentoring tape cassette and
for believing in my abilities as a writer.

To the children I’ve been blessed to work with in Seattle, Duvall,

Vashon Island, and elsewhere, whose stories run throughout
this book. You have truly been my teachers. To the owls. To all
that have touched and supported me, thank you.

Ellen Haas –
To all the passionate people I’ve encountered over the many years
of writing this book, you have called it into being. By telling your
stories of what you are trying to do, who you teach, and what you
need, you’ve kept up the breath of inspiration and given shape to
the book. Thank you for your daily brave gestures on behalf of the
earth and our children. Together, it is you who turn the tide.

To my beloved co-authors, thank you Jon Young for your uplift-

ing spirit, and love you Evan McGown for the sweet earthy voice
of this book.

Giving Thanks | xix

 To my mother, Glendora Trescher, who let me loose to trust
nature: how blessed I am to be under your wing. Thank you
for your continuous moral, spiritual, and financial support of
this project. To my son Will, my joy in life, to my caretaking
sister, Tory Agnich, and to Susie & Matt Hillman and my
grandchildren, Jonah and Audrey, deep thanks for your life
support throughout these writing years.

To everyone in the Wilderness Awareness School community,

you are my mentors, my role-models, and my family. Thanks for
surrounding me with love, patience, and encouragement.

Left to Right: Jon Young, Ellen Haas, Evan McGown, Deb Winters & Gail Burkett

xx |
Not long ago, the director of a school camp told me about a
sixth-grader who attended his camp who had seldom if ever by Richard Louv
walked on uneven ground. “He spent all of his time in front
of his computer, or doing homework, or playing video games. Author of Last Child in the Woods:
He was literally unstable on his feet when he left the sidewalk, Saving Our Children from Nature-
Deficit Disorder and chairman of
and frightened,” the camp director said. “It took him a while the Children & Nature Network
to get used to the trails, but after a while he was running and (www.cnaturenet.org)
playing—he came fully alive.”

That was an extreme example of what I documented in Last

Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit
Disorder, published in 2005.

The broad—even international—interest in Last Child came

as a surprise to me, but in retrospect it probably shouldn’t have.
Many dedicated people, including the hard-working folks at
Wilderness Awareness School and its many affiliates, have been
reconnecting children to the natural world for a long while. My
book amplified these voices, documented the scientific research
and offered possible solutions—and hope—at a moment when
a lot of people knew something was seriously wrong with the
nature connection but couldn’t define what that something
was. They did know they wanted to help make things better
for their children. Thanks to the creators of Coyote’s Guide to
Connecting with Nature, kids of all ages and their mentors now
have a powerful set of tools to help them with their task.

No question about it: We need to restore the broken bond

between children and nature. The status quo isn’t working,
despite the best intentions of parents, teachers and others
who devote time and energy to help children succeed in life.
We see the evidence of this break in many ways: decreasing
use of National Parks, falling enrollment in undergradu-
ate college conservation programs, and plummeting sales of
entry-level outdoor equipment. Even bike riding and Little
League teams, one-time benchmarks of an active childhood,
are losing their appeal to youngsters. Not coincidentally, obe-
sity in children is at an all-time high, along with associated

Foreword | xxi
 increases in diabetes and other health problems, including
attention-deficit disorders.

Organized activities aside, unstructured time to just mess

around outdoors—free play—seems to be in free-fall, despite a
clinical report released not long ago by The American Academy
of Pediatrics stating that play, especially free play, is “essential
to development, as it contributes to the cognitive, physical,
social, and emotional well-being of children and youth.” Other
recent research links children’s and adults’ physical and mental
health, as well as cognitive functioning and creativity, directly
to experiences in nature. It’s not much of a leap to say that a cre-
ative and intelligent individual holds the keys to a high-quality
life. And, too, there are planetary emergencies to be dealt with.
We certainly need young people with all of their available brain
neurons firing to help solve these problems. Wildlife reserves,
parks and greenbelts—and the creatures and plants that live
within—also depend on an alert and caring political constitu-
ency—informed people—for their continued survival.

Jon Young’s Art of Mentoring and Coyote Teaching approach

puts into print what this network of teachers has transmitted
orally for the last 25 years.

In nature, life seems to explode at the cusp of forest and

meadow, or ocean and beach. At the verge, Coyote Teaching is
similarly energetic with the possibility of discovery.

As Coyote’s authors write: “The real-life coyotes lurk on the

edge of the human village, always just beyond sight or reach.
They keep a close and wary eye on danger and opportunity
in all directions. That’s how they hunt; that’s how they live.
Coyote’s edge-walk is a perfect metaphor for nature educators
to use as a guide…”

xxii |
Coyote’s Guide entices us off the familiar path—off the side- Nature-deficit disorder describes
the human costs of alienation
walk and onto uneven ground—and encourages us to experi- from nature … but deficit is only
ment with creative approaches to reintroduce children to one side of the coin. We can also
become more aware of how blessed
nature. The spirit of Coyote goads teachers to have “a true our children can be—biologically,
sense of play and abandon…and leads us to connect in an cognitively and spiritually—
intimate and meaningful way” with nature, and with our through positive physical connec-
tion to nature.
natural selves.
R L, Last Child in the
Woods: Saving Our Children from
This teaching “is a radical approach that uses no textbooks Nature-Deficit Disorder
or tests, but simply starts at the roots of nature education by
engaging people in direct experience with the plants and ani-
mals just beyond the edge of their back yards.”

By learning to think like Coyote the Trickster, mentors are

inspired to drop the know-it-all mentality and see nature
with fresh eyes. Here is where story and play merge with fact
and science. This is not the interactive learning of yesterday,
but a guide to the Invisible School, which teaches knowing
in a deep way.

Because the methods suggested in this book have been field-

tested for decades—in truth, for thousands of years—this
guide should become an essential resource for mentors, teach-
ers, parents, and outdoor educators—anyone who wants to
revive their sense of kinship with nature but needs some help.

This is good medicine for nature-deficit disorder.

Foreword | xxiii
 No Child Left Inside
by Ellen Haas Coyote’s Guide finally puts into print our extended community’s
long story of connecting people with nature. Thanks to a climate
change in environmental education that is now calling for “No
Child Left Inside,” the time is ripe for writing down our oral tra-
dition. This Mentor’s Manual and Activities Guide offers vital
and effective ways to restore the bond between people and the
rest of nature. It sets fresh standards for environmental literacy
that engages body, mind, and spirit with the natural world.

I first met the pioneers of Wilderness Awareness School when

they came west from New Jersey to Washington in 1994, a
bunch of barefoot trackers with a haywire organization and a
worldwide vision. They were led by a skinny fellow with bright
eyes and body language that brought to life whatever plant or
A long, long time ago, maybe two animal he was imagining as he told its story. As a veteran high
hundred thousand years ago, and
in a few places still today, the native
school English teacher, a recent author of a book about build-
people who lived off their land ing a school from the ground up, and an active environmen-
schooled their children, but they tal organizer, I saw in a blink that these folks were hatching
did it invisibly. Our ancestors’
children didn’t go to school. School something vibrant and important. They had the answer to our
surrounded them. Nature was a culture’s educational and environmental woes.
living teacher. There were many
relatives for every child and every
relative was a mentor. Stories filled It was called “nature awareness” and was really as simple as that:
the air and ceremonies of gratitude Go outside and stop-look-and-listen. But Coyote Mentoring
filled mundane lives.
was an edgy approach to developing “the naturalist intelli-
Wouldn’t it brighten our horizons to gence.” It was so different in attitude, in pacing, in depth, in
see more of this kind of teaching in
our suburbs and cities today?
quality, and in sparkle-in-the-eye, from traditional approaches
that it required no small degree of craziness to take it seriously
E H, The Art of Mentoring as “educational method.”
and Coyote Teaching audiotape
with Jon Young, 1995
Who are You?
Fifteen years later, this book takes it seriously. Until now,
Wilderness Awareness School and its affiliates have passed
on teachings about The Art of Mentoring and Coyote Teaching
only through experiential workshops. Yet, from my desk at the
center of the school’s office, I keep hearing the insistent pleas
of countless amazing mentors out there who aren’t able to get

xxiv |
here for a program, have students just waiting to get started,
and want our blueprint for design and construction of a pro-
found learning experience.

Your cries for help have called out Coyote’s Guide.

Your stories are wonderful:

You’ve started a weekend year-round program for families in

Massachusetts.
You lead an after-school outdoor club of teens in Indiana.
You run a summer canoeing camp in Alberta.
You’re networking trackers from the Netherlands to Romania.
You coordinate rites-of-passage journeys for adults in New
Mexico.
You’re a wildlife biologist educating your public.
You’re a team of teachers Nature-Mapping your region.
You’re facilitating a permaculture community.
You’re honing your nature skills on your own.
You mentor your grandchildren who want to play outside.
You homeschool your kids who love nature.
You’re an environmental education graduate looking for a job
that uses your gifts and fulfils your calling.

Bottom line, you feel deeply the value of direct experience with
nature in your own life and want to transmit it to others. Some
of you were fortunate to grow up free to roam and hunt and
fish and build tree houses in the wild places near your home
with parents and mentors who encouraged you—and you want
to pass on the tradition. More of you are members of the first
generation that didn’t have that privilege and you want to res-
urrect the tradition.

Parents, teachers, counselors, guides, and mentors, all who

find this book in your hand, Jon, Evan, and I have written it
for you. We want you to be confident that Coyote’s Guide can
be adapted to work wherever you are, in situations as diverse
as we can imagine.

Who Are You? | xxv

 Translating an Oral Tradition
Translating our oral tradition has challenged the writing team
(which includes many co-conspirators and contributors) to
scale it down, widen it out, and then distil it down again, until
we’ve come to the bright life and voice and shape of this book.

Last summer we went to a workshop with Joseph Cornell, author

of the classic, Sharing the Joy of Nature with Children, and we
asked his advice for our book. He said “Remember your reader
and keep it very simple. Go to the universal principles.”

Now Chil the Kite brings This large book tries to capture our universal principles in
home the night
That Mang the Bat sets free –
printed words with a magical voice and a bundle of stories.
The herds are shut in byre and hut Through living in the landscape, questioning, storytelling,
For loosed till dawn are we. adventuring, and inquiring, mythical Coyote inspires the
This is the hour of pride and power,
Talon and tush and claw. learners. Through wise and specific limit-setting, guidance,
Oh, hear the call! – Good hunting all and counsel, Mentor steers the raft.
That keep the Jungle Law!

R K , As Mowgli says in the Jungle Book, “Good hunting to you” as
“Night-Song in the Jungle” you absorb these principles and put these activities into prac-
The Jungle Books
tice. At our core, we all want to restore a culture of people who
live what Aldo Leopold named “the land ethic,” “a tendency to
preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic com-
munity.” Without politics or dogma, we want people to learn
from Mother Nature that childlike wisdom about where they
fit, how resilient life is, and how they can help.

We hope these materials will help our modern culture bring

back the children’s trails that used to line the fences and fields
and cut across the neighborhood woods. We can’t go in there as
adults and clear the old trails but we can invite kids of all ages
to wander back and bushwhack their own.

xxvi |
Coyote Mentoring—An Ancient Lineage
This book reveals the ancient way of passing on, from one gen- by Jon Young
eration to the next, knowledge of and connection to nature. As
our great legacy, these hunter-gatherer ways come to us from
all over the world and reflect the oldest ways of being, learn-
ing, and connecting with nature. I am glad to say this cultural
treasure of Coyote Mentoring thrives today at the heart of a
vibrant educational movement spreading through learning
communities and wilderness schools across continents.

At its very best, Coyote Mentoring helps individuals realize

their full potential to the benefit of their community. It consists
of a powerful set of tools for coaxing out of individuals what
nature has provided and stored away. The mentoring draws
people gently to the edge of their knowledge and experience,
and guides them into new territory. This repeats through a
cyclical pattern of visits, explorations, and relationship-build-
ing that allows for real connection to occur in its own organic
way. In previous centuries, this connection happened naturally
as families in a community depended on natural resources and
the ingenuity to know when, where, and how to hunt, trap,
fish, and gather what they needed, while they cared for the
natural world at the same time.

In our modern life, Coyote Mentoring emulates the goals of

our ancestors: With very specific patterns or repetitions, we
help people re-connect their sensory systems, rational pro-
cesses, and imagination to the world around them. Each
individual’s family history and experience require an equally
unique strategy by the Coyote Mentor. Perhaps it is still about
survival—this time for a different reason. Maybe it is about
human beings reclaiming their love of the creation to better
tend nature’s precious resources for our future generations. To
get us there, we all need the most fundamental building blocks
of nature connection.

Who Are We? | xxvii

 The Challenges of Coyote Mentoring
Mentoring helps people grow more fully into their gifts.
Whether it’s sports, music, business, or nature connection, as
a mentor, our first strategy focuses on what’s happening with
the other person. It is not about dwelling on our own expecta-
tions and agendas. We need to be fully present for those we
mentor in the moment. We look for signs of comprehension
and opportunities to guide their next steps. We help by ask-
ing them questions that will nurture self-sufficiency. In time,
mentoring uncovers the gifts of creativity and power that lie
within each individual.

Initially, each Coyote Mentor will be challenged by old

habits and expectations built up over years on their own
learning experiences. However, Coyote Mentoring, a highly
personalized journey that emphasizes sensory awareness
and curiosity depends on spontaneity and improvisation.
Consider the power of nature connection on our develop-
ment as humans. In ancient lore, Coyote helps people trans-
form through ingenuity, cleverness, and sometimes trickery.
Coyote represents someone who lives on the edge of a wild
landscape. To fully connect to nature in the most powerful
way, all sensory systems must be engaged and developed,
and pattern recognition must be infused with both imagi-
nation and rational processes. Coyote’s power of nature
connection and transformation is critical to motivate this
Coyote Mentoring journey.

With the broad, rich palette of nature connection, the Coyote

Mentor needs no agenda to guide a person through patterns
of seasonal realities, natural inhabitants, and tracking with all
the senses. To gauge development, the Coyote Mentor looks
for qualities of awareness, enthusiasm, health, and vitality,
rather than measuring a skill, or testing for information stor-
age ability. We know people learn what they need to learn,
in their own time. How can we set a time limit on building
relationships through all our senses with trees, birds, grasses,
herbs, insects, lizards, creeks, wind, and mammals? We need

xxviii |
to give these relationships the unstructured time they need
to develop—it’s an organic, unfolding process; the result is
authentic nature connection.

How It Works
When a person I am working with comes in from the field—
most often they have been there without me—I begin to ask
questions. I want to know where they were and what they
saw. How they answer and what they say is both a diagnostic
for me as the mentor, and a way for them to learn more deeply.
Their story is as important to their learning as their field
experiences. I watch and I listen carefully for cues that tell me
what got them really excited and curious, what made them
most uncomfortable, and what really has them stumped. By
simply listening to their story in a gentle way, asking ques-
tions, and finding the blank spots in their memory, they real-
ize what their awareness missed. If they noticed no birds on
a warm, spring morning in a diverse forest environment, I
want to know why they didn’t hear them. If they noticed one
kind of bird, such as a jay or crow (loud and obvious), and no
others, I will ask them about the sparrows and thrushes that I
know were there. Tomorrow, when that individual returns to
the field, he or she will want to pay much closer attention.

Experience has taught me that Coyote Mentoring, working on

so many levels, is by far the most effective learning and heal-
ing journey I have yet to encounter. I have seen people fully
connect to the birds of their landscape, discovering hawks,
foxes, and owls with the help of birds and other animals.
They also connect to themselves differently. Individuals who
develop authentic depth in their nature awareness, especially
through the bird language journey, will also notice they cause
waves in the world around them. They see that a song sparrow
mirrors back to them how they are being in the world. This
is significant. A natural desire to reduce those waves emerges
with such sensitivity that people begin to really look at them-
selves differently. They begin to rethink their priorities, how
they show up, and for more than just the sparrows. This leads

Who Are We? | xxix

 to deeper levels of awareness and tracking, both on the inner
and outer landscapes—it becomes a process of healing.

Tom Brown, Jr. and a Vision

for a Coyote Mentoring Culture
My induction into this lineage began in 1971 when I set out on
an eight-year learning journey with my own mentor and car-
rier of this mentoring way—Tom Brown, Jr. In his small New
Jersey neighborhood, Tom grew up next to a very large wilder-
ness area called the Pine Barrens. He was mentored there in
the Coyote tradition by an Apache elder he calls “Grandfather.”
At age 21, after he moved an hour north to my neighborhood,
where Tom met me on a street corner. His first words to me on
that day came through a question, “What have you got there?”
My answer, “A common eastern snapping turtle.” That’s how
much information I gave him in that moment. He immediately
knew I had field guides at home, I like turtles, and I was good
at catching stuff. He arrived at this understanding through the
words I spoke, the inflection of my voice, my body language,
and the clothes I wore which all told a story of a boy who played
a lot in the forest and around mud. He saw my rudimentary,
improvised tackle and read a lot from that. He continued with
more questions from that day on for the next eight years.

Tom really never gave answers. Instead he shared interesting

stories. He met me at my edges and asked amazing, inspiring
questions: One by one, day by day, I learned the names of all
the hazards, all the mammals of my region, and their track and
sign, and how to find and catch them if I wanted. He helped me
improve my fishing and hunting skills and guided me to acquire
knowledge about gathering plants for food, for medicine, and
for crafts such as cordage and baskets. He helped deepen my
appreciation for landscape, ecology, and survival in challenging
times; he strengthened my courage, creativity, and storytelling;
and ultimately he ignited a passion for learning and living.

xxx |
Ingwe and Wilderness Awareness School
As a boy growing up fishing, hunting, gathering and trapping
live animals for pets, I directly experienced many of the elements
of the village culture, but so many threads were already missing
from the whole cord. It became my life’s work to identify these
threads and weave them back into the whole, thus expanding the
lineage for the future generations to enjoy once more. My own
personal vision was and is to hold the lineage true and re-build
strong connections to nature—even stronger than my own—with
as many people in as many places as possible. I felt highly com-
mitted to understanding how this connection to nature happens,
how Coyote Mentoring works, and how to pass all this forward
to the next generation in a regenerative way to ensure this lineage
continues to grow into the future. I became convinced that con-
nection to nature could once more become commonplace, and so
I began to create the foundations for a school.

In 1984, Ingwe joined me and we formally started Wilderness

Awareness School to share the lessons learned with his
Akamba people and through building the Scouting movement
in Africa. Born M. Norman Powell in 1914 of British ances-
try, Ingwe spent his childhood running barefoot through the
plains of Kenya with the young warriors of the neighboring
Akamba tribe. Adopted into their tribe, Ingwe learned how to
live close to the Earth. He spoke their language fluently and his
heart and soul grew truly wise through his immersion experi-
ence in indigenous Cultural Mentoring—he was authentic and
powerful to the core. Ingwe fully experienced the context of
village and tribe—the grandmothers, grandfathers, uncles and
aunts—and he even had the peers. He hunted, he gathered, he
wandered the wilderness.

Together, Ingwe and I pulled together the many threads of

cultural wisdom—diverse features born of good values and
peaceful relationships. We found most exciting that the ele-
ments of mentoring were virtually identical from continent to
continent—elements of culture and wisdom overlap and reso-
nate in perfect harmony. Soon we were featured in our local

Who Are We? | xxxi

 newspaper and word spread—children of all ages gathered
around for mentoring. The home-schooling community found
us too, so we had all ages working together. Through our pro-
grams, we had, in some ways, recreated a virtual village.

The Art of Mentoring

and a Worldwide Movement
In 1995, I taught the first Art of Mentoring for adults in
Washington. Soon a team of us were teaching Art of Mentoring
all over the United States, with a few courses in Canada as well.
Working with long-time naturalists and tracking trainees, and
with Tom and Debbie Brown’s help, we piloted a leadership
training series and worked with about 100 folks from across
North America. These people took multiple Art of Mentoring
classes with Wilderness Awareness School, enrolled in the
Kamana Naturalist Training Program, and attended classes at
Tom Brown’s Tracker School.

Out of this initiative, many little projects emerged around the

world based on the Art of Mentoring model of cultural and
Coyote Mentoring. Soon, thousands and thousands of adults
and children were enjoying the power of this experience. Many
of these people are now the Affiliates you will find at the back
of this book.

Thanks to Richard Louv’s work, we are finally seeing how our

children suffer as a consequence of widespread disregard for
our biological needs and capacities. When people lose connec-
tion to nature they no longer experience or love this amazing
life system that supports us. There is a great difference between
a person who grows up without a mentor, and one who is coaxed
to tap his or her deepest resources by experiencing nature
through all the senses. If we don’t use all of what we’ve got, we
end up with a very different worldview and set of ethics than if
we are connected to nature through all our sensory capacities.
We become what our experiences provide—that’s our nature.

xxxii |
Now that Coyote Mentoring is resurging in a wide variety of
learning environments, many of us see how this lineage may
be just what we need to restore health and happiness in our
communities. This book gathers the many building blocks that
make up the foundation of Coyote Mentoring. It will help you
rediscover the power of this ancient mentoring, learning and
teaching medicine. You will find yourself in good company:
Since the early1980’s, when only a few of us knew of Coyote
Mentoring, the lineage has expanded to tens of thousands of
children and adults globally. I feel so honored and encouraged
to see these old and powerful ways applied in truly modern cir-
cumstances with tremendous results. For thousands of years,
the Coyote Mentoring lineage showed us how to nurture the
gifts of the individual in service to future generations.

We hope that Coyote’s Guide will be your gateway to this lin-

eage, whether you are new to this tradition, or you are already
on this journey. With this book in hand and some direct expe-
rience in Coyote Mentoring, you will become an important link
in the chain of restoring nature connection in yourself, your
family, your learning community, and your neighborhood.

Who Are We? | xxxiii

 Through this book, we truly celebrate our collaboration in the
important, powerful, and eternal work of Coyote Mentoring.
Early in the 1990’s when we first met, Ellen Haas began asking
me to write all this down. She worked hard with me, and with
so many others, re-iterating this amorphous mass of wisdom
until we found a form that could hold the oral tradition. This
work is largely her vision and passion; I am just a behind-the-
scenes consultant and engineer of Coyote Mentoring.

Evan McGown, a talented young instructor at Wilderness

Awareness School, stepped forward as a good storyteller ready to
interlock the complex pieces of education, culture, and relation-
ship with nature. Evan was a veteran of many Art of Mentoring
programs, and a Wilderness Awareness School Residential
Program graduate. Evan told this story from his own experience
as a naturalist, a mentor, and a musician—the perfect metaphor-
ical journey for mirroring Coyote Mentoring in nature.

I read every sentence that Evan wrote, and then worked with
a shared document on the internet to fill in areas where there
needed filling, and to adjust some voicing here and there. Ellen
edited it all through many versions, gathering feedback from a
wide circle of reviewers, wove in the logic, and filled in the gaps
from chapter to chapter.

A team of skilled Coyote Mentors from Wilderness Awareness

School wrote down all the exercises they could muster for this
work. Many of the exercises in this book were introduced in
1995 to the first summer camp staff in Washington. These
exercises come from so many places it is almost impossible to
track them all back to their source—some go back to my child-
hood with Tom Brown, others to Ingwe’s experiences with the
Akamba, many to camps all over the US.

The Epilogue, Coyote in Context was written by collaboration

as well—this time with many experienced veterans of both
Coyote and Cultural Mentoring who came to consensus on key
points to make. Then, while teaching a peace-making course

xxxiv |
in Steyerberg, Germany, a team gathered around to help with
the closing words. This included a professional writer, Kirsten
Segler, and an experienced journalist, Miki Dedijer, founder of
a Wilderness & Permaculture program in Sweden, who helped
me trim and empower the words of this chapter.

Throughout the entire writing of this book, many have read

over our shoulders, reviewed versions of the chapters, and
given generous feedback and criticism. So many, many people,
it is difficult to name them all, though in Giving Thanks, we
try! I am behind every one of the words in this book, and so are
Ellen and Evan. We are authors, writers and Coyote engineers
together. I am proud of this team, I feel joyous and tearfully
grateful for the incredible impact this vision is having on the
world. The children and nature both rejoice in the return of
this wonderful way of being.

Jon Young

About the Authors | xxxv

xxxvi |
MENTOR’S MANUAL
Written in the voice of Evan McGown
2 |
Chapter 1
COYOTE AS OUR GUIDE

Why Coyote?
In the beginning stages of writing this Coyote’s Guide,
I met with my boss at the time, Warren Moon,
Coyote, are you the trickster they say,
Executive Director of Wilderness Awareness School, Stealing the night from the day?
to discuss the title of this book. Coyote, are you the wandering sage,
Willing to show us the way?
For years our founder and co-author, Jon Young,
had been guiding workshops known as “Coyote You’re the sound of the wild
Mentoring” through Wilderness Awareness School You’re the voice of the free
You’re the song in the night that calls out to me -
and our sister schools. forget our travails as we follow your trails
But Warren and I weren’t sure about “Coyote.” Shout out Coyote wails
After all, in many Native American stories and mod- Coyote, Coyote, Coyote, Coyote . . .
ern cartoons, he’s depicted as a mangy scavenger or a
wily, manipulating, often selfish—even lascivious— Coyote, the moon shines in your eyes
The land is your soul and your heart is the sky
fool. By the end of our meeting, we left each other in Coyote, they’re giving you a bad name,
agreement: “Yes, there’s no need to have ‘Coyote’ in But I love you just the same
the title of the book; it will just confuse people and T W,
distract from what we really want to say.” Coyote (a song for banjo, fiddle, and bass)

Coyote As Our Guide | 3

 A Story that Instigates
Right after that meeting, I got in my car to run some errands.
I drove a winding road from my foothill-nestled, rural home
in Duvall, into the Seattle suburb of Redmond, the home of
our technology giant, Microsoft, and its expanding suburbs of
employees’ homes.
Although rapidly being converted into logged plats for
a new subdivision, forests of towering evergreens still lined
each side of the road like a great hall. As my little Honda
hurtled around a curve, something darted
When we get out of the glass bottles of our ego, across the road a few cars ahead of me. I
When we escape like squirrels
Turning in the cages of our personality
barely caught the flash of movement in the
And get into the forests again, edge of my peripheral vision. Probably no
We shall shiver with cold and fright other driver saw it. Yet in only that flash, I
But things will happen to us
So that we don’t know ourselves. instantly knew—but could it be?
As I slowed down, I saw it clearly, just
Cool, unlying life will rush in,
And, passion will make our bodies taut with power, standing there on the side-walk: Coyote.
We shall stamp our feet with new power In all my time spent outdoors, I’ve seen
And old things will fall down, quite a few animals, but I never see coy-
We shall laugh, and institutions will curl up like burnt paper.
otes. My friends and students often do, but
D.H. L, “Get Into the Forests Again” for some reason I never run across them.
Just minutes before, we had decided to
cut Coyote out of our story. Right then I had to wonder: was
Coyote trying to tell me something?
My heart beating, I pulled off and parked on a patch of
gravel made for construction trucks. When I got out, Coyote
was still standing there. Once or twice he glanced over his
shoulder in my direction, as if to size me up. Then he looked
both ways and casually ambled back across the road, back
where he had come from.
Half a football field up the road from him, I crossed too.
Now he had disappeared past a layer of bushes. I followed into
the bushes and came out into a bulldozed clearing. Coyote was
gone. There was some mud near where he had entered, and I
logically thought, “I should go look for tracks.” But then some
instinctive part of me disagreed, “No, walk across the clearing
toward those far trees.”
Turning into that stand of trees, I saw a grass clearing

4 |
beyond and standing in it was Coyote. I walked closer; he just
stood still and studied me back.
Then he trotted on—or maybe he walked, I can’t quite
remember the gait, but it was relaxed and unhurried—over the
bulldozed hill, out of sight again. Following his trail, I climbed
over the hill, now so far from the road I couldn’t see any cars.
Here, I found a newly paved, barren road, surrounded by for-
est. I could still smell the fresh, black asphalt. But again, once
I got there, Coyote was nowhere to be seen.
Right next to the road was a stretch of bulldozed orange-
colored mud. This time I couldn’t help but look down for
tracks. For fifteen minutes I followed different trails of coyote
tracks through the mud, but lost the trail each time. In the
forests around me I listened for bird language that might tell
What being a naturalist has
me where Coyote had gone. I heard calls that might have been come to mean to me, sitting my
alarms, but I wasn’t sure of anything. mornings and evening by the
river, hearing the clack of herons
“It’s getting late,” I started to think, and “Evan, you have through the creak of swallows
things you need to do in Redmond. Let’s go.” As I started to over the screams of osprey
turn away, some other part of me wanted to walk up that new, under the purl of fox sparrow,
… is this: Pay attention to the
shiny-black, resin-smelling road for one more look. So I did, mystery. Apprentice to the best
moving even further away from where I started. apprentices. Rediscover in nature
your own biology. Write and
A few paces up, my head lifted to the peak of the hill. There, speak with appreciation for all you
silhouetted against the western sunset sky, was Coyote, stand- have been gifted.
ing in the middle of the asphalt, just looking back at me. He
B L, Patriotism and the
casually wagged the tip of his low-hanging tail. American Land
As soon as I saw him, he sauntered off into the thicker
woods across the street. This time, there was no internal argu-
ment: I followed to where he had stood. Yep, he’d been right
here: an apple-filled scat was plopped right on the sidewalk.
How sweet of him.
Then I turned and walked into the forest where he had gone,
asking myself, “If I were Coyote, where would I go?” With my
eyes and ears alert, following my curiosity, I walked deeper and
farther into the forest. My car was far behind me now.
Soon I came upon a well-worn deer trail and began to trace
it. A few feet down the trail, just off to the side, I found a pile
of bones. As I stooped puzzling over them and their story, sud-
denly a flock of kinglets—small, chickadee-sized birds with

Coyote As Our Guide | 5

flares of gold on their heads—swooped in and began hopping all around me,
twinkling their music like little angels.
In that moment, I suddenly woke up to where I was: to the sculpted trunks
of cedar trees, the fern-covered floor, and the sweet sounds of those precious
little birds. I could have been in the farthest wilderness. For untold minutes
I was lost in the wondrous spell of that place, its moment-to-moment dance
of birds, ferns, breeze, bones and textured trees.
I soon realized I could hear cars in the deep distance; and I also realized
that the tasks of my day were forgotten completely. My mind was clear and
content. My body was relaxed, at ease. I had even forgotten about finding
the trail of Coyote.
As I took in this mossy heaven, I had to laugh and wonder: why was I here
in this place, in this moment? Of all the places I could have been, and with all
the duties of life tugging at my sleeves, why was I sitting here in an old cedar
grove in the Redmond suburbs, reveling in tracks and mysterious bones, alive
to my senses, alive to my curiosity, alive to the world? On that day, there was
one reason: Coyote.

Why Tell You this Story?

I tell you this story because stories make our world and this is the story that
wanted to make the little world inside this book.
This story is why, in the end, we decided to title the book “Coyote’s Guide.”
It’s the story that taught me who Coyote is, and perhaps more importantly,
who Coyote can be for us as educators, mentors, or parents who care about
the future of this earth and our children.
Here I was, on the edge of the ever-developing epicenter of the computer
industry, with busy, important things to do—and what happened? I was led,
from street edge, to clearing edge, to forest edge, into another world. Coyote
had brought me home.

Nature Deficit Disorder

The developed world we live in largely ignores the need for connection with
nature. Sadly, the terrain of childhood is dominated more and more by
technology and indoor focus. TV, internet, pink polka-dotted cell-phones,
video games—all these electronics distract children from attending to
the natural world around them. Electronics lure children’s attention away
from playing with mud and catching frogs, from sitting under trees, musing
about the clouds or the mysteries of the animals surrounding them. And

6 |
now, generations of adults are sadly disconnected from nature as well.
There are other factors that contribute to the trend that Richard Louv
so compellingly describes in his book, Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our
Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. There are fears—child kidnappers,
parks being trampled to death if kids go off-trail, or stray outside of safely
controlled places. There are simple facts—growing population that replaces
forests with houses and concrete roads, growing emphasis on test scores
translating into more time in classrooms and less time playing outside, or
schedules busy with soccer practices, music recitals, and extra-curricular
projects. These things each have value. But collectively they result in no time
left for children to bond with nature. Playful, meaningful connection with
the wild world outdoors needs to be a fundamental ingredient of every child-
hood. We cannot let it invisibly slip away. We must consciously choose it for
our children, our communities and ourselves.
Why? Direct experience with nature is primary learning. Human beings
share many traits with animals, such as bone-structures, sensory percep-
tions, and footprints that mirror every hairy mammal on this earth. We have
become who we are by living outdoors for hundreds of thousands, perhaps
even millions of years. Just as a baby begins to breathe simply by being in a
world of oxygen and letting its body respond, so do our bodies and brains
have millions of built in neurological connections with the environment,
waiting to be activated. Growing into and remaining as healthy and fully
functional human animals requires ample time interacting with wild nature,
time to play, be curious, be open-eyed and alive, and discover how we fit in,
how we are connected with our biological world.
We’ve gradually allowed exploratory experience outdoors to be traded for
indoor, largely sedentary experiences that depend on learning tools imagined
and manufactured by humans.
What are the results? Not only do kids get the short-end of the devel-
opmental stick, but the natural world has fewer people who know and love
it, fewer adults who have nature built into their habits of awareness, and
therefore fewer humans who care to be good tenders of their habitat. The
current trend of humans moving away from the rest of nature is so perva-
sive, it can seem overwhelming, like a tide we can’t turn.

Turning the Tide

But we can turn the tide. We can, we must—and we are. By taking the first
step off the beaten path and into the woods again, we’ve already begun.

Coyote As Our Guide | 7

 More and more people are realizing this need and calling for direct
experience outdoors to be a basic part of childhood. Parents, educa-
tors, psychologists and authors are all buzzing with the same message as
Richard Louv: we need to restore the bond between children and nature.
The emphatic statement broadcast across the Western world is more
than “No Child Left Behind,” we need, “No Child Left Inside.” Knowing
adults needs this too, and that younger people model what older people
do, makes it imperative that the grown-ups make nature connection a
priority in their lives as well.
But how do you do that? How do you get kids and their adults outside and
into the nearby woods, or even out to the backyard? Who can lead them into
the forests and fields and deserts, giving them the chance—like me that day in
Redmond—to touch unfiltered wilderness, and be touched in return?
If anyone holds the antidote to Nature Deficit Disorder, if anyone can lead
us and our children out from our concrete roads into the beating heart of our
natural habitat, and wake us up to life—Coyote can.

Who is Coyote?
Coyote, also known as Canis latrans, is a common mammal of North America.
It’s a Canid—a member of the dog family. Generally, a coyote is about the
size of a small golden retriever, about four feet from head to tail. It often trots
with its tail down, over its bottom and between its legs, as if it’s just done
something sneaky and needs to slink away from the scene. Coyote’s dominant
sense, smell, is signaled by its long nose, and it uses that natural gift to hunt
rabbits, rodents, and the occasional small deer, as well as to scavenge and eat
seasonal fruits and berries. Undeniably, Coyotes also nab their share of pets,
sheep, chickens, and other domestic livestock. Using that keen nose and also
sharp hearing, Coyote travels alone or in pairs and lives a secretive life-style.
As well as it can, it remains on the edge of awareness—of both potential
predator and potential prey.
This wild dog with four-toed tracks has adapted well to human develop-
ment across the continent, and can even be found thriving in the heart of
some of America’s largest cities. Just a few years ago, one ran into an elevator
inside a Seattle skyscraper and took a ride. Not long after that, another one
was found taking another ride—this time in the luggage compartment of an
airport shuttle tram. Coyote is known for cunning adaptability, craftiness,
and ability to survive anywhere. These qualities likely led to Coyote’s mythic
connotations among the indigenous people of North America.

8 |
The Trickster
In many Native American stories, Coyote uses his unorth-
odox foolery to save the humans in a pinch. He brings fire
to the teeth-chattering, shivering humans in one story. In
another story, when no human man can interest the most
beautiful and artistic woman, Coyote uses tricks to attract
her attention, marry her, bear her children, and so preserve
the source of cultural creativity. And in yet another story,
after the Creator made a little mistake in the initial creation
of animals, Coyote is the one who makes sure every animal
receives an anus. In some stories, the Trickster is the Creator.
Nearly every tribe tells innumerable stories of Trickster, the
foolish bringer of lessons.
Coyote is just one version, one manifestation, of this ubiq-
uitous Trickster. On every continent of this planet, trickster
shows up as different animals: Jackal, Raven, Rabbit, Raccoon,
Spider, Fox, and many others. The trends in the Trickster sto- Trickster has a bad reputation.
ries are the same, however. When things go wrong and humans He is conniving, lying, cheating,
falsifying, lazy, and good-for-
or animals don’t know what to do, when none of the tradi- nothing. He is also a god with
tional approaches work, the Trickster shows up. With some quite a lot of power. He can
wacky, out-of-the-box approach that at first seems ridiculous, die and be born again. He can
shift his shape. He has a plan,
Trickster cleverly makes things right. but you don’t know what it is.
The worldwide presence of such stories tells us the Trickster Through shifty means, he guides
folks through the low roads of
is a vital figure in human societies. In fact, Trickster in human transformation. Quick-witted
form, almost always causes the huge leaps in cultural change. and convincing, he brings them
Gandhi played his Trickster card when he said he’d topple out the other side, bright as
butterflies.
the British oppression by marching to the sea and making
salt. Jesus, as the Trickster, threw the money-changers out E H, Trickster has a
Bad Reputation
of the temple, and allowed himself be led to death when no
one else understood why. Buddha became the Trickster when
he denounced the luxuries of the most sought-after position
of Prince in order to free humans from suffering. Even Bill
Gates of Microsoft was the Trickster when he dreamed of
a computer in every home and began selling strange clunky
boxes with screens and keyboards. Can’t you hear the laugh-
ter aimed at these fools?
Yes, at first they seem a little crazy, a little off their rocker,
a few cards short of a deck. But Trickster is the driving force

Coyote As Our Guide | 9

 of evolution. Trickster energy creates change by doing the out-
landish so well that the outlandish becomes the new accepted
norm. Then another Trickster comes along to shift that norm,
and on and on.

Why this is Coyote’s Guide

To make a long story short, we call this Coyote’s Guide because
it entices each of us off our beaten path, to experiment with cre-
ative approaches, to do something different from what’s gener-
ally being tried. Coyote goads us to be willing to have a true
sense of play and abandon, knowing that this new, uncharted
way will truly be the only way out.
The mentoring approach in Coyote’s Guide to Connecting
with Nature challenges convention. It requires that we who
wish to mentor others get in touch with and trust in our own
Around the Edge I am Traveling, Coyote selves—teasing us out of our indoor worlds and leading
Around the Edge I am Traveling,
In a Sacred Manner
us all to connect in an intimate and meaningful way with the
I am Traveling. natural world and our natural selves.
We use a radical approach without textbooks or tests; we
“Traditional Lakota Song”
honoring the Wolf, Fox and simply begin with the roots of nature education by engag-
Coyote Nations ing people in direct experience with the plants and animals
T 
just beyond the edge of their back yards. This book hopes to
G W B inspire you and coach you into stretching your own creativ-
ity. We offer you a bunch of tools and strip them down to
underlying principles that you can apply to your situation.
Like a book on gardening, we don’t know what exactly will
grow in your place, but we can give you the principles and
encourage you to innovate with them. Then these tools will
become yours.
That day in Redmond as Coyote led me from edge to edge
deeper into the forest I learned this: he is the edge-walker,
he-who-walks-around-the-edges. The Lakota song honoring
the wolf, fox, and coyote species suggests how coyote does his
magic. Real-life coyotes lurk on the edge of our human villages,
always just beyond sight or reach. They keep a close and suspi-
cious eye on danger and opportunity in all directions. They
hunt and live wary around the edges. Coyote’s edge-walk works
as a perfect metaphor for nature educators to use as a guide.

10 |
How to Mentor as a Guide:
Stretching Peoples’ Edges
The first facet to the edge-walking metaphor suggests how to
mentor as a guide. By circling around the periphery of those
you mentor, you can guide them out from their indoor com-
fort zones, to the edge and farther edge of their experience
and knowledge, just as Coyote did with me that day. He first
met me where I was, then, staying a few steps ahead, he gen-
tly pulled me along. Coyote’s Guide will encourage you to do
the same thing: meet people where they are, and then intrigue
them and entice them into ever-widening connection with the
wilderness beyond the edge of town.
“Mentoring,” is the appropriate word for this process,
To explain why anyone is a conser-
corresponding to a vigilant guide-to-explorer, or master- vationist and what motivates him
to-apprentice relationship. The most profound education … means going back to the very
beginning of his involvement with
will occur when you get to know the person you mentor the the natural scene. I believe one of
way medieval guild masters got to know their apprentices. the basic tenets ... is to have a love
for the land, which comes through
Masters trained journeymen by living with them night and a long intimacy with natural beauty
day, through work and play, and discovering their special and living things.
gifts and challenges.
Only if there is understanding
First and foremost, guiding like Coyote requires that you can there by reverence and only
get to know the people you mentor. You have to watch carefully where there is deep emotional
feeling is anyone willing to do
for what will capture their curiosity, engage their natural gifts, battle.
and challenge them in ways they can handle in their personal
learning journey. Look for their edges: the edge of their com- S O, Open Horizons

fort zone, the edge of their awareness, the edge of their knowl-
edge, the edge of their experience. Then, you can stretch and
pull them to a new edge, and then another, deeper and deeper
into a sense of comfort and kinship with the wildness of the
natural world.

Melanie’s story
Here’s an example: at a summer camp in a park in the heart of
big-city Seattle, one girl in my group named Melanie wouldn’t
even sit on the ground to eat lunch, so I asked her about it. She
said she was scared of spiders and thought they might crawl on
her if she sat on the ground. That was her edge.

Coyote As Our Guide | 11

 So after lunch (she stood the whole time), I asked my group
of kids if they wanted to play a hiding game. They all yelped in
delight, “Yeah!”
The inspiration was so high that I could see the excitement
creep into her face. When it dawned on her, her face suddenly
changed—hiding would mean her lying in the bushes and on
the ground. She told me she wasn’t going to play. But I could
see her wavering now, on her edge, ready to push through.
So once the “seeker” had closed her eyes and started count-
ing, and all the kids dashed into the bushes to hide, I leaned
over to her and whispered, “If you point to where you want to
hide, I’ll go search it real good for spiders to make sure none are
there, and then you can hide.”
She hesitated, and I could physically see the conflict within
her. Finally, she nodded, “Okay,” and looking around, pointed
The Art of Mentoring and
Coyote Teaching is about the to a huge sword fern behind a fallen log.
process by which we stretch I went over, got down on my knees, and then on my belly,
and stretch a person, in their
awareness, in their use of
looking all around. Not finding any spiders, I got up, brushed
senses, in their search imagery, the dirt off my shirt, and smiled, “It’s all clear.” She walked over
in their appreciation of where and carefully squatted down on her knees, her head and body
they fit, in their knowledge of
self, and in the understanding covered now by fern leaves.
and telling of their own story Out of the corner of my eye, I watched her squirm and
within the story of life.
worry her way through that first round of hiding. But by the
J Y fourth or fifth round, she was diving in the thickest bushes
without hesitation.
I wish you could have seen the smile on her face when the
game was over, the sparkle in her eye. She had pushed through
her edge. In what had seemed like a scary wilderness, she could
now be comfortable. So, the Coyote Mentoring mind then
asks, “What’s her next edge?”
The trick to Coyote Mentoring is to watch and listen and
get to know well the people you guide. Then to continually stay
a couple steps ahead and guide them, edge by edge, into ever-
expanding orbits.

12 |
What to Learn: Straddling
the Edge of Two Worlds
A second facet of the edge-walking metaphor suggests what is being learned.
Coyote teaches us to straddle the edge between “two worlds”— the ancient, primi-
tive world of wilderness and instinct, and the modern, civilized world of science
and technology.
When I followed Coyote that day in Redmond, I remember wondering
about his scat full of apples. Were there any fruiting apple trees around?
Nope. It wasn’t the season. I don’t know where he could have found those
apples. But he did, because Coyote knows intimately both where to hide in
the dark forests and where to raid the compost piles in the suburban back
yards. Many indigenous cultures see Coyote as the epitome of knowledge
of place; their legends hold many stories of his amazing ability to adapt to
almost any landscape.
Coyote’s Guide does not call you to go backwards to nature, to run off
to the woods to survive. The ideal learning journey for connection to nature
embraces the solid scientific curriculum that qualifies a well-trained natural-
ist—such as cross-referencing information, using technical names, and rep-
licating results. However, a felt sense of connection and kinship will always
remain at the root of Coyote Mentoring.
Along with teaching methodologies drawn from the scientific paradigm,
we also borrow from world-wide indigenous cultures who demonstrate, like
Coyote, strong kinship with their landscapes. All native cultures have much
to teach about connecting with nature. The word native shares its root word
with the word nativity; meaning born into. People born and raised with the
land who feel kinship with its elements are truly natives. But to us, a quality of
awareness, a quality of connection to the place, defines being native to a place.
By using this Guide, you will be mentoring yourself and others in the art of
“Seeing Through Native Eyes” (the audio series written and narrated by Jon
Young, used as the core of our Kamana Naturalist Training Program).
This Guide encourages you to straddle the edge and walk in both
worlds: the human-made world with its vast scientific vocabulary and
technology, and the instinctive, imagination-based world of our ances-
tors. Both worlds offer rich, educational potential. As a Coyote Mentor,
you will tap into zoology and botany textbooks, field guides, the scientific
method, child development theories, and wildlife videos. Yet you will also
explore the ancient cultural wisdom from around the world, its mythic
animal stories, nature-based ceremonies, and tools for survival. By using

Coyote As Our Guide | 13

Coyote as our guide, we learn both the scientific map and our landscape
terrain. When we embrace fact with imagination, and combine logical evi-
dence with intuition, we develop intellectual understanding through first-
hand experience.

How to Act: Pushing Our Own Edges

Watch these facets build on one another: first how to mentor as a guide, then
comes the content of what to learn. The third facet to the edge-walking metaphor
refers to the Trickster aspect of Coyote. It involves role-modeling, how to act as
mentoring guides. Coyote teaches us to go out on a limb, to do things that can
seem a little scary, like telling a personal a story in front of a bunch of people,
getting completely covered in mud, spending all day playing hiding games in the
bushes, or getting your explorers all riled up with excitement. As a Trickster, you
will embody the same humble curiosity and willingness to stretch beyond your
comfort zone that you want to pass on to those you mentor.
Like the Trickster, being a Coyote Mentor implies play. Find that child
inside of yourself who loves adventure and mysteries and playing outside.
Improvise in the moment with courage and humility. Being a Coyote Guide
calls for serious fun.
The whole purpose of this book helps you find your own creative Coyote
side, so you can adapt activities to your personal style, your place, your spe-
cific purpose. Play and experimentation are the only way to get there. If you
follow the guidance of this book, you will stretch your own edges continually,
growing fiercely into your unique self. So, Coyote Mentoring involves a com-
mitment to your own journey of self-knowledge as well as that of those you
mentor. This Guide encourages you to let loose your own Trickster talents,
edge-by-fragile-edge, until you can express them unabashedly.
Here’s a poem I jotted down in the midst of writing this book:

Burn This Book

This book is not for anyone to make a banner out of,
To quote at length as some new bible.
It is a gentle companion in your own process,
A process of dancing alive in the moment
With children, squirrel tracks and clouds, a falling leaf.
If anything, let this book bump you along
Into your own way of doing things,
Into your own way of being the mentor you already are.

14 |
This book will teach you a few dances,
But we really want you to remember the place
Where dances are made, before the first step.
When you start to move to your own steps,
Burn this book. Please.
This book is an introduction, not a complete guide. Where these ideas take
you will be completely up to you. This book is just the beginning of a conversa-
tion, a conversation we’ve been having for years, and one that will never stop.
Oh, and perhaps it’s more sustainable—even regenerative—to pass this
book on to another…

The Invisible School

In many of the old Coyote stories a dynamic repeats with Coyote acting a bit
too playful for his own good. With all that play, how can anything get done?
But a deeper purpose below the surface can only be realized at the end of the
story—when, thanks to Coyote’s great and bewildering efforts, things are
made right. With Coyote Mentoring, your deeper purpose unfolds, not all
that differently from the Trickster stories.
To the people you serve, it may seem like nothing but running through
woods, playing games, and listening to stories. An underlying intention they
never realize lies beneath this surface evidence. By subtly and invisibly using
Child Passions to get people to practice Core Routines and so read the Book
of Nature, you engage them in learning without them ever knowing it. You
are running an “Invisible School.”
Jon Young coined this term, “Invisible School,” after completing his college
degree studying indigenous cultures’ methods of cultivating a continuous, in-
depth understanding of natural history within their villages. In his research,
he found no formal “schools,” and rarely any formal “teachers.” Yet everyone
he met from such cultures, and those documented by anthropologists, dem-
onstrated a knowledge of their natural world surpassing any modern Ph.D. in
Ecology. Today Jon realizes this depth of pure understanding goes beyond sim-
ple knowledge and far into the realm of connection. Indigenous mentors know
how the land breaths and flows through seasons and days; they can track and
hunt and make complicated medicines from plants; they can read the weather
and navigate by the stars. Their knowledge of and deep connection to place is
intricately ingrained in every member of the culture, without schools. So how
do these cultures teach their youth? How do they connect them so potently to
the environment with no schools or teachers?

Coyote As Our Guide | 15

 Cultural Mentoring
Jon realized the “school” of nature lived in the culture itself.
“Teaching” came through the ceremonies that required certain
plants to be used and honored the four directions of the sun or
the cycles of the moon. The “school” lived in stories that taught
volumes while enchanting listeners. Their descriptive, nature-
based language spoke through the customs of naming people
based on plants and animals. Great teachings flowed from the
games kids played, and the errands of gathering that grandpar-
ents sent them on. Obviously teachings happened because of
the intense need of the whole culture to track or hunt, and to
know a wide variety of plant communities and their uses.
All of this together surrounded everyone with an Invisible
Soon your people will flood the School, instilling an understanding and appreciation of the
land like a river after a downpour.
But my people and I we are the
environment unparalleled by any formal education. The people
ebbing tide. This destiny is a just lived day-to-day life and nature wove itself into a part of
mystery to the Red Man. We everything, inseparable in their very being.
might be able to understand it
if we knew the White Man’s This Guide intends to pass on this method of Invisible
dreams -- the hopes and Schooling, so people will connect with nature without know-
expectations about which he
talks to his children in the long
ing it. They’ll soak up the language of plants and animals as
winter evenings -- what visions naturally as you or any of us learned our native language. Do
he engraves in their hearts so you remember learning to talk? Probably not. Spoken lan-
that they look forward eagerly to
the coming day. guage happened around you all the time, and allowed you to
experiment with words, make mistakes, and every single day
C S
grow vocabulary. Mentoring with the language of nature hap-
pens just the same. With stories, games, songs, place-names,
animal names, and more, you invisibly and subtly stretch their
language edges. Just like Trickster Coyote, a lot more happens
below the surface because you are the cultural conductor.
Growth and learning occur so gradually and invisibly, that
people express shock when they finally realize the depth of the
education and the connections they have formed. Parents often
worry in the beginning, “They’re just messing around all day—
how can they be learning?” Then the day comes when they are
out in the woods or the backyard trails with their child, who
brings plant after plant with detailed knowledge about its uses, or
shows them track after track, following and interpreting the trail,
or effortlessly identifies trees by name. Parents then become our

16 |
most ardent supporters. The same story repeats when we work
this way with adults—at first they think “This is just wandering
around outside.” But then they say, “This is the most I have learned
about nature in my life, and it is the most fun I have had in years.”
Nature connection through this kind of mentoring proves to be
more than just effective, it is also fun, healing, and empowering.
Like the Coyote whose methods at first seem unorthodox or even
foolish, in the end, it works better than anyone could dream. Our commitment in this project
is restoring the children’s
Using this Book trails. Let’s dare to try. We’ll
reintroduce them. We’ll catch
We wrote this book to “unveil” the Invisible School. Our inten- and rear children, and then we’ll
release them.
tion reveals the unseen, as Dorothy saw the man-behind-the-
green-curtain at the end of the Wizard of Oz, so you too, can J Y
invisibly orchestrate a grand drama of opportunities for the
people you guide outdoors.
The Mentor’s Manual and Activities Guide work hand-in-
hand to show you the multiple intentions that go into design-
ing and guiding a story, a lesson, or a game. As we stated at
the very beginning in “How to Use This Book,” the idea is
not to provide yet another book of “recipes.” Instead, we want
to help you learn how to cook. We want you to see what each Ua Mau ke Ea o ka Āina i ka Pono
activity teaches below the surface, and how you can alter or “The life of the land is
create your own activities to accomplish your specific goals perpetuated by the health of the
people”
for those you guide.
Each activity, therefore, has a key-like heading of five ele- T S   H
ments of education that are happening “invisibly.” We designed
the remaining chapters of this Mentor’s Manual to carefully
explain those elements:

Shifting Routines and Core Routines of Nature

Connection explain the practices that learners do.
Repeating these invisibly and visibly all the time, in every
way and in every situation, develops good habits for con-
necting with nature.
Child Passions as Mentoring Tools, Questioning and
Answering, Storytelling, and Music Making highlight
the universal instincts that children and playful adults
possess, and show how to use these as doorways through

Coyote As Our Guide | 17

 which Core Routines and knowledge of natural history may enter the
lives of children from 1 to 100, that is, everyone.
The Book of Nature points to the most fertile places to start when
connecting people with natural history. It narrows down the infinite
possibilities by emphasizing meaningful relationships.
Orienting to the Natural Cycle holds more than one key to under-
standing this Coyote’s Guide. A close study of the Cycle’s implications
for mentoring organization will be worthwhile.
The Natural Cycle of Learning conveys a vision of how energies move
through a day, a week, or a lifetime, giving you a feel for the rhythm that
allows you both to plan and improvise for success.
Indicators of Awareness paints a handful of universal character traits
fostered through connecting with nature. They describe the goals of
Coyote Mentoring in terms of personal growth that emerges naturally
through practicing these routines and activities.

Each activity in the Activities Guide cross-references to the key sections of

the Mentor’s Manual. As you choose activities for your lesson plan, consider
which Core Routines to practice through the activity, which Child Passions
to tap into, which parts of the Book of Nature could be emphasized, where
the activity fits in the Natural Cycle, and which Indicators of Awareness you
want to cultivate. This interweaving allows you to adapt your own activities
in your own local ecosystem.
All together then, Coyote’s Guide happens in the way of Coyote by guid-
ing from behind-the-scenes. Just as the Coyote disappeared that day with
me in Redmond, once you wake up the edge-stretching curiosity inside each
person you mentor, you can step away. Once people break out of their indoor
comfort zones, develop habits of awareness, and realize their own fascination
to learn more, nature will do the rest.

18 |
Coyote’s Challenge
By naming Coyote as our guide, we are invoking something that challenges
each of us to grow. Coyote challenges us to break from old habits of aware-
ness and to see with fresh eyes:

to weave us more strongly into the web of connection between ourselves,

our fellow humans, and all the creatures and elements around us.

curiosity may light every eye and that myth and play may merge with
fact and science.

to the source of our own self-guidance, to the fount of unique gifts that
each person carries.

skyline where the modern world fades against the setting sun sky, to
the possibility of a long and healthy human existence on this earth, a
conscious regeneration of land and culture for generations to come.

Warren and I tried to take this book in another direction that day, just before
I drove into Redmond, but thank goodness Coyote showed up to change our
minds. Coyote doesn’t distract from what we want to say—it is what we want
to say. The archetype of Coyote empowers radical medicine—root-based,
environmental education that restores the original bond between humans
and the rest of nature.
We have never needed it more than now.

Coyote As Our Guide | 19

Chapter 2
SHIFTING ROUTINES

Coyote calls us off the beaten path. An Ojibway legend Rachel Carson’s book, Silent
Spring was written because as a
prophesies that the green paths the People walk will become citizen and a scientist, she noticed
charred and blackened, and their hearts will grow heavy. there were no frogs singing in her
Then the time will come to turn back on the charred and neighborhood spring.

blackened trail and turn off into the small green byways Why was it that no one else had
again. It foresees that in the small green byways the People noticed this? This crisis was not
in a remote Brazilian rainforest.
will recover their strength, and with lifted hearts return to DDT’s effect was in everyone’s
restore the blackened highways. The premise of this chapter back yard—in the vacant lot next
is that we do need to turn back and reconnect with our nat- door, in the ditches and creeks
that kids played in.
ural roots, in order to recover and restore. And that means
shifting our routines. This chapter includes some heady People didn’t notice because they
didn’t grow up developing the
theory about how learning happens, what we’re really teach- sensory perception and mental
ing, and why to shift routines. The next chapter will launch search imagery that would make
into useful descriptions of the thirteen Core Routines of the silence of the frogs apparent.

Nature Connection that underlie every moment of Coyote’s J Y, The Silence of Frogs
mentoring approach. If you don’t need to know the why and
just want the how, it’s okay to skip these pages; just remem-
ber to practice these Core Routines with those you mentor
every day, in every way.

Shifting Routines | 21
Core Routines in Any Field
Some synonyms:
Core – Heart – Center – Foundation – Middle
Routine – Round – Cycle – Habit – Practice – Discipline
Connection – Bond – Relationship – Communication – Union

As a jazz musician in college, I was taught to practice certain “core routines:”

listening to music, doing finger exercises, ear-training, practicing scales, and
jamming with other musicians. Poets, painters, hunters, gardeners, and even
football players I have met report the same emphasis from their mentors on
regular habits for learning. I am convinced curious educators can find “core
routines” in just about any field of learning.

How We Learn: Brain Patterning

We humans practice routines to gain mastery in a discipline. Our ten-
dency to form habits through repeated behavior endows us with skills
and it also shapes and defines our perceptions, which is why we notice
things that are important to us. For years we have referred to the pro-
cess of learning-through-habit as “Brain Patterning.” Some would prefer
to call it “Mind Patterning” in order to align with emerging evidence that
consciousness may have roots beyond the physical brain. (There is now
evidence of neurons within the heart, suggesting consciousness may reside
there, while other scientists think that the mind must exist outside of the
body in both individual and collective fields—for more information on
alternative theories of mind, see the works of Joseph Chilton Pierce and
Rupert Sheldrake.) No matter how we may define brain or mind—and we
leave this up to each reader to do for themselves—there is a consensus that
we are habit-forming creatures. And these habits reinforce themselves, and
influence our perceptions and our behaviors.
As an image, brain patterning brings home the message that through our
habits we physically shape and change ourselves—continually.

Brain Patterning for Skill Development

Our brains take in everything we experience, far beyond our conscious
awareness. If we repeat an activity, a mental image, or idea over a period of
time, then our brain’s neurological pathways form a shortcut so we don’t
need to think about it. This repetition acts like a computer shortcut that

22 |
saves searching through a maze to find our application, or
like the kids’ shortcut through the neighbor’s yards that
bypasses streets to get to school. Such shortcuts streamline
behavior: that’s what we’re calling “brain patterning.”
Consider how you learn and your own neurological short-
cuts will come into view. Remember learning how to ride a
tricycle? When your shiny red tricycle arrived in the driveway,
you danced with glee. With excitement, focused attention, and
Mom and Dad showing you how to set your feet on the pedals,
you threw your brain and body into the awkward task of push-
ing those pedals round. The tricycle bolted forward: you did it!
All that afternoon, they couldn’t get you off that trike as you
practiced and practiced. By the end of day, you could scoot all
the way up and down the driveway.
On the morning of day two, you focused excitement and Nobel laureate Paul MacLean
a scientific authority on the
attention to navigate the bumps and pits of the driveway, while human brain, along with
pedaling. By the afternoon, your learning goal shifted to mak- others are well aware that
brain patterning may be a
ing the turn at both ends of the driveway, while pedaling and manifestation of mind. In any
avoiding bumps and pits. Desire and concentration, added case, it seems important to note
emotion from falling and getting back up, and a little more that the heart is also a brain
with neurons comprising fifty
help from Mom and Dad, and you taught yourself to turn the percent or more of its cells—
handlebars just so and lean your body slightly to the inner side with a new medical specialty
called cardioneurology. If the
of the turn. Pedaling itself became second nature, which left body is entrained to the brain,
your thinking mind to focus on the new subtleties. the brain is entrained to the
This is how core routines work to condition the brain heart, which is to say the heart,
not the brain, is the cardinal
towards the development of a skill. First inherited biological organ of the human body. If
potential, stimulated by mental focus and emotional excite- Joseph Chilton Pearce is right,
bonding during infancy may
ment, plus a little help from a mentor, forges a neuronal influence the heart’s connection
pathway. Then repetition reinforces it into a brain pattern or between the mid-brain and the
unconscious mental habit, wrapped in a myelin sheath, like cerebral cortex thus building a
foundation for heart-intelligence
electrical tape. Now, with no thought about the original, basic or thinking with the heart.
pattern, you can add subtlety and complexity. This is how we
R L. E, Brain,
learned to walk, how we learned to talk, how we learned to Mind, or Heart?
read words, and then read a whole book. Similarly, we learned
to add and subtract and progressed to calculus. In exactly this
way, once my fingers learned the basic routines, my mind and
soul were free to play jazz.

Shifting Routines | 23
The Brain Patterning Cycle
I remember returning from my first weeklong “nature awareness” class in New
Jersey with Tom Brown, Jr. where I learned about the everyday dandelion plant:
I tasted its bitter, yummy taste; I learned that dandelion leaves offer one of the
most abundant plant sources of vitamin A known to humans. All through the
week I would pick a few leaves a day to eat as a general health tonic. I returned
home to my house in Georgia where I had lived for eighteen years, and as I
walked through my yard, I suddenly froze in astonishment: dandelion suddenly
grew all over my yard! I had never noticed it, but now that I had a brain pattern,
in this case, a search image for dandelion, and I found it everywhere.
We see this over and over, as people come to learn with us and return
home convinced that red-tail hawks or American robins have suddenly
moved into their area. In truth, the robins, red-tails, and dandelions lived
there all along, but because our brains were not yet patterned on them, our
perceptions did not include these natural elements.
These observations caused us to formulate the following Brain Pattern-
ing Cycle:
Sensory Input
+
Mental Focus

Behaviors/Actions Brain Patterns

Beliefs Perceptions

Everything we take in with our senses, combined with what we focus our
mental attention on, results in brain patterns. Brain patterns, in turn, deter-
mine our perceptions, how we see the world. Our beliefs about the world
are formed this way. See this transformation of my beliefs: before that Tom
Brown class, I believed food and medicine came from grocery stores and

24 |
pharmacies and I believed my yard was only good for soccer games. New
brain patterns opened my eyes to new perceptions, which changed my beliefs:
I began to believe that food could come for free out of my own backyard.
Our beliefs, in turn, determine our actions and behaviors. Previously, if
I wanted to make a salad, I’d drive to the store; now, I can take a walk in the
back yard. The next consequence is fairly obvious: our actions and behav-
iors determine our sensory input (grocery store florescent lights vs. dappled
sunshine and birdsong in the backyard) and our mental focus (iceberg let-
tuce vs. dandelions). Now we are back at the beginning of the cycle, now we
understand how our behaviors fortify our habits over time, and make them
stronger through repetition.

What we Miss: The Flip Side of Brain Patterning

When we apply this Brain Patterning theory to connecting with nature, we
discover its flip side. Brain patterns causing us to notice specific things imply-
ing that we will not notice almost everything else. It’s like a magic trick. As
observers, our brains recognize movements we expect to see. These mental
habits cause us to miss the subtle sleights of hand that engage the “magic”—
really just clever maneuvering around our conditioning. However, once we
recognize how the trick works, we know what to look for and the veil is
lifted. So as members of the modern world, what are we missing?
As the old saying goes, “We are what we eat.” In terms of sensory input
and mental focus, it seems to be true: our beliefs and behaviors are a reflec-
tion of our brain patterning. If we spend most of our time in our houses and
buildings, in our living rooms and bedrooms, we almost literally are our liv-
ing rooms and bedrooms. If our culture’s gaze has turned inside, we won’t
notice the natural world.
For many people in urbanized areas nowadays, wild nature doesn’t really
exist in their perceptions of the world. We find this to be an enlightening
and yet also scary realization. No surprise then that very few people notice
when the landscape starts to change in response to our human actions, when
rabbits lose their habitats and disappear, when frogs stop singing. Yes, a
few—the scientists trained to see such things—will notice. To almost every-
one else, those subtle happenings in nature are lost. As a culture, unless we
can shift our focus of attention, we’ll continue basing our choices on a sense
of reality that doesn’t include the rest of nature.
We miss much more than just the crises in nature. Children grow up
not noticing the beauty of a robin song in the morning, or the fragile first

Shifting Routines | 25
Without brain patterning, your flowers of spring. Grownups walk through streets blind to the
brain is incapable of thinking
about more than one task at a hawks soaring majestically overhead, or the fox tracks lacing
time, though you can fake it, the back alleys with stories. The hills and clouds stop speaking
poorly. But why can you talk,
walk, chew gum, and breathe
to our imagination and the paths to the streams and forests
all at the same time? Walking, get overgrown.
chewing gum, and breathing
are all practiced activities. If
you practice an activity until it Toward a Culture of Nature Awareness
becomes a brain pattern, you can
do it without actually thinking.
Until recently, humans’ primary brain patterns were based
on keen daily awareness of the expansive world of nature. Do
If you sit in the woods, hear a these drastic and sudden shifts in mental habits benefit our
bird singing, and try to recognize
it, then your brain becomes health and functioning? Can we claim to be better and more
preoccupied thinking about the evolved because modern patterns focus on indoor activities and
notes, cadence, etc., which means
you will miss any new sound.
electronic literacy? Richard Louv’s book clearly documents the
But if you have patterned your answer—decidedly not. Nature is an essential nutrient to the
brain to recognize common bird health of each human.
songs then it will automatically
hear “Wrentit,” so you can calmly Good news, though. We can intervene in the brain pattern-
remember that while remaining ing cycle. The solution requires only a shift in our routine behav-
aware enough to catch the song
sparrow’s call. iors. This is where the Core Routines of Nature Awareness
enter the picture. We simply take the same cycle, and for our
Brain patterning is the key to behaviors and actions, we insert the Core Routines:
higher awareness.

D F, Kamana Sensory Input

Student, Brain Patterning
+
Mental Focus

‘Nature’ should be avoided in

such vague expressions as ‘a lover
of nature,’ ‘poems about nature.’
Unless more specific statements
Core Routines Brain Patterns
follow, the reader cannot tell
whether the poems have to
do with natural scenery, rural
life, the sunset, the untouched
wilderness, or the habits of
squirrels.
Beliefs Perceptions
S  W, The Elements
of Style, 3rd edition, 1979

26 |
 Even a conscious and quiet sit on a balcony in a skyscraper will provide
connections with crows, the moods of wind and weather, and the movements
of sun, moon, and stars. If—that is—we look for it.
Our goal in practicing and reinforcing the Core Routines of Nature
Connection is to restore finely tuned habits of awareness based on nature.
Again we return to the image of Coyote, the one who breaks “out-of-the-box”
of our cultural conditioning to see things anew. Coyote sees through the
magic trick. Coyote shows us how to use our brains and bodies as they were
made to be used.

Defining our Field of Learning

Cultures guide every individual to develop brain patterns—through the spo-
ken language, the customs and ceremonies of the community, and more—all
of it informing where to pay attention. Culture, we could say, is the water
that every individual swims in as they grow and develop. At this point, then,
we should make clear and candid the type of culture, and resulting intelli-
gences, that we offer here for consideration. What exactly are we promoting
with this guide book, Connecting with Nature?
We engage in a field of learning quite possibly the oldest of all the cogni-
tive disciplines. What Coyote awakens we call “Seeing through Native Eyes,”
like those people, or wild animals whose whole lives and cultures respond to
natural rhythms and forces. We’ve also called it “Wilderness Awareness,”
a bright, awakened native intelligence that can see a jungle in a sidewalk
crack. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, people passionately stud-
ied our field of learning known then as the contagious story of “Natural
History.” The closest name modern academia offers, “Field Ecology,” aspires
to develop the ability to use all one’s senses out in the field to understand the
interdependent web of life. Or maybe this learning could be called “Nature
Literacy,” a fluent ability to read the Book of Nature.
For this book we call it “Nature Connection” to show our field of dis-
covery goes far beyond an intellectual knowledge of place, or lonely names
of flowers and birds detached from their real, felt meaning. Coyote’s educa-
tion awakens habits of perception we call Sensory Awareness, cultivates a
rich vocabulary of search images we call Knowledge of Place, and through
these, connects people to the Natural World in a meaningful way.

Shifting Routines | 27
Plants change with seasons
and weather, and animals move
Awakening Sensory Awareness
with stealth and speed and We began writing this book with wildlife biologists and ecol-
tend to avoid human presence.
Professional naturalists and ogy teachers who told us that The Art of Mentoring and
wildlife biologists must use all Coyote Mentoring provides the missing puzzle pieces in many
their senses to spot wildlife on
the move and notice signs that of their educational curricula—this actual attention to “aware-
wildlife has passed by. Out in the ness” out in the field.
field, they must wait quietly and
see quickly. In field reports they
Parents work hard to teach sensory awareness as a skill
must draw inferences from signs set to toddlers by surrounding them with color-coded toys in
and tracks. shapes of circles and triangles or sitting them in front of pan-
P T, els full of bells and whistles. Hot, cold, red, and wet make up
Washington Department of children’s earliest words. However, by the time children reach
Fish and Wildlife
kindergarten, deliberate education in sensory awareness fades
out. They learn their ABC’s and stop there. Shouldn’t this
foundational intelligence be honed into literacy? Shouldn’t
sensory imagination be an “essential learning requirement”
One of the best tools I can give like reading, writing, and arithmetic?
anybody is this: simply stop
yourself several times during
We all inherit the potential brainpower that our hunter-
each day and ask yourself this gatherer ancestors used with extraordinary intelligence in
question: ‘What am I missing order to survive. Our brain power includes a huge capac-
right now?’ And automatically,
your awareness will shift from ity to perceive subtle and minute details, to notice all sorts
a regular, narrow vision to an of shapes, colors, smells, sounds, designs, movements,
expansive awareness, involving all
your senses and taking in a larger
sequences, changes, patterns, and anomalies in our envi-
sphere of life. ronment. These sensory perceptions can be honed—with
time and curiosity—into the mental habits of a well devel-
R C, Founder
and Lead Instructor, Earth oped “naturalist intelligence.” Howard Gardner’s Frames of
School, www.lovetheearth.com Mind proposed seven “intelligences”—bodily-kinesthetic,
linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, interpersonal,
intrapersonal, and spatial. In 1999, in Intelligence Reframed,
Gardner endorsed an eighth, the “naturalist intelligence”
that underlies all the rest. Nature, the perfectly-matched
teacher for this training, offers as diverse, spontaneous,
and ever-changing a palette of sights, smells, noises, tastes,
and textures as we could ever write into a textbook.

Cultivating Knowledge of Place

Although all of our ancestors were indigenous people, and their
unschooled ways of knowing may be considered ‘illiterate’ in the

28 |
Western sense, we have found native peoples of the world to be
highly competent in a far older kind of ‘literacy’.” Not surpris-
ingly, the brains of illiterate trackers and gatherers show little
activity involved with words and names for things, but enor-
mous activity involved with images. Our ancestors’ literacy
interpreted the pictures, scents, and tastes of their world. Just
as the world’s oldest languages use picture-images to denote the
basic units of thought (not yellow, but forsythia blossom, not north
but land of tall trees), so the core subject matter for Knowledge of
Place supplies an infinite vocabulary of images. This multi-sen-
sory, dynamic literacy is far more powerful than words alone.
The Core Routines of Story of the Day, Expanding our
Senses, Tracking and Questioning, Animal Forms, Mapping,
Journaling—indeed, all thirteen of them—pattern the brain Before the myelin sheaths have
hardened, while the kids are young
to learn and remember what field biologists call search images. and open-minded, we need to
Like words in Language Arts, figures in Math, and symbols stretch their awareness beyond
in Chemistry, we first learn the foundational search imagery, tightly wound thought patterns
that are inattentive to and even
then we use it with increasing sophistication. Knowledge of fearful of natural processes. We
Place, exactly like Language Arts, accumulates with disci- need to teach them to reach out
with their eyes.
pline. Even though we learn to write a unified and coherent
paragraph in first grade, we still practice to perfect the art in J Y, Myelin
graduate school.
Once you get a search image for the flight pattern of an eagle
soaring or a chickadee lurching, you can identify the bird off the Objects are concealed from
our view not so much because
corner of your eye. Once you get a brain pattern for the leafing they are out of the curve of our
system of elderberry opposite or Solomon’s seal alternate, you can visual ray as because there is no
identify it while running. Once you hear the difference between intention of the mind and eye
toward them ... . We cannot see
baseline birdsong happy and alarm calls frantic, you can begin anything until we are possessed
to understand the language of birds. Once you know the differ- with the idea of it, and then we
can hardly see anything else.
ent feel of a south and north slope, you can guess your location
when you seem lost in the terrain. Seasoned hunters will know H D T,
a bear from a mile away because darkness appears where light Walden

should be. Such wonderful tales of perception from well-trained

naturalists’ eyes or ears can be found everywhere.
Similar knowledge of place will be cultivated into first-sight-
ing search images by excited, focused, mentored attention. Then
repeated conscious awareness can include telling about it, ques-
tioning and comparing it with things similar though different

Shifting Routines | 29
One of the reasons native people in detail, identifying it in field guides, acting it out, or draw-
still living in some sort of close,
daily association with their ing it. Learning theory suggests new information settles down
ancestral lands are so fascinating into long-term memory after we notice, forget, then remember
to those who arrive from the
rural, urban, and suburban
again, preferably five times, using different modalities of percep-
districts of civilization is because tion. Once a search image settles into a brain pattern, it becomes
they are so possessed of authority. just part of your unconscious vocabulary.
They radiate the authority of
firsthand encounters. They are Then, you can begin to read. Barry Lopez, in Patriotism and
storehouses of it. the American Land, describes the literature that lies ahead: “In
B L, Patriotism and
all the years I have spent standing or sitting on the banks of
the American Land this river, I have learned this: the more knowledge I have, the
greater becomes the mystery of what holds that knowledge
together, this reticulated miracle called an ecosystem.”

Restoring the Bond between

“Such a walk is totally different
People and the Rest of Nature
from random drifting. Leaving The knowledge of place we look for in people we mentor shows
your eyes and ears wide open, you
allow your likes and dislikes, your up through their felt, bodily relationship with nature; in their
conscious and unconscious desires muddy knees and hair with bits of leaves in it; in plants we
and irritations, your irrational
hunches, to guide you wherever
can eat or slap on a cut to stop the bleeding; in tracks that tell
there is a choice of turning right us of real animals and their lives or lead us straight to them;
or left. You cut a path...that is in tree-branches that make a sturdy survival shelter or wood
yours alone, which brings you face
to face with surprises destined for that burns well; in salamanders, frogs, and lizards that beg to
you alone. When you travel in this be caught with our hands; in birds that alarm when we sneak
way...the trip, like an improvised
piece of music, reveals its own
through the woods, or lead us to hiding owls.
inner structures and rhythm. Once there is a personal bond with some bit of the natural
Thus you set the stage for fateful world, then (or simultaneously) we can introduce scientific names
encounters.”
and tidbits of knowledge or skill because there will be a scaffold
S N, for that information to hang on. With even a shred of meaningful
Free Play
relationship present, the excited explorer becomes an inquisitive
“vacuum,” sucking in all the information he or she can find.
Simply put, we aim to create meaningful bonds between
people and the rest of nature. When we say connection, we
mean a familiarity, a sense of kinship, just as we all experi-
ence with our human family. The goal includes knowledge and
skills, but ultimately relationships restore our bond to nature.
Building this foundational connection with nature is like
any relationship—it takes time to form really true bonds.
Therefore, mentoring people in nature connection requires a

30 |
long-term practice. Every outdoor event adds to the accumu- A student that I’ve worked
with was said to have Attention
lated knowledge that we strive for—summer camps, weekend Deficit Disorder. When I
workshops, hour-long school assembly programs—make a brought him into the field, I
noticed he had the ears of a
difference in a person’s life. They do. But, a longer-term and scout. He was able to monitor
slower-growing mentoring relationship is far more effective for all four directions at the same
the powerful development of the individual’s awareness and time, and notice bird calls from
every direction.
connection to nature.
Never underestimate the effect that your mentoring actions So, I watched him over time.
When we worked indoors, in
can have—however insignificant they may seem. One story can the classroom, in the group, he
stay in their lives forever. One leaf eaten from one edible plant; was a bit unable to sit still. But
one encouragement of a particular interest, one challenge at when we got out in the field, he
was always the first one to see
a ripe time; any one of these or a thousand other actions can the hawk, always the first one
make a difference. I once told a story to a group of forty kids to spot the hiding instructor,
always the first one to hear the
and one parent wrote our school a letter saying, “My child sits bird warnings.
alone in the yard for hours, because Evan told her that if she
sat still long enough, the animals would get to know her.” And I started to ask myself, “Is
that a disorder, or a gift?

Beyond Nature Connection: J Y, Seeing Through

Native Eyes, audio
Nature, Community, and Self
When we leave the human village behind us and give our-
selves unstructured time outdoors, we are able to notice and
follow our inner voice. We find our own path and we end up
exactly where we need to go. Our schools trust in what we call
the “Gift Principle.” Simply, this idea observes that everyone
comes into the world bearing unique gifts. Our job as parents,
friends, teachers, or mentors helps each child discover those
gifts and bring them to blossom.
We realize that nature helps this happen like nothing else. Jake Swamp refers to the idea that
As Warren Moon likes to say, “The natural world powerfully every person has a Natural Gift,
fosters self-expression, because nature itself is so completely but they don’t know how to see it
themselves. From this perspective
self-expressed.” The robin doesn’t wake up in the morning (and it seems to have existed all
and think, “That sparrow over on that salmonberry bush around the world in earlier times),
every person has a unique gift that
sings so much better than me.” No, no such self-doubt exists they are bringing to the world, and
in robin. It just opens up and SINGS! The same is true with it is exactly what the world needs
trees and storms. A tree just leafs, a storm just blows. When right now. The Coyote Mentor is
trying to lead this gift out.
we spend an abundance of time around this uninhibited self-
expression, we resonate like tuning forks to express who we J Y, Natural Gifts
are: we sing our own gifted songs.

Shifting Routines | 31
Life is a series of open horizons, Just as in nature, where everything fills its niche and
with one no sooner completed
than another looms ahead. … contributes to the whole, so does each human. Connection
Those of childhood show the to nature naturally invites people to appreciate the dynam-
dawning awareness of beauty
at a time when the Pipes of Pan
ics of community. They realize that every person has a place
can still be heard; those of youth and a contribution to make, whether in the exploring group
retrace the ages of mythology, the of the day, or back home among their families and friends.
long millennia of the hunter and
the freedom of the wilderness. Our ultimate mentoring goal draws out the natural gifts of
The open horizons of young each individual and helps them discover their relationship
manhood bring broader concepts,
the impact of knowledge,
to their various communities, both human and natural.
reverence for the living world, Really, then, the nature of our connection emerges much
relationships to others and to the broader than trees and tracks, berries and birds. It is also con-
earth itself; those of maturity
concern for the living-place of nection to our human nature—the discovery of our true selves
man, perspective on his long and a greater appreciation of family. Gary Riekes, founder of
journey from the primitive,
and understanding of the great
the Riekes Center for Human Enhancement in San Francisco,
imponderables that once filled his once told us that if you mentor a child other than your own,
dreams. your benchmark of success comes when the parents of that
S O, Open Horizons child invite you to dinner. Mohawk Elder Jake Swamp told Jon
Young, once he realized the depth of our mentoring commit-
ment, “Your school needs to be dedicated to healing families.”
Mentoring quality relationships with nature leads naturally to
developing relationships with the families of the people you
serve. In long-term programs, this is essential.
Norman “Ingwe” Powell, leader in the early Boy Scout
movement in both Africa and America and co-founder and
Grandfather of Wilderness Awareness School, summed up
mentoring by saying, “We must all learn again to reach out, to
touch, and to love.”

Indicators of Success
Shifting into practice of the Core Routines of Nature
Connection includes developing Howard Gardner’s “natural-
ist intelligence,” and much more. Ultimately, Core Routines
cultivate whole human beings who appreciate and contribute
to family and community by fully expressing and sharing their
innate gifts and talents.
Over the years, we have observed a set of character quali-
ties that consistently emerge as a natural side-effect of mean-
ingful connection with nature. We call these “Indicators of

32 |
Awareness” and they are our criteria for success developed in the last chap-
ter of this manual. When those you mentor manifest these qualities, this
indicates your program is shifting brain patterns and turning the tide. You’re
going in the right direction to create a culture with the will to restore the
charred and blackened places.

Shifting Routines | 33
34 |
Chapter 3
CORE ROUTINES OF
NATURE CONNECTION

Remembering Original Instructions

Some etymology:
Instruct In + Struare = to pile in
Educate Ex + Ducere = to lead out
Cultivate = From Colere, to dwell in, cherish

The Core Routines of Nature Connections are things people do It seems those days all you had
was the seat of your pants. That’s
to learn nature’s ways. They aren’t lessons. They aren’t knowl- how they like to tell it anyway…
edge. They are learning habits. You didn’t just open a book and
Luckily for us as nature guides, shifting our mental hab- teach. You by God were the book,
out front in all ways, blunt and
its into these Core Routines of Nature Connection comes dogeared and coverless.
as second nature to all human beings. This way of knowing
Paul Hunter, foreword to
was not born a few hundred years ago, or even with the Headmaster on a Bulldozer,
rise of civilization thousands of years ago. Our job is not Building a School from the
about informing, but about educating ourselves and those Ground Up

we mentor to discover what the Haudenosaunee people call E H

our “original instructions.” Humans evolved with original
instructions designed for dynamic awareness of nature.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 35

If we can inspire practice of these Core Routines, remembering our original
instructions will happen on its own.
Decades of experimentation and wide-ranging research with people in forests
and fields, deserts and coasts, as well as dialogue with elders from many traditions,
have culminated in the list of Core Routines found here. They belong to no culture
in particular, but are universal, belonging to all who live on the Earth.
These routines are the underlying practices we facilitate and hopefully inspire
people to do whenever they go outdoors. They rest beneath all structured and
seemingly unstructured lessons or activities, whether we engage one-on-one or if
those we mentor cruise the trails by themselves. Routines will work magically with
freedom to come and go as they please like the tides and the seasons. Some routines
will jump to the forefront, begging to be practiced, while others fade in emphasis.
Each human being comes into this world with an ancient blueprint for connecting
with the natural world that has its own timetable for learning. Let it flow.

SOME Core Routines of Nature Connection

On the remaining pages we describe thirteen Core Routines. Our list is not THE
definitive Core Routines of Nature Connection. Up until now, many affiliated
organizations and teachers have shared Core Routines as part of a liquid, ever-
changing body of oral tradition. We picked thirteen we all agree will be the most
helpful for readers of this book.
This chapter transmits the spirit of these routines, what they are and why they
are important. Further on in the book, you’ll see these routines referred to, espe-
cially in the Book of Nature. In the Activities section called Introducing Core
Routines, you’ll find specific ways to start up these practices. But for now, sit back,
relax, and let the unique moods and flavors of these Core Routines of Nature
Connection wash over you and into you.
As you read, see if you can find versions of these routines within your own
childhood or adult life, or in the stories of your friends, family, or heroes. You
might be surprised. After all, these are the heritage of all us human-folk.

Sit Spot
Sit Spot in a Nutshell:
Find one place in your natural world that you visit all the time and get to know it
as your best friend. Let this be a place where you learn to sit still—alone, often,
and quietly—before you playfully explore beyond. This will become your place
of intimate connection with nature.

36 |
The Magic Pill
Sit Spot is the core of the Core Routines and the heart of this
mentoring model. It’s the magic pill if ever there was one.
Because we’ve seen it, time and time again, to be so vital and
enchanting to the life of both young and old children, we’ll use
a few more words here than with the other routines, to make
sure we pass on the soul of the Sit Spot routine.
The idea is simple: guide people to find a special place in
nature where they become comfortable with just being there,
still and quiet. In this place, the lessons of nature will seep
in. Sit Spot will become personal because it feels private and
intimate; the place where they meet their curiosity; the place
Most people do not
where they feel wonder; the place where they get eye-to-eye hear the song of nature,
with a diversity of life-forms and weather-patterns; the place but, if you sit in a special place,
and notice everything around you,
where they face their fears—of bugs, of being alone, of the sometimes you hear it. It’s not
dark—and grow past them; and the place where they meet like hearing a bird sing, or bees
nature as their home. buzz,

The Sit Spot routine was the heart of Jon Young’s early It’s rather a song of
mentoring by tracker Tom Brown, Jr., with Tom coaching understanding,
warmth, and feeling, and not of
from a distance, questioning and inspiring. Jon visited one notes and words.
spot by himself nearly every day for seven years. Jon says today So, have you heard the song of
nature?
that his Sit Spot in the forest near his New Jersey home had
more to do with his development as a human being, not to A D, “The Song of
mention as a naturalist, than anything else. The place will for- Nature” (written at age 8)
Secret Spot Prose written by
ever be a part of him. His relationship with that place was the Earth Arts youth, Ithaca, NY
pebble thrown in the pond that started Wilderness Awareness
School and all its concentric rings.

The Essential Attitude of Sit Spot

The essential attitude of this routine is getting to know one It seems likely that the Sit Spot,
vision quest and various forms
place really well—one biome, one community of soils and plants of meditation have their origin
and animals and trees and birds and weather systems—at all in still hunting. The extreme
times of day and night, and in every season and weather. In alertness associated with these
practices quiets the mind and
other words, the place becomes your nesting niche, your study promotes inner peace, the goal of
site, your tracking playground, and your retreat and renewal numerous spiritual and religious
traditions around the world.
center. The Spot itself becomes the home base from which you
explore outward—where you leave your upright human self R L. E

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 37

As time went by, I…realized behind and get down and crawl on hands and knees, raccoon
that the particular place I had
chosen was less important than
style, to sniff and feel around.
the fact that I had chosen a place While it is very important to have one’s own oft-visited Sit
and focused my life around it... Spot, we can apply the attitude of Sit Spot to any place with
What makes a particular place
special is the way it buries itself similar ecological features, not just our own special place. The
inside the heart, not whether it’s place feels of familiarity, relationship, and in-depth knowledge,
flat or rugged, rich or austere, wet
or arid, gentle or harsh, warm or
and when you go to it your attitude overflows with childlike
cold, wild or tame. Every place, curiosity, discovery, and uninhibited playfulness.
like every person, is elevated by
the love and respect shown toward
it, and by the way in which its Sitting Still
bounty is received.
The other part to this routine is about sitting, about still-
R K N, ness. On the simplest level, to sit silent and still for a long
The Island Within
period of time will slip open the door of a world that most
humans never know: the private world of wild animals and
the language of the birds. Sunrise and Sunset are especially
magical times, when wildlife actively pulses with life. Once
you sit quietly long enough, the birds sort of shrug you off
and accept the fact that you’re there, and there for good. As
they return to their daily tasks, a previously hidden dimen-
sion of your landscape opens up.
Wild animals—weasels, raccoons, bobcats, owls, for
example—know the patterns of human activity and move out
to its edge to go unseen. Sitting still initiates you into their
undomesticated realm, a wild place that plays by different
rules than the human world. By being a quiet, unobtrusive
guest, you will come to know Baloo’s “Jungle Law,” and learn
to make yourself welcome again, as an accepted member of
the natural community.

Sneaking into Sit Spot Time

We never want to force people into going to their Sit Spot as
if it were an assignment. Instead, we subtly guide them there
by wisely playing games that build up their comfort level, tell-
ing inspiring Sit Spot stories, and asking questions about the
activities of squirrels and birds and dandelions. If you, the
mentor, also spend time in your own Sit Spot and tell fresh
stories about what happened earlier this very morning, then of
course your stories provide an invaluable role modeling tool.

38 |
 Many of the activities here are games that will help us lead
people into the Sit Spot routine in a roundabout, unconscious
way. Hiding or sneaking games require stillness for long peri-
ods while crouching in a bush, or lying silently on the ground.
With the adrenaline of a game rushing through, participants
hardly noticed the bugs crawling over their skin and soon they
feel a new comfort level in nature.

Finding the Right Spot

We recommend you find a good spot near water, shelter, and
food for wildlife, that you can get to easily and often with-
out doing damage to a fragile landscape, with little danger of
predators or other hazards.
But this can be found almost anywhere. Our co-author,
Ellen Haas, has an elderly mother who takes endless delight
in observing the birds feed, the ducks breed, the butterflies
emerge, and the bees pollinate from her spot on her patio of
a Dallas retirement community. City dwellers can find vacant
Don’t Kill The Sit Spot!
lots, ditches off the local baseball fields, or sidewalk gardens We have seen parents become
that, if invested with quiet attention, brim with wild life. Folks militant about their children’s
Sit Spot time: “You can’t eat your
who live in wild landscapes full of ticks or bears or snakes can desert unless you’ve been to your
find safe paths and shelters from which to bathe in their wil- Sit Spot!” PLEASE DO NOT
DO THIS!
derness. For young children, help them find little places in The Sit Spot works because
the back yard where they can be safe and still and alert and of magic. As soon as it becomes a
enchanted. It’s not about the quality of the spot; it’s about the chore or a punishment, the magic
dies. Use cleverness to get them
quality of attention within it. there, not the crack of a whip.
Our four-year Kamana Naturalist Training Program is
predicated on visiting a Sit Spot daily, so thousands of our
friends have established regular Sit Spot routines. We could
go on for pages with their powerfully appreciative testimony. It
is amazing, however, what terrible wailing and lamentation go
on in the beginning as each individual tries to find the perfect
spot. In the end, if all our kinder guidance fails, we advise, “If
you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.”

Hitting Cruise Control

If we can get people going to a Sit Spot near their home on a
regular basis, then the learning journey takes on a life of its

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 39

 own. We’ve hit cruise control at that point, then we simply and
eagerly listen to their stories, ask questions about subtleties, and
send them on errands that deepen the complexity of their Sit.
I remember one of my seven-year-old learners, Mira: her
parents told me that she hardly ever spent time outdoors, and
The Pipes of Pan sound early then only when accompanied by her parents. For a few months,
before the sense of wonder is we played a lot of those comfort-enhancing games, and then
dulled, while the world is wet with Mira’s parents came to me with a new story from home.
dew and still fresh as the morning
… The look of wide-eyed delight “Whenever Mira gets home now, she doesn’t say a word,
in the eyes of a child is proof she just puts her stuff down and runs outside to the back yard
enough of its presence.
and into the trees. She stays out there for hours all by herself.
I heard [the Pipes of Pan] in many We see her sometimes: she sits for a while, she climbs trees,
places as a child, but one of the
best was an alder thicket where
she goes around looking at things. Before she wouldn’t go out
I used to hide, a veritable jungle alone—now it’s hard to get her to come inside!”
that had never been cleared. The Even my own mother, whom you would definitely not con-
swamp began just beyond the
garden fence and I went there sider the “outdoorsy” type, confided in me a couple of years
often, burrowing my way through ago: “I had a Sit Spot, too, when I was a child. There was an
the maze into its very center.
oak tree in our back yard, and everyday I would get home from
There I had fashioned a nest school and run out to sit under that tree. Sometimes I would
on a dry little shelf. It was cozy read a book, other times I would just sit, thinking, taking in
and warm, and like any hidden
creature I lay there listening and the world around me.”
watching. Rabbit runways ran
through it and birds sang in the
branches around me …. The alder
Where’s Your Sit Spot?
swamp was my refuge and no one Think back through your life and, ultimately to your child-
came there but me. Only Mother
knew, and she understood it was hood, and see if you have ever had a Sit Spot routine. You
mine and mine alone. might be surprised. Children seem, without ever being told,
What I heard there were the
Pipes, and what I sensed, I know to instinctively find a place of their own that they gravitate to
now, was the result of a million and make their “outside home.” As a kid, a gnarled old tree in
years of listening and being aware, my neighbor’s yard that was easy to climb, secluded and shel-
the accumulated experience of the
race itself and of ages when man tered, served to give me a view of the land around me. Many
was more a part of his ancient adults keep up a similar practice all through their lives. It
environment than now….
may be the window by their bird feeder, the bench behind
S O, “The Pipes of the tool shed, or the place where they take their break from
Pan” Open Horizons
work. Where’s yours?

40 |
Story of the Day
Story of the Day in a Nutshell
After spending time in nature, tell the story of your day.
Tell your story verbally with others, or by writing or draw-
ing in a journal.

We’ll say it one more time, so you can’t say we didn’t hammer
it home: the Sit Spot routine is essential. But equally impor-
tant to the development of sensory awareness and knowledge
of place is its complementary twin, its primary dance partner,
the Story of the Day. This is a core routine with which every
human is familiar.

The Custom of Storytelling Natural history writers are

storytellers. Scientists are
Growing up, I remember routinely telling stories with my fam- storytellers. Scientists live and
die by their ability to depart
ily. We would sit around the dinner table at the end of the day from the tribe and go out into
and share what happened at work or school. My parents would an unknown terrain and bring
question me for more details about what I had learned, and I’d back, like a carcass newly speared,
some discovery or new fact or
question them, too. Our stories varied: they could be somber, theoretical insight and lay it in
exciting, or sometimes get us laughing so hard we’d choke on front of the tribe; and then they
all gather and dance around it.
our peas. The difference with the Core Routine here is that we Symposia are held in the National
want to emphasize experiences with nature. Academy of Sciences and prizes
A staple practice of hunters and gatherers around the world, are given. There is fundamentally
no difference from a Paleolithic
storytelling knit the society together. The men go out for a day campsite celebration.
of tracking and hunting, while grandmothers and children might
E.O. W, in Writing Natural
harvest berries, root vegetables, or bark to make thread and cloth. History, Dialogues With Authors,
Around the fire at night they gather and report the stories of by E L
their days. This exchange of stories seems to be very important to
humans. For millennia, survival depended on information gained
about food sources and other patterns in the landscape.

Story of the Day — In Groups

A classic form of Story of the Day breaks everyone into small
groups. You go out for adventures for a while and then recon-
vene to exchange the stories of each group’s discoveries. These
stories move our emotions, entertain us, and can easily turn a
wet, cold, hungry experience into a memorable drama.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 41

 To invite children to tell their stories to one another, we
share many old tricks. You will learn them as you go. Circling
up, quieting down, listening to each other, passing a talk-
ing stick, loosening stuck tongues, tightening loose tongues,
drawing stories on a collective map: all these will come with
practice and familiarity.
You can invite adults to tell their stories in a great vari-
ety of ways, some using art, some using computers, on-line
forums, list-serve groups, graphic arts, songs, skits and just
plain storytelling. Grownup storytelling produces great
energy. People laugh hard, they cry, they sing, and then they
sleep well at night with smiles on their faces. We always get
Language clothes Nature, as the
air clothes the earth, taking the
insightful feedback from their story-of-the-day sessions.
exact form and pressure of every Then, the very next day they go out on the trail vigorously
object. gathering more stories to tell.
R W E Sharing stories with others builds a collective knowl-
edge much greater than the isolated experience of one per-
son. We can gain a storehouse of information from oth-
ers’ stories: one saw frogs by the pond with bright red legs;
one made rope out of old dead cedar bark; one snuck up on
My grandmother laid the coyotes and aplodontias living in the woods near the pond.
foundation for frog-catching and Storytelling layers knowledge slowly built up over time, as
fishing. Grandma knew her role.
Her role was to catch my stories.
a living oral library.
With a grandmother to come Sharing our personal stories inspires us on further. Group
home to, there were a lot of things sharing affirms everyone’s amazing experiences in nature can
to see and learn and gather.
be accessible to all. “If Danny can catch a frog or Samantha
J Y, Grandmother can touch a deer, well then, why can’t I?” Curiosity, our great-
Caught My Stories
est resource for learning, becomes contagious. If you listen to
someone tell about catching the frog by “the most beautiful
pond just down the street,” you just might want to go there
soon. Or maybe you wonder, now that we’ve mentioned it, who
ever heard of an “aplodontia?”
This constant pouring of individual experience and
knowledge into a collective pot for the community unveils
one of the great advantages to group learning. Many people
recognize the value of and crave such a learning community.
As participants begin to trust that there will be a constant
rhythm to this routine, that they will get many chances to

42 |
tell their stories, the momentum builds into a palpable group zeal at story-
telling time. Age matters not. All people respond to this cycle of learning
and sharing in a magical way.

Story of the Day—For One

If not in a group setting, stories can be told to a journal. With young chil-
dren this might be done through drawing or art, or dictating to you, the
writer. Again, we share many tricks for this which may depend on your skills
and the skills objectives of your program.
Older youth can journal tracks they find in the field, or write about Sit
Spot experiences, keeping weekly “Field Inventories,” as people do in the
Kamana Naturalist Training Program. If you like to inspire sketching and
drawing, let it be in the spirit of expressing a story rather than coloring inside
the lines. If you love how words clothe experience, you can guide people into
finding strong and vivid words and ways to unfold all the sensory input of
their moment in time.
Writing and drawing can end up back in the story circle as Show-and-Tell.
Something about knowing their writing will be performed or published, or
their drawing displayed or mounted, fires up attention to their work—as if
a predator might be watching! For some, this enhances their experience, for
others it can block them with fear. Again, use this response as an opportu-
nity to guide their paths with the intent of empowering them to find their
own storytelling gifts.

How Stories Reveal Edges

Story of the Day encourages self-expression and self-confidence in the valid-
ity of each person’s personal experiences. With many people, you might see a
progression from trembling shyness to charismatic power. At first, some may
demonstrate a collapsed, drawn inward body language. With no eye contact,
their timid offer is only a low and mumbled speech. After many opportu-
nities to listen to others and share their stories, even the shyest gradually
transforms into a bright voice, a lifted chest, and sparkling eyes that pour out
excitement and unerring self-assurance.
Whenever you listen to a person’s story, you have a golden opportunity
to discern their edges and inspire them with fitting questions. As a routine,
careful listening to Story of the Day gives you, the Coyote Mentor, leisure
time to hear what captures the attention, what people notice and don’t notice,
what they feel proud or awkward to talk about, and what words they choose

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 43

to express themselves. The chapter ahead called Questioning and Answering
will be a very helpful guide to place questions right at the edge of their sto-
ries. Good questions, aptly chosen and well timed, will get your people curi-
ous and push them to bring back even better stories.
We encourage you to think about this process: rather than passively lis-
tening to stories, you are pulling stories—pulling out stories and pulling on
stories—to reveal all the rich gems of learning, as well as all the gaps and
pockets of unawareness. As with panning for gold or kneading the bubbles
out of bread dough, you, the mentor, play an active role in the evolution of
the story—and the storyteller.

The Big Two Routines

These two routines, Sit Spot and Story of the Day, feed each other con-
stantly, like a call and response. The other eleven Core Routines that follow
can be found contained within these two, as specific techniques to enhance
time spent outside and daily reflection on it.
The antidote to Nature Deficit Disorder may be this simple: get people to
spend time in nature, and when they return, be there to ask good questions
and catch their stories.

Expanding Our Senses

Expanding Our Senses in a nutshell:
Use and expand all your senses as fully as you can. Pay attention! Look
Alert! Stretch Out! Use all the senses, one at a time, and together.

Pay attention!
For nature connection, we have only one golden rule: notice everything. Get
down in the dirt and feel it. Widen to Owl Eyes (a name we like to give to
peripheral vision) and detect movement. Hear the far-off cry of the hawk and
the wind in the trees. Smell the scent carried in the warm breeze. Feel the
direction of the sun. Taste the safe wild edibles. At every opportunity, alert
people to expand their senses until doing so becomes routine, a practice, a
habit, a discipline, and finally, a brain pattern.
Remember the context of Expanding Our Senses. People who lived off
the land instilled this skill above all: pay attention at all times to everything.
E. O. Wilson describes the intensity of the state by calling it “the natural-
ist’s trance, the hunter’s trance—by which biologists locate more elusive

44 |
organisms.” They had the alertness of predator and prey. This
continual state of being directly caused much of the awareness
and naturalist knowledge learned without schooling.
If you hunt or watch birds, then you already know the drill.
Perhaps you’ve been a photographer, or had a job watching for
fires from a tower, or detecting potential avalanches at a ski
slope, or maybe you’ve raised a toddler in a cityscape full of
hazards: all of these require close attention.
As a Coyote Mentor take every opportunity to stretch every-
one’s sensory awareness, including your own. Your actions, how-
ever subtle, lead to alerting, discovering, invoking, evoking, reviv-
ing, appreciating, encouraging, inspiring, questioning, expanding, What is spiritual? The more of
our brain that we engage, the
widening, stretching, exercising, and focusing sensory aware- more of our antennae that we
ness. The introductory exercise on Expanding our Senses in the tune, the stronger our sensitivity
Activities section will give you some helpful approaches. to the vibrations of the life force
around us.

Forging a Different Set of Brain Patterns J Y, “What is Spiritual?”

Seeing Through Native Eyes audio
The routine of Expanding Our Senses wakes us up to more
fully using our amazing innate capacity for seeing, hearing,
smelling, tasting, and touching. In terms of brain patterning
theory, this routine excites and focuses conscious attention on
our sensory neurology until reaching out with our eyes, ears, Slots between the trunks up
nostrils, taste buds, and skin surfaces becomes a mental habit. ahead shiver with blue where a
muskeg opens. I angle toward it,
Throughout our lives then, we‘ll absorb sensory information feeling no need to hurry, picking
with increasing subtlety. every footstep carefully, stopping
After all, our senses never turn off. Our brain patterns often to stare into the dizzying
crannies, listening for any splinter
only filter what we pay attention to. Simply, this routine of sound, keeping my senses tight
breaks us out of habitual brain patterns and wakes us up to and concentrated.
capacities we would normally ignore. Through conscious use I listen as closely as possible but
of our senses, we can actually strengthen them, and give them hear nothing. I work my eyes
full range of motion, just as you might strengthen muscles by into every dark crevice and slot
among the snowy branches, but
exercising at a gym. For whole-brain learning, we want to see nothing. I stand perfectly still
exercise all the senses in the ever-changing, many-textured and wait.
playground of nature. Then I see it.

Human’s Dominant Sense R K. N,

The Island Within
Each animal has a dominant sense that determines its lifestyle,
how it interacts with the world. The long nose of dogs makes

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 45

There is an intimate reciprocity to for a world organized by smells, while the huge satellite-dish
the senses; as we touch the bark
of a tree, we feel the tree touching ears of deer mean a world full of important sounds. Humans,
us; as we lend our ears to the a lot like cats with large eyes mounted on the front of a flat
local sounds and ally our nose to
the seasonal scents, the terrain
face, possess the ideal set-up for a life based on vision.
gradually tunes us in turn. Human eyes operate as acute instruments that guide
our lifestyle as bipedal animals with dexterous forelimbs.
D A, The Spell of the
Sensuous: Preception and Language However, this can become a double-edged sword, both a gift
in a More-than Human World and a limiting factor. Whenever we allow one sense to be over-
emphasized, it is possible for the other senses, and thus other
parts of our brains, to be under-developed. Try this great prac-
tice for stealing away our dominant sense so as to awaken the
others—use blindfolds. If you would like a taste of this sug-
“Let’s go pick berries. Do you like gestion, prepare yourself a meal at home, then sit down and
berries?”
“I love berries, I like sweet things.”
eat it blindfolded. The world appears very different without
“Let’s go pick berries.” eyes. (We also recommend reading Helen Keller’s biography
or the rather terrible picture of sudden epidemic blindness in
And while you’re picking berries,
you’re asking questions. “How Blindness by Jose Saramago.)
come this berry is different from However, we also want to use our gift of sight fully. Our cul-
that one and these are red and
those are white?” Each time
tural influences now narrow our vision into a small range to use
we add another meaningful books, TVs, computers, and handheld electronics. If you watch
awareness component, we stretch a new-born baby, you’ll see its huge eyes take in everything.
them further and further. If
you could attach little strings of Catching the movement of a fly or bird outside the window, they
awareness to them, they’d look will suddenly turn with wonder to look. This peripheral vision,
like a daisy with many petals,
a three dimensional flower, a
the ability to see “out of the corner of the eye,” allows us to detect
clover bloom, with many, many subtle movements, such as animals slinking into the bushes as
rays of awareness going out in all we arrive near their territory. It also provides excellent vision at
directions.
night. A few folks that I mentor who wear glasses have changed
J Y, Rays of Awareness their prescriptions: after a few months of routinely expanding
their vision, their eyes actually improved as a result of this natu-
ral way of seeing. We do need “tunnel vision,” that especially
narrow focus, to execute certain tasks—but there is much on
the edge of our focus to take in from peripheral vision.

The Fifth, Sixth, and More Senses

Expanding Our Senses on a routine basis extends the func-
tional use of our brain well beyond the norm in our modern
society. We highly recommend reading Diane Ackerman’s
lively research on each of the five human senses in her book

46 |
A Natural History of the Senses. Our sidebar lists additional
senses abridged from a list of fifty-three that Michael J. Cohen
identifies in his writings. These give just a hint of what our
biology is capable of.
Consider the possibility that our “sixth sense,” the one with
no name, combines the full use and coordination of our five
senses. What may seem mystical to some, might be plain biol-
ogy when the brain is used optimally. If anything could be called
strange, it would have to be that so many humans settle for using
only a tiny portion of the brain’s capacity for perception.

Questioning and Tracking

Questioning and Tracking in a Nutshell: Cohen lists 53 natural survival
Become a detective and track everything as a clue to a mys- senses that connect and balance
Nature within to Nature without.
tery to solve. Ask questions about everything, and push They include:
your questions until they yield answers. Who? What?
Sense of time
When? Where? Why? How? Appetite and hunger
Sense of temperature and
Questioning Tracks temperature change
Sense of season, including the
Tracking animals is fascinating. It’s a window into wildlife. It ability to insulate, hibernate and
winter sleep
captures imagination and empathy, and demands whole-brain Humidity sense, including the
intelligence and concentration. Getting down on all fours acumen to find water or evade a
and staring at the footprints of animals offers a particular flood
Hearing, including resonance,
abundance of opportunity for imprinting search images. Like vibrations, sonar frequencies
reading, studying the sign and following the trails of animals, Sense of awareness of one’s
own visibility and consequent
develops powers of pattern recognition that stay with you for camouflaging
the rest of your life. Sense of proximity
To guide your inquiry, ask the journalist’s six questions: Sense of fear
Sense of play
Who? What? When? Where? Why? and How? If you find Sense of excessive stress
a four-toed track with claw-marks, you might use a field Sense of emotional place, of
community belonging
guide to identify who, and you might use a ruler to mea- Psychic capacity, such as
sure and determine the type of gait the animal used. The foreknowledge, and animal
gait pattern then may tell you more about what the animal instinct
Spiritual sense, including
was doing, even about its mood. Trying to figure out when conscience, capacity for sublime
the animal made the track also draws you in to notice the love, sense of sorrow, and sacrifice.
weather. Following a series of tracks may show you where M J. C,
it was headed. And this will get you wondering why it Reconnecting with Nature

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 47

“Let us follow,” said Mowgli, “The was headed that way. And to answer that you’ll start to
jungle is wet enough to hold the
lightest mark.” notice how that four-toed track relates to the nearby rodent
tunnels, and how those tunnels relate to the surrounding
Bagheera the Panther, trotting
with his head low said, “It is
grasses, and how those grasses link to the topography. Like
single-foot” (he meant there was snowflakes or words, no two tracks, no two trails, are ever
only one man), “and the weight of exactly the same. Tracking is the art that develops, and then
the thing he carries has pressed
his heel far into the ground.” infinitely complexifies, your image-vocabulary for reading
the book of nature.
“Ha! This is as clear as summer
lightning,” Mowgli answered; and
they fell into the quick, choppy Tracking as Scientific Inquiry
trail-trot in and out through
the checkers of the moonlight, Tracking wildlife by looking at footprints and other sign defi-
following the marks of those two nitely offers a fertile opportunity for developing knowledge of
bare feet.
place, but we want to expand the metaphor. We mean “track-
“Now he runs swiftly,” said ing” in the broadest sense. The discipline of tracking nurtures
Mowgli. “The toes are spread quality observation, observation guided by intense curiosity,
apart.” They went on over some
wet ground. “Now why does he question after question. So “tracking,” like scientific inquiry,
turn aside here?” always begins with a question. Then it includes gathering evi-
“Wait!” said Bagheera, and flung dence and reasoning deductively; defining, refining, and prov-
himself forward with one superb ing hypotheses. Tracking, like playing the detective or the
bound as far as ever he could. scientist whose discoveries are goaded on by a burning desire,
The first thing to do when a trail
ceases to explain itself is to cast leads you to find answers.
forward without leaving your Tom Brown, Jr. likes to ask, “When are we NOT track-
own confusing foot-marks on
the ground. Bagheera turned as ing?” and of course, the answer is “When we are asleep or
he landed, and faced Mowgli, dead!” Humans track. It is the most natural thing for us to
crying, “Here comes another trail
to meet him. It is a smaller foot,
do. We track with our eyes, ears, nose, touch, taste, emotions,
this second trail and the toes turn minds, and bodies. Anyone can track anything. Herbalists
inward.” and gardeners constantly track: through years of inquisitive
Then Mowgli ran up and looked. observation they deepen their knowledge of plants. “What
“It is the foot of a Gond hunter,” plant is this?” “Why does this plant grow so well here and
he said. “Look! Here he dragged
his bow on the grass. That is why
not there?” “How do the different seasons affect the medici-
the first trail turned aside so nal potency of this plant’s leaves, flowers, and roots?” The
quickly. Big Foot hid from Little technicians in the back room fixing our computers track
Foot.”
electronic pathways. Parents track the development of their
R K, children. Youth track adults to mimic their lifestyle strate-
The Jungle Book
gies. If your attitude is inquiring and your method is scien-
tific, you’re a tracker.
Tom has another aphorism: “We want to put the quest
back in question and the search back in research.” The core

48 |
routine of Questioning and Tracking instills a mental habit of intense
inquiry. When people relax, their naturally curiosity asks amazingly good
questions. As mentors we empower that curiosity to keep their questioning
alive. Role-model this enthusiastic inquisitiveness in your own life to lure
them from edge to edge.
In our Seeing Through Native Eyes audio series, Jon Young introduces the
art of tracking with as good a picture as we can give of how a person might
use the classic interrogatives, “Who, What, When, Where and Why” with
animal tracks. This excerpt from Part Two shows how these questions can
guide your inquiry:

Jon Young on Awakening Inquiry

“Let’s Look at Tracks.
On your way to your sit spot, there’s that little road that you walk along,
and there’s that little mud puddle there. Can you picture it? You can see the
raindrops like little dots all around the tracks. And in it as you look closer,
you see a set of footprints. You can recognize that there are some toes there,
and some claws, and you can recognize some heel pads. And you can kind of
get a sense of the direction that the animal went in. And you can almost see
its size; can see how big it may be. You can tell how heavy it is by pushing on
the ground and saying, ‘Wow, this ground is pretty firm; but notice, these
tracks went in pretty deep. This animal is pretty heavy.’
Your first question you might ask is WHO? Who left this track? The
identification of signs, hairs that you find stuck on a thorn, droppings that
you find along the edge of a field, chews on the edge of a piece of bark: these
are all signs. Holes in the ground. Who lives there? Whose trail is that?
What animal is most likely to use that trail? These are all questions that are
related to the first art of tracking, identification.
The second question you might come up with is WHAT? ‘I know what
kind of animal it is, but I’m really curious to know what it’s doing. Is it run-
ning? Is it walking? Is it looking left or right, up or down? Is it scared? Could
you tell from this track? Is that really possible?’ If you had a long stretch of
sand in order to understand the full length of the stories, you could do it, and
that’s the art of interpretation.
Back to your mud puddle. You’ve got an idea of who it is, and what it’s
doing. What you want to know now is, WHEN was it here? That’s the third
art of tracking, the art of aging. When did this animal go by? Ask yourself
this, ‘Are those raindrops I see in the mud all around that track, also in the

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 49

track itself? What does that mean?’ That animal came by before the rain. So
if I could only figure out when it last rained, I have an idea of how old these
tracks must be. Maybe the ranger who works at this park can tell me.
The next thing is, ‘Hey, I don’t care who made those tracks, I don’t
really care what that animal was doing, and I don’t even care what time it
was here. What I want to know is WHERE it is right now? Can I follow
it? Can I take up this track right here as if it was the end of a string and
follow it to its source?’ A good tracker can do that. That’s something the
Apaches were known for. That’s something the Aborigines in Australia
are known for, and the Bushmen of the Kalahari. They can follow a
string of footprints and lead you right to the animal. The art of trailing is
very difficult. But you can learn that too.
So you have the Who, What, When and Where of tracking. The next
one is WHY? ‘Why does this animal come by here every day between 8:30
and 10:00? Why does it go down this mud road? Why is it moving at this
speed and not another speed? Why does it always seem to be in the same
kind of energy flow? It doesn’t seem to be going anywhere except in a straight
line, why is that? And why are there always human tracks next to it that seem
to be from the same time?’ We call this art ecological tracking.
The question Why always comes from the bigger picture; you’ll never
get the answer right from the footprint itself. Knowing what berries are
ripe will tell you where the bear is going. Knowing what fish are running
in the rivers will teach you about otters and about mink. Knowing about
the acorns that are falling will teach you about the deer and the grouse, the
turkeys, the bear. All of these things are related. And the more you know
about nature, the better you will be at tracking, because you’ll be able to
put the whole picture together.”

Animal Forms
Animal Forms in a Nutshell:
Physically, mentally, and emotionally imitate any and all animals in their
movements, behaviors, and personalities.

A Long Tradition of Imitation

What we call Animal Forms is simply the imitation of the physical and men-
tal actions of animals, birds, and to some extent even grass, wind and water.
This potent routine might seem a bit different from the others, more akin to

50 |
dance than mental gymnastics. As a practice, animal imitations
can be found in cultures across the globe. For instance, think of
the many martial arts from Asia based on imitation of animals
such as crane, tiger, or turtle. Also, many indigenous cultures
conduct imitative dances and dramas, often with accompany-
ing masks and costumes. The Hawaiian Hula, an ancient and
modern dance form, brilliantly demonstrates such animal and
nature dances. Cave paintings in Europe and old European sto-
ries indicate that the ancestors of Europeans did the same.
In the Activities section ahead, we’ll emphasize some basic
perceptual strategies, movements, or footprints of common
North American animals: owl, deer, fox, cat, dog, raccoon,
and rabbit. Also, we’ll suggest games that call for imitation,
pretending or play-acting how animals sneak, hide, climb,
stalk, pounce, and eat. Over time, your own experiences will
teach you many more.

Bodily Learning
We can “learn by feel” the anatomy behind animal movements.
How do two-leggeds walk, how do four-leggeds? How do blind
moles navigate? The practice of imitating animal movement,
which includes its mood and strategy, creates a meaningful rela-
tionship with the animal. Combined with field guides and jour-
naling, practicing animal forms will imprint search images—
multi-dimensional, dynamic models of character and form—in
both mind and body, into our very being. This is what “learning
by heart” could mean: developing a stronger sense of instinct
and intuition, and growing in empathy with what we imitate. Kingfishers: they make a
Of course, people, especially children, without ever being hellacious noise, blast and rattle
before them, so the whole world
told naturally mimic Animal Forms. Think back to your child- knows they’re coming. Rest on
hood: Did you ever pretend to be an animal? Did you ever have a branch over water with their
big bills, suddenly dive. Hit the
a favorite stuffed animal that you brought to life with play- water and shoot their wings
acting? Which animals did you love to be? What does your back to propel themselves that
body remember today about the animal’s movement? If you extra jolt forward. Tom would
say, “Let’s go be kingfishers.”
ever get among native folks such as the San Bushmen, you will We’d climb on the rock and dive
notice that adults routinely imitate things too. In fact, their straight down and try to catch a
fish with our faces.
success as hunters depends on this; adult Bushman hunters
have been found to accurately imitate three hundred different J Y

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 51

species from their environment, and many imitations serve to attract the
species they are hunting. They get a great deal of humor out of it as well.

Physical Education
Why encourage the practice of animal forms? Animal Forms present a posi-
tive channel for physical development. Many of the forms we teach have some
concrete, physical application, such as Raccoon Form for crawling through
thickets of brush, Deer Bounding Form for jumping over logs, or Cougar
Form for sneaking through low cover. Therefore, Animal Forms often make
up the “Physical Education” sections of our days. The diversity of animals in
the world provides a spectrum of movements that can develop all areas of a
person’s body, from stretching to climbing to running to lying flat and still.

Animals as Teachers
Animal Forms also establishes animals as teachers, as beings whose lifestyles
offer valuable lessons for our lives. Not only physical movements, but men-
tal attitudes can be learned from animals. For instance, watching a squirrel
relentlessly harvest nuts in the fall reveals the mentality of hard work and
“getting it done” when you really need to. The long-range vision of a hawk or
eagle can teach us about seeing the big picture. The ferocity of the wolver-
ine can get us in touch with that inner strength that could save our lives in
extreme situations. The wiliness of coyote, the stealth of weasel, the playful-
ness of otter—all have lessons to teach.
Playing with the forms of different animals teaches without words that each
animal presents a unique and valid way of existing in the world. It broadens
our minds to realize all the multiple ways of being, multiple life-strategies—
not any better than others—just different. By playing with animal forms, we
can have access to all these different perspectives on how to be alive.

Staying Loose and Playful

Animal Forms keep all of us loose and playful in our self-expression. Through
constant “shape-shifting” into different animals, we enliven and nourish our
own and others’ imaginations. Often through Animal Forms we discover
those among us who have theatrical flairs and tell brilliant stories. Playing as
different animals puts us just one step away from complex character-acting.
But again, just as with Sit Spot, let the magic of Animal Forms arise
naturally. We will share some forms in this book, but remember the most

52 |
effective Animal Forms come to life when individuals take them on as their
own, creating and playing as they wish. The best thing you can do is role-
model the daily play of Animal Forms in your own life. Watch animal videos
and imitate movements. Or visit the zoo and watch one animal for hours
until its unique style burns into your memory.
Jon Young tells of how he learned Animal Forms as a child by going in his
basement, locking the door, cranking up some loud music, and losing himself in
his imagination as he shape-shifted into animals, frolicking over the couch as a
monkey, tromping and growling around it as a huge bear, or sneaking behind it
as a bobcat on all fours. In the depths of his Mind’s Eye Imagining, he developed
a full sensory memory of what it was like to be different animals, birds, trees,
rivers and even rocks. How can this be? Well, the imagination is powerful, just
think of the writers of works like Starwars, Lord of the Rings, or Harry Potter: did
they ever actually experience all those things they wrote about?

Wandering
Wandering in a Nutshell:
Wander through the landscape without time, destination, agenda, or
future purpose; be present in the moment; and go off-trail wherever curi-
osity leads.

Hmmm … an educational activity without purpose? A walk in nature with-

out a destination or intent? Are we serious?

Unstructured Time
Yes, we feel so serious about this routine, that most of our programs have a
built-in “wander” or “walkabout” for about half of our time out in the field.
We call this “The 50-50 Principle.” We plan our whole day to follow a struc-
ture, but count on fifty-percent of the time in the excitement of the moment,
involving timeless, unstructured Wandering. There is nothing to accom-
plish, nowhere to go. By just being present in the moment, curiosity gently
leads us wherever we go.
Why would we spend so much of our time wandering aimlessly?
In the modern world, we call a lot of things priorities: our agenda, our cal-
endar, our jobs, our bills, our children, our parents, the gear we need for rec-
reation. They push us this way and that in a direction that flows away from
nature. Having an agenda or expected plan of action closes our minds to

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 53

The “wandering mentality” what else may be happening at any given moment. Wandering
emerges naturally among
subsistence and recreational without aim opens us to what nature wants to teach. In terms
hunters whose unparalleled of brain patterning, Wandering is the quintessential Coyote
alertness and total attentiveness
to the environment constitute
routine, a habit to break habits, and an essential skill for allow-
a transcendent state of ing each person to connect with nature according to their own
consciousness. special gifts.
R L. E, Why The literature of naturalists and hunters throughout time
Hunters Save the World overflows with tributes to the downright spiritual—and polit-
ical—value of slowing down, of living in unstructured time. A
few choice tidbits describe that value:
Wendell Berry, a Kentucky farmer, conservation poet, and
essayist, writes in An Entrance to the Woods,

“The faster one goes, the more strain there is on the senses,
Use the 50/50 principle but plan
100% of the time, with perhaps the more they fail to take in, the more confusion they must
50% of the activities being core tolerate or gloss over—and the longer it takes to bring the
activities such as sitting, mapping,
students mentoring students, etc.
mind to a stop in the presence of anything.”
For the other 50% of the time,
prepare for the unexpected. Sigurd Olson, canoe guide and activist who worked to save
Pick from a repertoire of activities the Quetico-Boundary Waters Wilderness, writes in his biog-
for different situations, so if an raphy, Open Horizons.
unexpected event happens, you
have an appropriate lesson at your
fingertips. Maybe aim for one with “Something grew on me during those years of roaming…. This
an inspirational hit, one with an was the sense of timelessness, a way of looking at life that truly
adrenaline rush, one introducing
a wholly new area, some library had the power of slowing speed. In town there were always
research, and a variety of other deadlines, a host of things to do, but as soon as the canoes were
activities that you could change at
a moment’s notice.
in the water and heading out, the tempo changed …. The com-
ing of day and night, the eternal watching of the skies, sunrises
D F, Kamana and sunsets, the telltale story of winds in the maneuvering of
Student, “The Fifty-Fifty
Principle” clouds, the interwoven pattern of rain and mist, cycles of cold
and warmth, even the changing vegetation, —all these filtered
into … the comprehension of time being endless and relative
with all life flowing into its stream …”

Barry Lopez, in a powerful essay in Patriotism and the

American Land, commissioned after September 11, 2001,
calls on more of us to become true naturalists, writing,

54 |
Core Routines of Nature Connection | 55
 “Firsthand knowledge is enormously time consuming to acquire; with its
dallying and lack of end points, it is also out of phase with the short-term
demands of modern life. It teaches humility and fallibility, and so repre-
sents an antithesis to progress. It makes a stance of awe in the witness of
natural process seem appropriate, and attempts at summary knowledge
naïve … Firsthand knowledge of a country’s ecosystems, a rapidly dimin-
ishing pool of expertise and awareness, lies at the radical edge of any coun-
try’s political thought.”

Letting Curiosity Lead the Way

Wandering through a landscape being led solely by curiosity and open eyes is
the fertile ground for true discovery. Wandering allows us to get in touch with
what excites us. When we’re not pushing a learning-agenda, curiosity comes to
the forefront and guides the learning process. As mentors, we fall into the role
of fellow discoverer, fellow questioner. We wait for true desire to learn about
something naturally surface as we wander, and then we plant whatever seeds of
meaningful knowledge we have to share. And then we ask another question.
In his book Free Play, Steven Nachmanovich agrees;

“Such a walk is totally different from random drifting. Leaving your eyes
and ears wide open, you allow your likes and dislikes, your conscious and
unconscious desires and irritations, your irrational hunches, to guide you
wherever there is a choice of turning right or left. You cut a path ... that is
yours alone, which brings you face to face with surprises destined for you
alone. When you travel in this way ... the trip, like an improvised piece of
music, reveals its own inner structures and rhythm. Thus you set the stage
for fateful encounters.”

The numerous “philosophical” lessons of Wandering come as rewards

when people learn to trust themselves, their curiosity, their intuitions,
and their personal rhythms. They discover that learning can be joyful and
exciting. As Joseph Campbell said, they learn to “follow their bliss.” When
wandering with others, they learn to be part of a community, to be open to
the interests and loves of others.
Wandering in this way invariably leads people to find the things they would
never have found if they were driven by an agenda, if they had never left the
trail: coyote skulls, tree frogs, the coolest hollowed-out tree to sit inside.
The wandering mentality is almost the antithesis of the dominant

56 |
mentality in our hurried, businesslike, clock-timed world. It
can be hard for us adults to forget our agendas and simply
wander; and even if we want to, it can be very hard for teachers
in formal educational environments to structure wandering
into our lesson plans. We leave it to you with a will to find a
way. But we do offer the following suggestions:

Going Off-Schedule

events, especially if others are planning their time to

correspond with yours.

daily “measurable learning objectives” simple.

instance, plan field trips, early morning bird-sits, or

night-time walks.

language tells you it’s time to change the tune and

tempo of your lesson.

Going Off-Trail

What, to curious kids, is less

vacant than a vacant lot? … A
private land posted “No Trespassing.” Find welcom- creek bed, a weedy field or a vacant
ing private land, vacant lots, or ditches off the baseball lot ... are places of initiation,
where the borders between
fields instead. Ask around and make friends with park ourselves and other creatures
managers and farm owners. break down, where the earth gets
under our nails and a sense of
place gets under our skin.
as ground-bee nests or glass splinters.
R M P,“
Vacant Lot” The Thunder Tree
go off-trail in the same place will be few and make less
impact.

them.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 57

Mapping
Mapping in a Nutshell:
Orient to the compass directions, and perceive the landscape from a bird’s
eye view. Draw maps to locate features of the landscape or tell stories that
map your explorations.

A natural routine familiar to anyone who’s ever driven in a big city, map-
ping orients us and shows us the gaps in what we notice. It creates a need
for people to know what bird that was by the swamp, or where that creek
goes. It also brings the landscape to life as the diversity of natural sign-
posts emerges through the connections between birds and berry bushes,
between coyote scat and vole-filled meadows, between bodies of water and
the daily movements of animals.

58 |
Drawing Maps
For older youth and adults, this routine comes easy. Draw maps all the time.
Sketch your Sit Spot and the trails and significant features radiating out
from it. Sketch your own house and yard and where it fits in your larger
sphere of living. Draw the route you took on a Wander.
After a day of exploring, gather under the whiteboard and draw a collec-
tive map of where you went and what you saw. First, using the sun, stars, or
a compass as a reference, identify the directions of North, South, East, and
West. Then fill in your big landmarks, your trails, and the sites of the events
that caught your attention.
Also, we encourage more focused groups to keep personal map-journals.
They might begin with a blank slate or a store-bought contour map and fill it
in with the locations of prevailing winds, ecological zones, wetlands, sunny
spots, places never touched by sun, birds glimpsed, animal tracks and trails,
food sources, or shelter trees. We encourage putting down everything on
hand-drawn maps.

About Process, Not Product

The point is not to produce perfect maps. Rather, mapping engages us
in a process infinitely beneficial to human development. Let the process
evolve, and guide it with your questions. Don’t get hung up on maps that
“aren’t right.”
That said, as you practice the routine over time you will notice a marked
difference in the accuracy of mapping. Every year when a new group of folks
shows up at a teaching location we regularly use, they divide into groups and
explore then draw a map of the small pond with a wiggly shape. After doing
so, they show it to the rest of the group. Every map turns out different—one
like a jelly bean, another like a long-necked goose.
Over the year, this process grows more precious to watch: every partici-
pant, including the facilitators, gradually begins to check the image in their
mind with the actual reality of the pond they walk around, discussing and
arguing with others, and constantly adjusting what they imagine. Through
such care, all the different maps grow more uniform in shape; and the group,
in a very similar manner, also congeals as a unified community.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 59

Orienting to the Four Directions
We always draw attention to the circle of the four compass directions: East
where the sun rises, South where it sits in the heat of the day, West where
the sun sets, and North where it hides in the night. We’ll often ask people
to close their eyes and point to the compass direction for North. When eyes
open to see arms flailing in every direction, they quickly realize how dis-
oriented they are as a whole.
Every day, in every way, call attention to the four directions until this
orientation settles into the brain patterns. We want people to make a habit,
as their ancestors did, of orienting themselves to the sun and the stars. We
constantly call attention to the way the sun moves throughout the day, or
which direction we just walked from, or what direction their house lies from
where they stand now. We even design our gathering spaces according to the
qualities that we chose to associate with the directions: Our entry door is
situated in the East; the bookshelves of field guides and journaling supplies
belong in the South; the whiteboard for harvesting our stories marks the
West; and the woodstove for warmth at night sits in the North. (More on
using directions and directional qualities in your “Invisible School” can be
found in the Natural Learning Cycle chapters.)

Navigating and Songlining

We want to take a slightly different approach to the routine of Mapping
when we work with younger children or inexperienced adults. The world for
younger children consists of what lies right in front of them, and often the
drawing of maps will be too intellectual for their development. This can be
true for beginners from any age group.
Our approach with younger children, then, is based much more on the
way we communicate with them about the landscape. As we navigate through
our day, we mention landmarks we passed on our wander, we ask them to
lead the way back, we ask them to notice the clearing in the trees that might
indicate a pond or wetland, and we tell stories about exciting things that
once happened at spots on the landscape.
Traditional cultures create “Songlines” about their places with legends and
songs: that mountain over there identifies where a leader goes to pray and cry
for his people, and those drainage veins of snow coming down show streams of
his tears; or that tree by the river with the two huge branches represents an old
woman whose great arms watch over and take care of the river and its fish. In

60 |
The Practice of the Wild, Gary Snyder tells of traveling by truck
in Australia with a Pintubi elder who recites the traditional
Songline at truck speed. He reports, “I realized after about half
an hour of this that these were tales to be told while walking,
and that I was experiencing a speeded-up version of what might
be leisurely told over several days of foot travel.”
Take it slowly in the places you visit. “Story” your place as
a means of navigating through it. Your adventures will lead to
Songlines all across the landscape. Of course, name the places
you go. Try naming them things you will remember, names
that play off emotions of kids and adults: Death Crossing,
Booger Hill, Funky Chicken Lake, Sneaking Cougar Trail.
In essence, we take the mapping mentality to “story” the
landscape into one huge interconnected place that holds mean-
ing for all of us. Whether through drawing simple maps, com-
municating from a bird’s eye view, or paying attention to the
four directions, the routine of Mapping practices, as the old say-
ing goes, “getting to know a place like the back of your hand.”

Exploring Field Guides

Exploring Field Guides in a Nutshell:
Browse through field guides as treasure-chests of knowledge The “wandering mentality”
emerges naturally among
that fill up the vacuum of your curiosity about nature. subsistence and recreational
hunters whose unparalleled
When people want scientific information, how can we help alertness and total attentiveness
to the environment constitute
them find it for themselves? Leading them to Explore Field a transcendent state of
Guides makes them life-long, self-sufficient citizen-scientists consciousness.
of the natural world. R L. E, Why
Hunters Save the World
Field Guides as Elders
Field Guides express the amalgamation of many people’s life
work. They are treasure chests of hard-earned knowledge that has
been passed on and built upon. Therefore they are the modern
equivalent of the knowledge of an elder from a traditional culture:
they hold the collective experience of many generations.
Elders from indigenous cultures have shared with us
how their grandparents or aunts and uncles passed on their

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 61

My frog-catching was driven by intricate understanding of the environment through stories
my dad’s mother, Nanny Cecil.
My childhood years until I was or by showing them things. Their descriptions of how this
ten were Nanny Cecil years. happened suggest that the elders only taught things when the
She took care of my sister and
me when both my parents were
younger people showed up ready for the lesson. The same is
working and sometimes we’d true with field guides. These wonderful books can be exciting
go stay with her in her little to sit with, gleaning gems of information and soaking up the
apartment on the sixth floor in
the city of Asbury Park. She had detail of drawings, photographs, and diagrams. But they really
grandmother magic and knew only teach us when we are ready to absorb.
how to work it with us kids. She
understood that children have
these passions that she could tease Begin with Curiosity
them along with.
Because field guides offer so much information (in small print
What did Nanny Cecil do that and adult language), we need to make them fun, approachable,
was so impressive? This shows
you how her mind works. She
and accessible. We don’t use them as textbooks, but rather as
would tell me and my sister, “You cherished magical books that hold innumerable secrets. We
can go anywhere you want in my want them to be explored with wide eyes and a playful attitude.
apartment, but whatever you do,
don’t go in the bottom middle The routine of Exploring Field Guides complements
drawer of my dresser.” And then our curiosity sparked by other routines, such as Sit Spot,
she’d turn, “I’m going to wash
dishes.” She’d sit there and wash Questioning and Tracking, or Wandering. These other rou-
the same two dishes over and over tines create an empty “vacuum” of interest primed to “suck in”
again for the longest time—and information. When there is a living question, then the field
sing, and that would give Kim
and me enough time to kind of guides are exciting to explore.
slide up along the wall. One of us We encourage you to leave the field guides behind when
would watch for the other while
we crawled on our bellies up to you head out for a Wander or some Sit Spot time. Allow the
that middle bottom drawer and field to provoke your curiosity, and when you get back you will
looked in.
have something to look for in the field guides. Recalling from
Nanny had Golden Guides in your imagination the sight of that strange black and yellow
there! The Golden Guide to bird engages memory—this burns the experience into the
Reptiles and Amphibians had
drawings and maps and a picture brain patterns and allows for field guide information to inte-
of how frogs use their eyes. It grate with experience in a lasting way. Leafing through Field
was unbelievable treasure. And
it was forbidden! Think about
Guides can lead you to new questions to take back outside,
that. What that did for me and and new things to watch for.
my sister. I’d be looking at the Field guides can also be great in the field, to be pulled out
pictures in the book, “Oh my
Gosh, look at that!” at lunch, or along the trail when you find a plant that might
be edible. You can mix them into a game or activity. You can
continued...
make a scavenger hunt with them. “Who can find these three
dandelion look-a-likes?” After they huddle around your field
guide, burning the images into their imagination, off they go
hunting for the real things.

62 |
Soaking-In Learning My sister would be on guard
and she’d say, “Hurry up,
A delightful phenomenon happens when you just get people, hurry up, Nanny’s coming!”
So I’d close the book and the
and especially children, flipping through field guides: learning drawer, and she’d say, “Just
seeps in by osmosis. They might pick up a field guide to look kidding. My turn to look and
yours to watch.”
for just one specific bird they saw or to solve a riddle you gave
them. But in the process, they have to flip through and look Every once in a while, Nanny
would catch me. “Oh, you saw
at the pictures of dozens or hundreds of other birds. They’ll it,” she’d say. “Well, we’ll just
often pause along the way, momentarily forgetting their goal as have to read from it.” And I sat
their curiosity overtakes them by seeing a bird with a strange on her lap and learned to read
from these Golden Guides.
feather-thing on its head. They look up its name and might Every one of the pictures in the
read a little more, and call you over with a grin, “Look at this Golden Guides is burned in
my memory. They’re not dead
thing!” Then they keep on flipping. bird pictures; they’re living
Learning seeps in that wasn’t planned, that couldn’t be images.
planned if you tried. This leads to an experience we witness
My grandmother’s role from
often, and it tickles us every time. A person walks through the her kitchen in the city was
forest and suddenly they see a bird (or a plant, tree, track, or to send me on errands and
channel my stories into field
skull) that they’ve never ever seen before, and they excitedly guides when I came home at
point and blurt out without thinking, “Hey, that’s a _______!” the end of the day. “Have you
(fill in the blank with whatever they saw) Then they’ll stop and ever caught this one? Well,
you should try to catch me one
a strange look will come onto their face. “I have no idea how I of those. I’d like to see one.”
knew that. I’ve never looked up that bird or been taught it. But And when I came home, she
wanted to know the whole
I’m sure I know it.” They’ve learned it accidentally, by immers- story: what did I catch, name
ing themselves in field guides, by flipping through and letting it, use these books to find out
search images develop subconsciously. Over years, this uncon- what they eat, and go catch
stuff they eat.
scious file-cabinet of images becomes huge. We have seen
this with people of all ages, from very young to quite elderly. Little by little, the guides
migrated over to my house.
However you do it, take a hint from Jon’s grandmother, Nanny There was probably a rite of
Cecil, in the sidebar. Make the exploration into these treasure passage where we were allowed
chests a journey of magical discovery. to look in the bottom drawer.
Field Guides were my elders
growing up and Nanny Cecil
Journaling was the mentor who drove me
to them with her questions.
Journaling in a Nutshell: J Y, Golden Guides
Keep a regular record, in drawings and in words, of your
experience outdoors. Keep dated sketches, captions,
and comments that describe your landscape. Keep it up
through all the seasons until it becomes a habit you can’t
live without.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 63

By “ journaling,” we do mean carrying around paper and pencil or laying open
a sketchbook at the nature desk inside, next to the bookshelf stacked with
field guides. Here we have the first core routine that involves tools. Assemble
a sturdy pad of paper, a pencil or an ink pen, something to add color, and an
eraser for a good beginner’s toolbox.

Stretching the Imagination

Journaling is the routine that stretches and etches all the details a little fur-
ther into the brain. It’s the Sit Spot, Expanding Our Senses, Story of the
Day, Questioning and Tracking, and Mapping all recorded in line and color
and words on a page.
Look at something and then draw it, then look back to check on the things
you weren’t sure of—how that ear comes off the head, or how that leaf attaches
to the stem. Can you feel your visual imagination wake up? Coloring a tree
green, then looking twice, and shading the green and adding brown, activates
a flurry of synaptic connections. The sketcher enters a lively image-questioning
sequence with the thing observed. Because it fires up the brain’s visual imagi-
nation, drawing imprints images in the mind’s eye library.
Of course putting what you see or how you feel into words wakes up the
linguistic brain. A five year old can learn six words for “green” and use them
with delight all the rest of her life. Journaling means finding words that
name plants and animals and birds, learning adjectives for color, inventing
metaphors for smell, and growing a versatile vocabulary for movement. So
much in nature is new for people that the words they find to record their
experience often involve creative metaphor and little stories. So journaling,
whether written or dictated, connects the language parts of the brain to sen-
sory experiences from nature, and both bring each other alive.

Journaling as Paying Attention

The real purpose of the core routine of journaling is to train the mind to
pay attention. It’s important to keep a journal regularly. You want to end up
with a thick book. To do that, you need to exercise some discipline. All good
writers and artists and wildlife personnel practice with relentless discipline.
You’ll find their journals throughout the bookstores telling how journal-
keeping taught them to pay attention.
The consistency of a nature journal lies in its dating system. At the top
of every page write the date, the season, the time of day, a marker pointing
north, and a note on the weather. So the very act of writing the heading calls

64 |
 Go find a piece of paper; it doesn’t
matter what type or size. Find any
pencil, marker, or drawing tool.
Now gather up your eyes, take
a deep breath, and ask yourself:
“What is happening outdoors,
this particular season, this time
of day, and in this particular place
where I live?”

C W L,

Keeping a Nature Journal

for orienting, for settling down and looking around. Then Writing a poem
Of seventeen syllables
enter whatever captures your attention in the moment of jour- Is very diffi
naling, in words or drawing, or both. Kept up consistently, a
five-day journal tells a story, and a year-long journal records an From a Student Assignment:
“Haiku”
era full of seasonal change.
Best of all, the patient and disciplined journaler imprints a
mental habit of paying attention to all the fine details our five
senses can perceive. Consistent journaling is a straight path to
a career as a naturalist.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 65

Journaling as a Means of Finding One’s Gift
Many people feel frustrated with the paraphernalia and change of atten-
tion needed for journaling. So let some of them off the hook. If you can, try
to catch the people you are mentoring in a buttery-fly net filled with tips
and allowances about how to make the journal part of their personal jour-
ney. If they produce a finished book, honor it with ceremony. Once they
find a style that makes them happy, they’ll demand journaling time.
So guide them to find their own special gift, their personal journaling style.
There are just as many different forms of journal-keeping as there are people
and snowflakes. Our Kamana Naturalist Training Program calls for journals
to be submitted on a regular basis, until they turn into portfolios kept in our
back office. When the “assignments” come in they are amazingly different.
Some people do little flirty movement sketches in pencil with mussy hand-
writing and arrows pointing here and there. Some send in beautiful colored
art. One drew a range map on every page, then developed it into a thematic
cartoon. Some use the grid paper enclosed with the program; others combine
words and sketches stretching to the outer margins of their sketchbook; while
still others tap out their words on a computer with headings and bullets and
even scan in their sketches.
For every different style of keeping a journal comes a choice of equip-
ment. Consider the options: the pencil and portable memo pad in a zip lock
bag; the sketchpad in an oiled leather cover; the desktop journal in a library
of references; the piles of single sheets stuffed into pockets; the laptop files;
the CyberTracker GPS system.
For younger children, do not burden them with equipment, but do encour-
age them to carry a pad and pencil, and stop once in a while to give them time to
write a little heading at the top of their page. Maybe a water break will develop
a habit to jot down whatever they want after the heading. If the younger ones
need help, you can take dictation. Remember, as a mentor, be like Coyote: gen-
tly lure them into journaling, notice the edges of their resistance and enthu-
siasm. Help them discover their gifts. Let their journals go every which-way
until each child discovers his or her own journaling style.
Bottom line: find a way to introduce journaling and make it a habit that
those you mentor can’t live without.

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Survival Living
Survival Living in a nutshell:
Interact with the natural world around you on a survival
basis, including all the basic human needs: shelter, water,
fire, food, tools, clothing, and art.

The Original Landscape of Nature Connection

I certainly have found “good”
You and I wouldn’t be alive if our ancestors had not practiced this in everything: -- in all natural
Core Routine of Survival Living for all those hundreds of thou- processes and products, not the
“good” of Sunday school books,
sands of years before agriculture and civilization. All subsistence but the good of law and order,
cultures have in common the necessity to survive in a wilderness the good of that system of things
environment, where the slopes of land and forces of climate shape out of which we came and which
is the source of our health and
brain patterns, where, according to Stalking Wolf, “the animal is strength. … It is good that fire
an instrument played by the landscape.” Indigenous cultures all should burn, even if it consumes
your house; it is good that force
share the raw experience of surging adrenaline, the “fight or flee” should crush, even if it crushes
response. They have in common a deeply felt sense of kinship you; it is good that rain should
fall, even if it destroys your crops
with all the elements of their natural world, a recognition that or floods your land. Plagues and
humans play only one tune among many. pestilences attest the constancy
The practice of survival accumulates in our bones and of natural law. They set us to
cleaning our streets and houses
blood. It could be said that today’s people are still hunters and to readjusting our relations to
and gatherers, but the landscape gives us different feedback. outward nature.
During childhood, we learn what to click and turn, when to Yes, good in everything, because
stop and go, how to pay attention to domestic and man made law in everything, truth in
things that matter to us. But our modern systems eliminate everything, the sequence of cause
and effect in everything, and it
the need to survive in direct, unmediated relationship with may all be good to me if, on the
nature’s raw elements. The mental habits that result from right principles, I relate my life
to it. I can make the heat and
Survival Living have dimmed: ingenuity, self-reliance, and the cold serve me, the winds and
improvisation, and, as John Burroughs advised, “taking nature the floods, gravity and all the
by the right handle.” chemical and dynamical forces,
serve me, if I take hold of them by
the right handle.
Practicing Survival
The bad in things arises from
Nothing gives us more meaningful relationships with nature our abuse or misuse of them or
than really putting ourselves out in the elements and living off from our wrong relations to them
... . Our well being consists in
the land. It creates the ultimate need to learn. learning the law and adjusting our
One of the people we mentor, Emily, went on a guided survival lives to it.
trip with a few other people from the same program. During their J B,
trip, they spent the night in a shelter they made out of branches The Gospel of Nature

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 67

When our son was in fourth grade from the hemlock tree. They made a sleeping-mat floor inside
he had a teacher who was game
to try an idea I had for classroom their shelter from the springy green hemlock boughs, and they
environmental education. We also made tea from the vitamin C-rich hemlock needles.
organized a Power Outage
Overnight.
A day or two after her trip ended, I watched from a dis-
tance as Emily walked up the hill to the outdoor gathering
After school, in the fall, we space. Midway up the trail, she looked up and suddenly stood
traveled from the school yard
down a half-mile service road into still, staring at the two hemlock trees. When she saw them, she
the creek valley. We set off noisily told me later, she was immediately transported in her mind to
as the sun lowered; and then as it
darkened and things became odd
the survival shelter: she could feel the soft comfort of the green
and unfamiliar, we listened for hemlock boughs on her body; she could taste the citrus-tinged
owls and heard the creek. hemlock tea. She remembered how easily the dead twigs of the
Then we crept back to the hemlock had lit up when everyone was shivering cold, strug-
blacked-out school gym, ate our gling to make a fire. Standing there, seeing these trees she had
Earthquake Kit food, told stories
huddled around flashlights, and
passed so many times before without noticing, she cried. On
slept in our bags on the floor. Lots the survival trip, Emily had created a meaningful relation-
of parents came for the overnight ship with the hemlock tree. From now on, whenever she sees a
and there were little flashlight
fires all around the gym. hemlock, she feels gratitude.
If you can, find a way to interact with nature in the raw.
The Power Outage Overnight
was a raving success and the third
Stretch people’s comfort zones by staying outside in difficult
graders who are now six feet tall weather. Our gear lists for expeditions begins with this head-
and halfway through college still ing, “There is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate
remember it and tell me their
memory of it in astonishing detail. clothing!” Use wood to make fires. Use plants for food and
medicine. Make leather from animal skins for clothes and
E H, Power Outage
Overnight
drums. You might even learn how to grow your own food and
learn to hunt and fish. With just a little training and practice,
you can help others cultivate vegetable and herb gardens, build
survival forts with sticks and leaves, and start fires in the old
way, with friction methods of bow-drill or hand-drill.

Simulate a Genuine Need to Learn

These skills are valuable, ultimately, not because we need them
Without weariness there can
be no real appreciation of rest, for daily living—although they may indeed save someone’s
without hunger no enjoyment life—but for the way they help us develop connection to place
of food; without the ancient
and teach us to relate to nature in the oldest, most fundamen-
responses to the harsh simplicities
of the kind of environment that tal way. We learn the most when we have an intense need to
shaped mankind, a man cannot learn, and nothing creates need like survival.
know the urges within him.
But if your situation won’t allow actual survival learning,
S O, Open Horizons then try to make Knowledge of Place genuinely important

68 |
to learn. Take people there through imagination: tell stories
and play games based on tracking and stalking, hiding and
ambushing, collecting and dissecting, finding food and mak-
ing shelter. Stories of heroic deeds for survival are absolute
favorites, just as they seem to be for today’s audiences of the
TV survival reality shows. Stories abound in the Activities
section to fire up the imagination of what it would be like to
survive in the wild. Many of the games simulate routines of
Survival Living from deep in our DNA.

Mind’s Eye Imagining

Mind’s Eye Imagining in a Nutshell:
Use and strengthen your imagination as much as possible,
imprinting images in your mind gathered from the experi-
ence of all five senses.

Developing the Imagination

This routine develops our imagination and our ability to re-
experience events with our eyes closed. If our goal is nature
literacy, then we must go one step beyond plain reading into
reading with the intent to “learn by heart.” Not only visual
images, but also smells, flavors, sounds, and textures imprint
in magnificent detail in people’s brain patterns when they rely
on their nature literacy for survival. Routinely imagining with
our Mind’s Eye allows our sensory experiences to really sink This tree has been living for
in. This skill provides us with the dynamic memory required one hundred years, through
for field biology and bird watching and is the evidence of a snowstorms, standing so broad
and old. If you listen you will hear
well-developed naturalist intelligence. her words of long ago and hear
about the children that played
The Mind’s Eye Imagining Technique under her when she was only a
sapling and she will also tell you
about the little family of doves
When you come across a track while on a walk, look at it that lived in her for so many years
closely for a minute, then close your eyes and picture it in and how one of her branches fell
your mind’s eye. This simple sequence intensely focuses your off when she was playing tag with
her friend the wind. If you sit
mind on the shapes of that track. Your mind strains to see it there long enough, she’ll also
in full detail, preparing to re-tell the wondrous story about tell you about her story.
its every detail. When you open your eyes again, you see S H, This Tree
some things you didn’t notice the first time, and when you (written at age 7)

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 69

 close your eyes again, the picture in your Mind’s Eye grows
clearer and more vivid. Birdwatchers use this technique as
they develop their eye to spot birds’ flight patterns, their
movement in the trees, and the slight differences in color-
ation among all those “Little Brown Jobbies.”
The participants in our Kamana Naturalist Training
Program learn to use the Mind’s Eye technique to make sketches
in their field journals. First, they look closely at the pictures—
perhaps a Northern River Otter—in the field guides. Then,
without looking at the pictures, they sketch the animal. In
the act of sketching, they will notice they hadn’t registered the
length of tail, or the spacing of eyes, or how the otter stands up
Long live the weeds that overwhelm
on its hind legs. Looking back at the pictures, they take note and
My narrow vegetable realm! fill the gaps in their original memory. Thus the sketch-image of
The bitter rock, the barren soil the otter greatly improves, not only on paper but, more impor-
That force the son of man to toil;
All things unholy, marred by curse, tantly, in the Mind’s Eye Imagination of the artist.
The ugly of the universe.
The rough, the wicked, and the wild
That keep the spirit undefiled.
Storytelling with the Mind’s Eye
With these I match my little wit The Mind’s Eye Imagining routine develops a filing cabinet
And earn the right to stand or sit
Hope, love, create, or drink and die; of single images for identifying what you see in nature and it
These shape the creature that is I. offers a potent technique for telling the Story of the Day.
T R,
Before I incorporated the use of my imagination into my
Long Live the Weeds nature studies as an adult, I remember how scientific reports
and descriptive passages in literature bored me. I saw just a
bunch of words with little behind them. After a few months
of using my Mind’s Eye technique to draw plants and animals,
suddenly those words opened doorways into a vast landscape
of images in my imagination. I was floored.
The more I used my mind’s eye to remember leaf shapes
and bark patterns, the more I enjoyed it when other people
talked to me about these things or I read about them. It
was as if suddenly I could see the movie behind the lines
in a book.
Turning this around—adding all other senses and memo-
ries to the mix—I began to write and tell stories with my
mind focused on the rich sensory wholeness of the experi-
ence. Since then, I’ve become a student of the great storytell-
ers and speech-givers and I have discovered they all use the

70 |
power of their imagination, their Mind’s Eye Imagining, to entrance their
audience. We are image-based, sensory creatures at heart.
As people tell the stories of their day, help them ground themselves in the
moment of their experience. Help them use all their senses to remember the
precise angle of the harrier’s tipped wings, the smell of damp earth or spring
flowers, the squishy warm feeling of wet socks, the first touch of sun on their
cheeks on a cold morning. Children, always so present to their experiences,
are all born storytellers. But they will only truly know this about themselves
when they practice using their Mind’s Eye Imagining and tell their tales
from a place of bright, detailed imagination.

Listening for Bird Language

Listening for Bird Language in a Nutshell:
Be still and listen. Quiet down and crane your ears and eyes to notice the
vocal signals and body language of birds and other animals, including
humans. What message do you hear in their voice?

The Language of Birds

You know how you can talk to your best friends on the phone and just tell, by
how their voices sound, they feel upset? Or surely you’ve seen the fast street-
walk of people in business suits that says, “Don’t bother me. I’m in a hurry!”
This watchful interpretation of subtle signals into clear, meaning-filled com-
munication is what the Core Routine of Listening for Bird Language is all
about. We call it “Listening for Bird Language” but we extend the metaphor
to include keeping our own presence quiet, and then listening, watching, and
feeling all the nonverbal signals that sing and flutter about us all the time.
Much of the evolution of birds has been invested in the development of
their complex vocal language. By learning how to tune into that language
humans and other animals can be part of a constant many-species conversa-
tion that offers rich information about life within any landscape. Lots of other
animals—squirrels, dogs, crickets, and frogs for instance—use complex vocal-
izations to communicate, too. All of it together creates a language in which a
panoramic range of hidden meaning can be understood—if we pay attention.
Luckily, interpreting Bird Language does not require intimate knowledge
of each individual bird’s song or each frog’s call. The two basic patterns are
easy to recognize. (We develop these patterns in more detail in The Book of
Nature chapter under Birds: The Messengers of the Forest.) For starters, all

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 71

 you need to know are baseline and alarm. Happy and comfort-
able birds use baseline songs and calls as they go about their
daily business. Their songs deliver the overall feeling of peace
and relaxed well-being. The alarm calls are the sudden pierc-
ing cries that tell you “something’s up.” A predator has come
into the neighborhood. Cat below! Hawk above! Owl roosting
too near our nest! Children abroad! These easily recognizable
alarms are terrific for inspiring folks to pay attention.
Learning the Language of Birds
is not about you being a master
birder for the Audubon Society Learning to Listen
and participating on bird counts
and knowing every bird on your As I first heard Tom Brown, Jr. say, every time an animal
life list. It’s about simple common moves in the forest, it is like dropping a pebble into the clear
sense. surface of the pond: concentric rings go out, announcing the
And the beauty of it is that the disturbance to everything the ring touches.
same teachings that I learned from Once people see the communication possible by read-
Tom Brown from the Apache
way, I heard from Ingwe from the ing bird language, they will observe for themselves the more
Akamba in Kenya. When I looked sophisticated nuances, the “concentric rings” of alarm that
into the Bushmen of the Kalahari,
they had similar teachings. When
vary with the type of predator, the time of day, the time of
I read Jim Corbett’s books about year, and the length of time they can sit quietly without being
the Himalayas in India, the the source of the disturbance.
foothills where the tigers roamed,
he described the exact same Therefore, the routine practice of Listening for Bird
principles in action. Language begins with not creating your own disturbance.
All of these were affirmations
Listening for Bird Language can inspire people to walk qui-
for me that bird language was etly through the landscape so they don’t create a “bird plow,” a
truly universal. So learning it swath of wake before and behind them that silences or alarms
was not about knowing all of the
birds of your area. It was about all natural talk. Even the very young can be inspired to hold
understanding patterns of voice still a long time until they blend into the landscape and hear
and movement and recognizing
disturbance in those patterns.
birds come alive again with their daily baseline twittering.
Over time, we learn to move through a forest without dis-
J Y, Universal Language turbing so many birds; we learn to blend into the landscape
of Birds
and relax our body language to put birds at ease. After learn-
ing how to move through the “alarm systems” of birds without
setting them off, we eventually come upon stunned wildlife,
whose eyes give us a quick amazed look of surprise that a
human could see them first.

72 |
Self-Knowledge
Observing and understanding meaning in subtle patterns
of sound and behavior can be applied more broadly to the
rest of human life. As each person learns to be still and
listen to the tones that reflect the moods of sensitive wild
things, an awareness grows for the disturbances that they
and others cause. People will eventually realize that their
moods—fears or angers, impulsiveness or hesitancies—
send off concentric rings of disturbance, both in the natu-
ral and human worlds.
Think of when you walk outside each morning to the mail-
box, to your car, or to get the paper. The birds in your front yard
How do you think the alarm
watch you and come to expect the body language and moods for a cat is going to move? First,
you demonstrate. They react accordingly. Your bird neighbors cats always seem to be up to no
watch you so carefully that they probably know you—in some good, and their body language
broadcasts a sneaky intent.
ways—better than you know yourself. Second, cats move in little bursts
If we don’t move gently through the forest, the birds and the and stand still and move in little
bursts and stand still. So, the
rest of nature give us immediate feedback. Here is the deeper alarms are going to move in little
lesson to the routine of Listening for Bird Language: the atti- bursts and stand still and move in
tudes and body language we carry affect the world around us. little bursts and stand still.

Listening for Bird Language as a routine shows us that we can J Y, Cat Calls
choose the impact we create as we move through the world.

Thanksgiving
If the animals can do it, you can
Thanksgiving in a Nutshell: too. You can learn to listen to the
first hints of alarm, and you can
Find in yourself a grateful heart and express gratitude for also prevent the alarm. It’s very
any and all aspects of nature and life. Begin every episode similar to learning to walk by one
of those motion-detector lights
with thanksgiving and give nods of thanks as you go about without flipping it on. There are
your day. motion detectors in the forest that
read your intent, that read your
body language, that know your
Thanksgiving as a Routine mind and pass the message on as
you approach.
How is “Thanksgiving” a routine for nature awareness? Taking
a moment to see the grace in elements of the natural world— J Y, Motion Detectors
frogs, rain, berries, or the sun—deepens our relationships
with each one. Thanksgiving reinforces the interdependence
of all living things and their ground of being and reminds us of
our kinship with nature.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 73

 Find a Grateful Heart
When we say “Thanksgiving,” we mean routinely remem-
bering and expressing gratitude for the things that make it
possible for us to be alive. We mean generally appreciating
things common to all humans, as well as those specific to
each of our lives.
As the media constantly reminds us of everything going
wrong in the world, the Core Routine of Thanksgiving
Be genuine.
reminds us of all the things going right: clean water comes out
Grow soft and lift your heart to
feel grateful. of faucets; birds sing beautiful songs; humans we may never
Stop everything and listen when meet grow plants and raise stock so that we can have food
someone has a story to tell.
Take time to say “thank you” and on our tables; trees bring beauty and oxygen as well as wood
to write thank you notes. for houses and tools; and this very moment earthworms are
Discover the extraordinary in the
ordinary and admire it.
decomposing matter into fertile soil. We could go on and on,
and sometimes we do.
E H

Notice the Positive

Right now, as you read this, do a little experiment. Look up
and glance around your place and notice all the square or rect-
angular shapes around you. Can you see them? Do they pop
out at you? Now turn your attention to all the round shapes in
the room. Do these pop out at you? I’ve watched many people
do this exercise with different colors or shapes and they all
say they notice the same thing. Just as brain patterning theory
contends, our perception of reality is determined by what we
focus our attention on.
The routine of Thanksgiving simply calls our attention to
the multitude of things going right with the world. We don’t
deny either the pain or tragedies of life; we just choose to con-
centrate our mental focus on all the good things that we can
easily overlook. We want to help people notice the relentless
springing of life all around them, with authentic hope in the
rejuvenating powers of the earth.

74 |
 By attending to the positive aspects of life through the routine of
Thanksgiving, we apply good medicine to help heal the overwhelming sad-
ness and anger that often shows up when we connect with nature in a deep
way and realize the impact on the natural world when it is abused (even
unconsciously or carelessly). Thanksgiving as a routine can shake off the
eye-clouds of depression and lift our spirits toward everything good and
hopeful.

Begin Everything with Thanks

Whether as an opening mini-ceremony to your program, a moment taken
during the day to stop and listen, or a blessing before bed, make it a Core
Routine of Nature Connection to nod a simple thanks for life.
We often begin and end each program, and even our staff meetings,
by identifying specific things we feel thankful for in that moment and
expressing it. The form varies; perhaps we recount mini-stories of poignant
recent experiences, or go round in a circle expressing thanks with one
word, or sing a song of praise. In many native and traditional cultures, they
often practice thanksgiving through the songs they sing. Examples spread
through all cultures: the praise-filled Psalms of the Ancient Hebrews, the
nature haiku of the Japanese, the gospel praises of the African Americans,
or the many songs of Indigenous people that honor the sun, the moon, the
earth, water, plants, or animals.

We don’t really care how it looks, as long it stays welcoming, fresh, and
alive. We constantly invent new ways to acknowledge our thankfulness, and
do our best to prevent our Thanksgiving from becoming a lifeless ritual.
When people share what they feel genuinely thankful for, the variation
from person to person is incredible. Comments from others lead us to think
of things in new ways or they expose us to new stories. It can be another form
of Story of the Day. You could say that when we gather to say our thanks, the
natural world speaks through all our unique selves, and reminds our collec-
tive community of the integrated beauty of our lives.

Core Routines of Nature Connection | 75

Traditional Mohawk Thanksgiving
The traditional Thanksgiving Address of the Iroquois Nation begins with
the people gathering “as if they were of one mind.” Then, one by one it directs
greetings and thanksgiving to:

The Spirit that moves through all things

The Ancestors

The Spirits of the four directions

Moon, Sun, and Stars

Wind and Cloud

Birds

Trees

Animals

Plants

Waters

Earth

People

So as you give thanks all the way up, you browse each level of your landscape
for what captures your appreciation. This provides a fan upwards through every
edge of ecology. Saying your own version of it at every opportunity, as you wake,
as you drive, as you begin a class, can become a wonderful mental habit.
(Jake Swamp, a former Sub-Chief of the Wolf Clan of the Mohawk
Nation has written a children’s version of this called Giving Thanks, a Native
American Good Morning Message. You can buy little books by the Tree of
Peace Society, in English or German, of the original Thanksgiving Address.
Go to wildernessawareness.org.)

76 |
Core Routines of Nature Connection | 77
Chapter 4
CHILD PASSIONS AS
MENTORING TOOLS

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools

Passion – fervor – enthusiasm – ardor – zeal
Tap into – exploit a plentiful resource; draw sap from
a sugar maple to boil into syrup

If Core Routines are what we do to learn nature’s ways,

finding ways to tap into Child Passions is what mentors do.
Mentors know full well that people don’t always arrive ready to
focus their attention. It’s our job to capture the natural passion
they do bring and channel it into learning.
We know we want people to practice Core Routines that
lead to Sensory Awareness, Knowledge of Place, and Nature
Connection. But how? How do we inspire them to sit still
in a Sit Spot or eagerly Explore the Field Guide’s fine print?
How do we stretch their passions and shift their habits
toward Nature Connection—in their everyday lives, even
when we’re not with them?
We hope this question—how?—is always on your mind

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 79

My neighborhood was an old as a mentor, because the answer springs from Coyote’s chal-
apple orchard that had been
converted into a subdivision. They lenge to meet your learners at their edge. Start with what chil-
left alone the creek corridors, and dren of all ages naturally love to do. Using Child Passions as
people’s back yards all backed
up into creeks. The kids figured
Mentoring Tools is Coyote’s best trick for making education
out after a while that there was invisible, making it seem like just a lot of fun.
a certain distance the parents Using children’s universal love of Play is the starting point.
would go beyond the house and
no further; it was marked by But other edges of Child Passions can also be channeled into
where they went to dump the lawn core routines. The next few chapters give tips and tricks for using
clippings in their wheelbarrows.
So Parent Trails poked into the
Child Passions as Mentoring Tools. Gathered together, they sug-
back yards a little bit. But then the gest using a bundle of styles, each in its apt moment. Each style
Children’s Trails began. taps into a different source of the universal pool of what chil-
If you turned left or right after dren naturally love to do. Playing directly contributes to learning.
going past the lawn clippings, Questioning and Answering calls forth their curiosity. Storytelling
there were these other trails. And
these other trails were formed by
captures imagination. And Music-Making centers community.
the passage of children’s feet. You All of these depend upon that most natural of all human impuls-
never saw adults and you never es—doing as we see others do, imitating our role models.
saw their footprints. You saw kids’
bike tracks and lots of bare feet In the back section, we have keyed the Activities to show
tracks and little sneaker tracks. which Child Passions they engage. Just look for the Child
We children moved around
in little bands and our trails
Passions Icon at the top of each activity.
connected up in these greenways.
There was a small subset who were
the frog catchers. They left a very
Tapping into Child Passions
particular group of footprints you
recognized because they dared go This chapter shows you how to use the playful instinct to design
out into the muck. Back there in learning experiences. Here we highlight how games factor into
those trails, it was kids’ world.
the practice of Core Routines of Nature Connection.
Honestly, I don’t think I ever saw
an adult back there. That was
symbolic of something: we as
Kids in a Music Class
children just knew what to do. We Let me take you back to my public elementary school in a small
didn’t have parents instructing us.
We come with instructions and town, and sit there on the front row of music class, right by the
they guide us to read those places. teacher’s upright piano, the kind with wheels on it so you can
Berry bushes hung over the edges roll it around the room.
of the creek. I don’t ever remember
being told by anyone which berries My music teacher, Mrs. Granham, undoubtedly hoped we’d
to eat. It was just something we love music and practice singing scales or reading music. But she
knew. We just ate berries. We
buzzed all up and down these knew, as many good teachers do, that she couldn’t just say, “Sing
creek corridors eating berries. the F major scales in quarter notes. Ready?” Countless adults
J Y, Children’s Trails
I’ve talked to say their natural love of music was stamped out in
their youth by being forced to practice musical “core routines.”
Fortunately, my teacher was a natural Coyote Mentor.

80 |
 Instead, Mrs. Granham taught us catchy songs all kids
love, little children’s songs that had the scales and rhythms and
other “routines” built into them. We loved singing these funny
songs, we would laugh and laugh and laugh; yet all the while
we unwittingly sang the F major scale in quarter note patterns.
To our pride and amazement, she told us afterwards what we
had done. I am eternally grateful to Mrs. Granham because
she made music fun for us. She used her adult intelligence to
know her students and meet us where we were.
Mrs. Granham tapped into Child Passions. Our delight in
singing catchy, funny songs was the doorway through which she
channeled all the learning routines she hoped we would prac-
tice. She made learning meaningful in our childlike world.
I went on a very high-minded
kayak trip in Southeastern
Alaska with twenty adults where
we practiced early morning
meditation and silent, mindful
paddling for a week. We thought
we were so enlightened! But
when we’d break our solemnity
in the free-for-all afternoons,
what would we do? The women
shopped for rocks on the
shoreline, “Do you like this one?
Oh that green is so pretty!” And
the men competed, hurling rocks
to hit the bullseye on outlying
kelp buds!

E H, Shopping for Rocks

What’s a Child Passion?

Child Passions defines the things children world-wide love to do,
no matter what their cultural background. Child Passions are
those universal aspects of the childhood experience that bring
children so much happiness and aliveness. Importantly, chil-
dren do these things without help or prompting from adults.
As with all of nature, nothing is hard and fast, and there
will always be exceptions to every rule. Some infants love being
thrown in the air, while others dread it; some children thrive in
competitive games, while others wilt. Each child enjoys unique

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 81

passions, and different populations may have distinctive tendencies, such as
with boys and girls. As many developmental psychologists have shown, kids
of different ages display different Child Passions. Generally, children feel
passionate about playing games, asking questions, hearing stories, singing
songs, and imitating us!

What about You?

Do you remember this from your childhood? I invite you to pause here for a
moment to reflect on Child Passions from your experience. Ready? Open your
Mind’s Eye and remember your childhood. Take out a pencil and jot down
your first images.

What do your remember loving to do as a child?

What were your favorite games to play?
What did you do for fun with your friends?
What were your favorite toys?
What captured your curiosity?
What stories and songs made up your world?
Who were your favorite grownup playmates?

Now think of yourself today.

What Child Passions do you still enjoy?
Which Child Passions do the children in your life enjoy?

An Unlimited Bundle of Child Passions

Now compare your list with this list we brainstormed. Ready?

Adventuring, discovering, exploring, hiding, seeking, spying, wandering,

getting lost, getting found, asking questions, being asked questions, find-
ing answers, listening to stories, creating stories, telling stories, acting out
stories, reading picture books, keeping a diary, listening to music, making
music, singing, laughing, whistling, clapping, stomping, shouting, throw-
ing things, moving/pushing things, hitting things, blowing bubbles, touch-
ing/petting things, catching little critters, seeing animals close up, climbing,
swinging, riding, splashing, squirting, swimming, getting wet, getting dirty,
getting muddy, spitting, flying, jumping, racing, chasing, playing tag, testing
quickness, pretending, imagining, imitating, acting, performing, show-and-

82 |
telling, dressing up, costuming, painting faces, making-up
characters, being animals, telling secrets, keeping secrets,
using secret languages, eating, tasting, cooking, gathering,
smelling, painting, drawing, sculpting, building, decorat-
ing, burning, playing with fire, breaking, dissecting, making
messes, cleaning up messes, trapping things, collecting, help-
ing, carrying things, running errands, helping older folks with
projects, helping each other, surprising, giving and receiv-
ing, shocking, sneaking, hiding, hunting, shooting, carving,
making tools, constructing shelters, making dams, building
tree houses, playing house, playing forts, whispering, joking,
tricking, hugging, cuddling, holding hands, seeking treasure,
detecting clues, pursuing mysteries, making dares, taking
challenges, seeking adventure.

Which of these do you love to do? Do you feel a response

of excitement in your body? There might be some things you
want to go out and do right now. Why not? Go ahead. Play!

Playing Games: The Adrenaline Secret

Games give us an inside view
Kids in a Leaf Pile of the way nature works—the
principles of ecological systems,
As nature educators, we want to do the same thing my music for example – but not in a boring,
textbook way. While we play
teacher did: channel the practice of Core Routines through games, we act out dynamically and
the doorway of Child Passions. Even adults, who started out feel directly, the natural cycles and
processes.
as children, possess a strong root memory and can be capti-
vated just like kids. Here’s an example of how it can be done J C,
with kids outdoors. Sharing Nature with Children,
20th Anniversary Edition
During a summer camp in Western Washington, instruc-
tors Warren Moon and Casey MacFarland’s kids discovered
a huge pile of raked leaves in one corner of a wide meadow.
Seeing the zeal with which the kids were jumping in the leaves,
the light-bulb lit up in their heads: here is a Child Passion! The
instructors asked themselves, “How can we channel this into a
Core Routine?” In a few moments of brainstorming, they had
it. Casey introduced the brand new game to the group.
The game was this: while the instructors walked a little
ways away, the kids would all hide inside the pile of leaves,

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 83

And what does Coyote Mentoring and then the instructors would return as “monsters” and sniff
look like when playing/working
with the 3 to 5 year old? all around the pile, looking for any moving creature to eat.
Therefore, the goal of the kids was to stay as hidden, and as
ROLE MODEL – Be what you
wish to see in the children. Be in
still, as possible.
the awe, wonder, curiosity, and The kids yelped in excitement over the new game: they
imagination of the child. Let your would get to hide in this enormous pile of leaves! Warren and
senses be alive. Utilize your whole
being, heart, head, mind, body Casey walked away so that they wouldn’t witness the kids hid-
when responding to the child. ing, and they stood talking for at least ten minutes before even
PLAY – Explore, experiment,
beginning to walk back to the pile.
and adventure with the little ones. Why would they wait so long? Because they know what
Release the word, “try.” Adopt kids experience in those long moments an incredibly potent
an attitude of expansion and
possibility. Develop a willingness form of Sit Spot. They hold absolutely still in a pile of dirty,
to observe and discover, receiving moist leaves, with insects and spiders crawling all over them
guidance from children’s passions
and nature itself.
and the rich scent of decay saturating their sense of smell.
They are having Sit Spot time without realizing it.
SIMPLIFY - Take the essence As they lie hiding in the stillness of that musty leaf pile, they
of a core routine and bring it to
its simplest, easiest form. They begin to forge a good habit of awareness. Enveloped in sensory
are still in the “duckling” phase, input, focused on staying absolutely still, and pumped with adren-
or “group mind,” so huddle up
together in your Sit Spot. Journal
aline as their hearts beat in hopes of not being found, they learn
by drawing pictures, or pressing a new level of comfort in the messy natural world. Their brain
found leaves in a book. Draw patterns for comfort and stillness in nature grow stronger. And
maps on the ground. Sing Songs
to the Four Directions. in moments as they wait, they may completely forget the game
as they become rapt in the beautiful designs of an ant that crawls
MAKE IT ALL RELATIONAL
- Grandfather Sun, Grandmother
right in front of their nose. Because of all this, Casey and Warren
Moon, Brother/Sister Wind. wanted to prolong their waiting as long as possible.
This builds deep imaginative and They had gotten to know the average patience of this group
relational connections.
of children and after ten minutes they guessed fidgeting would
W B, Creator and start. That’s when the instructors began to circle in, cracking
Director of Tender Tracks Tales
and Trails Outdoor Preschool and branches, grunting, and lurking around as silly monsters,
Summer Adventure Camps Coyote which made it hard for the children not to laugh. Any kids
Mentoring with Little People thinking of coming out from hiding stayed still longer. So
Warren and Casey pushed their edge of stillness farther and
farther until, finally, kids burst out laughing or jumped out as
their own brand of monster.
What Warren and Casey did that day—and what all
Coyote Mentors do at every opportunity—was tap into Child
Passions. The kids’ spontaneous delight in the leaf pile pro-
duced energy they could funnel into an experience of the Sit

84 |
 But, imagine! Were today’s
Spot routine. We want to weave the practice of Core Routines
toddler’s toys mounded in a
of Nature Connection into activities loaded with Child landfill, you would be looking at
Passions so each group member leaves with such positive body a mountain of blue and yellow,
red and green plastic. Were
memories they naturally practice Core Routines for the rest native toddlers’ toys mounded in
of their lives. a landfill, there would be hardly
a trace, worn and weathered
corncob dolls with walnut heads,
Adrenaline for Games rocking horses, balls of string and
broomsticks.
Could it be that games evolved as perfect behaviors and atti-
tudes for learning? As humans evolved long ago, why might J Y, Landfill Toys
we have developed the instinct to run races, to hide behind
bushes, or to explore under every rock? What evolutionary
benefit might there be in the instinct to play games full of
fight, fright, flight, and delight?
Children learned the skills they’d need as adults in serious
survival situations through these games. In a world of eat or be
eaten, adrenaline surges fueled the muscles to fight or flee. But
clever nature prepares its young to associate those feelings of
heightened excitement with fun and pleasure.
Brain research suggests that sensory input and mental
focus lead to deeply imprinted pattern learning when experi-
enced in an “adrenalated state.” Who is more full of adrenaline
surges than excited kids playing games? Passionate playfulness
is embedded in our human blueprint for learning.
Creators of indoor toys and computer games know how
to reach out to children by engaging these passions. Outdoor
educators—with our different goals—can do the same, but we
can do it in the original arena of forests, plains, and deserts,
where the expression of passion has a full range of motion, In the olden days, hunts were
where the energy and curiosity of childhood has a boundless more real for children. Today,
treasure hunts have been co-
playground to stretch in. Rooted in biology, Child’s Play has opted as Easter egg hunts, but
been one of the best friends of educators, parents, grandpar- the grass is all the same length
ents, and mentors everywhere. You only have to notice and and the eggs are bright purple.
My feral children have trouble
channel the energy of the game into the lesson plan. with the domestic version, they
Disclaimer: We’re not encouraging you to do whatever it want an excuse to go out into the
woods and meadows where they
takes to rev up people’s adrenaline. We’ve seen too many macho can collect real living frogs and
instructors run into disaster by playing scout games that quickly lightning bugs.
push participants over the edge, or send children crying home
J Y,
to their parents. However, adrenaline provides a powerful and Treasure Hunts

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 85

 important tool for learning, so do invoke it. Just be careful. Meet
people where they are and with what they are ready to handle,
and start with time-tested games and activities.

Hiding, Seeking, and Sneaking

As you look through the Activities in this Guide, you’ll notice
many games involve hiding, seeking, and sneaking. Why are
these such wonderful forms of children’s play?
As kids, we called our favorite neighborhood game “Kick
the Can.” We set up a tin can on the driveway, and the “It”
person guarded the can. Everyone else hid around the area, in
Being free to go fishing taught
me patience. It was a slow go,
bushes or behind air conditioning units, and then we waited for
teaching myself the techniques; our opportune moment when “It” went far enough away that
squishing my tiny piece of white we could pop out of hiding and run and kick the can before “It”
bread onto the hook; untangling
lines, working with my fingers. ran and tagged us. If we got tagged, we went to jail—where we
Then, I would stand so patiently, waited hopefully for someone to kick the can and free us!
staring in stock stillness at my
fishing line and my bobber.
My favorite thing to do was to hide and try to kick the can
and free everyone else. I remember crouching behind this one
Patience brought awareness of magnolia bush that afforded good cover, so much so that I could
things moving below the surface.
I could see the surface of the hardly see through it to watch the guard. I would sit there abso-
water move and I could tell by the lutely silent, bugs crawling over me, bits of leaf and dirt and
shape of it how big the fish was
underneath. I could tell whether
spider-web in my hair and clothes, and my heart beating and
it was a turtle or a frog moving adrenaline pumping. In such a state, I was utterly alert: my ears
toward the bank. If you took the strained to listen for the footsteps of the guard. I noticed how
time, you could always identify
what was going on below the occasional gusts of wind provided a sound cover for me to adjust
surface by the surface story. my position a bit; I felt the sweat on my skin and the undula-
J Y, Fishing tions of my breathing chest. To this day, I still remember the
earthy scent of that magnolia patch. With my “Spidey sense,”
I could judge the right time to go for it. Then bursting with
excitement, I suddenly broke loose of my secretive spot and shot
towards the can at full speed. Occasionally, all my intense work
was rewarded—as jail-breakers hoorayed and slapped my hand
“high-five” with big smiles. Nobody grinned bigger than me.
What do such games do for people? In terms of the Core
Routines, they do a lot. The excitement of hiding, seeking, and
sneaking pushes senses into a mode of alertness like that of
predators and prey, but it’s all done with a sense of fun. It’s
good to remember that for thousands of years, our ancestors

86 |
were both predators and prey—so it’s no accident that kids play these kinds
of games. Hiding gets us to sit still for long periods of time, stretching
out our short attention spans—Sit Spot time. Seeking gets our antennae
sharp—Expanding the Senses. Sneaking gets us to move slowly and inten-
tionally, with awareness to our bodies. When hiding, seeking, and sneaking
link up with Animal Forms, we find ready applications for Fox-Walking,
Cougar-Stalking, Worm-Crawling, or Squirrel-Climbing. Understanding
Bird Language naturally mixes in also because we listen for the birds to sig-
nal that a human approaches. Tracking also gets practiced, because we learn
to look for trampled plants that lead to hiding spots, or follow the trails of
other sneaks and then surprise them.
Caution: Watch out for hostile competition around hiding and sneaking.
Beware that some people get really upset when others jump out and scare
them, beginning propaganda wars of “You are so unaware and stupid!” or
“I saw you. You’re terrible at hiding!” To avoid this pitfall encourage (with
stories) kids to seek the self-satisfaction of staying silent and remaining
invisible, just like wild animals. After all, a deer wouldn’t jump out and say,
“Ha-Ha! I got you!”
Also beware of kids wanting to hide from the instructor without permis-
sion. If they break the “stay where I can see you” rule by sneaking off when
you turn your back, appreciate their resourcefulness, but let them know it’s
unsafe and unacceptable.

Hunts, Errands, and Adventures

We all love hunts. It’s instinctive. Think of Easter egg hunts or following
treasure maps. Look at the popularity of Geo-caching. We think people just
love to explore new frontiers and experience the thrill of discovery. We want
to grow, learn and push beyond the edges of the known. Hunts present us
with opportunities to do exactly that.
Errands can be used as domesticated form of hunts. Most people think of
errands as going shopping for a bottle of milk or swinging by the post office.
The spirit behind such errands is doing something for someone, even if it’s
for yourself. People love to go on errands for “the village.” Errand-running
has the same goals and benefits as volunteering, serving others and doing
good deeds, and therefore, feeling good.
Our friend, Gilbert Walking Bull, a native Lakota elder, told me how as
kids he, his siblings, and cousins were all sent on lots of errands. Their grand-
mother, a medicine woman, sometimes sent them to pick roots, sometimes

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 87

they gathered chokecherries for food dishes, and other times they delivered
firewood to Elders. Their Uncles gave the kids instructions on how to move
during such errands: they were to walk a certain distance apart from each
other so they wouldn’t talk, and they were to communicate with hand signals
and eye contact, always keeping track of each other. In this way, they covered
more ground as a group and shared their discoveries. The kids couldn’t always
be faithful to this, but when they were, it added greatly to their awareness of
the places they traveled through.
Also, Gilbert said, sometimes it would take them hours to complete a
single errand, and the adults didn’t seem to care at all. They almost seemed
to expect that.
Imagine: on the way to pick berries, a frog jumping out in front of you
might side-track you into chasing it into a pond, where you silently watch
as ducks swim close to you and then suddenly squawk and scatter as a hawk
swoops down towards them. After reveling in the awe of such events, you
suddenly remember about the berries again. So you pick up your basket and
head to the berry bushes again, when suddenly you come across a fresh set
of coyote tracks …
Educationally, it’s not the errands themselves that are so rich. Rather, it’s
the adventure, the things that happen along the way. Kids and adults both
love errands, not only because they want to contribute but because errands
provide a safe format for unpredictable adventures. No wonder, then, adults
from native cultures don’t mind children taking a long time to return. They
know invisible education was really happening.
Errands, hunts, and adventures can be exciting ways to get connected
with nature, inviting the pioneer spirit of exploration within safe boundar-
ies. In terms of Core Routines, scavenger hunts can start with Field Guides:
“find me this, and one of these.” They can involve Journaling: “leave the plant
in the ground, but make a sketch to prove you found it.” And of course they
invite the practice of Mapping: “go from here, to here, to here,” following
clues found at each station. Errands may certainly involve Wandering along
the way, whether going home or to town, or along the ditches by the side-
walk. There can be, and should be, a continual exchange between sending
people on errands and asking for their Story of the Day. Once you hear the
story, listen for their edges. Keep them moving by checking in and following
up with a new errand, a further adventure. Remember to include your own
stories and edges in your conversations too. Modeling is essential; it builds
energy, faith and trust in the system of mentoring.

88 |
Make-Believe
Coming up on a long mud-puddle, a six-year old named Charlie turned to me
and said, “To fairies, this is a lake. It’s almost an ocean, but it’s a lake.” When
I asked him if he sees fairies a lot, he said, “Oh yeah. I used to see them a lot
when I was younger, but as I get older I don’t see them as much.”
This set me and all the kids talking about fairies, exchanging our bits of
knowledge about them, asking questions to those who saw them more, and
so on. Later that day, near the end of our lunch break, I noticed Charlie and
the other kids squatting together in a huddle just on the edge of the woods.
They chatted excitedly and gathered twigs they assembled together on the
ground. Suddenly, one got up and started running off, in my general direc-
tion. I asked her, “What are you up to?” She was a little annoyed by having
been stopped to explain, and she matter-of-factly said, “I’m going to get some
moss to make a bed for the fairies.” “Oh” I replied. “Can I come see it?” She
nodded her head and then ran off, back to her errand.
When I walked over to see what the group was making, what I saw
amazed me. Not only were they making a bed complete with twig lin-
ing and posture-pedic moss; they were also constructing a house with a
kitchen, along with mini-bouquets of flowers. Their care and whole-fo-
cused absorption on the project was awesome. Realizing this as the throes
of a major passion, I jumped right in. “Wow, this is so cool. You know,
what if we found some really strong maple twigs to make sure the bed is
strong enough?” Whoops of agreement went up, and just as a child turned
to run off, he looked back and asked, “Oh yeah. I don’t know what maple
twigs look like. Can you show me?”
The world of children is alive with things that most adults have long lost
touch with. But if we ourselves can remember the magic and mystery that
the child’s world holds, we will discover enormous possibility for infusing
that world with nature connections. In this remembering, the kids are our
best teachers.
Fairies are just one facet of this world. In a child’s life, there may be
gnomes, trolls, dragons, wizards, leprechauns, or pirates, arghhhhh! Kids
can become so engaged in this imaginary realm that they forget about all
else. Instead of dismissing these as useless child fantasies, go with them and
take them into the woods with you, channeling passions into positive con-
nections with nature.

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 89

Kid Culture
All the things mentioned above make up what we call “kid culture.” In a
realm of imaginary characters, fantasy is terribly important and utterly
captivating to kids. Fantasy lives in the culture found in toy-stores, Disney-
movies, and children’s books. When your kids start talking about their video
games or Harry Potter, you may initially want to steer their minds away
from the technology. However, you can simply redirect these mesmerizing
influences into experiences in nature.
My very first summer working with youth, I felt frustrated that my kids
would rather talk about Harry Potter books than play hide-and-seek games.
Not even that Child Passion power-tool would break through the spell of
Hogwarts and Throw-up Flavored Jelly Beans. Suddenly, remembering
something from the book, an idea struck me. “Do you remember how Harry
Potter had an ‘invisibility cloak’ that he could wear so no one could see him?”
They all knew of it intimately, expressing wishes they could have one too.
“Well,” I said, “you can. Except it’s not a cloak—it’s an invisibility fern.” Their
eyes lit up in surprise as they began to see the huge ferns around them in a
new way. We spent the next few hours playing hiding games, ever-searching
for the ideal ‘invisibility fern.’
If you want to educate kids, get into their world. Immerse yourself in
“kid culture.” Read the books in their current rave, watch the movies they
mention, buy a pack of baseball cards—so you can better understand their
fantasies, heroes, and dreams. Then, you can meet them there and integrate
all of their passion for pirates and fairies and heroes into meaningful con-
nection with nature. The same holds true when you work with adults; the
culture just changes forms. What are they interested in? Find out. Know
those whom you mentor.
With kids, why not help them build fairy villages and earn heroic lau-
rels? Use the chance to pass on information about survival shelters and twig
identification, and get them smelling and rubbing different mosses on their
cheeks. Present blind-fold games, animal forms, and physical challenges as
“Jedi training,” and help them learn to use “the Force.” Use elements of nature
to make costumes for favorite characters. Learn magic tricks. Find out about
their favorite stuffed animals or play hiding games with a rubber chicken.
Rediscover that eternal child in yourself, connect with the kids through their
world, and make sure learning and positive memories in nature are always a
foundational part of that wonder-filled world.

90 |
Imitating and Role Modeling If you ever run out of games or get
frozen and don’t know what to do
with your kids, don’t sweat it at
Which child passion embeds so deep inside we don’t even all. Ultimately, it’s not about what
you do with students, but who you
realize we do it? Imitation. Young kids will imitate anything
are being. That’s what kids will
that appeals to them—the language and actions of other kids, take home.
animal movements and sounds, fashion trends, and yes, the
J C,
behavior of the adults in their lives. Adults do this a bit more Wilderness Awareness School
slyly, but still they imitate. Program Director

Start with Yourself

It is vital for every adult to grasp that kids, and also adults we
mentor, view us as role models. You may want your children
to grow up with a sparkle in their eye. Do you have a sparkle
in yours? You may want people to have deep connection with
place. How confident do you feel in your own connection with
nature? You want to move those you mentor from edge to edge.
How willing are you to push your own edges? You may want
the people you work with to follow their passions and gifts and
not give in to limiting societal norms. How alive are your gifts
and how doggedly do you follow them?
You have to start with yourself. No matter how much
information you offer through games, questioning, stories,
or songs, your biggest influence will be who you are and how Be the change you want to see in
you live your life. As soon as you get opportunities to mentor the world.
children, they will watch you like a hawk and often imitate
G
your ways of being. When you work with youth, their watch-
ing and imitating can be even more profound; they will imitate
the faces you make, voices you use, how you walk, whether or
not you actually visit a Sit Spot, whether or not you will get
muddy and play games with full abandon. When you really
take the act of mentoring to heart, it pushes you to constantly
self-reflect. The people you mentor will hold up the mirror for
you. Are you being “the change you wish to see in the world?”
Hopefully all this information will not make you balk at
Whatever you can do, or dream
the prospect of mentoring, thinking you have to be perfect you can do, begin it. Boldness has
before you begin. If you have it in your heart, start the work. genius, power and magic in it.
Even though you are not perfect, striving to better our world
G
by serving as a mentor is a heroic thing to role-model. Already

Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 91

My mother was not the kind of you are role-modeling and mentoring everyone around you, all
naturalist mentor who knows
something—how to fish or hunt the time, whether it’s a participant in a program or someone
or harvest – and takes the child you chat with while in line at the grocery store.
for learning forays. Instead, she
gave me freedom to learn on my
Please consider the Kamana Naturalist Training Program, a
own. “Go explore,” she told me, home-study program developed by Jon Young, John Gallagher,
“Show me what you find.” “Tell Ellen Haas, and others. We can’t recommend it enough. It
me your stories.”
will guide you to internalize the Core Routines, awaken your
When we rented on a gentleman’s senses, and ground you in meaningful knowledge of your local
estate near Philadelphia, I
bounced off at five years old with
ecosystem. It will nurture the sparkle in your eye.
the farmer on his tractor into
the corn rows, waving from the
shotgun seat, as my mother in
You and Child Passions
red lipstick, black hair in a red As mentor, teacher, parent, counselor, or outdoor educator,
bandana, waved back. I remember
being allowed to toddle down the
Child Passions will be your best friend and an easy way to
winding farm road a half mile to begin the journey of knowing others. Why is it easy? Because
the pond to “watch turtles.” One you were once a child yourself. That child still lives somewhere
afternoon she found me napping
among lambs and their ewe. inside you ready to storm out and play. So accept Coyote’s
challenge to shapeshift yourself back to your childhood. Catch
When we moved to the rolling
rock suburbs of Mill Creek when I frogs, dive in muddy ponds, build forts and play pirates, go on
was seven, I fretted at the edges of scavenger hunts and tracking adventures, act out characters,
the yard, so she sent me off alone tell stories, sing songs off key, and laugh laugh laugh!
through the neighborhood lanes
“to find a farmer.” I wandered If you want to help others come alive, stay alive, and be con-
through corridors of woods and nected to nature for the rest of their lives, make sure to role-
glades and stream courses, with
my lunch packed in a basket. model it yourself.
Three hours later, beginning to
hunt for me, she found me sharing
my picnic on a sloping streamside
lawn with the old estate gardener.

I realized when thinking about

who my mentors had been,
that my mother mentored me
to be fearless. Fearlessness was
confidence to wander. It allowed
so many connections that might
have been blocked. My mother
was raised an Iowa farm girl with
positive spirit and she gave no
credence to those fears. The world
was safe and welcoming. People
were good. Nature and animals
were friendly.

E H,
Tribute to My Mother

92 |
Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 93
 Chapter 5
QUESTIONING
AND ANSWERING

The Art of Questioning

Childlike Curiosity
I remember when my son was Children are passionate about asking questions. They ask
about three, in the constant
questioning stage. Trying to questions all the time. “Who did it?” “What is it?” “When was
be a good mother, I dutifully it?” “Where are we?” “How come?” Their favorite query comes
answered every question with
some informative explanation.
through the wonderfully infinite question, “Why, why, why,
Then one day in the middle of why, why?” But notice, most of the time they don’t even wait
another train of questions and for the answer before going on to their next question. What’s
answers, he suddenly wailed up at
me, “Mom, DON’T ANSWER!” going on here?
and he burst into tears of outrage. When asking questions, people, and especially children,
I was stunned, but crouching
down to hug his tears away, I
may not be asking for information so much as they are asking
realized that he didn’t want my for you to pay attention to the world through their eyes, to
answers. All those questions get down on all fours and be curious with them. The Art of
were a plea to come into his world
with him, at his level, to join with Questioning fans this flame of inquisitiveness that burns in
him in his curiosity. the heart and mind of everyone.
E H, Don’t Answer!
The Art of Questioning as a Child Passions Mentoring
Tool does not begin in your adult mind, but in the curiosity of
those who explore with you.

94 |
Questions Before Answers
Start with their curiosity, then extend the opportunity for I want to beg you, as much as I
can, dear sir, to be patient toward
learning as far as it will stretch. Try to lead the answers out all that is unsolved in your heart
of people, guide them along from one logical question to the and try to love the questions
themselves like locked rooms
next, and throw them tidbits of partial answers on the way, and like books that are written
until they arrive at the answer they seek for themselves. in a very foreign tongue...live the
This doesn’t mean to never give answers to questions. Just questions now.
remember that answers can bring about a swift end to curi- R M R,
osity. Sometimes, you do want to give answers and pass on Letters to a Young Poet
information and clear instructions. However, try to wait to
give answers until you see real, sincere readiness to receive
them. This art is like planting seeds. No one throws seeds on
unfertile, rock-hard ground. You prepare the ground for the
seed before you plant it.
One of my first jobs was as an assistant at an organic farm.
My boss returned one day from a national conference of organic
farmers, and he told me he was amazed that hardly anyone
talked about the fruits and vegetables they grew. Instead, all
of the focus was on soil, how to produce good soil.
The Art of Questioning builds fertile ground for more
questions. Of course, like the farmers, we want the fruit, we
want people to get the information, but we focus on the soil
of their curiosity. That is, we want folks to become self-suffi-
ciently inquisitive, trusting in themselves to seek out and find
answers. As the Chinese proverb says, “Give a man a fish and
you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him
for a lifetime.”

Genuine Curiosity
One trick to successful questioning is to ponder every question
with our own real interest, as if for the first time. Authentic
curiosity is the fertile soil for the Art of Questioning. We, as
mentors, must get back to “beginner’s mind.”
If you walk on a sandy stretch and someone in your group
sees a footprint and asks, “What kind of track is that?”—and
you know coyote made that track— there are a few ways you
can respond.

Questioning and Answering | 95

The Socratic Method of You could tell them coyote came this way last night. Your
Questioning, described during
the Golden Age of Greece by response will likely induce a simple nod, a muted “oh,” and a move
Plato, is our model for the Art onward. This is a blown opportunity to cultivate curiosity.
of Questioning. In a nutshell it’s
a dialogue in which the mentor
Or, you could get into the beginner’s mind, the mind of
models curiosity about the humility and fresh discovery, “How can I know for sure this
subject, asking many questions was made by a coyote? Look what a beautiful pattern it makes
to lead out and clarify all that the
other doesn’t know that he already in the sand. I wonder what it was doing to make the track
knows about the subject. In this deeper on the left than the right side?” From this place of
way, those we learn with and
mentor are forced to draw answers
authentic curiosity, you can become partners in a joint venture
out of themselves, as well as to re- of discovering the complex subtleties of the track. You might
examine the logic underlying their drop to a knee and bend down to look closer. “Wow, look at
answers.
that. I wonder too. Who do you think could have made it?”
In nature education, our questions Throughout his childhood, Jon Young was mentored this
especially prompt people to query
the knowledge of the senses.
way by Tom Brown, Jr. Tom could approach a coyote track
What do they smell, hear, taste, for the thousandth time and sincerely study it as if for the
feel, or see in ever-new ways? We first time. The beginner’s mind engaged them both for lon-
also like to add to this by allowing
the questioning to go into the ger and longer stretches, as over the years such genuine open-
unknown, by truly embracing the minded fascination became the norm. The more they learned,
mysteries of life and joining in the
search ourselves.
the greater their humility in realizing what they didn’t know.
Through Tom’s modeling, Jon learned how to track, but, more
J Y  E MG, importantly, how to learn.
Socratic Questioning

Three Levels of Questioning

To walk the edge of curiosity with those you mentor, we suggest
you become intentional in the use of your questions—what kind
of questions you ask, when, and in what order you ask them.
These three levels of questions will help you develop your art.

Level One: Confidence Builder. Level One is where you

start. Especially with beginners, meet them in their comfort
zone, build confidence, and awaken the questioning reflex.
Sometimes one question will work, but often a whole series of
questions will help you fish around for hot topics, and answers
that the person you are mentoring already knows. Answering
easy questions, they feel success. Their head lifts, their shoul-
ders square: they feel proud and literally puff up. Do not pop
that bubble. If you start with a hard question they can’t answer,
they get smaller; their eyes drop down.

96 |
 You’ll spend the great bulk of your time, perhaps up to seventy percent,
with Level One. You want to get them feeling so good about what they already
know they will be self-motivated to stretch and grow and take risks. So start
with self-evident facts, give them a bone, and build rapport.

Level Two: Edge Question. As soon as they’re strong, look for their edge.
The next question you want to ask is an “edge question.” This one they can
find the answer to if they do some searching. For instance, they respond at
the first level saying, “Hey, it’s a worm!” You hear confidence in their voice.
So you ask, “Yes, where is it going?” They watch the worm and guess, “That
way.” “You sure?” They hesitate and start thinking about it. What did you
find? Their edge. Now show more curiosity than they do. Uncross your
arms, drop down on one knee, go closer. “Hey, what’s this little line in the
mud that’s leading up to the worm?” They come down with you and their
light-bulb goes on: “It’s a worm track! It’s going that way!” You have met
them at their edge, and pushed them through. (And now their knees are a
little dirty, too!)
You probably will spend around twenty-five percent of your time and
energy at this level, hovering on the edge of what they know. As Coyote did
with me that day in Redmond, pull them just a little bit further out into
new terrain. Mentoring advanced folks who show confidence and comfort,
you may spend the majority of your time right here, on their edge. Also, this
isn’t just about knowledge, but also sensory awareness and experience. So
if you notice a person tends not to hear birdcalls or smell the air, use ques-
tions to stretch that edge. Look for the weaknesses in their overall sensory
awareness, and pull them along, not only with questions but also with any
story or information that gets them curious, that arouses the Child Passion
to discover and learn.

Level Three: Beyond the Edge. Back to the worm situation—they are now
on their knees with an expanding curiosity. Next you say, “I wonder how
this thing sees where its going?” This third level of question lands just
beyond their edge. Their jaws drop a little. Their bodies sag, and you can
literally watch them hang from their spines for a moment. The essence
of this level of question is to steer them to ask things they didn’t know
you could know. It keeps learners humble and reminds them to look for
the not-so-obvious, the below-the-surface reality of things. This one sends
them home to field guides, or maybe on to Ph.D’s.

Questioning and Answering | 97

Do you want to eat some of those Level Three questions will take up only about five percent of
berries?
Can you eat those? your time. These questions can be intimidating and should be
If they have thorny stems and the asked only when the time is ripe. Level Three questions eventu-
leaves are opposite each other,
then we can. Let’s check them out.
ally propel people into a curiosity all their own, sending them on
Do you see thorns? life-long searches for answers. Sometimes, the answers to these
Yes. Ouch. questions never come, and that’s completely fine. The feeling of
How are the leaves arranged
opposite each other like arms on being passionately on the hunt, of being utterly alive and curious
a person or are they alternate like and dogged in a search, that’s what we’re after.
stairs going up the stem?
Oh cool, they are opposite. So we
can eat them, right? Shifting Perspectives
Just one more thing, when you
crush them they have to smell like “What kind of track is this?” I might ask someone. “Obviously,
bananas. Here, let’s try it. Put a Evan, that’s a coyote. We know what coyote tracks look like.”
berry in your palm and squish it
with your fingers. Now smell it.
“Yeah, it’s probably coyote, but what time do you think it
Wow, it does smell like bananas. passed here? Look at the rain drops all around the track, but
Now can we eat them? inside it they’re crushed.”
Sure, but make sure that you save
some of the berries before you This shift of perspective keeps the Art of Questioning fresh.
leave this area. You stand a good chance no one knows exactly what time it
Why should we save the berries?
Oh, they make great food for stopped raining. So that leads off to a search for clues that might
ruffed grouse and other birds. Just prove when it rained. I could also ask why it’s a coyote instead of
remember though, if there are a dog. How do they know for sure? “Show me each factor that
grouse feeding on these berries,
there may be bears around too. gives you a clue.” And on and on, with more and more refine-
Oh my god, I’m scared of bears! ment. When you execute the Art of Questioning well, the shift-
Don’t worry, the Blue Jays will tell
us if there are any bears around. ing flow of questions and answers seems perfectly natural.

In just a few moments you’ve

inspired interest, and then have
Shifting Our Own Habits
managed to take a student on That’s because it is natural. However, it may feel contrived
a plant ID lesson; you have
connected the plant ID with the when you first break out of your answering habit. Check if
sense of smell; you’ve introduced your experience and expertise have put you deep into the brain
the idea that animals that could
be in the area and what they eat.
pattern of answering questions with answers—then you your-
And you introduced them to bird self need mentoring first. Do this two-minute exercise to help
language. All that great stuff and restore the innocence of your curiosity. It can be done alone,
they don’t even realize that you
purposely led them through it in but it’s intensified if you do this with a partner.
order to stretch their awareness. Walk outside and find an object in nature: a plant, a rock,
D K, Kamana Student,
or an acorn shell—whatever you want. For two minutes, do
Plant ID Lesson nothing but ask questions—out loud—about your object. Ask
a question, but don’t give an answer. Ask another question.
Then another. Watch how your mind begins to overflow with
unspoken answers that lead to new questions. Let your mind

98 |
go wherever it will in its musing, but don’t answer. Ask questions that use all
of your senses. Your partner just remains silent and listens to the questions,
but explores the object along with you as prompted by your questions. Ask
question after question until the end of your two minutes. The resulting
rise in heartbeat may astound you. In two minutes your brain wakes up to a
whole new world of possibilities.

Long-Term Mentoring
The long-term goal of the Art of Questioning will be to turn over the reins
to the learners, to light the fuse and then get out of the way. Your first goal
is achieved when people feel comfortable generating their own Level One
questions, as they show confidence in demonstrating their basic proficiency
and knowledge. Your next goal is to encourage them to go to Level Two for
themselves, super-charged about learning, willing to take risks, eager to
make mistakes, quick to research, fired up to keep on the trail of their curi-
osity. The final goal is to empower them to generate their own Level Three
questions, to ponder the mysteries that will captivate, motivate, and define
them for the long years of their lives.
The Art of Questioning is an amazing skill-set to awaken in those you
mentor. Questioning works like a muscle of the mind. Without regular exer-
cise, it can atrophy, but with just a few continuous months of training and
stick-to-it-ive-ness on your part, you’ll see the questioning muscles in those
your mentor operate without your help and with astonishing power.

The Place for Answers

“Didactic” is an old-fashioned word that means instructing and informing,
although it has unfortunate overtones of boring catechism. In the midst of
all this questioning, is there a place for informing and instructing? Is there
a way for people to “actually learn” without being “talked at” or “told how it
is?” Absolutely! Mentoring includes spending a great deal of time answer-
ing, informing, and instructing. This is the way of the mentor. Questions
need answers, each tidbit serves as a platform to jump to the next question.
Science needs good information, correct data. And learning journeys require
constant monitored instruction and orientation.
When you sense people need answers, by all means seize the opportunity
to respond. Of course the most memorable answers will be searched out as
returning scouts pool their data in Mapping, Story of the Day, and Exploring
Field Guides. But, if an eager learner or the whole community wants an

Questioning and Answering | 99

educated answer from you, they deserve it. Do your research and make it an
informative response. From your own treasure chest of knowledge, choose
gems of answers as nutrition along the way.
However, for answering to be effective, each person must reach the level
of interest to receive information. So remember to vigilantly monitor their
body language, their facial expressions, and their focus of attention. Keep
track of what kind of bait will “hook” their interest, and cast that out. Throw
them one of those “fun factoids” about amazing animal feats. If their eyes
light up, and they begin interrupting to tell you what they know, now they
are engaged. They took the bait!
If your answer is a long one, allow everyone to ask questions as they
come up—don’t worry about “breaking your flow.” If they are holding onto
a question, they won’t really be able to attend to the information you’re
offering anyway.

The Place for Information

Coyote straddles the world of experience and science. We want people we
mentor to develop sensory awareness and intuition and to imprint images in
their Mind’s Eye, but they will need a science vocabulary to communicate. We
gather information all day long, and much of the information involves naming
things; we look closely to identify taxonomy, compare growth habits, or label
the parts of interdependent systems. Naming will naturally channel their curi-
osity into an active and accurate vocabulary.
Allow even this to arise first from the imagination, so a four-year-old’s
words may be “puffball” or “bunny” or “birdie.” Invite kids who love fantasy
and creative adults to create Songlines about things they give friendly names to.
Leave Field Guides out on the tables, use Journaling and Story of the Day for
mystery-solving and reflection, and transmit “didactic” information through
Storytelling. The names for things will come so naturally that easygoing con-
versation will emerge in the field using literate scientific vocabulary.
Our caution about timing your answers—restrain yourself from doing
their work for them. Be conscious of your priority. Is it more important for
information to be conveyed quickly and accurately, or do you want people
you mentor to struggle with figuring it out for themselves? Go slowly and
leave time for the information to sink in. Watch carefully for signs of confu-
sion—ask them to explain in their own words what you just covered, check
to see if they absorbed it. If they begin to fade, you’ll just be wasting your
time continuing. It will feel to them like being “talked at.”

100 |
The Place for Instruction
You will also find abundant times to clearly explain the rules The most beautiful emotion we
can experience is the mysterious.
of the game, the boundaries of the errand, or the principles of It is the power of all true art
peaceful behavior. Giving appropriate instructions and moni- and science. He to whom this
emotion is a stranger, who can no
toring that these instructions are followed is an art just as longer wonder and stand rapt in
much as questioning. Be prepared, watch their body language, awe, is as good as dead.
and use your finest words.
A E
In a workshop on communicating with diverse audiences,
we realized the huge diversity of learning styles represented
by any group of people. Asked how we’d like to get our
instructions as volunteers at a food bank, some of us wanted,
“Here’s a kitchen, make sandwiches.” Others wanted “Here’s
12 jars and 6 stations; your group will make 1000 sandwiches
by noon.” Yet others wanted to know, “This is how you hold
the knife when you spread the peanut butter.” Keep an eye
out to meet the needs of everyone, and deliver your instruc-
tions with clarity and improvisational wit, because you never
know what to expect.
Instruction will take many shapes in your outdoor pro-
gram. You need to be as diverse as your audience and your
lesson plan. Instructions may look like a scavenger hunt hand-
out or a PowerPoint presentation. They may look like Baloo
in Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book, teaching Mowgli “the Law
of the Jungle” with a few affectionate and well-timed swats
with his paw. Whether people play games by the rules, take
scientific inventory of natural history, or make fire without
matches in a rainstorm, they will require and welcome lots of
clear instructions to show them the way.
One tip for instruction. Consider the Rule of Repetition:
tell them what you are going to tell them, then tell them, then
show them, then tell them what you told them. Then ask them
what they heard and let them demonstrate. Repetition is the
mother of mental habits!

Questioning and Answering | 101

Three Mentoring Styles
In general then, we can summarize by saying over the years we have noted
three main styles, or approaches, used by effective mentors. They are all valu-
able and their efficacy depends on the aptness and the timing of their use.

The Didactic Approach, we just discussed as the passing on of information.

With adults, this can be done in lecture form—including some amazing fac-
toids from natural science. With youth, telling stories laced with informa-
tion may be your best opportunity for this approach.
Didactic does have its place, but we need to realize that most of us default
to this approach because of its dominance in our own Western upbringing
and patterning. Therefore, many mentors, when just starting out, will lean
heavily on this approach, and then be frustrated when youth or adults don’t
listen or remember or care about an overload of information being shared.
So, watch for opportunities to transmit information and administer the
correct dosage of it. Use it when people are ready to absorb it, when they have
a slot in their brain patterns ready for some information. Cast your bait into
the current just above your target spot at just the right time of day.
Think of me trying to show someone how to play a guitar: if someone
already knows the basic chords, I can just tell them the chords straight off
and they’ll start playing. However, if they’re just starting off, I have to change
the information I give them, as well as mixing in the other two styles below
so they’ll not only get it, they’ll also be inspired to keep going further.

The Questioning Approach is most effective for someone sitting on the

fence between being interested and not interested, when something is
needed to green-light their just-waiting curiosity. Use all the tricks of the
Art of Questioning. Get them primed and ready for didactic answers. For
those who are neither hot nor cold, questioning can be the perfect thing to
kick them into that nice buzz and hum of experiential learning.

The final Trickster/Transformer Approach is emphasized throughout this

book in subtle and not so subtle ways. This is the Coyote approach that busts
people out of ruts and gets them to look with fresh eyes at any situation. It’s the
foolishness, NOT the verbal reprimands, that entices them over the edge of
their comfort zone, outward on the winged edges of their curiosity.

102 |
 Use this approach when your people act not at all ready or interested in
whatever you are leading or presenting. Maybe they fold their arms, their
eyes roll whenever you introduce an activity, or they keep looking at their
watch or asking when they get to go home. The ground appears absolutely
hard and not welcoming to any seeds you offer, whether questions or cool
information. You need Wily Coyote now to shake things up, to play the
trickster and magically transform that rock-hard clay of unwillingness into
lush, loamy soils of excitement and humility.
This can be as simple as putting on blindfolds: even the simplest action of
eating lunch becomes humbling when your eyes are taken away. Blindfolds
offer a classic way to get people out of their ruts. But there are more sophis-
ticated approaches too. For the person who tells you with a scarce glance and
sallow tone “Those are coyote tracks,” find a set of mouse tracks—whose pat-
tern of four feet look an awful lot like the four toes of a coyote track—and with
your own finger, when they aren’t looking, add a little smudge of a heel-pad to
lend more to the possibility of misinterpretation. Then ask them what track
they see. When they say coyote, look closer and say, “But it looks like each toe
of the coyote has little toes itself …” And when they eventually realize these are
actually mouse tracks, their hard attitude may just crack open a bit.

So each approach, whether Didactic, Questioning, or Trickster/Transformer, has

a place in the palette of an artful Coyote Mentor. Didactic is awesome when
people feel genuinely ready to absorb, Questioning will bring out their latent
curiosity and lead to amazing journeys of mystery and learning, and Trickster/
Transformer can regularly be interspersed to loosen up the hard ground of
arrogance, bust people out of ruts, and keep people excitedly looking with ever-
fresh eyes.

Questioning and Answering | 103

 For unknown thousands of years
the brain was expanding by
genetic evolution, in part because

Chapter 6 of the palaver and increasingly

extended and complex storytelling
around the fire.

STORYTELLING The storyteller has always had

this central role in societies of
translating that information
in forms that played upon the
great mythic themes and used
Storytelling to Capture Imagination the rhythms and the openings,
the prologues, the body, the
conclusion, the closures that make
We’ve talked about Story of the Day as a Core Routine, some- up literature.
thing we all do together to wrap up explorations throughout
So, the factual information that
the day. Now let’s turn the tables. Storytelling, by you, to a we get and the new metaphors
group circled up at the beginning of the day, or rounded up created out of science somehow
have to be translated into the
briefly between activities, or even sitting lecture-style in a hall, language of the storyteller—by
is a foolproof Child Passion Mentoring Tool to practice and film, by speech, by literature,
master. The more wholeheartedly you tell stories, the more by any means that will make it
meaningful and powerful for the
effectively they will inform and instruct, raise questions, and human mind.
evoke the world of imaginative play.
E.O. W, Writing Natural
I remember showing up at my first summer nature camp as History, Dialogues with Authors,
a mentor. The director said we were going to get all forty kids by E L

Storytelling | 105
Dabo was a boy of six years when to sit quietly outside and tell them a story for a half-hour or so.
I met him. He was a bit timid
at first, but had the smile of a I couldn’t believe it would actually work. Wouldn’t they just
lifetime when he got to trust me. want to run and play? But sure enough, we told them it was
The first day of Youth School,
he pulled a “nature name” out of
“time for a story,” and they all eagerly plunked down to listen.
a hat, Raccoon. He knew a little From then on throughout the week, they would beg for more
about the animal, but he often stories. I was floored. Jon talks about the same phenomenon
asked me about it. I remember
looking through field guides with with the adults he works with all over the world. They have the
him to find Raccoon pictures and same eagerness to hear stories. Let a group know that there is
facts, and staring in fascination
at trails of Raccoon tracks we’d
a story ahead and they won’t let you forget!
find along the beaches we roamed. Why do we love stories so much? Ever since that day, I’ve
And, he loved to hear, over and watched it over and over and have become convinced; people,
over, a story we told that featured
Raccoon’s ingenuity. especially kids, are designed to love stories and to listen to
them over and over. As all parents know who “have to” read
One day, the tide was rising
very quickly, forcing our group
their children stories before they’ll consent to lie down and
to crawl through and over the sleep; kids simply can’t get enough of it, they can be swept
beach debris. Dabo was near the away by just a few words and a wink.
back, moving a bit slower than
the others (this was his way), but Stories are everywhere, in one form or another: daily news-
as I waited up for him, I saw a papers, television shows, movies, books, core myths of major
complete concentration in his eyes
and in his body. The waves were
religions, the funny thing that happened at work today. For
crashing and coming in closer the vast majority of our history, stories have been spoken or
by the minute. He was clearly acted out, repeated, refined, and enriched with the changing
muttering something to himself,
some sort of mantra, as you colors of the seasons and the changing voices of generations of
might see a determined marathon storytellers. This is “the oral tradition.” It’s built into our genes
runner saying to keep himself
moving. As he came closer, I
to respond unblinkingly to the power of live storytelling.
could finally make out the chanted Here, we suggest you direct the purpose of your everyday
words: “Raccoon always finds a stories towards Nature Connection. It’s just like playing an
way. Raccoon always finds a way.”
instrument. If I’m in a jazz band, the way I play my bass can
E MG, Dabo’s Story shift so that the bass plays jazz. Or if the band I’m in plays
rock n’roll, or salsa or heavy metal, the bass can still serve
its role powerfully. All I have to do is shift the way I play it.
Storytelling works the same: no matter what tale you’re about
to tell, just shift the content and emphasis of your stories to fit
your situation and your goals. In our case, we want to create
connections with nature through story.

Three Levels in Storytelling

Storytelling can be approached on the same three levels that
we discussed in terms of questioning.

106 |
Level One: Tell stories about doing things that anyone can do—the confi-
dence-builders that get them exclaiming, “I’ve done that too. It’s so fun!”
This first level establishes rapport and trust. This might be, “In that rain
yesterday I got so muddy and wet my housemates wouldn’t let me indoors
until I stripped down to my shorts. You ever done that? Ever been stopped
by your Mom at the door? How’d you get her to let you in?”

Level Two: Tell stories about things right on their edge, ones that raise the
ceiling of possibility in their imaginations. “When I looked down and saw I
had mud all over my arms, I realized it was really good camouflage. So you
know what I did? (Here comes the edge …) I decided to get fully mudded-up,
even my face and my hair, and then sprinkle grass-clippings and leaf debris
all over me. After that, I could hide in the bush right by the sidewalk of my
house where people would walk by, but nobody would see me.”

Level Three: Tell an occasional story beyond their edge, a story about a
legendary hero. During a wind storm, John Muir climbed to the top of an
evergreen and was blown around twenty feet each way as he listened to the
wind symphony. Hiding in his pond, Henry Thoreau breathed through a
reed. Open the door to burning possibilities. “I figured if I could be invis-
ible to humans, maybe I could be invisible to animals. So one summer, I
covered myself in mud and camouflaged even my smell and waited by a
deer trail before dawn until finally I actually touched a deer without it ever
sensing I was there.”
Mindfulness to these three levels ensures that everyone has a story to tell,
but also keeps your audience continually expanding its edges.

Priming with Inspiring Stories

The most common and effective way to set up your day is with stories, which
“prime” folks for the upcoming activities. If you want to focus on learning
edible plants that day, tell a story about a time you (or someone else) were
lost and hungry and made a meal entirely from edible plants. If you want to
go animal tracking that day, tell a story about the thrill of discovering otter
tracks and following them down a slippery slide.
Telling inspiring stories before an activity can make the difference
between a “boring, stupid activity” and a legendary adventure they’ll never
forget. In the Activities section of this book, we offer a “Primer” (an inspi-
rational story) for most of the games and activities. The root of the word

Storytelling | 107
inspire is in + spiritus, meaning spirit, or wind, or breath. In-spiration,
then, means that fresh wind of spirit that suddenly sweeps into you when
something excites you. This happens when people hear a story from the
life of a hero or a role-model. They are struck with admiration, their eyes
get brighter, and they sit up straighter. Inspirational stories wake them up;
get them thinking, “I want to do that. That’s amazing. How’d they do it?
Could that story be true? Wow.”
Caution: You don’t want to have every story be grand and glorious in its
heroic feats, or else the listeners will start to think, “John Muir had amaz-
ing experiences, but I never can.” Their bodies will deflate, they’ll turn away.
We don’t want to get them comparing and belittling themselves. Always use
stories to empower with role-models who show what’s possible.
So be wary of creating “celebrities” or “hero worship.” 1) Tell stories of
heroes who are deceased or who live in a separate community. Most tra-
ditional cultures rarely have living heroes and have avoided the celebrity-
inflation phenomenon of modern society. 2) Constantly mix-up the heroes
of your stories, creating an archetypal feeling of the “hero/heroine” repre-
sented by many people, rather than inflating the same individuals over and
over. 3) Keep the heroes anonymous: change the names or never mention
a name at all.

Didactic Lessons with Fact-filled Stories

Storytelling is the trickster Coyote’s way of passing on didactic informa-
tion. The listeners sit toying with blades of grass, unaware of “learning”
anything, while you seed and cultivate their Mind’s Eye Imaginations.
Because stories bring forth vivid pictures of sight, sound, smell, touch, and
taste, they have a way of slipping search images into the brain patterns
that emerge sometime later, when they are able to name that bird call, or
recognize that poisonous plant, or identify that track.
Use storytelling as a subtle form of informing and instructing. Because
stories engage the imagination and emotions, listeners soak up and remem-
ber little details like sponges. Throw in amazing tidbits of natural history or
admirable traits of characters. To make a story a vehicle for more learning,
add facts about shapes, colors, sounds, gaits, animal personalities, weather,
or even your choice of gear to prolong a story that would otherwise be a quick
exciting ride. It might be a tiny snippet about how Dandelions have jagged
teeth like a lion, or a mention that the beaver tracks include a tail drag. Slip
in all the bits of natural history you want.

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 You won’t have any idea how much information actually sinks in to the
listeners’ brain patterns until months later, when you come upon a set of
tracks, and someone says, “Look—it has four toes and claws, I think it’s a
wolf, you know, like in that story!” This has happened to me many times,
sometimes years later—and I’m amazed every time. Sometimes they can
remember learning it in a story, other times they don’t know how they knew
it. With stories, it all sinks in, and it will rise to consciousness whenever a
purpose for that bit of knowledge comes along.
Of course, many stories, like fables, already have lessons built into them.
You can pull out morals from stories that haven’t mentioned them. Instead
of spelling out the lessons of even a traditional fable, let the images speak
for themselves and marinate in the listeners’ subconscious. You might be
surprised when they come to you with reflective lessons from the story that
you never thought of before. Also, feel free to adapt stories to the needs of
the people you work with, for stories can grow and evolve over time. That’s
the beauty and magic of the oral tradition.

Storytelling | 109
Over three decades at Wilderness
Awareness School, we’ve A Guide for Telling Stories
concocted a story that we tell in
camps and college alike, of Apache You might be thinking, “I’m not a storyteller.” Hmmm. Try
Scouts and the New Jersey Pine
to go a week without telling a story in some form or another.
Barrens, Tom Brown and Jon
Young, Akamba trackers and I bet you can’t do it. We talk about books we’re reading or
wilderness survival. The stories we explain to someone in detail where we’ve just been; all of
thicken and thin into a seasonal
round of hero tales and students’ us tell stories all the time. So own it: you are a storyteller.
own stories. You’ve already got your own style of talking, whether you use
We teach, in the winter wind-
crazy hand-gestures like me or speak slowly and calmly like
chill, of hazards; as days warm, Peter Jennings. We’re just asking you to take the storytelling
of tracks; when summer’s in full style you already have and apply it towards cultivating nature
growth, of plants; and when it’s
time to sit around and enjoy the awareness in those you mentor. Simply be yourself.
harvest and feel night and winter To help you to really step into your power as a storyteller
coming in, we move into high
storytelling. In early spring, the
and begin to have fun with this old, old practice, here are some
birds bring in the big story all over tips and tricks we’d like to pass along.
again.

In year-long courses on our own Where Do I Find Stories?

twenty acres, these stories are
so connected to the land, so full
Personal stories: Perhaps the most important advice about using
of names and adventures of real storytelling in education uses anecdotes from your own life.
people, that alumni come back You may think, as I once did, that you haven’t done anything
to it feeling it’s “a sacred place.”
That’s what always happens when spectacular enough to be retold in story form.
a culture has time to grow up in
the same landscape. Have you ever built a tree house, caught a fish, walked with a
dog, gotten into poison ivy?
E H,
A Place-Based Story Have you ever looked a wild animal in the eye? Tell what
happened.
Have you ever been caught in a storm? How did you handle it?
Have you ever gone out in the darkness before dawn? What
did you see?
Have you ever watched a songbird’s egg crack open? What
came out of it?
Every one of your personal experiences holds potential gold
for inspiration, like seeing a deer on the neighbor’s lawn. “The
forest begins in the crack in my sidewalk,” wrote a child in a
New Jersey city. That’s one reason we’ve included the “Primer”
stories with the activities: so you see how lots of seemingly
ordinary events can be made into something extraordinary.

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Personal stories are by far the most powerful to hear, because Find and practice FOUR stories,
each of a different type:
they live so vividly in the person telling the story. And the lis-
tener sits right next to the main character! q Hero Story: An amazing
story from the life of
For examples: scan the “Primer” stories that lead off most of naturalist or tracker, a
our Activities, browse tales from Wilderness Awareness School legendary or fictionalized
role-models in Exploring Natural Mystery, Kamana One, find adventure in the natural
world.
inspiration from Jon Young’s audiotapes; Seeing Through Native
q Personal Story: A story from
Eyes, Advanced Language of Birds, and Tracking Pack One. your own life of an inspiring
or fun interaction with
Animal feats: Besides accounts of human experiences in nature, nature.

any animal—or plant or insect for that matter—can be turned q Local Native Lore Story: A
story specific to the native
into a fascinating being if you tell (or act out) the story of how culture of your bioregion,
it uses its senses and anatomy to navigate its world. Read up such as an “origin” story
that provides search images
on the amazing strategies for survival about bats with their of local flora and fauna like
echolocation, beavers with their waterproof eyelids, chicka- “How Skunk got its Spots,”
dees who fluff their body-feathers over-top their wing feathers or “How Robin got its Red
Breast.”
to keep from freezing, grasshoppers who can jump the tallest
q Ancestral Heritage Story: A
building. This list is endless and information is easy to find. nature-based traditional myth
Check out Lewis Thomas’ Lives of a Cell or Medusa and the or folk story from your own
ancestry, whatever it may be.
Snail, the ZooBooks pamphlet series, or DVDs such as David
Attenborough’s Life of Mammals. Then, practice, over and over—to
a mirror, your dog, your friends,
your children—experimenting
Traditional Tales: You can find great nature-based stories in with different ways of telling
collections of traditional myths or folk tales from different them.
cultures: Native American, Celtic, Polish, Chinese, African, J Y  E MG,
and from your own ancestral lineage. Some forms of these Storytelling 101
stories are short because they were probably recorded in
quantity by anthropologists. Unless specifically asked by
your source not to do so, you can use your imagination to
fill in the gaps and elaborate on the brilliant images and
story lines that have been passed down for thousands of
years. You will find rich, deep stuff there and your imagi-
nation can bring the characters and scenes back to life and
keep them growing.
If you go back far enough in any cultural lineage, you will
find stories deeply connected to the natural world. We sug-
gest you do a little research into your own ancestry and find
nature-based stories from your own heritage. Whoever you

Storytelling | 111
1 David Rains Wallace are, your ancestors were trackers and naturalists, or else you
(evolution’s story in Klamath, wouldn’t be alive today. So have some fun digging up old sto-
Oregon)
ries of your own ancestors, and enjoy telling about the same
2 Barry Lopez (myth, politics,
& landscape from the Arctic rooted connection to the earth that your distant grandfathers
southward) or grandmothers once experienced.
3 Ursula Le Guin (brilliant
animal fiction and fantasy,
Oregon)
Natural History Literature
4 Edward Abbey (the Our sidebar provides a list of Ellen’s Top Ten extraordinary
Southwestern desert, with an nature writers who she says should be “required reading!” She
attitude!)
reports with vehemence that she reads nature writing for her
5 Joseph Wood Krutch (stories
from the Arizona desert)
Sit Spot time, an armchair voyeur’s version. American litera-
6 John Muir (pioneering
ture offers us some entrancing tales from the lives of explor-
adventures in the West) ers like John Muir and Lewis and Clark, and naturalists like
7 Robert Michael Pyle Sigurd Olsen, Barry Lopez, Richard Nelson, Terry Tempest
(butterflies & boyhood, Williams, or Annie Dillard. The fiction of John Steinbeck and
Colorado and Washington)
Wallace Stegner overflow with the feeling of the American
8 Annie Dillard (dense and
quirky observations from
landscape and its effect on its human inhabitants. Stories for
Virginia) youth abound, such as Jean Craighead George’s My Side of the
9 Henry David Thoreau Mountain. Tom Brown, Jr.’s best-selling book, The Tracker,
(“adolescent bravado,” Waldon captivates imaginations with its stunning tale of a young boy
Pond, MA)
mentored by an aging Apache scout in the Pine Barrens of
10 John McPhee (geology across
the nation) New Jersey. Dennis Olson’s book, Shared Spirits, is a fine col-
lection of Native American stories about animals and what
E H, Ellen’s list of Top
Ten Natural History Writers
they have to teach us. Check out stories based on wildlife,
such as Bobcat Year by Hope Ryden, or Buffalo Gals by Ursula
LeGuin. Native American authors have contributed as well,
such as M. Scott Momaday and Leslie Marmon Silko. Luther
Standing Bear’s My Indian Boyhood or Land of the Spotted
Eagle offer a marvelous picture of growing up Sioux.
Seek out powerful classics from India, by the late great
tracker, Jim Corbett, famous for his tiger-hunting, or Rudyard
Kipling, famous author of the Jungle Book and Other Stories.
Mowgli’s life with Baloo the bear and Bagheera the panther
are jewels, but read Kipling’s Other Stories as well, about wise
elephants and a brave little mongoose. Read tales from Africa,
by Laurens Van der Post, Norman “Ingwe” Powell, or Jane
Goodall’s intimate relationship with African chimpanzees
which still inspires Western science.

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How do I Tell a Story?
Once you’ve found your story, the first step in telling it is to remember it.
Generally two schools of thought exist on how to do this.

Memorized Narrative. Many native cultures, such as the Akamba, as our

friend Ingwe witnessed, required their storytellers memorize word for word,
pause for pause, in order to ensure accurate transmission. However, it didn’t
come off as rote memorization, for those storytellers empowered the lines
with a ritual sense that the story they told was happening here and now.
Ingwe often used this kind of storytelling to “bring the house down.”

Storyboard Improvisation. In our culture, we recommend remembering the

basic set of images as if it were a cartoon strip and then improvising. But the
same principle of being totally present to your story also applies.
By using the Core Routine of Mind’s Eye Imagining, both storytelling
methods can be powerfully delivered. You want to remember the scenes not
only by the dominant images and events, but also by all the sensory and emo-
tional nuances and tones. Try listening to stories like this, so you hear more
than words, you also see a movie, full of facial expressions, tones of voice,
body language, background noises, and experiences of smell and touch—all
from your Mind’s Eye Imagination. Remember, this “muscle” will get stron-
ger each time you use it.
When you are with an audience of one or more, and it is telling time for
a story, simply press play on the movie or comic strip in your imagination,
and let it roll out of your own imagination. Use the power-booster button
to re-live the story as it plays in your imagination. As its images, sounds,
smells, textures, and emotions run through your head, you become like a
sports commentator, simply describe to others what you “see” happening.
If you want to watch masters, find videos of stand-up comedians like
Robin Williams, Bill Cosby, Eddie Murphy, Margaret Cho, John Stewart,
Tina Fey, or Ellen DeGeneres. They have it down—grabbing attention,
voice imitation, body gestures, phrase-delivery and timing, and perhaps the
most important element: fun and humor. If you want to get really serious
about this art, find some Improvisational Theatre classes in your area. They
can transform your approach to being in front of an audience. At mentoring
workshops, we often do Improv games to get people into the mood: open, in
the moment, and able, like Ingwe, to “bring the house down” with a pause, a
look, or a few perfectly timed words.

Storytelling | 113
Stories held an important place
in native cultures, and they were
Bring Setting and Character Alive
told and listened to over, and With any story, first you paint the background setting of
over, and over. The stories lived
in people, not in books, which place and time and texture, and continually reinforce it using
was crucial to their living power. all the senses. Introduce the characters as they show up and
Their songs and ceremonies were
dramas and their storytelling was bring each one to life. Don’t just describe them—become
dramatic, capturing the essence them. It can be as small as shifting into a deep voice and slow
of animal characters—not just
their physiology, but also their
rhythm of words for Bear then a high chattering squeal for
temperament, their personality, Squirrel, or as large as getting out of your chair and imitating
their spiritual affiliations. a whole-body movement. Such constant diversity of body lan-
J Y, Native Storytelling guage grabs attention. If you are the main character, you can
get the listeners into your mood and mindset by exaggerating
or making fun of yourself. Always remember to appeal to the
Child Passions for things that are funny. A good storyteller
is truly a shape-shifter, able to shift into the mind of others
and become them. It’s just like Animal Forms—you really
transform, mentally and physically into that other being.

Keep Listeners Engaged

You can’t focus only on your story and forget your audience.
You need to be present both with the moment in your story
and with the listeners ringed around you. So, as a story-
teller, you want to be in two places at once. One place will
be in your imagination, watching the video. The other place
attends to every nuance from your audience: observe their
body language, notice what grabs them, watch out for when
they yawn or seem to grow a little bored (it happens to the
best of us). The audience’s reactions will feed your story and
shape how you tell it.
All good storytellers have some common tricks up their
sleeves to keep the attention focused. One trick uses refrain
and repetition to create an on-going interaction with the
audience. A classic example is the “Little Engine That Could,”
with its repeated refrain of “I Think I Can, I Think I Can,
I Think I Can!” each time a new challenge arises. Another
way to get the audience responding sets up a game within
the story, such as “Whenever I say ‘river,’ you guys say ‘otter’
after it, okay? This little awareness game shows how well

114 |
you’re paying attention and how quickly you can respond.”
Of course when you do say “river,” and they do say “otter,”
it interrupts your story, but it keeps your audience awake,
laughing, and engaged. If you can get your listeners laughing,
you’ve got ‘em hooked. If you notice lagging attention, here’s
another good trick. About anything in the story at that time,
say, “You know what it looked like? It looked like THIS!”
Immediately, heads will jerk up, and if they look up to see
you in some funny pose, they’ll fall straight into laughter.
Boom—they’re back in the story, right there with you.
Another device that will catch attention and add intrigue
may surprise you: silence. Most people think to catch atten-
tion you have to be loud, but many of the best musicians and
storytellers know the power of the rest, the “pregnant pause.”
You may be going along in a consistent rhythm, and abruptly,
when you come upon a climactic moment in the story, you
drop silent. What will happen? The dreamy listeners will turn
their heads up, with searching, captured eye. “What’s he wait-
ing for? What is about to happen?” Rests and pauses invite the
imagination and let the story breathe.
A great bass-playing friend of mine tells about playing for
great jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. One night he played
a virtuoso solo full of so many notes that he thought would
knock Dizzy out. After the show, though, when he asked
Dizzy what he thought of the solo. Dizzy said, “You need
to leave some holes in your playing, because you never know,
some music just might fall out.” So likewise, leave some holes
in your storytelling … and see what falls out.

The Most Important Thing—Have Fun!

Above all, good storytelling that effectively engages Child
Passions will invisibly lodge search images into your listeners’
brains. Storytelling gives you permission to play and take your
imagination to a level of foolishness and outlandishness—we
usually aren’t allowed such good fun in normal society. Yet
all the while, amidst the fun and laughter of it, you walk the
edge and grow more serious in your lessons as you advance
from Level One to Level Three topics. Eventually, you will

Storytelling | 115
pull the audience deeper and deeper into another world. Aspire to deliver
both laughter and profound lessons and overtones—great storytellers are
known for their tension of opposites. I recently heard a most serious ser-
mon by Martin Luther King, Jr. in which he quotes a joke from Bob Hope
that gets the crowd rolling, saying, “I am trying to laugh a basic fact into
all of us …”
Once again, Coyote sounds the challenge to follow him into his best
act: “shape-shifting.” So enjoy it! Get loose, feel free, and have fun up
there. If you have already faced your nervousness and find yourself stand-
ing up in front, why not go all the way? Throw your body into it; forget
how silly others might think you look. It’s about role modeling child pas-
sions, it’s about being natural, and it’s about meeting people where they
are—and if you do it with nature-based stories, you will undoubtedly
capture their imaginations to connect in a personal way with all the ele-
ments of your story’s landscape.

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Chapter 7
MUSIC MAKING

Music at the Heart of Community

An African Tale
Under the shade of a large mango tree, children and adults
A bird doesn’t sing because it has
alike were singing, their eyes sparkling, their bodies moving an answer. It sings because it has
to the sweet pulse of drumming. Along with them, I danced a song.
the dance they had taught me—it acted out a traditional story
C P
mocking the foolery of pride. I danced and sang, laughing along
with them at my mistakes, stewing in the collective, sweaty joy
that boiled warmer and higher each moment. Everyone was
interacting: the lead drummer cued changing dance moves
with his rhythms, the other drummers listened for the signals Welcome to our circle, thirsty
of change as well, and children, parents, and elders all moved travelers
Drink of our water, join our song
together. On that patch of African sand, I was given permis- Bring all your loved ones, we are
sion to feel free, to feel the river of music erupting out of me grateful
That you have chosen to come
and every other shining face there. along
This happened when I visited Ghana some years ago to study
traditional West African drumming and dance. During this We will travel through the forest
Gathering harvests we can share
trip I was shaken awake by something I observed. Although Meet with me again in the evening
without a fraction of the material wealth of America, the chil- We’ll feast on the stories that we
bear
dren in those mud-hut villages radiated a sense of happiness
that I had really never seen in America. These children felt S D, Welcoming Song

Music Making | 117

alive. Their happiness shone brightly during the delirious singing and music-
making so common there in everyday life.
When I returned home, I searched the eyes around me for that sparkle, that
same vitality. But I rarely found it. Just a few months later I moved to Duvall
to study nature mentoring. During the first few weeks, I was surprised to dis-
cover how often we sang songs, some funny and playful, some more mature. As
a trained jazz instrumentalist, too self-conscious to sing in public, I dismissed
the songs as “simple” and “amusing.” I was a musical prude.

Music as the Trickster/Transformer

This was definitely a Trickster/Transformer experience for me, for after a
while I noticed: after singing those simple songs for a while, smiles crept
onto faces, bodies started to move. And despite my silly musical arrogance,
I couldn’t help but move, too. As the year progressed and we spent more
time singing those simple songs, I finally noticed it again: the same joy and
aliveness as in the African children I had met. Giving permission to play and
experiment with music—everyone, including my humbled musician self,
responded. Music and singing transform people from stiff, shy individuals
into a rocking community.
Music-making is deeply engrained in human nature. Look how prevalent
it is in nightclubs and marching bands, iPods and MTV. A friend once told
me Bruce Springsteen played Yankee Stadium fifteen nights in a row—to
75,000 people each night—and my friend could not get a ticket to any of the
shows. Who else could ever attract such a consistent crowd? A head of state?
A movie star? Well, probably the Yankees played to such crowds. Music cap-
tivates our souls, and its power moves us to tears and praises.
Music builds community in almost every niche of society. Singing together
affirms each individual’s voice and expression within the group, and subcon-
sciously reminds everyone of the power of unified community. Christmas
songs bring hope on winter nights; football cheers pour out people’s loyalty
to their team; the folk music of Arlo Guthrie and Joan Baez and the legend-
ary Reggae music of Bob Marley called together whole political movements.
National anthems and patriotic battlefield tunes build confidence while
bombs burst in the surrounding air.

118 |
Making Music as a Mentoring Tool
So why not align our universal Child Passion for music and
singing with the study of nature? Tapping into the passion of
music-making, singing and dancing opens up a lush realm of
possibility. Use music with your participants to center a com-
munity based on nature. Music can gather and facilitate the
flow of focus and energy as nothing else can. The content of
songs also sinks rhythmically and tunefully into their brains.

Using Song and Sound

for Gatherings and Transitions
Use songs to start and end each day. Singing the same songs to
mark beginnings and endings gives everyone a sense of famil-
iarity, consistency, and belonging. If your group takes a vaca-
tion between gatherings, the practiced songs will help them Comparing the stamping,
“re-member” their community of peers and instructors. twirling and hoots of Native
American dancers, a biologist was
You can also use music to gather the focus of a group and able to accurately predict what
help transition from one activity or mood to the next. I remem- species of grouse—sharptail, sage
ber watching a high-energy running-game fizzle down as my grouse or prairie chicken—lived
in a tribe’s homeland. Observing
fellow instructors began singing a slow, relaxing song everyone the Kalahari Bushman hunters
knew. Soon, without a word of direction, the kids stood calmly imitate the peculiar gaits and
gyrations of ostrich, it is no
in a circle and sang along, attentive and ready for the upcom- surprise that dance, music, song,
ing art activity. Songs can be used for the opposite effect when and mime originate from hunting
cultures imitating animals they
the group needs some lightening up or enthusiasm. Waldorf hunt. String instruments like the
Schools use songs for just about every transition, such as a bass, violin and guitar have their
“put-on-your-shoes and go-outside” song. origin in the bow and arrow, and
reed instruments may come from
Songs and other sounds wield a gentle and effective force hunters using hollow-stem marsh
for gathering diffused energy. If people are spread out and plants to call waterfowl. Likewise,
whistling may come from
unfocused, doing different activities, or taking a lunch break, imitating birds to attract them.
you can call them back together in a group with music. Play Language itself may have begun
a simple drum beat, sing a chant that rises in volume, start by naming animals by imitation of
the sounds they make. The word
clapping rhythms and ask people to clap them back to you. “wolf ” is an obvious example of a
Or, to call in folks who have gone far astray outdoors, send out noun derived from the sound the
wolf makes: woof!
loud calls like crow caws or pig squeals, and pass them on in
concentric circles. (This is addressed in the Activities section; R L. E,
Setting up the Learning Culture.) Why Hunters Save the World

Music Making | 119

Songwriting
Songs are a delightful way to
Imparting Information with Songs
introduce a subject or help Many folk songs call our attention to elements of nature.
participants learn more about
their wild neighbors. I created “A Their words can relay facts, such as names of trees or the life-
Buzzing We Will Go” to provide styles of animals, and they can also cultivate sentiments, such
a fun context for introducing bees’
lives. We act out each verse as we as respect or gratitude. Traditional cultures around the world
sing. I do recommend singing new abound with songs that “honor” or express thankfulness for
songs as “repeat-after-me” and
then singing the song the whole
elements of nature, such as Native American prayers, Jewish
way through once the students psalms, or Gospel praises. When we sing songs imbedded
or campers have gotten the hang with names of plants or animals, rocks, rivers, or stars, they
of it.
become a bodily memory, an emotional memory.
A-buzzing we will go
A-buzzing we will go
Search for flowers high and low
Where do I Find Songs?
A-buzzing we will go. You will want to gather a bundle of songs of all types: silly
A-buzzing we will go and humorous, respectful and profound, celebratory and joy-
A-buzzing we will go ous. Luckily, there’s no shortage of songs you can learn. Lots of
Bring the pollen to our nest
A-buzzing we will go.
resources, written and audio, in libraries, music stores, and the
internet will provide words and music specifically for working
A-buzzing we will go with kids or relating to nature.
A-buzzing we will go
Make the honey for our family Luckily, the most popular songs—the ones that hang around
A-buzzing we will go. generation after generation in the oral tradition of every child,
A-buzzing we will go like “Row, row, row, your boat”—are always the simplest. So
A-buzzing we will go start out with the simple classics you already know. You can take
Feed the honey to each other these traditional tunes, such as “Happy Birthday,” or “Twinkle,
A-buzzing we will go.
Twinkle Little Star,” or “Here We Go Round the Mulberry
“A-Buzzing We Will Go” Bush,” and trade out the words for nature-based lyrics of your
to the tune of Farmer in the Dell
choosing, custom-make songs for your bio-region.
A A C, Another wonderful and unexpected source of songs: the peo-
School & Camp Programs
ple you work with might bring with them songs from their family
Coordinator
Bonnyvale Environmental heritage, from their childhood church, or scout camp, or cheer-
Education Center, Brattleboro, leading team. Once they see that singing is accepted, folks will
Vermont
share songs that they’ve learned in other settings that were mean-
ingful for them. You can usually persuade these people not only
to teach you, but to lead the whole group. After classes, people
often ask me for the words or musical notation of songs we’ve used
and I’m glad to help them out. Test it and see what happens.
Leaders from cultures around the world feel proud and
happy to expose others to their cultural heritage. We encourage

120 |
you to seek out singing sources yourself, and take a recorder
along with you to remember and learn them later. However,
we should tell you that some cultures are sensitive about the
use of their songs outside of their cultures, and you should
respect their wishes and provide background on the cultural
heritage of the songs you sing.
My colleagues and I wrote this
What if I Can’t Sing? song during a workshop on
songwriting by Sarah Pirtle
Who told you that? Everybody can sing. It’s just that when at the annual Massachusetts
Environmental Education
some people hear they aren’t very good, they start believing Society Conference. This
it. When saxophonist Charlie Parker first started playing as song was then integrated
a teenager, people said he sounded like a dying frog. He was into BEEC’s Forest Ecology
school program. It’s such a
laughed off the stage at jam sessions. Years later, every sax- catchy tune that I also created
ophonist tried to imitate his sound. If you didn’t know Bob another song entitled “Spring
Is Here” for our spring school
Dylan was famous, would you call his singing voice “good?” So and camp programs.
don’t worry what other people tell you. You can sing. My best
friend and fellow instructor sings off-key, but she still leads Somewhere ‘tween earth and
sky is a promise;
songs with groups—and the kids love it. the promise of the acorn —
To work on your voice, sing along with the songs on your I will provide.
Food for squirrels. Shelter
car radio with the windows shut so no one will hear. You prob- for birds. Shade for children.
ably already do it under your breath. Just kick up your volume. Breath for me.
Practicing alone will raise your confidence. To get the ball roll-
Precious seeds
ing, bring in someone else who loves to sing. If you are really a chipmunk cheekful
balking, at least do this: get a drum from somewhere, what- a yummy treasure
journey with me.
ever kind you like, and play a simple one-after-another beat to Food for squirrels. Shelter
gather people up. Soon, others will start humming or clapping for birds. Shade for children.
Breath for me.
along, and perhaps even break out in their song.
I draw in from thick air and
Just Do It out of nowhere,

Whatever your comfort level with leading music, just do it. The I make sweet meat.
Who will eat?
musicality of humans is so innate that you just have to open Food for squirrels. Shelter
your mouth and let the sound out. Start believing that you can for birds. Shade for children.
sing and discover your own voice and style. You may not become Breath for me.

Sinatra or Streisand, but you don’t need to be. In fact—regard- Promise of the Acorn, To the
less of how you sing, you will most likely become a rock star in tune of “Wishi Ta Do Ya”
A A
the eyes of those you work with. They’ll be your fan base that C, S P, 
propels you to confidence. Don’t sweat it. Just have fun. Be a kid K T
again, and sing, Sing, SING. It is very liberating.

Music Making | 121

122 |
Child Passions as Mentoring Tools | 123
124 |
Chapter 8 Jungle lore is not a science that can
be learnt from textbooks; it can,
however, be absorbed, a little at a
time, and the absorption process
THE BOOK OF NATURE can go on indefinitely, for the
book of nature has no beginning
as it has no end.

J C, Jungle Lore

Reading the Book of Nature

If your reading skills are weak, a book might seem like just a
lot of letters to decode. But, if your reading skills have become
an easy mental habit, then words mean things, and read-
ing shifts to a joy. So it is with the Book of Nature. If your
skills are undeveloped, it might seem like just a blur of green.
But, steady practice with Core Routines, inspired by Child Language is basically the
Passions, in direct contact with plants, animals, and seasons, collection of labels we have for the
universe. If our language doesn’t
will develop a huge vocabulary of meaningful search images. contain a word for something,
With such language skills, you can take delight in reading the it quite literally doesn’t exist in
our consciousness. If we don’t
Book of Nature through all its dynamic twists of plot. have a noun, then we won’t see
“The Book of Nature has no beginning, as it has no end,” something. If we don’t have a
says the late great tracker, Jim Corbett. So now, the question verb, we can’t imagine doing that.
The 32 different words for snow
to begin this chapter is, “Where do you start?” David Rains in the Inuit language is a classic
Wallace, writing his natural history of the tangled Klamath example. Without those different
words for distinction, how closely
Knot in southern Oregon, struggled with this same question. do we look at snow? How much
He remarked that his subject matter was “less a tidily con- more closely do the Inuit, without
secutive array of increasingly advanced organisms than a leap- having to try? Their consciousness
has built-in search images.
frogging mob of plants, animals, and dubious beings, such as
fungi, all earnestly photosynthesizing, feeding, respiring, and J Y, Language as Label

The Book of Nature | 125

Indigenous languages are reproducing … but considerable action and color tend to com-
imaginal. When you translate the
word wasiatah from the Lakota pensate for this lack of plot.” He concluded, “A story without a
language to English—we say it plot is not an easy one to tell.”
means north. But when you look
into it, Wasi means pines, great
Nature’s story is infinite, messy, and leapfrogging, but once
pines. And wasiatah means there again Coyote can help us out. Coyote calls us to start at the
is a place to the north that has edge in so many ways—the edge of a person’s curiosity, the
many great pines. It refers to an
oral tradition that if you go far edge between what they know and don’t yet know, and the
enough north, you’ll hit a huge edge between the images of nature and the language of mod-
forest of pines – the north woods
of Canada. So the language of
ern science. This chapter emphasizes starting with the edge of
native cultures is imbued with what your people can personally appreciate and relate to in
rich evocative images, not just flat a memorable way. We call it “meaningful relationship,” or in
words.
other words, “connection.”
J Y, Indigenous Language
Start with Meaningful Relationship
In his book, The Geography of Childhood, Gary Paul Nabham
Even young children can be expert describes a trip with his young children into the “geological
readers of the Book of Nature. jumble of northern Arizona” when he realized “how much
They can name and distinguish
plants and trees so the vocabulary time adults spend scanning the land for picturesque pan-
of stamens and cambium layers oramas and scenic overlooks … while the kids were on their
becomes natural and everyday. hands and knees, engaged with what was immediately before
They can imagine what it feels like
to be an animal so the twist in the them.” I remember hiking with a young boy to the top of such
plot of a series of tracks entices a scenic peak. We arrived, and I—stunned by the breathtak-
them on. They can appreciate
style in nature’s patterns, and ing view—stood gazing, hypnotized. When I remembered to
experience its recurrent themes. share this moment with the boy, I looked down to find that he
Vocabulary, plot, style, theme:
what literate readers notice in
was completely lost in the mesmerizing march of ants on the
wilderness. ground. As much as I wanted him to look at the amazing view,
the little one had no interest. After the long hike to the top,
E H, Nature Literacy
the tiniest thing right under his nose most intrigued this child.
I took this as a parable: learning depends on what is meaning-
ful to each individual, not necessarily what has meaning for a
mentor or parent.
I found the same thing with my dad. After studying track-
ing in Washington, I took him out in the woods of our home
in Georgia, hoping to get him interested in the subject that
had enthralled me so much. After finding some squirrel tracks
in a patch of mud, I wanted him to get down with me and look.
But after a glance he didn’t care for them at all. Instead, he
wandered all around, excitedly tracking beavers, discovering

126 |
 Trees: Tools of Human
Survival

Heritage Species:
Wisdom of the
Ancestors Birds: The Messengers
of the Wilderness

Ecological Hazards: A Call

Indicator: How to be Alert and
it All Works to Use Common
together Sense

Plants: Nature’s Motivating Species:

Grocery Store and Things to Catch, Eat,
Medicine Cabinet and Climb, and Tend

Mammals: And Other Hard

to See, Yet Totally Track-able
Critters

The 8 chapters of the Book of Nature, placed in their natural orientation

The Book of Nature | 127

It is taboo for a biologist to be the trails they used to get from one piece of water to the other,
anthropomorphic, which means
to ascribe human qualities to and intrigued by their dams and their effects on the ecology.
animals. And in this time of As I sat frustrated that he wasn’t “tracking” with me, I realized
environmental crisis, there is
growing concern about humans
that he actually was tracking, and with more zeal and excite-
being anthropocentric, which ment than I had been. I laughed at myself and joined with him
means “human-centered.” The in his connection to the world of beavers, water, and ecology.
New Physics proposes the
“observer effect,” which means the In this chapter, we want to help folks find personal relevance
observer necessarily influences in the species and elements of nature so they internalize the
what he/she observes. We
humans are “anthro,” and it is
information. When you cultivate the same feeling of familial
impossible for us to be unbiased, relatedness you share with your friends and family and expand
objective, neutral, or independent that feeling to include the plants, animals, and even the drain-
of our human-ness in all our
relationships. It is also true that age patterns and forces of weather—your local place suddenly
the hunting life adapted us to feels neighborly. Think of when you meet strangers. Until you
imitate animals to the point of
identity, which is why it is possible
have a personal relationship with them, they are easily forgot-
to say that a naturalist knows ten. But when you get to know them, everything builds and
their animals so well that they grows and becomes memorable.
literally “walks in their skin.” My
own growth as a naturalist has Reading the Book of Nature starts with discovering threads
followed this path: “When I say I of connection with our natural landscape. Once you have truly
want to know a tiger I mean that
I want to walk in a tiger’s skin,
connected with one dandelion leaf because you can eat it, then
flex my tiger body and feel what a a brain-pattern evolves to absorb more detailed knowledge.
tiger feels. If the truth be known, I Once you begin to wonder how a cottonwood tree lives, you
most want to be a tiger.”
will want to read on about nutrition and soil layers and water
R L. E, “Counter– cycles and pollination, even local geology. Once you care in a
Counter Point” The Human/
Animal Connection
personal way, scientific language and analysis come naturally.
To read the Book of Nature, then, start with experiencing
aspects of nature your participants can directly relate to with
their physical, sensory, or emotional nerves.

Organizing the Book of Nature

To sort through nature’s abundance, Botany and Zoology texts
most often use phylogeny—evolutionary family linkages. The
scientist’s version of the Book of Nature includes chapter titles
like Animalia, Plantae, Fungi, Bacteria, Arcaea, and Protista.
They call these groupings “Kingdoms.” This is useful for their
purposes. However, we take a different approach. We base
our sequence of sections within this Book of Nature on what
people will progressively connect with in our year-long out-
door schools. During our collective years as Coyote Mentors,

128 |
we have seen this sequence successfully pique curiosity on a Approaching the book of nature
in terms of what we humans can
continuous, well-rounded journey into nature. connect with is a subtle form of
To sequence our Book, you may want to start with the first “anthropocentrism”—human-
centeredness—as if nature has
species group—things that can hurt or kill you—Hazards! value only when it’s useful to
Next in the motivating continuum: Things to Catch, Eat, us humans. Make an effort to
Climb, and Tend, species you can get your hands on. After raise consciousness about this
fallacy. Remember that “natural
that, we’ll move into Track-able Critters, Elusive Animals resources” belong to the birds and
whose track and sign can be commonly found and followed. bees as much as they belong to us,
and that really, they don’t belong
What else can we directly experience in a meaningful way? to anyone, for even the rocks
Plants in Nature’s Grocery Store we can eat or use for heal- and the waters are our kindred
ing. The next two Book of Nature sections will appeal to those relations.

with an ecological and historical imagination: Ecological E MG, Counter Point
Indicator Species, How it all Works Together; and Heritage
Species, The Wisdom of the Ancestors. This brings us to spe-
cies that adventurous and sensitive readers will appreciate
most of all: Trees, the Tools of Human Survival; and Birds,
the Messengers of the Wilderness.
One might imagine each section within this Book of Nature
chapter as heralded by a sort of family shield or coat of arms.
As you read, you’ll get a clear sense that each topic has its own
unique flavor, a distinct spirit.
You will find at the beginning of each section descriptions
for the Spirit, Learning Objectives, Mentoring Actions, some
tips for Related Core Routines and Activities, and a sample
List of common species or elements for the area. Our minimal
commentary offers details and suggestions for you as a mentor,
including professional advice about leading and safety. Finally,
we provide a list of Recommended Resources.
All together, these shield divisions introduce everything field
ecologists need to know to do their jobs. For our purposes, they
guide you, the mentor, to find the sticky edge where you can begin
to restore the bond between people and the rest of nature.

No One-size-fits-all Curriculum
This Book of Nature works more like a field guide or encyclopedia
than a novel. You can open and read anywhere and we encourage
you to do exactly that. Develop strong reading “muscles” through
full immersion into all the chapters. Balance knowledge and

The Book of Nature | 129

Washington State Essential experience of all aspects of nature by cycling through these eight
Academic Learning Requirements
for Geography chapters, seizing opportunities as they arise in the moment. This
To understand the complex flexible and open-eyed approach not only honors nature’s way
physical and human
characteristics of places and
of organic unfolding, but also honors the varying interests and
regions, students will learning styles of your participants and co-mentors.
q Describe the natural With nature, there is no one-size-fits-all curriculum. Your
characteristics of places and specific mentoring requirements will shape your emphases.
regions and explain the causes
of their characteristics What is meaningful for a five-year-old in the Southwest U.S.
q Describe the patterns
will be different from what is meaningful for a grown-up
humans make on places and in the tundra of Canada. Someone from the heart of a big
regions city will have a different set of interests than someone from
q Identify the characteristics a rural landscape. A mother will care about something dif-
that define the Pacific
Northwest and the Pacific ferent than her teenage boy. A classroom science teacher
Rim as regions will have different learning objectives than a summer camp
To observe and analyze the counselor. Recognize your people’s interests, backgrounds,
interaction between people,
the environment, and culture,
and stage of life as you browse this guide for what is most
students will useful for you. Developing it into “good science” for every
q Identify and examine people’s curriculum is beyond the range of this book, although we do
interaction with and impact give you some helpful references.
on the environment
We recommend you begin your curriculum planning by
q Analyze how the environment
and environmental changes
creating a Master List of essential species in your area. Our
affect people short Lists of common examples cannot include every possible
q Examine cultural species in each bio-region. We’ve attempted to select those
characteristics, transmission, things just about everywhere as examples of what to get to
diffusion and interaction
know. Like everything else in this book, we’ve done our best
to translate the principles into examples that will help you get
the feel. Then, the fun of making it work for you, in your area
and with your people, will rise up through your own creativ-
ity. You’ll quickly become the meaningful-relationship-taxon-
omist for your homeland. Enjoy the dance.

Role Modeling to Start the Fire

Before you jump in, remember what will really prompt and
ignite the learning: your own passion and curiosity. You, as
role model, will inspire those around you. We want each sec-
tion of the Book of Nature to be, first and foremost, an invita-
tion to the curious, wide-eyed child inside of you. Let yourself
go wild, literally. Fire will not spread except from fire itself.

130 |
Hazards: A Call to be Alert
and to Use Common Sense
Everyone remembers physical injury in sharp detail. Remember your first
bee sting? Your first burn? Your first bout with food poisoning? Did you
ever go fishing and sneak up on the edge of the water, observing the fish just
below the surface? Can you remember shivering and getting silly in the rain
or snow, or feeling suddenly faint and nauseous in the sun? Have you have
gone carefully in pursuit of a deer, or a fox to photograph or hunt? Have you
ever had a near-death experience?
Where the possibility of injury exists, people pay attention. Hazards in
the natural environment provide fertile ground for connections because they
appeal to our most basic need for physical safety. Use hazards thoughtfully
and strategically to keep everyone alert, present to the moment, and learn-
ing. Real alertness is positive and expansive, while over-blown fear can be
negative and restrictive.
Some explorers will be gung-ho to run out into the wilds oblivious to dan-
ger. More folks, however, are likely to be afraid of some aspects of the wilder-
ness, full of an unrealistic and exaggerated sense about hazards and the dan-
gers they pose. Use hazards to inspire; a little information transforms the fear
from intimidating roadblocks into easily navigated, minor speed bumps.
Use hazards with care. If people seem fearful already, tone the hazards
awareness down; if they are over-confident and could be a danger to themselves
and others, help them to understand and become more aware of hazards. Most
of all, remember to keep things fun! That’s when learning is at its best.

SPIRIT: To inspire an ever-present need to “be on your toes” in every sense

of the word—alert but not intimidated or overly fearful. People trained in
this manner will always watch out and look ahead for wildlife and potential
dangers. As a result of this common sense introduction, they will manage
risk comfortably and wisely wherever they explore.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To understand the specific, known dangers

and hazards of the local environment, how to avoid them when possible, and
how to respond when they are encountered. To dispel “old wives’ tales” and
other scary misinformation. To learn that birds and animals can be flushed
unexpectedly, announcing the arrival of people in the forest—a hazard to
the goal of getting closer to wildlife.

The Book of Nature | 131

MENTORING ACTIONS:

avoid and deal with them.

closely at local Hazard Species, telling stories, and inspiring field-guide

research about them.

geology in your area.

RELATED CORE ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES:

Routines: Expanding Our Senses, Exploring Field Guides, Nature
Museum.
Activities: Nature Names, Nature Museum, Sit Spot, Expanding our
Senses, Body Radar, Exploring Field Guides (Hazard Scavenger Hunts),
Survival Scenario (with Hazards), Meeting Poisonous Plants, The Lost
Test, Shelter Building.

Generic List of Hazards

Yellow-jackets, Wasps, Bees (Walk lightly around ground nests and listen for
a “bzzz”sound.)
Venomous Snakes & Spiders (Be careful where you put your feet and hands –
especially in dark places.)
Ticks (Check yourself thoroughly after a walk in the woods. Where on your
body will they likely be?)
Rabid Animals (Beware of any irregular behaviors in nearby animals.)
Cougars (Pound-for-pound the strongest cat on earth, but if you LOOK big,
they’ll shy away.)
Bears (If you find tracks or sign of their presence, do not sleep with food
in your tent.)
Poison Ivy/Oak (Watch for telltale color and shape in all seasons.)

132 |
Dead-falls from Limbs (Which trees of your area fall or drop limbs the most?)
Plants that will Kill/Sicken if you eat them (LEARN your poisonous plant
ID basics and their edible look-a likes.)
Mushrooms (Even trained mycologists have died eating what they thought were
wild edibles. Don’t touch!)
Temperature Illnesses (Know the signs of hypothermia and heat stroke as well
as the treatment!)
Trees & Shrubs that Enhance Wildfire Dangers (What woods make fire in
your area?)
Dehydration (Always drink PLENTY of water!)
Severe Weather (Learn what to do in a lightning storm, tornado or hurricane,
how to read weather patterns, and where the closest safety is.)
Dangerous Humans (Avoid dangerous parks and hike with a buddy. Get in
touch with your “Spidey sense.”)
Drinking Water Hazards (Giardia or Cryptosporidium have miserable effects.
Treat your water effectively.)
Your local list may differ and go on and on.

Commentary
Alert Awareness. Hazards and the possibility of close proximity to wild-
life awaken a curiosity-filled alertness to the world as few other things
can. Nothing gets a person really listening to the forest like the possible
presence of a nearby cougar or bear—and even deer, rabbits or song-
birds when one desires to get closer. When we visit a new area, little kids
always show everyone the big spider they found. In a new program, they
also show off their nature knowledge by telling about a dangerous snake
or animal they know about—and I must add, often with great emphasis
and amusing animation. There are always stories about what animals
were seen and how close they were. You can engage alertness and excite-
ment around the presence of poison sumac, poison oak, or poison ivy and
use this to teach how to identify a plant and distinguish it from others.
Leaf shape, growth habit, subtlety of twigs and buds, where it likes to
grow—all this initial learning happens because we have a healthy fear of
things that can hurt or torment us with itching.

The Book of Nature | 133

Perceived Danger. In Coyote Mentoring, we use “perceived dangers” to
enhance awareness, even if no real danger exists. When it comes to getting
close to wild animals and birds, the “danger” always exists of scaring them
away. This is a very powerful inspiration to become alert and cooperative.
These should be presented as challenges, not threats. For instance, if you
go into an area to learn the basics of plant ID, then reach for that first
berry, you can stop and say, “Wait … we need to really look at this plant
to make sure it’s not a poisonous look-a-like.” We will stop, because we
don’t want to get poisoned. Use this opportunity to explore that plant’s
aroma, to learn about opposite versus alternate leaf patterns—all before
they reach for that first berry. Whether or not poisonous look-a-likes actu-
ally grow in your area doesn’t matter; the “perceived danger” keeps both
mentor and learner’s alert awareness up. As long as something is perceived
as a challenge, the alert state can be a powerful ally to the brain’s learning.
But once the learner crosses the line and feels threatened, old patterns of
preservation behavior kick in, and learning shuts down. In the field, we call
such behavior “downshifting”—brain processing literally shifts into the
lower, more primitive centers of the brain. So, don’t over do it and, you the
mentor, must also be alert to this possibility.

Real Danger. There are of course “real dangers.” Awareness of real hazards
should be one of the very first things you cultivate. Research where and when
wasps make their nests. Learn the habitats and daily habits of snakes and
spiders, cougars, and bears. Study the weather, and understand what the
weather reports mean and what certain cloud-shapes tell you about on-com-
ing storms. When you lead folks out into the wilderness, you should be able
to keep everyone safe. Most outdoor schools understandably require staff
training in Wilderness First Aid and CPR.

Cultural Attitudes. It really pays to know the cultural background of the folks
you work with. Some people have very little experience outdoors and can have
very strong reactions to things that don’t bother you. Many seem to have deep
fears of spiders, snakes, various other wildlife, or the dark. Try to understand
where they’re coming from, and then guide them through their fears with
kindness and reassurance. Help them grow to like nature and to trust you.

Reasoned Respect. Some people won’t even walk into the woods on the first day
because they have some “urban legend” in their head that poisonous spiders

134 |
will be hanging from every tree. Or they won’t walk off the asphalt because
they have a friend who nearly died of Lyme’s Disease. Or they won’t let their
children out the door for fear of predatory strangers. Whether you orient
people at the beginning of a one-day program, or gradually teach them about
hazards over time, your net goal is this; replace unfounded fear of nature with
reasoned respect based on understanding. Once they know how a rattlesnake
hunts and lives, they can show the snake its proper respect by not accidentally
blundering into its habitat and may even begin to understand and utilize the
snake’s most powerful survival tactics. Reasoned respect shows up as conduct
over time, and folks will become quite skilled at moving in an alert state into
any situation—whether in the wilds, or in the town.

Take a Sad Song and Make it Better. In the event of a painful interaction with
a hazard, be ready to handle it calmly. These things will happen to all of us,
eventually. Carry a first aid kit and know how to use it. Carry a cell phone
that works or at least a two-way radio (and remember to put someone with
the other radio somewhere helpful). Carry extra water, extra wool, and dry
matches to pull out in an emergency. Once you’ve handled an emergency, try
to cast the experience in the positive light of learning and growth, of “rites of
passage.” Laugh and be proud that you and your dependents came home safe
and sound with “a story to tell.”

Resources
Remember that the internet is a great resource for looking up things like
ticks, hanta virus, and other nature related hazards that might not be gath-
ered together in one definitive resource.

Backcountry First Aid and Extended Care, by Buck Tilton (ISBN

0762722703)
Bay Area Mycological Society’s Webpage of Mushroom Poisoning Stories
(http://www.bayareamushrooms.org/poisonings/index.html)
Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance, by Stephen Herrero (ISBN
158574557X)
Cougar Attacks: Encounters of the Worst Kind, by Kathy Etling (ISBN
1592282962)
David Fischer’s Webpage on America’s Poisonous Mushrooms (http://
americanmushrooms.com/toxicms.htm)

The Book of Nature | 135

Golden Guide to Venomous Animals, by Edmund Brodie (ISBN
0307240746)
Golden Guides: Weather, by Paul Lehr (ISBN 1582381593)
Kamana One: Exploring Natural Mysteries, by Jon Young (ISBN
1579940080) (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
North American Mycological Society’s Mushroom Poisoning Case
Registry and Volunteer Emergency Mushroom ID (http://www.sph.
umich.edu/~kwcee/mpcr/)
Peterson Field Guides: Edible Wild Plants, by Lee Peterson & Roger Tory
Peterson (ISBN 039592622X)
Peterson Field Guides: Venomous Animals & Poisonous Plants, by Steven
Foster & Roger Caras (ISBN 039593608X)
Poison Control Centers: (http://www.1-800-222-1222.info/poisonhelp.asp)
(1-800-222-1222)
Seeing Through Native Eyes: Understanding the Language of Nature, (Audio)
by Jon Young (ISBN 157994017X) (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Tiny Game Hunting: Environmentally Healthy Ways to Trap and Kill the
Pests in Your House and Garden New Edition, by Hilary Dole Klein and
Adrian M. Wenner (ISBN 0520221079)
Wilderness First Responder (WFR) courses:
Solo (http://www.soloschools.com/index.html)
Wilderness Medical Associates (http://www.wildmed.com/)
Wilderness Medical Institute (http://www.nols.edu/wmi/)

Motivating Species:
Things to Catch, Eat, Climb, and Tend
Have you ever seen a child come upon the sudden movement of a frog? Just
like any predator, their eyes light up and in a flash—bam!—they’re off,
bolting after it, trying to catch it before it scampers away. In a moment,
their attention focuses, their bodily instincts engage, and they instantly
imprint a search image they’ll never forget. The same is true for adults
and berries—we just move towards them without thinking and our fin-
gers start testing for ripeness. The hunter-gatherer spirit lives in everyone’s

136 |
DNA. A large part of the nature-deficit disorder phenomena
has to do with the modern “hands off ” approach to nature.
As a nature mentor, you have the power to reverse this trend
and the ability to tap into our hunter-gatherer instincts with
the touchable elements of nature.

SPIRIT: To physically motivate learners into action, to jump-

start passions, to draw out instincts first and information sec-
ond. To bring out the hunter-gatherer in others.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To actually touch “motivating

species” by catching, eating, climbing, or tending. To provide A friendly reminder about
small successes in hands-on connection that fuel the hunter- caring for our amphibian
neighbors. Amphibians,
gatherer desire. including frogs, toads and
salamanders, breathe through
MENTORING ACTIONS: their skin. This skin is very
sensitive to many things (salt,
chemical toxins, soap, bug
spray, chlorine in our drinking
Master-List to check off when touched. water, sunscreen, etc.). When
handling our wild friends,
please remember to create a
include gathering and eating berries, fruits, and vegeta- microhabitat between you
bles; catch-and-releasing frogs, snakes, fish, insects, and and them. Create this layer by
putting your hands in a water
tide-pool critters; climbing trees and rocks; building forts source—a vernal pool, stream,
and hideaways; swimming in natural waters; drinking rain pond, lake or any kind of
wetland—or you could also use
from the sky; handling domestic animals; tending terrari- soil and leaves. When holding,
ums or gardens. make sure you keep low to the
ground and be mindful that the
- temperature of your hands can
mal handling. raise theirs, and this can create
stress for them.

F G,
direct experience and/or through stories. Founder, EarthWork Programs,
- Amphibian Etiquette

ally up the ante of the challenge.

RELATED CORE ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES:

Routines: Sit Spot, Story of the Day, Animal Forms,
Mapping, Exploring Field Guides, Survival Living,
Thanksgiving.

The Book of Nature | 137

TRY THIS after you have Activities: Animal Calls, Deer-Bounding Challenge, Cougar
prepared yourself by quieting your
mind and have wetted your hands Stalks Deer, Sleeping Fawn, Eating Wild Edibles, Nature
with source water. See if you can Museum, Animal Senses, Fox-walking, Body Radar, The
slowly stalk up on the frog and
barely touch it. While stalking
Five Voices of Birds, Otter Steals Fish, Predator-Prey, Plant
you may observe it hunting, Concentration, Capture the Flag, Tree Tag.
basking, being hunted by a snake
or other predator, and you may
just decide to watch it without Generic List of Motivating Species
touching it. Have Fun!!
Frogs and Tadpoles (Visit vernal pools, neighborhood ponds, or
F G, Founder, big puddles to watch or catch these amphibians. Careful rearing
EarthWork Programs, A Frog- of certain species can create lifelong memories.)
Stalking Challenge
Salamanders and Newts (To find out which salamanders are in
your area, carefully walk a stretch of road on a rainy spring night with
a flashlight—you might even witness a mass migration of these herps.)
Lizards and Snakes (Look in sun-baked areas for these basking
reptiles, but don’t catch a species of snake unless you’re 100% sure
of its identity.)
Crayfish (You can easily spend an afternoon hunting down these
freshwater crustaceans along streams, brooks, and rivers.)
Tide Pool Animals (Most kids and some adults can spend hours
exploring the intertidal zone, turning up well-known animals
such as hermit crabs, anemones, mussels, sea stars, crabs, and odd
species such as limpets, nudibranchs and amphipods—and you
can eat some of these too.)
Butterflies, Fireflies, and Moths (Take one bored kid, add one
jar with holes, and a net, to transform an ordinary day into a
magical one.)
Big Crawling Insects (Get a big clear container and start turning
over logs, bricks, and old junk to inventory your local insects—and
don’t forget to let them go after a good study session.)
Pets and Farm Animals (Animals can be extremely fertile men-
toring grounds, whether it be tracking your dog on a sandy stretch
or slaughtering your pig for family sustenance.)
Fish (Fish the easy waters first—those with crappie, bluegill, and
other fun fish—then build off the success and tackle your local
trout streams or bass ponds.)

138 |
Bird Nests, Wasp Nests, and Beehives the abandoned ones. (Very few birds
re-use nests, so go ahead and make them a part of your nature museum, each
with a story of its own.)
Wild Berries (As long as you know the dangerous ones, very few moments in life
match up to watching a child or adult satisfy their hunger with fresh, wild berries.)
Wildflowers (Find seasonal wildflower patches to visit with field guide in hand;
gather and display with labeled names their transient beauty.)
Tree Fruits (Eat them fresh, collect and can or freeze them for use in baking recipes.)
Home & Community Gardens (Gardens are wonderful classrooms for nature
awareness—ripe with lessons on biology, natural history, stewardship, life and
death.)
Leaf Piles (Not only great for jumping in, but they also make a great instant
survival sleeping bag.)
Water Holes & Rain Ditches (From making rivers in the dirt, to standing
in gutters during a downpour, to dunking in the waterfall, H20 is a super play
medium for most humans.)
Natural Forts & Hideouts (You don’t need a fancy tree house, although they’re
great too—just use branches, grasses, cattails, scrub, etc. for fort-making and
when the kids ask “Can we sleep out here?” be ready to say and mean “yes.”)
Climbing Trees & Rocks (Don’t let the fear keep you grounded—climbing is
healthy and fun for all ages, just be committed to knowing the comfort zones of
the people you work with.)
Primitive Hunter-Gatherer Weapons (Learn to make spears, bows and
arrows, traps, etc. Begin target practice with nonliving targets. Approach the
parents about taking children fishing or hunting. Always be ethical, get permits,
and obey the laws.)

Commentary
Identifying Motivators. Absolutely the best way to learn the motivating spe-
cies in your area is to watch kids at play. Ask them about natural areas in
their lives. Listen to their stories. Watch their body language and cadence.
The pitch of their voices will rise up and they will start talking faster and
louder over each other to tell you about the crayfish, the snake, or the
climbing tree nearby. Pay attention to this “mentor’s intelligence network;”
these little teachers do a lot of work for you! So, get a grasp on species in

The Book of Nature | 139

your local area and channel the innate motivation they incite into as much
learning and connection as possible. Remember to bring that motivating
spirit to your work with kids of all ages—sometimes the elderly have the
best secrets of all.

Natural Gifts. Certain learners will gravitate to one species or activity

more than others. Ask yourself how you can use that natural passion
to guide further discovery. Like a fisherman or a hunter you can sneak
up on your quarry by knowing its habits. Some like to fish; others like
to paddle the canoe for the fisher. Some like to hunt while others hunt
with a camera. Some like to climb, to hide, to catch, and others like to
cultivate their gardens. Take them to places where you know there’s
“kid-bait” then watch which bait they take. Offer opportunities to care
for living things in classroom, bedroom, basement, or back yard, and
see who keeps their domesticated wards thriving. Whatever they move
towards instinctively, go with it and fan the flames. The effect of these
close encounters will be a firmly established motivation that comes from
deep within and is different for each individual.

Rules for Good Behavior. Right away, you’ll have to designate firm boundaries for
Catching Things. Depending upon the situation, you’ll likely want to establish
at least these two sets of principles: “Leave No Trace,” and “Catch and Release.”
Demonstrate how-to: catch things without harming them or their habitat, han-
dle butterflies and amphibians, tide-pool and plant-picking etiquette, swimming
and climbing safety, taking off muddy shoes before going indoors. In some cases,
taking the life of animals for food can serve as a simple and powerful lesson. In
such cases, always make sure you’re following all wildlife laws and have the per-
mission of parents. Although hunting and fishing can be sensitive areas to tread
with some adults, most young children innately understand that our survival
depends on the death of other life forms. Nonetheless, extra sensitivity to parent
and community issues is an absolute must.

Resources
Care of the Wild Feathered and Furred: Treating and Feeding Injured Birds
and Animals by Mae Hickman, Maxine Guy and Stephen Levine (ISBN
0935576533)
Golden Guide: Fishing, by George S. Fichter (ISBN 4490300695)

140 |
Golden Guide to Pond Life, by George K. Reid (ISBN 0307240177)
Golden Guide to Reptile and Amphibians, by Howard Zim and Hobart
Smith (ISBN 6000008481)
Golden Guide to Seashores, by Herbert Zim and Lester Ingle
(ASIN B000IXOLOY)
Golden Guide to Spiders and Their Kin, by Herbert and Lorna Levi
(ISBN 0307240215)
Golden Guide to Stars, by Herbert Zim and Robert Baker
(ASIN B000O6OGYG)
Golden Guide to Venomous Animals, by Edmund Brodie
(ISBN 0-307240746)
Hand Taming Wild Birds at the Feeder, by Alfred G Martin
(ISBN 0911469047)
Honeysuckle Sipping: The Plant Lore of Childhood, by Jeanne R. Chesanow
(ISBN 0892722347)
Seeing Through the Eyes of the Children, (Audio) by Jon Young
(ISBN 1579940234) (8shields.org/products)
Talking to Fireflies, Shrinking the Moon: Nature Activities for All Ages, by
Edward Duensing (ISBN 1555913105)
The American Boy’s Handy Book: What to Do and How to Do It, by Daniel
Carter Beard (ISBN 0879234490)
The American Girls Handy Book: Making the Most of Outdoor Fun, by Lina
Beard (ISBN 1586670891)
The Field and Forest Handy Book: New Ideas for Out of Doors, by Daniel
Carter Beard (ISBN 1567921655)
When Pappy Goes Hunting, by Kurt L. Bonello (ISBN 0964224801)

Mammals: and Other Hard to See,

Yet Totally Track-able, Critters
Universally, mammals intrigue humans, and that stands to reason, because we
are mammals. We aren’t rooted in place like plants, we don’t fly high in the air
like birds, and we don’t breathe underwater like fish. Instead, like most other

The Book of Nature | 141

Let us now examine the tracks of mammals, we walk the land, keep our bodies warm, navigate
the leopard. The path where it
crosses the watercourse runs over with our five senses, and raise relatively few young that we take
red clay, trodden hard by bare time to care for.
human feet. Over this clay is a
coating of fine white dust, so the
Ah, but there’s a snag. Wild mammals, with the exception
conditions for our purpose are of the ubiquitous squirrel and the occasional house mouse, are
ideal … The first thing we note almost impossible to see, much less get to know personally.
is that the pug marks have every
appearance of having been newly Most mammals highly prize the skill of avoiding such one-on-
made, and therefore that they are one time with potential predators—their lifestyle is defined by
fresh. We get this impression
from the fact that the pile of
the tactic of invisibility.
nap of the dust where it took the If you want to form real relationships with real mammals,
weight of the leopard is laid flat tracking provides a doorway. Yes, the red fox may be long gone
and smooth, and that the walls
of the dust surrounding the pads and tucked away in some mysterious cubbyhole, but it does
and toes are clear cut and more leave tracks behind. You can touch them. You can lie on your
or less perpendicular. Presently
under the action of the wind and
belly and pick out the outline of the hairs on its paws. You can
the rays of the hot sun the nap will interpret the walking pattern of its tracks. And you can follow
stand up again and the walls will it to piles of freshly chewed bones and rabbit fur, maybe even
begin to crumble. Ants and other
insects will cross the tracks; dust to its secretive hideout near the rocky cliffs.
will be blown into it; bits of grass One of the most effective ways to connect with mammals
and dead leaves will be blown on
to, or will fall on it; and in time
and other track-able critters is to turn on the power of a track-
the pug marks will be obliterated. er’s awareness: to teach how to observe the seemingly unob-
servable, to pull stories from clues—and to see how much fun
J C, “Tracks of the
Leopard” Jungle Lore this can be.
What will be the results of this kind of training with
animal tracks? People will practice the Core Routine of
Questioning and Tracking. You know they’re paying intense
attention, because suddenly they ask dynamic questions. By
looking for subtle clues in and around the tracks, their abil-
ity to focus will be heightened. Details will appear through
this intense awareness for all sorts of identification challenges
among plants, trees, soils, and weathers. Their deductive pow-
ers will be sharpened. Their pattern recognition will deepen
and widen. By osmosis, they will just pick up a vibrant vocabu-
lary of search images.

SPIRIT: To enter the world of wild mammals. To sharpen

observation, inquiry, and pattern recognition, by noticing sub-
tle clues, asking good questions, and thinking imaginatively.
To “see” the “unseen,” to “read between the lines.”

142 |
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To learn the biology of mammals and other
track-able animals. To develop skill in tracking through knowledge of track
and sign. Through the experience of tracking, to develop patterns of scien-
tific inquiry that can apply to anything.

MENTORING ACTIONS:

footprints, scats, feeding sign, beds/dens/nests, live sightings.

-
ments and perceptual strategies, and imitate animals through Animal
Forms.
-
ing. Study tracks in the field and in tracking field guides.

tracking substrate, such as sand, mud, or snow. Follow animals for a

long way and play trailing games.
-
ible behaviors.

RELATED CORE ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES:

Routines: Questioning and Tracking, Animal Forms, Exploring Field Guides,
Mapping, Mind’s Eye Imagining, Journaling, Listening for Bird Language.

Activities: Nature Museum, Sit Spot, Story of the Day, Sharing Circle,
The Six Arts of Tracking, Fox-walking, Body Radar, Silent Stalker, Animal
Cards, Stick-Drag Game, Tracking Expedition, 100 Tracks in a Row, Track
Journaling, Field Guide Research.

Generic List of Track-able Mammals; many might live in

your area
Coyote! (Our namesake. Look for dog-like tracks that move in a straight line for
long distances.)
Squirrels (Look for their leaf-clump nests, “dreys,” in branch crotches. Why did
they pick this tree? How many live up there?)

The Book of Nature | 143

Rabbits or Hares (Look for “Cocoa Puffs,” roundish, pelleted scats. What have
they been eating?)
Domestic Cats (How do the neighborhood birds react to them? Where are their
hidden hunting spots?)
Domestic Dogs (Can you tell the neighborhood dogs apart by their tracks?
Where does this one walk everyday?)
Deer (Heart-shaped hoof prints are some of the easiest to find. Also look for oval
beds in the grasses. Then look for whitish hairs that are hollow like straws. When
were they here last?)
Beaver (Find trees that look like they were chewed at 45 degree angles. Where
did the tree go from here?)
Bears (Trash can spilled all over the place? Look for claw scratches and bite-
marks on trees and utility poles.)
Cougars (Check out sand and mud-patches for large four-toed prints with NO
claws. Why don’t the tracks have claws in them?)
Raccoons (Their tracks look like little human hands. Why do they have such
long fingers?)
Skunks (Has something been making little digs in the grass? Why do you smell
that skunk aroma in the same area all the time?)
Weasels (These little guys will kill rabbits twice their size and carry them in their
mouths? Where do they leave the bones?)
Otters (Find their tracks and slides on the edges of ponds or rivers. Go early and
wait until you see them come out.)
Mice and Rats (How do they get into the house?)
Moles (How do such little creatures make such big clumps of raised earth? How
does that happen exactly?)
Shrews (Did you see that flash of movement through the leaf litter?)
Voles (Often mistakenly called “field mice.” Look for small trails above ground,
at the base of tall, grassy stems.)
Other Track-able Critters:
Shorebirds: Killdeer, Sandpiper, Mallard, Canada Goose, Great Blue Heron
(Distinguish waterside birds by size of track, webbing, depth in substrate, and
habitat. What do they eat here? Who might want to eat them?)

144 |
Woodpeckers (Sign includes: Large cavities in trees, sawdust around the tree
trunk, elaborate patterns in bark, stores of acorns stuck in bark. What are they
seeking in the depths of the standing deadwood?)
Earthworms (Piles of their castings, “poop,” mark their territory. What do
they eat?)
Slugs and Snails (Find a slug or snail slime trail. How far can you follow it?)
Herps (Frogs, toads, turtles, snakes, lizards, and others all leave scat, tracks, and
sign behind. Where can I find toad scat around here?)
Caterpillar Frass (Inspect your garden for tiny “grenade-like” structures. How
long ago were these made?)
Fish Beds and Nests (Mating fish display extravagant behaviors to show their
location. Can you find them?)

Commentary
Tracking Basics. When we say “tracking,” we not only mean looking at foot-
prints, but we extend the metaphor to include asking questions about all the
“prints” animals leave, including their scats, signs of feeding, and signs of bed-
ding and nesting. And, while usually we focus on mammals, birds leave very
telling tracks, especially along shorelines; in the desert, reptiles and large insects
can be easily tracked; and you can track anything that touches the surface of
fresh snow. (We have in our Mind’s Eye a favorite image of mouse tracks on
snow, a great dusting of owl wings, a jab of talons, and no more mouse.)
Since tracking may not have been part of your wildlife education, try to
keep one step ahead by learning some basics for yourself. In the discussion of
Tracking and Questioning in the Core Routines chapter, and in the Six Arts
of Tracking Activity, we’ve developed the classic questions:

Who? Identification
What? Interpretation of behavior and habits
When? Aging tracks
Where? Trailing to home and habitat
Why? Ecological Tracking and prediction
How? Empathy and imagination

Jon Young’s book, Animal Tracking Basics gives a much richer picture. Tom
Brown, Jr.’s book, The Tracker tells a very compelling story. Mark Elbroch’s

The Book of Nature | 145

guides give wonderfully detailed information about animal tracks and sign.
See other Resources below.

Reviving Instinct. If you back-track modern children, you will see what
fundamentals they already know for tracking animals. Ask them to
name their favorite animal and you’ll likely get, “tiger,” “monkey,” or even
“Mickey Mouse.” What does this tell us about the extent of their rela-
tionship with these animals? Hmmm, movies and cereal boxes. There
was once a time when our ancestors’ awareness was directed toward life
around them for survival purposes. It is natural, and even imperative to
human development, that our brains get exercise in this way again. The
mysterious nature of mammals makes tracking a particularly powerful
opportunity to revive our instincts.
Imagine if every child in America knew about raccoons in their back-
yards—where they sleep, when they are active, where they get their food,
when they have their babies, and how many they raised this year. Children
can know about the coyotes on the fringes of town—where they scavenge,
how they hunt the mice under the porch at night, or leave their trail in the
alley. They can learn about the deer in the greenbelts—where they can be
found in each season, whose roses they like to eat, where they bed during
the day. Imagine kids knowing the names of animals they recognize by body
markings or slight tracks. This and much more is possible. Our kids can have
direct relationship to their fellow animals and so appreciate other mammals
within a local fabric of intelligent life.

Tracks Mean Presence. My friend Laura told me this story after a summer
camp. At a local park outside of Seattle, after going a few feet off-trail, Laura’s
kids found huge tracks in the mud. “Laura! Laura! Look at these? What are
they?” It wasn’t too hard to guess, and they all came to the conclusion that
these tracks were made by none other than a Black Bear. The kids, naturally,
thought this was pretty neat. Another five minutes passed, as Laura called
attention to the other signs of broken berry branches, scratch marks on
stumps, and hairs hanging off low-lying branches. Suddenly, one of the girls
stopped dead in her tracks and stared at Laura with huge eyes and a dropped
jaw. “You mean the Bear was actually right here?” She couldn’t believe that a
bear had been at the same place she was now standing. Laura said she stood
in disbelief for minutes, staring from track to track in a silent daze.
Even though that little girl had understood that the tracks belonged to

146 |
a bear, the idea that the famous Bear—of whom she had undoubtedly read
in books, and seen on TV—actually had been in the same place and time,
struck her with force. This is how tracking places us into direct relation-
ship with animals. Once we see the tracks, we are shocked into another real-
ity where human life is only one piece of the picture. In a trackless world,
where we see mammals as television fantasies, then anthropocentrism, the
tendency to put humans at the center of the universe, is all too easy for the
next generation to inherit. But when real relationships enter their experi-
ence, their entire world shifts.

Start with Successes. What is the doorway to tracking? Jon Young argues it
is a confident start. So, start with fun-da-mentals. Make it fun first, then
add the mentals later. With a complex, brain-teasing skill like tracking, find
opportunities to see tracks of the species that will give your beginners suc-
cess. Start with mammals who leave their tracks locally. The really easy, suc-
cessful ones in nearly ANY environment would be raccoon, opossum, squir-
rel, domestic cats and dogs—and if you’re willing to raise them, small rats
and mice. If you have a wooded area, deer still live nearly EVERYWHERE.
You can begin by tracking your own footprints on a sandy stretch, or follow-
ing the track-sets left by local dogs in a muddy spot in the neighborhood.
You can call a special field trip the morning after a new snow and find tracks
everywhere. Where the landscape lacks sand, mud, or snow, you can recog-
nize the sharp-hoofed imprints of deer, the huge tree-nests of squirrels, or
the very visible chew-sticks of beavers.
Of course, the mega-fauna will entice people initially, especially if danger-
ous—bears, cougars, wolves, even coyotes or bobcats—so find a way to track
these too, if only in their books and imaginations. As confidence develops,
and the passion for tracking emerges, move to the tougher-to-track mam-
mals, and broaden your scope to the larger ecosystem.

Stay Still and They’ll Come to You. Getting to know animals’ daily patterns
is one of the most potent inspirations for Sit Spot time. Once they know
an animal roams or lives in waters nearby, turn that curiosity into Sit Spot
time at sunrise or sunset. With enough attempts, such silent sitting will
lead to first-hand experiences with animals, eye-to-eye—and the stories of
those experiences will stay with people for a life-time. Just as potent, sit-
ting quietly and noticing bird alarms in the same thicket again and again
ultimately leads one to crawl in there and to see what’s causing the alarm.

The Book of Nature | 147

Then the bobcat tracks amaze us! Here at our sit spot, Animals, Plants,
and Birds merge as they pull our natural curiosity ever more deeply into
complex and synergistic relationships.

Practice Animal Forms. An excellent way to understand tracks comes

through imitating the movements of animals. By getting down on all fours
and practicing dog and cat forms, the body begins to appreciate how four-
legged’s limbs attach differently than ours. Also, by visualizing how these
mammals actually walk on their toes, heels in the air, we realize what a lot
of energy it takes to make a direct register trot. By practicing raccoon and
bear forms, they’ll discover that bears and raccoons, unlike most other ani-
mals, put nearly all their weight on their rear legs, just like us. By trying to
imitate rabbit, they’ll understand why the rear prints always appear in front
of the front prints. By being squirrels, they’ll feel how to gather and hurl
themselves forward, and on and on. This list of descriptors could be as long
as your bio-regional Master List of animals.

Resources
Animal Skulls, by Mark Elbroch (ISBN 0811733092)
Animal Tracking Basics, by Jon Young and Tiffany Morgan (ISBN
0811733092)
Animal Tracks and Hunter Signs, by Ernest Thompson Seton (ISBN
23210044301183)
Bird Tracks and Sign: A Guide to North American Species, by Mark Elbroch,
Eleanor Marks,
Diane C. Boretos (ISBN 061851743X)
Field Guide to Mammal Tracking in North America, by Jim Halfpenny
(ISBN 061851743X)
Field Guide to Tracking Animals in Snow, by Louise Richardson Forrest
(ISBN 0811722406)
Jungle Lore, by Jim Corbett (ISBN 0195651855)
Mammal Tracks & Sign: A Guide to North American Species, by Mark
Elbroch (ISBN 0811726266)
Peterson Field Guide to Mammals of North America: Fourth Edition, by
Fiona Reid (ISBN 0395935962)

148 |
Peterson Field Guides: Animal Tracks, by Olaus J. Murie & Mark Elbroch
(ISBN 061851743X)
Princeton Field Guides: Mammals of North America, by Roland Kays and
Don E. Wilson (ISBN 0691070121)
Stokes Field Guide to Animal Tracking and Behavior, by Donald and Lillian
Stokes (ISBN 0316817341)
The Art of Tracking: The Origin of Science, by Louis Liebenberg (ISBN
0864862938)
The Tracker, by Tom Brown, Jr. (ISBN 0425101339)
The World of the White-tailed Deer, by Leonard Lee Rue, III (LOC #
62-11348)
Tracking and the Art of Seeing, by Paul Rezendes (ISBN 0062735241)
Way of the Whitetail, by Leonard Lee Rue, III (ISBN 0896586960)
Wild Animals I Have Known, by Ernest Thompson Seton (LOC# 66-16584)
Audio & Video Resources
Planet Earth - The Complete BBC Series, with David Attenborough
The Life of Mammals, by the BBC with David Attenborough
Tracking Pack One, by Jon Young (ISBN 1579940056) (www.
WildernessAwareness.org)
Tracking: Mastering the Basics, a four part DVD by James Halfpenny (www.
TrackNature.com)
The Great Dance, DVD or VHS (www.sense-africa.com)

Plants: Nature’s Grocery Store

and Medicine Cabinet
When you first encounter nature, the realm of plants can be a giant “wall
of green”— it all looks the same. No one finds it easy to penetrate the wall
and differentiate the plants. To break through this wall, get to know a
handful of plants—or even just one plant—like a best friend. What would
give you a real need to get to know plants? How about if you could eat
them? Or make handy, life-saving and itch-relieving medicines or func-
tioning survival tools from them?

The Book of Nature | 149

 As one of my wild plant teachers once told me, “Plants are fun and easy
to connect with, because, unlike mammals, they don’t run away from you.”
Always there, if only as roots in the winter, plants offer abundant poten-
tial for relationship as you harvest them, eat them, cure your ills, or fashion
them into baskets, throughout the different seasons.
Knowing plants empowers people to walk in the woods and find food for
themselves. With this sense of trust in their own—and the earth’s—combined
ability to provide edibles, wandering in the woods becomes a welcome event.
If I can find food around me, it’s not as big of a deal if I get lost. With this
increased empowerment comes a mentality that doesn’t feel the need for men-
tal agendas, but feels rather confident to wander where the body leads.
Through direct experience of gathering edible plants, tasting morsels,
and making meals and medicines from wild plants, we learn to listen to the
instinctive wisdom of our bodies. We make a direct connection to plants
when our instincts become engaged, so each plant can provide a learning
experience. Over time, people begin to trust their senses to eat a certain
kind of food, or to avoid another. I once heard about a man who had a heart
attack. In his recovery, he was seized with the urge to eat carrots, which he
ate almost exclusively for two weeks. He healed quickly. No doctor could
have prescribed this, but his body somehow knew. We want people to
trust their own experience and their own innate, body-based wisdom. This
goes beyond health and diet, and includes how we all wander through life.
Perhaps most importantly, each of us will know, through such intimate
experiences with plants, that nature and the earth we walk on provide our
food and our means of health and healing.

SPIRIT: To experience and appreciate, firsthand, how the Earth directly

sustains our needs. To slow down. To hold an internal sense of peace, and
throughout life, expand one’s ability to wander in nature with trust and
relaxation. To know how to listen from this place of peace, to the needs,
instincts, and intuitions of our body.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To identify and make use of local wild plants.

To understand and appreciate plant-life through the four seasons, and the
contributions plants make to food and medicine. To gain competence and
confidence in wandering and foraging through the wilderness.

150 |
MENTORING ACTIONS:

Plants, Medicinal Plants, Beautiful Flowering Plants, and Plants We

Cultivate.

Guides.

pattern, and leaf-type.

leaves, and flowers and how they are adapted to their ecosystems and
interact with soils, sun, wind, water, and animals.

plants.

and baskets.

and feeling and so change the rhythm of normal activities, such as eat-
ing at half-speed, or blind-fold exercises.

RELATED CORE ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES:

Routines: Sit Spot, Expanding our Senses, Wandering, Mapping,
Exploring Field Guides, Survival Living, Mind’s Eye Imagining,
Journaling, Thanksgiving.

Activities: Nature Names, Four Directions, Fox-Walking, Body Radar,

Mind’s Eye Imagining, Plant Concentration, Eating Wild Edibles, Meeting
Poisonous Plants, Songline, Get Lost, The Lost Test, Circle of Thanks, Ideal
Ecological Vision.

Common Wild Edible and Medicinal Plant List

(This list only includes herbaceous, or low-growing plants and bushes. Any
woody plants are grouped with the trees.)
Common Dandelion (Claimed to be the highest plant source of Vitamin A; try
marinating and stir-frying the roots. Or chop up a few leaves and throw into a salad.)

The Book of Nature | 151

Plantain (Many people claim that the fresh juice from these leaves has healed
spider and insect bites.)
Chickweed (An abundant, succulent green that can really fill out a salad.)
Cattail (In every season, parts of this plant are edible—the roots, roasted, are
like buttered mashed potatoes.)
Dock (Yummy cooked green, like spinach and used in Asian medicines for
centuries.)
Lamb’s Quarter (One of the tastiest on-the-go snacks.)
Sheep Sorrell (Exquisite lemony taste that kids love, just don’t eat a pound of it
at any one sitting.)
Miner’s Lettuce (A favorite because of its clean, succulent taste, thus the name
given by early gold-mining settlers.)
Stinging Nettle (A green “superfood” high in protein and other nutrients, takes
skill to pick without getting stung.)
Local Berries (Every region has their favorites, along with a culinary history of
using them to sweeten the tongue.)
Yarrow (Use mashed or chewed leaves as a poultice to stop bleeding in seconds,
but always beware of look-a likes.)
Wild Mustard (Wonderful spicy taste. Harvest plentifully, a great way to
reduce the presence of this invasive species.)
Common Violet (Leaves and soft flowers are delightful in the spring.)
Burdock (Huge taproot can be cooked like carrots.)
Seaweeds (Salty taste is great to add to soups and they contain trace minerals
and nutrients only found in the seas.)
Cleavers/Bedstraw (Edible leaves, and great fun because they cling to your
clothes like Velcro.)
Jewelweed (Gorgeous orchid-like flowers with leaves that treat poison ivy rash.)
Field Mint (Steep for a fragrant tea that helps your digestion...look for square
stems and that minty smell.)
Horsetails (Tea from it is high in silica and great for bones and teeth.)
Thistles (Inside stalk is moist with water-like juice, “survival celery.”)
Common Poisonous Plant List

152 |
Poison/Water Hemlock (The plant that killed Socrates ... others have died
after putting a piece to their lips, or by just licking their hands after touching the
plant. Also looks like Wild Carrot.)
Nightshade (This creeping vine has shiny red berries that look yummy ... but
eating them can pull the shades on your bright life.)
Buttercups (Many kids play games with the shiny yellow flowers, but don’t let
them eat these digestive system trouble-makers.)
Poison Ivy and Poison Oak (Not only does the oily compound urishol make
you itch like crazy, but ingesting this plant—either directly or via smoke, can be
deadly.)
Foxglove (Latin name Digitalis, source of a much-valued modern heart medi-
cine. Why? It can slow down your heart ... or make it completely stop.)
False Hellebore (Don’t mess with this one—its high concentration of alkaloids
will eventually kill humans and livestock who ingest it and don’t evacuate the
poisons.)
Baneberry (Another tempting red berry that can quickly be the bane of your life.
Not widely common.)
Death Camas (The name says it all. There’s also a camas that’s prized for it
edible root bulbs, but they look exactly alike. They only visible difference? The
color of the flowers. What if it’s not in bloom?)
Wild Iris/Blue Flag (This looks like and grows in the same swamps as the deli-
cious Cattail ... but you’ll know you messed up when your throat starts stinging
like needles on fire. What can you do then?)
Mushrooms (Technically, these aren’t “plants.” They don’t photosynthesize.
Treat all mushrooms as dangerous Hazards.)

Commentary
Aren’t Trees Plants? Indeed many trees provide food or medicine, but their
wood and other characteristics create meaningful relationships to humans
in another important area—the survival skills of shelter, fire, and tools—so
they have their own section later in this chapter.

Where to Start. We begin with the plants most likely to be found in every-
one’s backyard, and then we branch out into the more specialized plants of
the forests and fields, deserts and mountains. The surprising benefit that

The Book of Nature | 153

comes from searching close to home—people will develop a search image
and begin to notice these plants everywhere. Also, the handful of plants
they learn first will provide a useful foundation for reaching out to the more
subtle and less common species.

Poisons First. For plants, we recommend a three-pronged approach to men-

toring: 1) poisonous plants abundant in your area. 2) plants with poisonous
look-a likes and 3) plants known to be edible, medicinal, or craftable that
have no poisonous look-a likes. We suggest you start with poisonous plants
and compare them with edible plants you can harvest and gobble down with-
out concern. Working with hazardous plants will get people to really pay
attention. This should be done slowly and thoughtfully. Mix in a poisonous
plant or one with a poisonous look-a-like so they can remember to always
pay attention. It doesn’t help people to only learn the ‘bad news” species, as
in “this plant can give you a bad rash” or “eat a few of these leaves and you’re
dead.” You want to mix it up. Keep them excited about useful plants for
food, medicine, or their fibers for baskets or string. Introduce respect for
plants for the extraordinary benefits and for the rare, but present, dangers
that they can also pose. Common sense comes through hazard awareness.
Good news, statistically speaking: only a small percentage of plants out
there are poisonous. If all the plants were stacked up in a statistical pyra-
mid, then the bottom layer would be harmless plants. That doesn’t mean
they’re edible or yummy, only that they won’t hurt you. The next layer up,
somewhere in the middle of the abundance of plants, would be the edible or
medicinal plant species. At the very tip top of the pyramid, just a handful of
species, sit plants that will hurt or poison you.

WARNING!!!—Some wild plants can be dangerous to connect with, so as

a mentor you need to really know your stuff. If you don’t, you could poison
yourself, or worse—someone else. Do your own homework and get several
field guides to reference and cross-reference. Remember that plants look dif-
ferent in different seasons, soils, and sun and moisture conditions. Where
a cardinal always looks like a cardinal, an evening primrose can look like
many other things while it is young, in its rosette stage. Through most of the
growth cycle, plants don’t have nice flowers we depend on for ease in identifi-
cation. Prepare yourself and other staff with sound advice, as well as trained
emergency response personnel that you can reach quickly. Know the phone
number of Poison Control Center and local hospitals.

154 |
The Language of Plants. Once you yourself have learned a few common edi-
bles in your area, you should have enough material to begin explaining not
only those specific plants, but the language of plant biology—how to tell one
plant from the next by flower, branch, or leaf structure. For instance, here
are some basic questions for plant ID:

1) Flower type. Is the flower “regular,” meaning it is symmetrical and with

a certain number of petals that you can count? Or is it “irregular” and
non-symmetrical? Or is it so small and strange that it’s “indistinguish-
able” when you try to classify it?
2) Branch Pattern. Do the branches and leaves grow in an “opposite pat-
tern,” on opposite sides of the main trunk of stem, like two arms on a
body? Or do the branches grow all the way around the main trunk or
stem, “whorled,” like propellers on a helicopter? Or do the branches
grow in an “alternate” pattern, uneven on each side like the metal pieces
of a zipper?
3) Leaf Type. Is the leaf “entire,” made up of one unbroken shape, or is it
“compound,” made up of several leaf-lets? Does it have lobes or teeth?
Are the edges smooth or serrated? What is the shape of the leaf?

The terms of these three basic questions of plant ID will be found in most
plant field guides. The leaf branching and shape/types are pretty standard. For
flowers, most guides will focus on the color and number of the petals. Training
everyone’s eyes to look for these key features will make the field guides user
friendly. In the Plant and Wandering Activities, you’ll find a more detailed
explanation where the ID centers around one edible plant. You only really
need a few plants to break through the wall of green and get people saying,
“Look … this one is different from that one because of how the leaves attach to
the stem. I wonder if you can eat this one. Do you know what kind of plant it is?
Where’s that field guide … you know, I think I should draw this one …”

Medicinals. It’s exciting to realize almost all modern pharmaceuticals orig-

inally derived from wild plants—and so you can imagine the meaningful
relationships that humans developed with those plants before the pharma-
ceutical companies discovered them. Kids and adults alike feel thrilled when
they realize they can go straight to the source to gather, prepare, and treat
themselves and others with live, effective medicines. They love the idea of

The Book of Nature | 155

nature providing a free “Medicine Cabinet,” whose only price is knowledge
and curiosity. In particular, kids love to learn about medicinal plants, and
will often proudly become the class “doctor,” ready to jump in with bracken
fern when someone gets stung by a nettle.

Remembering Plants. Using all the senses helps in remembering plants. See
them, sketch them, compare them with pictures in Field Guides, but also
feel their texture blindfolded, squish them and smell them, taste them on
various parts of your tongue. How can you hear them? A wise, spirited, sto-
rytelling Elder friend of Ellen’s insists you can hear them if you listen. In
their own language, they whisper an invitation to you to name their tastes
and smells. So much plant lore lives in the stories told about them. People
also remember best from not just studying in a book, but using the plant. I
never will forget the plants I have gathered to add to a salad, or dried to make
cordage for a basket. The ones I have to re-learn over and over every spring
are the plants that I have not used. Plants can become dear friends when all
ways of learning feed into one’s naturalist intelligence.

Giving Weeds a Good Name. Many edible plants that will build relation-
ship and foundational botany skills carry the label “weeds.” Think of this
sensible definition of a weed—“a plant growing where you don’t want it to
grow.” As humans who cultivate gardens and yards, it’s entirely appropriate
to make such a distinction. We encourage you, however, to rethink the ste-
reotype. After learning how delicious, healthful, and teachable they are, you
might want them to grow after all. These so-called “unwanted” species are
very much wanted by the local insects, birds, mammals, soil inhabitants and
other members of the natural community. Monarch butterflies, for instance,
drink from a “weed” called dogbane and milkweed. You could even turn the
stereotype upside-down: see landscape plants as “weeds” because they take
up space where delicious edibles and useful medicines could be growing.

Sustainable Harvesting & Low Impact Gathering. As a gatherer of wild plants,

you’ll also need to think like a caretaker of the land. A common sense way
approaches harvesting for only what you need and never harvest more than
25% of a group of plants. In order to have little impact on the plants, caretak-
ers leave the larger, more productive plants alone and take some mid-sized and
smaller plants (these tend to be tastier as well). This allows the larger plants to
go to seed and ensure future generations of sustainable harvesting.

156 |
Resources
Botany in a Day, by Tom Elpel (ISBN 1892784157)
Edible Wild Plants & Useful Herbs, by Jim Meuninck (ISBN 0762740868)
Edible Wild Plants: A North American Field Guide, by Thomas Elias and
Peter Dykeman (ISBN 0806974885)
From Earth to Herbalist, by Gregory Tilford (ISBN 0878423729)
Identifying and Harvesting Edible & Medicinal Plants in Wild (and Not So
Wild) Places, by Steve Brill (ISBN 0688114253)
John Gallagher’s herbalist training website (http://www.HerbMentor.com)
Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide, by Lawrence Newcomb (ISBN 0316604429)
Peterson Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants, by Lee Allen & Roger Tory
Peterson (ISBN 039592622X)
Peterson Field Guide to Medicinal Plants and Herbs, by Stephen Foster and
James A. Duke (ISBN 0395988144)
Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast: Washington, Oregon, British Columbia
& Alaska, by Jim Pojar & Andy MacKinnon (ISBN 1551055309)
Plants, People, and Culture: The Science of Ethnobotany, by Michael Balick
and Paul Alan Cox (ISBN 0716760274)
The Encyclopedia of Edible Plants of North America, by Francois Couplan
and James Duke (ISBN 0879838213)
The Forager’s Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing
Edible Wild Plants, by Samuel Thayer (ISBN 0976626608)
Wild Cards, by Linda Runyon (ISBN 0880795158)
Wildcraft! An Herbal Adventure Game, by John and Kimberly Gallagher
(www.learningherbs.com)

Ecological Indicators:
How it All Works Together
Now everything enters the big picture as we invite the question children love
to ask, “Why?” and look to the infinite science of ecology for some answers.

“Why is the sky blue?”

The Book of Nature | 157

“Why does this tree grow down by the river but not up on the hill?”
“Why are there so many earthworms here?”
“Why does the hawk always sit there?”
Wondering the “why” of any situation is native to all of us, insistently
so in kids.

Asking why about something indicates we sense something else, something

below the surface. The indicator sends us on an errand to find out, mak-
ing us “ecological trackers.” The why questions almost invariably point us to
the realm of relationships, of interdependence, of how one aspect of nature
affects—and is affected by—another. By asking, guessing, and gathering
more data, we discover stories that connect the sky to the blue water and sun
rays, the trees to certain types of soil, the earthworms to decaying leaves, or
the hawk to the mice in the abandoned field.
The Ecological Indicators shield division offers this goal: to get out of a
narrow framework and back into the larger framework, to relate and link
everything, including ourselves, to the big picture.

SPIRIT: To understand that everything is an inseparable piece of a greater

whole, including our own human community. To realize that our every
action leaves a track and to be aware of the tracks we are leaving.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To appreciate every element of nature, and the

interdependence of its needs and roles with others. To be aware of what con-
ditions local “indicator species” indicate and use this awareness both to track
animals and to give early warning of degradation problems. To understand eco-
logical principles and to apply an ecological understanding to our human com-
munity. To know that we have can effect positive change for the environment.

MENTORING ACTIONS:

list to grow indefinitely. Monitor local “indicator” species, those plants,

animals, and living organisms that most strongly suggest ecological
conditions, such as the water quality of freshwater wetlands or aquatic
systems. Also, pay attention to non-native invasions, and anything else
that significantly alters habitat characteristics.

reptiles that give early warning of the declining health of a habitat.

158 |
biological field inventory).

and dynamics.

plants and animals (see page 162 for explanation).

-
tionships. Constantly ask the questions “How do things connect?
How do they live and how do they live together? What gives order and
meaning to this web of life?” Stimulate questioning and facilitate find-
ing answers to questions that require scientific research.

soils and waters.

The Book of Nature | 159

 concepts of ecology back to their lives. Acknowledge and honor the
unique talents and gifts of each individual within your community so
that a genuine sense of mutual appreciation arises on its own. Use the
opportunity that this Chapter of the Book of Nature presents to weave
together all other species.

species. A good example is Rachel Carson who helped save eagles with
her book, Silent Spring.

RELATED CORE ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES:

Routines: Sit Spot, Story of the Day, Questioning and Tracking, Mapping,
Exploring Field Guides, Journaling.

Activities: Group Sit Spot, Wildlife Survey, Exploration Team, Ideal

Ecological Vision, Storyteller’s Mind, Thanksgiving.

Commentary
Inspiring Ecological Imagination. The science of Ecology examines the relation-
ships among all living organisms and their environments. It seeks to explain
the seemingly miraculous symbiosis between carbon-dioxide-breathing
trees and oxygen-breathing humans; or the surprising benefit that predator
species offer to prey species by regulating and actually strengthening both
populations over time; or the profound way that the nitrogen in salmon finds
its way into the trees of the forest for miles and miles around.
To start up your group’s ecological imagination, attach it to the plants
they eat. “Why is this dandelion over here bigger?” Soon, a wild snack can
turn into a full-blown investigation of how rain and soil and sun interact to
make that one bigger. Or try, “Let’s go sit over there where those dragonflies
are flying. There should be fewer mosquitoes there.” “Why?” And off they’ll
go to find out about dragonflies’ diet. Or “Lets try to catch butterflies later
when its cooler.” “Why?” Or, “Why do you think the red fox walks along the
edge of meadow, while the gray fox stays in the thickets more?”
As a young science, Ecology benefits from the rise of equipment for gath-
ering precise information and processing extraordinary quantities of data, so
it has great promise. Magazines like Scientific American and accessible science
writing by Edward O. Wilson, Lewis Thomas, and Stephen Jay Gould give a
hint of the possibilities. Encourage people to research any topic that captures

160 |
their interest and then let them report a mystery solved as their Story of the
Day. If you have a classroom and equipment, then approach ecological mys-
teries through science projects, such as monitoring animal tracks, doing bird
counts, taking water-quality tests, or doing soil composition studies.

Keep on Wondering Why. Humans are fascinated with interconnectedness.

They are driven to understand “the gestalt,” or “the big picture,” or the “intel-
ligent design” of nature. Adults, however, can fall into a habit of thinking they
already know it all and do more pontificating than inquiring. Luckily we have
those instinctive power-houses we call kids to keep us humble, with their end-
less barrages of “why?” or “how come?” One goal of Ecological Indicators for
adults could be to reconnect them with their childhood passion. We know our
work with adults is successful when their own natural curiosity and instinct
fires up and we no longer need to ask questions to get them motivated.

Indicator Species. Indicator species are those specifics in a bioregion that indi-
cate a trait or characteristic of the environment, such as the conditions of the
soil, moisture, or sun exposure. Working with indicators, you can analyze
the vegetation zones and habitat types of your area.
“At what stage of succession is this forest?” In mature, “old growth” of the
Pacific Northwest, you’ll find such indicators as understory diversity, tall hem-
locks, snags, nurse logs, and maybe a spotted owl or a tree vole. If the forest has
been recently logged, perhaps just starting to grow up again, you’ll find indica-
tors like alder trees, crowded thickets of sun-loving vegetation, and non-native
invasive species such as Scots broom, blackberries, and poison ivy.
“Where can we find water?” In dry climates, look for drainage patterns in the
landscape, an oasis of cottonwoods and willows, and a lot of animals and birds.
“What are the boundaries of the wetlands on my land so I can site my house
without disturbing them?” Dig for telltale soils, insects, and amphibians, and
notice how far beyond the obvious wet area horsetails and hardhack grow.

Larders & Lacks: You will find that larders and lacks often go together. For
instance, the bear may go to eat apples in the orchard (larder), and then it will
retire to the juniper thicket up over the ridge and away from the sight of the
farmer, and far from his dogs (lack). The two together often tell one story for
whatever animal or bird you want to follow. This dynamic duo approach works
easily when you get the hang of it, but first you must identify the extremes and
lacks of extremes that affect animal life in your own local zones.

The Book of Nature | 161

 Larders. A larder simply means a “food store.” Learn a little about the
“food chain” relationships among producers (green plants that use the sun
to make energy), consumers (animals that do not make their own energy),
and decomposers (life forms that break down matter). Then think about
what foods draw concentrations of what predator, or herbivore, or insect,
or fish. For instance, a sudden hatch of water-born insects such as mayflies
will become a larder for both the trout in the stream, the frogs on the bank,
and the flycatchers on the willows above the stream. In turn, you will see
the trout as a larder for the hovering osprey above. Down the food chain,
trout to osprey links become “secondary” larders. Bears’ tracks may point
you straight to another larder—an abundance of salmon or berries. Deer
tracks might indicate abundance of fresh blackberry greens in the spring.
New spring grass growing above the ankles, becomes a most potent larder
for voles, who in turn become a larder for bobcats, foxes, coyotes, weasels,
snakes, hawks and owls. Get the idea?
Larders tend to be seasonal in nature. They tend to be abundant, yet
short-lasting. They migrate with seasons, and happen at different times in
different climates. Many northern forest-dwelling species venture onto road-
ways in the spring to lick the build-up of road salt. Or, for instance, in early
spring, the wetlands will shoot up with high-protein vegetation. Bears move
in for the feed. Then the next place where plants spring up with high-protein
shoots is in the areas just above the wetlands. That larder of shoots migrates
up the hills as spring advances. You guessed it, so do the bears.
What happens next? Well, then the fawns start arriving. The bears move
to these areas next. As the season advances, the berries bloom, form, and
ripen. Now guess where the bears will be found? Then the later berries, then
the acorns? Well, what a wonderful dance!
We can use Larders and Lacks as a fun and accessible principle of ecology
to track fish, birds, and animals. Larders and Lacks represent conditions of
geography, climate, and weather, and therefore conditions of vegetation that
are important when you want to know what your quarry is likely to be up to.
This can be a really fun game to play with folks. Look at the lay of the land,
and ask yourself things like “Given today’s wind, sun, and temperature pat-
terns, and given the exposure of these hills and forests, let’s try and figure out
where the animals will be resting today.” Then go tracking!
Lacks. “Lacks” just sounds good after “larders!” Larders & Lacks. Lacks
means the absence of larder, but with lacks, we include more than food. Where
the wind blows hard from the northwest in winter—causing anyone in its path

162 |
to feel the freeze to his or her very bones—there will be a lack of wind blowing
on the southeast exposure of a thicket or rock outcropping. Where would you
want to be? When the hot sun shines for long periods, look for the animals,
birds, and invertebrates in the shady places. When it has been raining, raining,
and raining, look to the drier sheltered areas for the concentration of living
things. All life depends on nutrients, from calcium to selenium, and these can
be missing in certain habitats or at certain times of year.

Generic List of Larders

Fresh Greens
Berries
Nut Trees
Garden, Farm & Orchard Crops
Compost, Leaf, Wood Piles
Garbage Dumps
Bird Feeders
Hatches of Insects; Fish, Frogs, Reptiles, Amphibians
Bird Eggs & Nestlings
Fungi
Newborn Mammals
Salt and other Vital Nutrients

Generic List of Lacks

Warm sun spots when there is a general lack of light in dark times of year.
Shady spots when there is a general lack of coolness in sunny times of year.
Cool northern exposures in summer.
Warm southern exposures in winter.
Hiding spaces in wide open places.
Open spaces in thick forest.
Wetlands in dry seasons.
Dry places in wet seasons.

The Book of Nature | 163

Endangered Species. When the indicator species is listed as “threatened or
endangered,” this designation often indicates the precarious nature of its
habitat. Field sightings recorded over time for certain indicator plant and
animal species help scientists determine if a species and its habitat are endan-
gered. Frogs and other amphibians with their thin skin have proven particu-
larly susceptible to changes in the chemistry of the air and water. If you find
them with deformities, or you hear fewer and fewer of their calls at night,
such clues may indicate poor ecological health of the area studied. Why are
there no fish left in your fishing hole? Check the aquatic invertebrate (bug)
population. Perhaps the bugs that indicate good oxygen and cool tempera-
tures are no longer abundant? Then something upstream, maybe fertilizer,
maybe loss of shading vegetation, has changed the water quality. Maybe the
migratory birds that used to stop at your feeder in April no longer come by?
What habitat on their route has been lost or degraded?

Bio-Blitz. A Bio-Blitz, a full day all-species inventory, offers an excellent way

to determine the presence or absence of species in your area. Done in a con-
sistent manner, repeated Bio-Blitzes can serve as a database of local species.
You may realize that the decline of species diversity, and the presence of
invasive non-native species—like blackberries, starlings, or even coyotes who
take advantage of degraded habitats starved off by their competitors—often
indicates environmental ill-health. On the other hand, you may determine
that the rare species everyone thought was locally extinct has simply changed
its core area and, in fact, is doing quite well.

Grief and Empowerment. One vitally important thing leaders and mentors must
realize, is that this ecological approach holds enormous potential to generate
sadness or anger. People will bristle upon realizing the terrible impact humans
have on the natural landscape. All the issues and emotions about natural imbal-
ances filling the news each day can hurt. Seeing your Sit Spot destroyed can
destroy you. Recall our original goals of love and connection to both nature and
the human community, and be careful not to breed disdain of humans. We do
not want to deny the truth, but when people get near such thresholds of pain and
grief, it calls us as mentors to be mature counselors and guides.
We’ve got to have the presence of mind to help people process and express
their emotions in ways that cause unity and positive action, rather than
division and misguided acts of rebellion. Guide those you mentor toward
understanding all perspectives on an issue of degradation, toward respectful

164 |
communication, and toward active solutions. Many wonderful stories can be
found where people have turned the tide in a million small ways. Help your
people toward actions that give them a success story to tell.

Human Ecology. The Ecological Indicators approach means not only intri-
cate knowledge of ecology and the relationships among wild beings, but an
appreciation of human community and one’s self within that community. To
be a mentor to others requires we become mentors to ourselves, and seek out
elders, mentors, or counselors for us. We need people who have been down
a similar road before and can help us along, so we can help others. Cultivate
a community of support behind you, and ask for help when you need it.
Everyone has an exquisite and irreplaceable place in the whole that is needed
for overall health. Therefore, the ultimate expression of this shield division is
contributing one’s unique talents and gifts to the community and appreciat-
ing others, different from you, who do so too. Nothing inspires the develop-
ment of an individual’s gifts more than having a community of friends, each
standing powerfully in his or her own natural gifts.

Resources
Volumes of books touch on ecological themes, with wonderful curriculum
activities for relationship-based science. We list some wonderful books here
and in the Suggested Reading section, that explain many things about the
solar system, climate, geology, biology, and habitat niches. If they seem use-
ful, even intriguing, let them inspire your innate curiosity to find the link
between things. A pure diet of ecological principles without positive felt
interaction can dull interest, though. The trick is to always keep ecological
understanding vivid, personal, and meaningful.
American Wildlife & Plants: A Guide to Wildlife Food Habits, by Martin,
Zim and Nelson (ISBN 0486207935)
Autumn: A Season of Change, by Peter J. Marchand (ISBN 0874518709)
Biophilia, by Edward O. Wilson (ISBN 0674074424)
Bumblebee Economics, by Bernd Heinrich (ISBN 0674016394)
Dinosaur in a Haystack: Reflections in Natural History, by Stephen Jay
Gould (ISBN 0517888246)
Fish Watching: An Outdoor Guide to Freshwater Fishes, by C. Lavett Smith
(ISBN 0801480841)

The Book of Nature | 165

Golden Guide to Pond Life, By George K. Reid (ISBN 0307240177)
Keepers of the Animals: Native American Stories and Wildlife Activities for
Children, by Michael J. Caduto and Joseph Bruchac (ISBN 1555913865)
Life in the Cold: An Introduction to Winter Ecology, by Peter J. Marchand
and Libby Walker (ISBN 0874517850)
Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher, by Lewis Thomas (ISBN 0140047433)
Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds, by Bernd
Heinrich (ISBN 0061136050)
Naturalist, by Edward O. Wilson (ISBN 1597260886)
Peterson’s Field Guides: Eastern Forests, by John Kricher, Roger Tory
Peterson and Gordon Morrison (ISBN 0395479533)
Peterson’s Field Guides: Ecology of Western Forests, by John Kricher and
Gordon Morrison (ISBN 039546742X)
Project WET K-12 Curriculum & Activity Guide 2007, by Project WET
(ASIN: B00134ZAHK) (http://www.ProjectWet.org)
Project WILD K-12 Curriculum & Activity Guide 2004, by Council for
Environmental Education and Project WILD (ASIN: B000F9HJ96)
(http://www.ProjectWild.org)
Reading the Forested Landscape, by Tom Wessels (ISBN 0881504203)
Sand County Almanac (Outdoor Essays & Reflections), by Aldo Leopold
(ISBN 0345345053)
Stokes Nature Guides: Observing Insect Lives, by Donald and Lillian Stokes
(ISBN 0316817279)
The Medusa and the Snail: More Notes of a Biology Watcher, by Lewis
Thomas (ISBN 0140243194)
The Panda’s Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History, by Stephen Jay
Gould (ISBN 0393308197)
The Richness of Life: The Essential Stephen Jay Gould, by Stephen Jay Gould,
Oliver Sacks, and Stephen Rose (ISBN 0393064980)
Winter: An Ecological Handbook, by James C. Halfpenny and Roy Douglas
Ozanne (ISBN 1555660363)
Winter World: The Ingenuity of Animal Survival, by Bernd Heinrich (ISBN
0060957379)

166 |
Heritage Species: Wisdom of the Ancestors
Heritage species are present in every human culture. They are living testa-
ments to our irrevocable connection with nature. These are the species that
grandparents tell stories about around the fire. At the heart of ceremonies
woven into lore, they create a fabric of local lessons and teachings about
the land and culture. Heritage species are the plants that are seeded, the
animals that have become our companions, and the staple of the local diet
and economy. The heritage species of a culture may go so far back into our
ancestry that our connection to them has become an inherent aspect of our
daily human experiences. Our ancestors have proclaimed to us: “These are
important to know and to honor.”
We have the capability to deeply connect to our own culture’s heritage
species. They remind us of our connection to our natural environment.
Throughout history our ancestors have lived within nature and tended to the
lands. Thinking of our ancestors reminds us that we still have that capability
to know, honor, and tend to the land as our home. In turn, we may then pass
on this knowledge—of how to increase the Earth’s health and vibrancy—to
the next generation. Look for inspiration from the heritage species—they
inspire us to contribute to the regeneration of the land, its natural systems,
and all its inhabitants.
The Permaculture movements, and the related off-shoot called
“Regenerative Design,” have developed skills, processes, and models that
offer people world-wide the tools they need to heal and tend the land.
Permaculture honors humans as a keystone species, a species essential to the
healthy balance of life. Its principles create the framework for highly pro-
ductive environments beneficial to all life, offering great hope for a network
of regenerative human communities living in harmony with nature. Rooted
in careful observations of natural patterns, permaculture leads people to
awareness of the heritage species and their role in the ecosystem.

SPIRIT: To awaken an ancestral knowledge of place that bridges nature and

culture and encourages caring for and tending of the land. To inspire a sense
of reverence for the past and a sense of responsibility to tend to its future. To
model skills of tending the wild and human habitats through deep nature
connection, awareness, and regenerative design.

The Book of Nature | 167

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To appreciate what human ancestors of an
area depended on and often included in their cultural lives. To discover the
intricate knowledge and rich lore they have accumulated in your region. To
revitalize and restore a healthy landscape and place-based culture over time.

MENTORING ACTIONS:

depended on and honored throughout history. Include those elements

vital to the current economy or central to regional celebrations. Create
a Master List of these Heritage Species.

stories from the people of your place. Interview elders who carry
these stories and skills in their memories. Visit places of historical
significance.
-
ebrate the harvest or to honor the quiet space of the winter?
-
tions, place-based songs, masks, replicas, or public murals.

symbols, songs, and sayings.

Include Permaculture, composting, wild-crafting, organic gardening,

sustainable forestry, and ecological building.
-
vice of transmitting our heritage, in health, to the future.
-
ing in the awareness of being an important link in a great chain of life.

RELATED CORE ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES:

Routines: Thanksgiving, Exploring Field Guides (especially those that
include ancestral lore and uses), Storytelling, Mapping.

Activities: Thanksgiving, Nature Names, Nature Museum, Group Sit

Spot, Songline, Exploration Team, Ideal Ecological Vision.

168 |
Worldwide List of Exemplary Washington State Essential
Academic Learning Requirement
Heritage Species and Elements for History
To understand the origin and
Aquatic/ Marine Heritage Species impact of ideas and technological
developments on history, students
Salmon & Steelhead (For many river and sea cultures, includ- will
ing the Celts of Ireland and England, salmon hold a sacred, q Compare and contrast
ideas in different places,
cultural position with many legends and stories abounding along time periods, and
with their importance as a food source.) cultures, and examine the
interrelationships between
Shad (In older times, in some places still, the shad run offers an ideas, change, and conflict
important opportunity to gather a staple food.) q Understand how ideas and
technological developments
Whales & Seals (Whales are animals of mythic dimensions that influence people, culture, and
along with seals have been vital to Arctic peoples.) environment

Lobster (In modern times, the American Lobster is a classic her-

itage species—an entire region of North America, New England,
is famous for this species.)
Oysters, Clams, & Mussels (For numerous coastal and migra-
tory indigenous and modern people, these shellfish have domi-
nated their menus and seasonal economies.)

The Book of Nature | 169

Herbaceous Heritage Species
Sage and Sweet-grass (Common smudge-plants for ceremonies and daily cus-
toms in the Great Plains.)
Bunch-grass (The generator of springs, seeps and small streams, this important
grass used to grow on the coastal hills of California with 20 foot deep roots keep-
ing the hills green later, and the springs flowing longer.)
Corn (The fruiting ears, the pollen, and the leaves and stalks of the plant are
central parts of the survival and cultural vibrancy of many Central American
and Native American cultures. See the Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan
for its current cultural legacy.)
Rice (A food staple in nearly every Asian county as well as North-Central
North America, branching into many elements of culture.)
Strawberries (The Haudenosaunee hold a Strawberry Festival each spring
because it is the first plant to herald the season with their ripe and delicious
fruit.)
Bamboo (A vital and sacred part of most Asian cultures.)
Mistletoe (There’s more to this plant than the kissing custom. Look into how
this modern ritual originated.)
Tobacco & Cotton (Long before cigarettes and T-shirts, many North
American native tribes used these plants extensively for medicine, ceremony,
and lore.)
Woody Heritage Species
Apple Trees (Tell the story of Johnny Appleseed. There are festivals centered on
these trees all over North America.)
Cedar (Legendary but now extinct in Lebanon; the “Tree of Life” for Northwest
Coastal Peoples for whom they provided clothes, canoes, long-houses, diapers,
baskets, totem poles, and much more.)
Redwood (Tall trees with legend-inspiring presence, they pull down the fog to
keep the forest moist and cool, their thick bark resists burning, their wood resists
rot, splits and planks well.)
Oaks (Acorns, a food staple for many native cultures, come from oak groves
tended over generations. Also, many oak groves are sacred to traditions of Old
Europe.)
Pinon Pines (Pine-nuts were a staple of Native Americans of the Southwest.)

170 |
Olive Trees (Their oil is at the base of all meals in Italy and Greece, and the
ancient symbol of Peace.)
Grape Vines (Cultivated prehistorically for wine, a symbol of insight and
ecstasy.)
Cherry Trees (In Japan, the blossoming of the Cherry and Plum trees are very
special parts of their culture and very special times of year. Cherry trees celebra-
tions occur in Washington, D.C. and many other places around the U.S.)
Sugar Maple (Continues to serve as a species that gives regional identity, food,
and trade value for North Americans.)
Western Redbud (This species is a favorite basketry plant of the native peoples
throughout the Pacific Northwest.)
Avian and Mammalian Heritage Species
Beaver & Marten (Natives and voyageurs were heavily dependent upon this
aquatic mammal and arboreal weasel for their pelts, which served as currencies
long ago.)
Wolf & Bear (Lots of native lore surrounding these wondrous animals all over
the Northern hemisphere, with bears’ mysterious hibernation tied to the mythic
ideas of rebirth and the unconscious.)
Bison (Native Plains cultures such as the Lakota revolved around this animal
for food, clothing, housing, and myth.)
Reindeer & Caribou (Nomadic people of the north travel with the migrations
of these species.)
Coyote (This book, for instance, helps to keep Coyote part of our on-going cul-
tural heritage.)
Tiger (If you live in Asia, stories of this figure weave all through your
upbringing.)
Bald & Golden Eagles (Often touted as the bird that flies the highest, and
therefore often seen as having connection with the heavenly or spirit realms …
think about where angels get their large wings.)
Raven (A marvelous trickster-figure that is highly revered throughout the Pacific
Northwest.)
Passenger Pigeon (Now extinct, this sky-darkening gregarious species was inte-
gral to pre- and early colonial inhabitants of North America.)

The Book of Nature | 171

Heritage Landscape Features
Natural Springs & Wells (The central meeting places. Many cultures honor
these with songs, stories, and guards!)
Distinctive Rocks (The Mesas of the Southwest, the Uluru monolith of
Australia.)
Distinctive groves & gardens (Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Sacred groves
of Greece, Taoist gardens of China, and any still living old giant tree—all are
power places in the landscape, often held as sacred.)
Places whose names suggest they have a sacred story (Look into place names
and ask good questions of local elders ... refer to the book Home Ground by
Barry Lopez.)

Research. You’ve got to do a little detective work to discover the plants, animals,
trees, birds, and special places that have ancestral significance in your bio-re-
gion. Such information may come easily, but that depends on the regional col-
lection of your local library, the cleverness of your internet skills, and the pres-
ence of surviving natives or elders in your neighborhood. Field Guides with an
ethnic perspective will show the native uses of plants and trees. Place names
and street names like “Death Valley,” “Eureka,” “Bryn Mawr,” or “Angel Oak
Lane” can start you on a trail of discovery. Relics of old mills, wells, goldmines,
graveyards, and stone piles tell of earlier inhabitants and their livelihoods.
Christmas Trees, Mistletoe, Jack-‘O-Lanterns, Easter Rabbits—all these sea-
sonal celebratory symbols came from some ancestral heritage.
Best of all, find and invite elderly inhabitants of your place to come and
tell their stories, or arrange to send your people to interview them. Befriend
the old farmers down the road and learn from them. You’ll be humbled by
what people have already figured out. The Foxfire Books have recorded an
amazing amount of regional lore this way, and in the process, have enriched
the lives of interviewers and storytellers, alike.

Story and Legend. For reasons both obvious and mysterious, human cultures,
fermenting for generations in the unique brew of a certain place, arrive at a
group of revered species. They regale these species in lore and legend and fea-
ture them in song and dance. To become heritage, a culture celebrates their
own unique species in seasonal festivals or daily rituals through hunting and
farming, gathering and sowing. Because of their traditional power and accu-
mulated lore, heritage species offer a fantastic mythology and folklore which

172 |
taunt and tug at our heartstrings. Young and old will listen amazedly to how
the cedar tree first grew from the grave of the most generous woman the vil-
lage had ever known; or how—marvelous wonder!—the hazelnut tree holds
wisdom, so if you drink from a bit of stream where hazelnuts drop, you will
be wise; or—can it be?—a bear kidnapped and married a human wife, on
the top of that very hill over there, and legend claims we all come from that
very wife. However hidden or buried in your area, find stories that trigger
collective memory and cultural imagination. Tell the stories of your land,
sing the songs of mammals and mountains, and make yourself at home.

Reverence and Ceremony. With sensitivity to the culture of the people you
borrow from and the culture of the people you now mentor, you can reen-
act ancestral ceremonies, including those of welcome, farewell, celebration,
thanksgiving, forgiveness, or grieving. Ritual and ceremony have a deep place
in human culture, belonging to a time before science and secularity removed
or marginalized them in public education. As Richard Louv documents in
his book, children seem to be born with a natural spirituality that recognizes
the sacred power inherent in natural things like birth, death, and the turning
of the seasons. Really, awe and reverence are universal spiritual experiences
and they need to be allowed, encouraged, and dramatized in community. So,
please, do what you can in your place with your people to revive these crucial
life-enhancing celebrations that bring forth depths of feeling and caring for
the communities of the natural world.

Starting a New Heritage. Heritage Species do not come solely from the past.
As the current generation, we live as ancestors to the people of the future, the
current link in the chain determining the heritage of following generations.
As salmon or acorn oaks diminish, apple trees and sweet potatoes, llamas
and ranch buffalo may be on the rise. You can make up silly songs about your
local Banana Slugs, or create Songlines about seasonal celebrations based
around the local flora and fauna that show you the way. You can even be so
bold as to begin your own festivals based on what seems most meaningful.
Create stories and lore now so you and your children may return to the site
years later for the retelling: spend time salvaging and replanting vegetation;
help kids raise salmon fry in an incubator and later, release the little fish
into the local creek; or make your mark by restoring and maintaining a trail
system for people to enjoy.

The Book of Nature | 173

Caring and Tending. Perhaps the greatest tribute we can pay to our heri-
tage species is to honor the people of long ago who tended this land for
us so we can enjoy it today. Find ways to directly connect with this legacy
by actually tending the land and its inhabitants yourself. For some this
may be gardening. Some may work to rehabilitate wildlife or watersheds.
Some will delve into local political action—writing letters, attending
hearings, organizing coalitions in defense of endangered sites and spe-
cies of vital importance to the future of their heritage. Some people will
offer charitable donations. For some, it may mean taking up a profession
in Permaculture or Ecological Design. For all of us who care, our efforts
should be something hands-on and personal, something that connects us
as a part of the living heritage of our place. Tend your land and your cul-
ture to leave it that much better for your grandchildren and their grand-
children after them.

Resources
Look for resources under the Ethnography, Anthropology, and Archaeology
of your region.
Biodiversity & Native America, by Paul Minnis and Wayne Elisens (ISBN
0806132329)
Changes in the Land, Revised Edition: Indians, Colonists, and the Ecology of
New England, by William Cronon (ISBN 0809016346)
Cultures of Habitat: On Nature, Culture, and Story, by Gary Paul Nabhan
(ISBN 1887178961)
Edible Forest Gardens: Ecological Design and Practice for Temperate-Climate
Permaculture, by Dave Jacke and Eric Toensmeier (ISBN 1931498806)
Good Rain: Across Time and Terrain in the Pacific Northwest, by Timothy
Egan (ASIN: B000RQHAV4)
In Search of New England’s Native Past, by Gordon M. Michael K. Foster
and William Cowan (ASIN: B000NJY0UY)
A New Earth: Awakening to your Life’s Purpose, by Eckhart Tolle (ISBN
0452289963)
Gaia’s Garden: A Guide to Home-scale Permaculture, by Toby Hemminway
(ISBN 1890132527)

174 |
Keeping It Living: Traditions of Plant Use and Cultivation on the Northwest
Coast of North America, by Douglas Deur and Nancy J. Turner (ISBN
0295985658)
Natural Grace: The Charm, Wonder, and Lessons of Pacific Northwest
Animals and Plants, by William Dietrich (ISBN 0295982934)
Open Horizons, by Sigurd F. Olson (ISBN 0816630372)
Permaculture: A Designers Manual, by Bill Mollison and Reny Mia Sley
(ISBN 0908228015)
Reading the Forested Landscape: A Natural History of New England, by Tom
Wessels, Brian D. Cohen, and Ann H. Zwinger (ISBN 0881504203)
Reclaiming Our Natural Connection, (Audio) by Jon Young (ISBN
1579940242) (8shields.org/products)
Reflections from the North Country, by Sigurd F Olson and Illustrated by
Leslie Kouba (ASIN: B000R3A3K2)
Sand County Almanac (Outdoor Essays & Reflections), by Aldo Leopold
(ISBN 0345345053)
Seeing Through the Eyes of the Ancestors, (Audio) By Jon Young (ISBN
1579940226) (8shields.org/products)
Tending the Wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of
California’s Natural Resources, by M. Kat Anderson (ISBN 0520248511)
The Archetype of Initiation, by Max J. Havlick Jr. and Robert L. Moore
(ISBN 073884764X)
The Foxfire Book: Hog Dressing, Log Cabin Building, Mountain Crafts and Foods,
Planting by the Signs, Snake Lore, Hunting Tales, Faith Healing, Moonshining,
by Inc. Foxfire Fund and Eliot Wigginton (ISBN 0385073534)
The Ohlone Way: Indian Life in the San Francisco- Monterey Bay Area, by
Malcolm Margolin (ISBN 0930588010)
The Woodland Way: A Permaculture Approach to Sustainable Woodland
Management, by Ben Law (ISBN 1856230090)
Wildlife in America, by Peter Matthiessen (ASIN B000OSTV58)
Wintergreen: Listening to the Land’s Heart, by Robert Michael Pyle (ISBN
0395465591)

The Book of Nature | 175

Trees: Tools of Human Survival
If you grew up in an area with trees, you probably can remember these mam-
moths are important to play and imagination. Most children instantly gravi-
tate towards trees. Some feel called to climb into their crowns; others search
the ground for sticks, and it is almost always the biggest tree in an area that
is instantly named “base” in games of tag or hide-and-go-seek. Most children
will instinctively “set up camp” around trees. They build stick forts, make
imaginary fires by piling sticks, gather acorns and other nuts, and stir puddles
gathered in tree roots with stick-spoons. The children seem to know trees are
important to living and they are always keen to interact with them.
We connect instantly with trees because they are important to survival. Even
today most of the items that make up our homes are made of trees; the walls, the
roofs, the floors, even the furniture, all trees. Other than food and water, trees
(and their woody substitutes where no big trees live) provide everything we need
to stay alive: shelter to stay warm and dry and keep out life-threatening elements;
fire to warm the body, purify the water, cook the food, and dispel the dark; and
tools with which to dig, hunt, travel, make music, etc. There are hundreds of
ways in which we relate to trees to survive: think of a primitive hand-drill set
made of tulip poplar branches, or the supportive wood-beams of modern homes
made of laminated lumber, or the paper behind the words you are reading right
now. We use trees everyday and we wouldn’t want to lose them, so apprecia-
tion of these life-sustaining beings grows more critical as development overtakes
more and more forests. Fortunately most of us are born loving trees and are just
waiting for someone to guide us to a better understanding of their value.

SPIRIT: To grow confident in directly experiencing dependence on natural

elements for survival. To cultivate the attitudes of self-reliance, teamwork,
improvisation, and positive-thinking. The ultimate expression of this shield
division is the “scout mentality”—an ability to ensure the survival of one’s
people for many generations to come.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To acquire experiential knowledge of trees

and their survival uses. To learn “primitive” techniques to make fire, purify
water, make tools, and build shelters. To successfully experience edgy envi-
ronmental challenges such as cold, wet, dark, and being lost, stressed, and
lonely, and to see the effects of attitude on how well one survives. To be
comfortable and at home in the woods.

176 |
MENTORING ACTIONS:

keep notes on their uses.

characteristics. Journal trees and play ID games.

building shelter, hunting, and crafting tools, weapons, baskets, ropes

etc. Discover the useful characteristics of wood-types.

fires as often as possible, and notice how wood, weather, and structure
affect the way they burn. Explain the basics of knife safety and usage
and techniques of wood-carving.

immersion in cold water, survival trips, or “walkabouts.”

-
vival—and techniques of cooperation—including peacemaking skills!

RELATED CORE ROUTINES AND ACTIVITIES:

Routines: Survival Living, Exploring Field Guides, Mapping, Thanksgiving.

Activities: Survival Priorities, Shelter-Building, Meet-A-Tree, Tree Tag,

Five-Minute Fire, Group Sit Spot, Sharing Circle.

Generic List of Useful Trees and Shrubs

White Oaks (Acorns have fewer tannins and are more edible than those from
red and black oaks.)
Red & Black Oaks (Wood burns long and hot, with almost no sparks.)
Pines (Needles make tea high in Vitamin C. Also, can yield “pitch sticks” which
are highly flammable.)
Firs (Sap/Pitch lights on fire and can be made into candles or fire-starter.)
Maples (Strong wood for carving and tools, and of course, if you know how to tap
and process it, sugar maple sap makes maple syrup!)
Cedars (Outer bark can be shredded for tinder; inner bark for cordage, or clothing;

The Book of Nature | 177

For a decade, I lead whole eighth rootlets can be used as string, and the wood itself resists rot.)
grades into late October storms
on the far coast of the Northwest. Hemlocks (Dead twigs make great kindling; good shelter in rain
We did it in the name of Lord of
the Flies, to understand viscerally
or snow but NOT in a wind storm.)
what strains fall on a group when Birches (Bark has flammable compound inside, perfect for start-
there are no grownups to guide.
We prepared hard and long, but ing fires; bark slabs also fold into quick containers.)
once we got out there, in the wind
and tides, the kids were on their Willows (Branches are very pliable and great for baskets.)
own. They had agreements they’d
signed—no litter, stay together,
Cottonwoods (Find water nearby or underground where the cot-
get to destination—but they had tonwood grows, buds contain Balm of Gilead.)
to carry, travel, camp, cook, and
cope without us. We teachers Spruces (Pitch can be chewed as gum; rootlets strong and pliable;
trailed them. also make fine guitar and other instruments.)
What happened? They survived, Cherries (Beautiful heralds of spring; hard wood burns well and
and they each brought home a
story to tell. They met weather
makes strong tools.)
eye to eye. They shivered with a Red Alder (Very carveable wood; inner bark makes a nice brown dye.)
sense of wildness. They forged
a sense of community. And in Hickory (Great wood for making flexible yet sturdy hunting
every trip, their teen culture
turned topsy-turvey. Roles were bows.)
reinvented. The Cool lost their
cool and the unnoticed kids
Ash (Burns great even when green; is used in bow-making and
displayed wonderful gifts of splint baskets; and it’s easy to carve.)
courage, leadership and ingenuity.
A whole new set of heroes and Beech (Dead leaves hang on branches throughout winter; pro-
embarrassed, a re-cast of “Jacks” duces tough leaves for shelter material.)
and “Piggys” and “Ralphs,” and
“Littluns” and “Beasties” entered Shrubs
their cultural fabric and our
English class vernacular. The Rubus Clan (the “brambles” – e.g. blackberry, raspberry, sal-
monberry, cloudberry, loganberry, dewberry, thimbleberry, etc.)
Ellen Haas, Eighth Grade
Survival Vines (Many vines can be quite useful for basket-making, cordage-
making, as well as other survival skills. But beware of vines with
any hairs on them. Remember “hairy rope – don’t be a dope!”)
Arrowood Viburnum (If you live nearby this species, you are
lucky, as it lives up to its name as a great arrow shaft plant.)

Commentary
Starting. Our objective is connection to trees. Approach the study
of trees through the window of wilderness survival. Again,
start with the most abundant trees in your area, most useful in
terms of survival, and thus most available for connection. After

178 |
you learn the answers to these research questions, you could pass them on to
your beginners. Every area has different answers to these questions.

hit by lightning?

longest?

shelters?

smoke?

not want to burn poison oak or poison ivy in a fire?

Experience with the qualities of trees deepens our appreciation of familiar

ones and stretches awareness into discovering new ones. Learn to recognize
trees at a distance by their growth habit, and you will know which ones to
run for in a rainstorm. Identify trees close up by their bark, leaves, flow-
ers, fruits, and cones, and you will know which ones to rely on for food and
shelter materials. Then, as you gather wood for fire, you begin to notice the
details of their broken limbs and twigs littering the ground: how the leaf-
scars locate opposite or alternate along the branch and have a distinctive
shape to them, how the bark feels rough or smooth and changes colors as it
dries, and how pithy the very core appears.

Constructing Shelters. Making forts and survival shelters from branches

and leaves offers one way to connect with the trees, physically experi-
ence how trees give us our homes, learn which woods prove sturdiest for
load-bearing, which leaves are the most abundant for weather-insulating
debris. Appreciate the strongly-built, and often taken for granted, homes

The Book of Nature | 179

we live in. Let folks spend the night in one of the shelters they build.
Juvenile squirrels make practice nests that they spend a night or two in
before going back to the family drey. Let your people do this and then
make improvements on their fort so it will be more comfortable for the
next overnight. Better yet, if you have the opportunity, make a shelter
at the center of a “village” in your local woods, with surrounding areas
for cooking fires, logs to sit or drum on with sticks, and nearby trees as
climbing lookouts. Then everyone camping out together will ease the
edge of loneliness for their first overnight.

Crafting with Wood. Also, explore trees by using their diverse woods to man-
ufacture any number of tools. Use the beautiful branches of foliage to deco-
rate your mentoring spaces, classrooms, and homes. Make rope or baskets
out of tree-bark, fine branches, or rootlets. Demonstrate how to carve safely
and soon your participants will begin to tell woods apart by their ease for
carving, by the flexible or brittle quality, and how well the scrap heap will
burn. Carve spoons and forks, walking sticks, hunting bows, bow-drill fire
making sets, wooden toys, flutes, drums, or whatever else you can imagine.
And as you work on such minutely-focused projects, play games and tell sto-
ries that fill imaginations with pictures of the living trees themselves.

Building Fire. Of course, use wood for making fire. If you know how to use
bow-drill or hand-drill to make fire by friction, participants will eat it up.
But even if you just start fires with matches, that opens the door for direct
connection to trees and their varying woods. Igniting a fire with nothing but
matches and the natural materials around you is not as easy as you might
think. Together with those you’re mentoring, figure out which kindling
woods start fires the best, and gather bundles of various sizes. Then natu-
rally you’ll want to figure out which trees have tinder for starting fire, where
dry wood can be found in a wet climate, or how to tell apart the twigs and
branches of a maple from those of a willow. A craft leading to deep learning
about what burns and what just smolders is “long-matches,” the age old art
of carrying coals from one fire to start a fire in another place.

Tending Fire. Fire-tending could well be another Core Routine. In fact, for
some of our participants at certain periods along their learning journeys, it
is the Core Routine. Humans have tended fires for thousands of years and it
seems to have a permanent home within our psyches. Think of the thousands

180 |
of metaphors common in our languages, “I suddenly got this spark of cre-
ativity.” “Her face lit up.” “I’m all fired up about it!” “Her anger flared,” “My
wound is inflamed,” “He showed a flicker of interest.” “I need to tend to my
inner fire.” “Our love burns like an ember.” “The fire has gone out.” “My
hopes were reduced to ashes.” “Goodness, Gracious, Great balls of fire!” Fire
is simply one of the most magical and metaphorical elements on earth.
Humans of all ages—but especially those connected to their childlike
wonder—are easily mesmerized by fire. I’ve watched kids spend entire
days doing nothing but sitting by a campfire—as happy and content as
pigs in a mud-bath. Staring into a fire puts you into a trance, practically
hypnotized by the continually changing flickers and flames. Some people
call it “Survival TV.”
However, unlike most TV, staring at fire for hours will do wonders for the
brain patterns of those you mentor. As logs collapse and burn and shift around,
people overcome fears of fire and learn to trust the process. They learn how
things cook, both in pots and at the end of sticks. They practice sitting still. They
move into storytelling mode around a fire. They learn to listen to other people
with silence and thoughtfulness. Tending the dynamic process of a Central Fire
seems to translate to moving through life with confidence, patience, and wonder.
You can see it in their eyes. So if you have the opportunity in your program,
invite fire-tending as a central part of your learning community.

Fire Safety. As magical as we find fire, we must respect the inherent, potential
hazard that requires training in the basics of fire safety. We list some hazard-
ous aspects of fire and our tips for prevention:

1) Forest Fires. Whenever you create a fire, clear away any nearby flammable
materials, such as leaves, grasses, or branches, and tarps. To prevent top-
pling a tower of fire onto someone’s feet or igniting overhead branches, keep
your fire-wood cut short in length, and your fires small,. For repeated use,
establish a pit and routinely clean and monitor it. Be mindful that fires can
spread through the inter-linked roots of trees underneath the ground. Also
be aware of local laws and fire bans.

2) Bodily Burns. Take a good First Aid course and study up on how to treat
burns, if they should occur. Plunge burned flesh into cold water and carry
burn salve in your first aid kit. Rather than using your hands, tend your fires
using a pair of fire-tending sticks, as if they were tongs. Two to three feet

The Book of Nature | 181

long and as thick as a small wrist, these can be a lot of fun for everyone to
make. They often like to carve designs in them, admired until they get burnt
enough to become firewood. Then another pair emerges.

3) Smoke Asphyxiation. Be careful with smoke. Unventilated wood smoke

in the lungs can be hazardous to health. Be especially considerate of varieties
of allergic response to smoke. Round shelters should include smoke-holes or
windows on the roofs.

4) Parent Concerns. If you work with the children of others, you will need to
consider the concerns of parents who may not be familiar with fire. This will
encourage you to lay out clear fire safety rules and make sure everyone stays
safe, all the time. Fire safety also offers an opportunity to bring the family
into the fold of a child’s education, by inviting them to a class-day about fire,
or by encouraging them to make a fire-pit at home.

Resources
Tree and shrub identification guides are abundant. Pick a local one that
works for you and use it.
A Natural History of North American Trees, by Donald Culross Peattie and
Verlyn Klinkenborg (ISBN 0618799044)
Animal Architects: How Animals Weave, Tunnel, and Build Their
Remarkable Homes, by Wanda Shipman and Marna Grove (ISBN
0811724042)
Participating in Nature: Thomas J. Elpel’s Field Guide to Primitive Living
Skills, by Thomas J. Elpel (ISBN 1892784122)
Peterson’s Field Guide to Western Trees, by George and Olivia Petrides
(ISBN 0395904544)
Primitive Technology, by David Wescott (ISBN 0879059117)
The Foxfire Book: Hog Dressing, Log Cabin Building, Mountain Crafts and
Foods, Planting by the Signs, Snake Lore, Hunting Tales,Faith Healing,
Moonshining, by Inc. Foxfire Fund and Eliot Wigginton (ISBN
0385073534)
The Tree: A Natural History of What Trees Are, How They Live, and Why
They Matter, by Colin Tudge (ISBN 0307395391)

182 |
The Trees in My Forest, by Bernd Heinrich (ISBN 0060929421)
Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Living with the Earth, by Tom Brown, Jr. (ISBN
9992335025)
Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Wilderness Survival, by Tom Brown, Jr. (ISBN
0425105725)
Trees of North America, a Golden Field Guide, by Brockman, Zim, and
Merrilees (ISBN 6823523)
Hidden Forest: Biography of an Ecosystem, by Jon R. Luoma (see Amazon books)

Birds: Messengers of the Wilderness

Because birds are the most abundant and visible wildlife, many people are
drawn into the natural world by birds. The beauty of their song and plumage
instantly captures our attention to provide us a powerful hook into nature.
They are easy to observe and entire industries have grown up around the
observation and feeding of wild birds. Our interest in birds, however, may
be more deeply rooted in survival than aesthetics. The birds tell us secrets
and we mean that quite literally. Most of us are aware that a bird franti-
cally calling from six or so feet off the ground alerts us to the neighbor-
hood cat who has unpleasant intentions towards its nestlings. Possibly, we
may be less aware of their more subtle communications such as birds also
reporting back to the natural world about us. Imagine how important this
knowledge was to our ancestors. Not only do the birds communicate to
us about potential dangers and prey but they also have the power to spoil
a hunt. Our ancestors had to be deeply aware and respectful of the birds.
Perhaps this is why we have such a powerful interest in birds.
Birds and their vocalizations and behaviors constantly radiate infor-
mation—about predators, skirmishes, or other dramas around them. This
is amazing to realize. By gaining knowledge of bird language, we tap into
a network of alarms and news reports of events in the landscape right
now and we also become the news. So, except for those birds who capture
attention simply by being so visible—such as eagles, herons, or swooping
swallows—bird language provides the most fertile field for planting seeds
of connection with birds and their lives.
Many times I’ve been on a back porch of my home in the forest, chatting
with friends, and suddenly a bird call gets us all to listen. We put conversa-
tion on pause as we set off into the yard or the surrounding woods to find

The Book of Nature | 183

the source of the alarm. Many adventures have come about because of simple
listening. I’ve been able to see countless owls, foxes, hawks, and weasels this
way. Some of my strongest bonding moments with friends have happened
because we followed bird-reported mysteries together, and surrounded by
tense bird alarms right over our heads or at our ankles—until look—from a
hidden spot, something swooped or sprang into view.
Bird language not only gives reason to connect with birds, it also continually
calls us to expansive awareness and vigilant listening to the sounds and moods
of nature and how we affect them. “Did you hear that?” will bring people into
a state of dynamic alertness.
Quieting down, listening intently, and looking widely can break us out of
the patterns of our own behavior and wake us up to a world most modern
humans miss out on.

SPIRIT: To see the invisible. To inspire a mental state of extra-ordinary

attentiveness and the practice of moving without creating a disturbance. The
ultimate expression of this shield division is the “Quiet Mind”—an ability to
listen with an inner calm that allows us to track subtle energetic patterns, to
increase our intuition.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: To listen for and understand the language of

birds and to appreciate the multitude of lessons that this awareness offers. To
notice the impact on bird activity with the appearance of predators—in the
air and on the ground—and how changes in wind, weather, and light influ-
ence them. To be aware of how our human movements and intentions impact
everything around us in a similar way. To practice strategies for movement
through the landscape that require careful attention, listening, observation,
and empathy.

MENTORING ACTIONS:

those most useful for bird language study at the top. Check off well
known birds, and write in new ones.

we can hear and whose behavior we can witness.

overwhelming diversity of bird vocalization.

184 |
 bars, flash patterns, flight patterns, beak color and type, plumage traits,
and eye-rings, as well as body language, songs, calls, and habitat.

Sit Spot.
-
ping and discussing vocalizations and behaviors. Sit at different times
of day, in different wind and weather patterns, and at different times of
year, and call attention to how the patterns of animal and bird behavior
differ in each condition.
-
ferent kinds of disturbance. Bring about awareness that behavior and
attitude create “concentric rings” of disturbance on birds and animals,
and also on ourselves and other people.
-
ating a human disturbance.

you turn your head toward the scolding of a sparrow so will everyone.

RELATED CORE ROUTINES:

Routines: Sit Spot, Story of the Day, Expanding Our Senses, Questioning and
Tracking, Mapping, Exploring Field Guides, Journaling, Mind’s Eye Imagining,
Listening for Bird Language, Thanksgiving.

Activities: Four Directions, Bird Language Sits, The Wildlife is Watching,

Silent Stalker, Bird Language Scenarios, Akamba Tracker Form, Fox-
Walking, Owl Eyes, Owl Approaches the Forest.

Generic List of Birds

American Robins (These birds have a “cheery-up” song and a distinctive alarm
call that has given many—including me—our first bird language success. They
are abundant and watchable, with a wide vocabulary. Spend five minutes a day
watching robins and you will understand bird language.)
Dark-Eyed Juncos (Alarm call sounds like a smacking kiss or two rocks being
tapped together. Masters of etiquette and subtlety, they are not loud—but the
animals are paying attention to them.)

The Book of Nature | 185

Wrens (Stick up their tails like stiff paddles. All wrens sound very indignant
when alarmed.)
Song Sparrows (Each song sparrow’s repertoire is different, so you can even
identify individuals by ear.)
Towhees (Ground feeders, one of their contact calls is produced by their feet
scraping the ground as they search for food.)
Canada Geese (Sudden take-off filled with honks ... what caused that? V-shaped
flights in spring and fall.)
Jays (Corvids with personality. They make a sharp “tattle-tale” cry over any ani-
mal “sneaking” around.)
House Sparrows (Prominent in cities. See their dust-baths and territorial fights
in parking lots. Nests on store signs.)
Common Yellowthroats (An abundant low-nesting warbler you’re likely to see
if birding, females use alarm calls when nest is threatened.)
Red-Winged Blackbirds (Loud whistling songs. A common bird of cattail
swamps with fascinating territorial dynamics.)
Sharp-shinned or Cooper’s Hawks (These both hunt birds, even “on-the-fly,”
so birds go absolutely silent when they fly over.)
Owls and Large Hawks (Songbirds will consistently alarm at these adept preda-
tors, often mobbing them in broad daylight and chasing them about the landscape.)
Eagles (Majestic and always awe-inspiring, their flight patterns appear as distinc-
tive large soaring circles and slides, and their chattery screeches belie their beauty.)

Commentary
Start with the Ground Feeders. You may want to start with the birds whose
body language you can see—those little birds who spend a lot of time near
the ground—ground-feeders. Fortunately, these birds are also some of the
most common ones, robins, towhees, juncos, and sparrows. They have reason
to care about critters that move over ground. Your first experience with these
ground-feeding birds can easily cascade into learning about habitats, foods,
nesting sites, migration schedules, natural history, biology, and lore.

Stop and Listen. Imagine if every child on the block could identify the local
birds by sight or sound, keep tabs on nest locations, and make daily reports
on how their chicks were doing. Imagine kids stopping at play for a moment,

186 |
The Book of Nature | 187
188 |
falling silent and all turning to look in the same direction at the same time—
not because someone shouted from that direction, but because a song spar-
row began its subtle alarm. One of the children says, “Hey I think the fox is
coming.” The others agree and wait with anticipation. Then the fox appears
on the edge of the yard, emerging from behind the bush that hid her.
Such a vibrant awareness of birds and animals is possible, totally possible.
We see this sort of thing happening over time in communities who mentor
people in bird language. Once, such awareness passed from parent to child,
as a natural part of our ancestral legacy. But how do you make bird-study
have meaning to noisy, active youngsters, whose attention constantly gets
courted by a great host of other things?
Simply tune into the phenomena of bird language. ”Shhhh! What’s that
alarm? Is there a cougar on the ridge again?” If you just tell someone that the
flute-like song they hear comes from a Hermit Thrush, they may not care. But
if you tell them that the incessant calling of that bird in the bushes may mean
there’s a weasel or an owl trying to eat the bird’s babies—practically no one can
refuse that bait. Eyes plume wide, bodies wake up: “No way! Let’s go see!”

The Five Voices of Birds. We mentioned “the Five Voices of Birds” in the
Listening for Bird Language Core Routine, and you’ll see it again in the Bird
Language Skits Activity. Here’s the whole story:
We use birds’ five “voices” to group categories of their sounds. These cat-
egories define the birds’ vocabularies, just as we use verbs, nouns, and pro-
nouns for our language. We use the categories of song, companion or con-
tact calls, juvenile begging, aggression, and alarm. As you’ll discover in more
detail below, you only need to remember birds play the first four as baseline
voices—so when you hear them, you understand the vocalist is not in mortal
peril. The last one, ALARM, indicates something is amiss. It might be a big
something or a small something, but the bird alters its routine.

1. Song is easy to hear and a good way to identify birds. You usually hear
the song on bird identification tapes. Birds probably have many reasons to
sing, from attracting a mate, to heralding the dawn, to defending territory,
or perhaps simply to express the joy of being alive. In our latitude, primarily
the males sing, and their song varies in intensity and frequency throughout
the year. Usually a bird’s song lasts the longest of any other sounds that bird
makes. Listen and learn the most complex and melodious songs.

The Book of Nature | 189

2. Companion or contact calls used by birds keeps them in touch with
their families, flocks, and mates. A group of kinglets or geese will call to
each other in a conversational tone. They play a call-and-response rhythm.
Usually short and sharp sounds, some species also use these calls—at a more
intense volume and increased frequency—as alarms. Also the sudden cessa-
tion of these companion calls can indicate alarm.

3. Juvenile begging sounds happen when baby birds ask for food, or when
parent birds hand off food to their mates. You will hear wheezy, repetitive
calls, coupled with wing fluttering and a hunched-over body. This can be as
subtle as the whisper-like calls of baby savannah sparrows, or as obnoxious
as baby crows screaming for “more, more, more.”

4. Aggression calls, still considered baseline, can often be heard. They usu-
ally involve two males, but females will also loudly chase intruding females
out of their territories. Folks, in dramatic detail, learning bird-language pro-
vides a peek into nature’s soap opera. While aggression will be a big deal
for the few birds involved—and usually this just means one species reacting
to each other—it does not indicate a threat to others, so we don’t call it an
alarm. Male robins can be pulling each other’s feathers out while the song
sparrows and towhees still sing from the fence or the ground.

5. Alarm alerts us to birds’ perceived danger. If baseline is a still pond,

alarm is a stone thrown into the pond. It could be a boulder or a pebble dis-
turbing the singing-begging-flock-calling fabric of bird life.

To convey the range of alarm, we offer a helpful human analogy. Imagine

sitting at your naturalist desk on a warm summer day. The front door is
open and your neighbor’s dog wanders in. You know this animal is not dan-
gerous, but it doesn’t belong in your house, so you get up and escort the dog
back out the door. Maybe there was a little mild concern, and an altering
of your plans for the moment. That’s the low end of the alarm scale. Now
you are back at your desk, except this time a large and unknown dog comes
through your door. You might be a little more cautious! At the extreme
end, imagine a rampaging Bengal tiger leaping into your living room. Birds
show all these responses, from mild concern to screeching panic.
When we spend time outside, we enter birds’ homes. How could they
not notice us or anything else moving through their living rooms? Alarm

190 |
vocalizations tend to be like call notes, but with more intensity. They might be
higher-pitched to indicate a hawk or harsh and buzzy as when mobbing an owl
or cat. An alarm might also be an absence of sound. In some cases, silence can
be the indicator of danger in the area; I have heard a huge flock of pine siskins
fall silent, only to look up and see a Cooper’s Hawk flying overhead.

Corvid Disclaimer. The vocalizations we have described work best when

applied to the passerines, also known as the perching birds, a group of 4,600
species which include our own robins, sparrows, juncos, towhees, and wrens.
Other birds, such as owls, herons, and hawks, also use vocalizations to
help them get by in the world, but for our purpose of discovering predators
around, passerines provide clear assistance.

HOWEVER, one family of passerines has a definite trickster quality.

Beginners beware! It’s not always easy to understand the language of the cor-
vids. This very intelligent crow tribe, full of wily jays, ravens, magpies, and
crows, communicate extensively among themselves and resist our attempts
to eavesdrop on their conversations. Marvelous birds to observe, these corvid
species do not use the five voices clearly or reliably. When a song sparrow
alarms, there is something threatening it. When a jay alarms, it could be for
a number of reasons, including deceiving you.

Disturbance and Invisibility. In Resources below, we refer you to Jon Young’s audio-
tapes for a more luscious, full-sound description of “Alarm Calls,” “Concentric
Rings” of disturbance, and “the Routine of Invisibility.” Concentric rings emanate
from all disturbances. If the forest at peace is like a still pond, concentric rings roll
out like ripples coming off a rock thrown into the pond, disturbing everything in
the circle around it, with those disturbances affecting, in lesser degree, a series of
rings reaching further and further away. Like buoys on the water, birds indicate
alarm as the ripples wash past them. If you tune into the right frequencies, you
can pick up on amazingly subtle ripples. How do you know an owl has perched
in the hemlock tree? The birds have been shrieking at it for the past twenty min-
utes. How do you know a coyote approaches down the ridge? You have heard the
winter wren off to your left and the song sparrows across from you jump up to
the top of their thickets and give a brief note of annoyance.
You too give off concentric rings as unavoidable as breathing. Once you
become aware of the ripples you give off, you will feel surrounded by unfor-
giving motion detectors.

The Book of Nature | 191

Thankfulness. We learn this from Mohawk legend: At the beginning of time, the
Birds were given a very special duty to perform. They were instructed to use their
song to help lift the minds of the Human Family. Naturalists and bird-watchers
everywhere understand this: listening to birdsong is transforming. It quiets the
mind, helping us break patterns of negative, worried, chattering thinking, and
restore base patterns of peace, hope, and gratefulness. Regular listening for the
birds’ messages helps us to become aware of our mental state, reduces our ring of
disturbance, and raises our spirits in respect and Thanksgiving.

Resources: Bird Field Guides are abundant.

Pick one for your area.
Advanced Bird Language: Reading the Concentric Rings of Nature, (CD) by
Jon Young (ISBN 1579940188) (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Birds, Birds, Birds! An Indoor Birdwatching Field Trip (DVD) by John Feith
Bird Tracks & Sign: A Guide to North American Species, by Mark Elbroch
and Eleanor Marks (ISBN 0811726967)
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Macaulay Library (Free Bird Sounds Archive)
(http://www.animalbehaviorarchive.org)
Courtship in the Animal Kingdom, by Mark Jerome Walters (ISBN
0385263384)
Echoes of Kenya & Other Poems, by Ingwe (ISBN 1579940145)
Folklore & Legends of the Akamba, Volume 1 (CD) by Ingwe and narrated
by Victor Wooten (ISBN 1579940161) (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message, (Reading
Rainbow Book) by Jake Swamp and Erwin, Jr. Printup (ISBN
1880000547)
Ingwe, by Norman “Ingwe” Powell (ISBN 1579940137) (www.
WildernessAwareness.org)
Jungle Lore, by Jim Corbett (ISBN 0195651855)
Learning the Language of Birds, (Audio) by Jon Young (ISBN 157994003X)
(www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Peterson’s Field Guides: Bird’s Nests, by Hal Harrison (ISBN 0395483662)
Peterson Field Guide(R) to More Eastern/Central Birding, by Ear (Peterson
Field Guide Series) by Richard K. Walton, Robert W. Lawson, and

192 |
 Roger Tory Peterson (Audiobook) ( ISBN 0395712602)
Sibley’s Birding Basics, by David Allen Sibley (ISBN 0375709665)
Sibley Field Guide to Birds, (Eastern and Western), by David Allen Sibley
(ISBN 067945120X and 0679451218)
Spirit of the Leopard, stories & narration by Ingwe (CD) (www.
WildernessAwareness.org)
Stokes Nature Guides: A Guide to Bird Behavior Volume 1, by Donald and
Lillian Stokes (ISBN 0316817252)
Thanksgiving Address: Greetings to the Natural World, by John Stokes
(ISBN 0964321408)
The Birder’s Handbook: A Field Guide to the Natural History of North
American Birds, by Paul Ehrlich, David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye
(ISBN 0671659898)
The Life of Birds, (DVD) with David Attenborough. BBC Video. 2002.
The Other Way to Listen, by Byrd Baylor and Peter Parnall (ISBN
0689810539)
The Singing Life of Birds: The Art and Science of Listening to Birdsong, by
Donald Kroodsma (ISBN 0618405682)
Thayer Birding Software (by Region) (http://www.thayerbirding.com)
Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Nature Observation and Tracking, by Tom
Brown,Jr. (ISBN 0425099660)
Western Birding by Ear, a Guide to Bird-Song Identification (Audiobook)
(Peterson Field Guides) (ASIN: B000EOBEDY)

Conclusion
As we said in the beginning, “Nature has no beginning as it has no end.”
So, for these eight sections of the Book of Nature, we do not suggest they
be taken one at a time in sequence or in isolation from each other. Rather,
approach them collectively and holistically, so they all may dance together,
feeding and playing off of each other.
Cycle through these topics again and again. The simple but important
dynamic we offer is to cultivate these eight topics, as a whole, to truly trans-
form awareness of and connection to the natural world. As time allows,
with beginners, take a very ‘shallow’ first cut through all eight areas, hoping

The Book of Nature | 193

at least one area will ‘capture’ each person. Then continue to cycle and dip
through again and again, taking a deeper cut each time, so a participant,
sustained by his or her personal interest in one or another area, will grow to
understand how everything connects to everything else. Even if you ONLY
find interest in mammals and tracking, you still quickly reach a point where
the answers to your mammal questions cause you to learn about a neighbor-
ing or downstream being. Your connections with nature will continue to go
deeper and deeper as you ask questions and follow your heart’s curiosity to
where it wants to take you.
The deep connection will sprout in each person differently, but it will origi-
nate from a heartfelt enthusiasm, a passionate engagement with some aspect of
the natural world. As mentors, we sustain and encourage personal connections
throughout our time with people. For some it will be the mystery of tracking.
For others it will be interpreting bird language. For others, the sense of con-
nection will come from learning to live outside in the woods with nothing but
their wits to keep them alive.
It doesn’t matter what avenue brings people to this heartfelt connection,
it only matters that they find it. This connection is what brings about a sense
of meaning in our lives—it deepens in each one of us a sense that we have a
special place in this precious world.

194 |
The Book of Nature | 195
Chapter 9
ORIENTING TO THE
NATURAL CYCLE

Orienting to the Natural Cycle

We hold a beautiful vision: a whole culture of naturalists prac-
ticing habits of awareness, bright with passion, and literate in
the Book of Nature. By now, you’ve got the picture and you’ve
got the bag of tricks.
When you lead a group of people over a period of time,
you awaken that sparkle in their eyes—outside, with no
walls to corral their energy—then you might be wondering,
“Coyote Mentoring makes exciting sense, but how do I plan
my day? How do I take this bundle of ideas and organize them
into a lesson plan? How do I orient and guide all that Child
Passion?” In this chapter and the next we suggest bringing our
innate consciousness of the Natural Cycle to the surface to The Bagua, a model which is
still used today in Chinese
help design the learning experience.
medicine, martial arts, feng shui,
We already know the Natural Cycle intimately. Since you and traditional customs. Many
live on planet Earth, then you are quite familiar with the people still hang a rendering of
the Bagua, with a mirror in the
sun’s path through our lives. You know it in your bones, in middle, by the entry doors to their
your wardrobe, and in your daily schedule. Round and round houses.

Orienting to the Natural Cycle | 197

Native cultures are oriented the sun goes, beginning in the East, wrapping around to the
to the four compass directions
and they cultivate a powerful South, then tucking in to the West, and resting in the North
awareness of the spirits of east, before emerging in the East once again. The same thing goes
south, west, and north. With
sun in their faces and air against
for the seasons. We’re all subject to these cycles as Earth turns
their skin, they felt every day and and tilts and spins around the sun.
season turn. It’s in their building
codes, where their doors always
face the east. In architecture, art, A Worldwide Sense of Direction
ceremonies, names, everywhere,
there was an imbedded awareness
I remember the first Art of Mentoring class I attended years ago.
of the cycles of day and season First, they asked me to choose a twig from a pile resting on one
and corresponding transitions of of eight differently colored cloths and remember the color of the
human life being cultivated all
the time. Growing up in these cloth. “What kind of phooey is this?” I wondered. Well, I took
cultures, it was impossible ever to one, and the next morning I learned my twig from the green
be “disoriented.”
cloth meant I was “Southwest” for the week. “What the heck
J Y, Native Orientation is this about?” I wondered again, looking around at the others,
every one of us puzzled at being named a different “direction.”
That question stayed with me that entire week and for a
long time after. This chapter integrates you into a worldwide,
on-going conversation based on the complexities of that sim-
ple question, “What are these directions all about?” Orienting
to the four directions of the Natural Cycle indicated by the
compass we see on the corner of our maps—the one with its
needles pointing E, S, W, and N—started a long time ago.
Many cultures across the world use a common tool to ori-
ent themselves to life. You’ll find the directions noted in most
traditional cultures, especially those that live a fair distance
north or south of the equator. Those cultures, therefore, have
four distinct seasons. The seasonal orientations are central to
Native American cultures on both sides of the Equator.
Farther afield, the Chinese have an ancient and intricate
model of the eight directions (the four cardinal plus the four
intermediate) called the Baqua. European descendents may
be surprised to know that the four or eight directions have
also been prominent in the lifestyles of their own cultures.
The Celtic traditions celebrate seasonal turning points eight
times a year. Caves found in France were ancient burial sites
where archaeologists found bodies lying exactly in east-west
or north-south orientation. The cross symbolizes the direc-
tions for myriad Christian cultures. Cross-shaped churches in

198 |
 Distillation and Integration

Release and Reflection

End and Beginning

Harvest and Excitement and

Celebration Inspiration

Relaxation and Orientation and

Internalization Motivation

Focus and Perspiration

The qualities of the Eight Directions

Orienting to the Natural Cycle | 199

Ethiopia have been spectacularly carved out of stone and hollowed into the
earth. Westminster Abbey, home of Christian ceremonies and royal British
coronations, was built in four long aisles set in the four directions.
Of course many more examples of orienting to the Natural Cycle exist
around the globe: the pyramid builders of Egypt oriented precisely to the
four directions; the Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders depended on directional
knowledge for sea navigation; San Bushmen of southern Africa live by the time
of sun and rain; the Aborigines of Australia, with timeless spirits, reportedly
break wristwatches when they wear them! Whether for practical purposes
like the design of Dutch colonial homes to maximize sunlight distribution,
or as functional customs that channel the entrance and exit from ceremonial
space, the directions have long been core to cultures everywhere.

A Natural Cycle of Meanings

We find even deeper meaning when we look at the symbolic associations of
each of the directions. Each carries common archetypal characteristics and
energies. For instance, in Chinese tradition, one direction may stand for fire,
another for water, another for metal. One direction may be seen as beneficial
to face when meditating, while another may be good to face when training
for a martial art. Clearly observable in worldwide cultures, the four or eight
directions are aligned with times of day and seasons of the year and are per-
meated with symbolic power to guide us.
The Natural Cycle is an Orienter, for its directional arrows tell you both
literally and metaphorically where you are, not only in geographic space and
in time, but also in terms of cultural identity and life wisdom.
The common thread derives not from the specific content of the direc-
tions, but from the context, how they are used. We want to call attention
to this context. Cultures everywhere observe a distinct and recurring
cycle, which always has the compass directions as its units of measure-
ment and whose vectors have meanings drawn from the inf luences of the
sun on life. Both the dynamic turn and the directional meanings of the
Natural Cycle orient the people to the great processes and energies that
thread through their lives.

The Natural Cycle as an Organizer

You already have—at the least—an unconscious awareness of the influences
of the compass directions on your life. Now it’s time to really look and feel
deeply into them. For is it not possible that they affect more than just how

200 |
we dress and plan our days? Do you experience different feel- We are accustomed to thinking
that the sun rises and sets, but
ings and emotions watching a sunrise than you do watching a in reality, wherever we are on
sunset? Or sitting in the dark of night? It could be that these the earth turns into the sun in
the morning, faces it roundly
direction-based cycles affect us more than we realize. at noon, and turns away from
Perhaps once we tune into these natural cycles with our it at sunset. It is wonderful to
conscious awareness, we will see—just like watching a magic realize that always there is a band
of sunrise somewhere, moving
trick with wiser eyes—subtle happenings that we’ve been sub- slowly westward around the earth.
ject to all along but never fully appreciated. Perhaps then we Always accompanying this rim
of light is a moving horizon of
can say, “Hey, let me see that deck of cards ...” and perform birdsong to greet it, the “dawn
magic ourselves. chorus.” It’s like a sonic version of
So here we are, setting up a nature-based program, cre- “The Wave” that goes round the
stadium with fans at a ball-game,
ating a learning culture to immerse people in the language but this wave takes twenty four
of nature. Why not follow in the footsteps of every other hours to make a full circle and
never stops going!
nature-based culture? What if we orient our educational
model to the four and eight directions? What if we align our E H, Dawn Chorus
program with the Natural Cycle of the sun, seasons, and our
own human lives?
The Natural Cycle provides mentors with a sense of direc-
tion and an orientation for designing and facilitating learning
experiences. The next chapter presents three ways to use the
Natural Cycle as an Organizer for Educators. Initially, use it
as a baseline for mentoring—what you do all the time—de-
signing the flow of learning. The second way offers a perspec-
tive to notice emerging edges; it profiles the stages of the natu-
ral learning journey. The third way uses the Natural Cycle as a
guideline for coordinating mentoring teams, learning groups,
and program logistics when your program grows too big for
one person to handle.
I didn’t know it at the time, but there was quite a bit of
research and intention behind that little twig I picked up off
a colored cloth that represented the Southwest. Building a
culture based on the eight directions puts us in sync with the
moods of nature. And this, when you stop to think about it,
provides a profound model for “nature education.” What is
more “nature” than the sun, the seasons, or the eternal pro-
cesses of time, growth, and decline?
But first, let’s take a swing through the Natural Cycle itself.

Orienting to the Natural Cycle | 201

Think of alfalfa, the plant grown
in the fields to make hay for The Natural Cycle
horses and cattle. Begin with the
alfalfa sprout that we sometimes
Welcome to the Natural Cycle of the Eight Directions. We
find on our sandwiches, those want to start by feeling the moods of each direction. We’ll
little wiry, thin, white, rooted look first where the sun begins our day—in the eastern sky.
things with the tiny green leaves.
Hold one in your hand in your As we follow the sun, we also venture into parallel seasons of
imagination, and stare at the year and life-stages of every growing thing.
palm of your hand. Notice the
little seed coat that once held in
As you read, let yourself experience each direction like a dis-
the alfalfa sprout. Let that alfalfa tinct pool of water, and swim not only through what we’ve writ-
sprout shrink back in your mind ten, but also through whatever thoughts and images come to
to when it was just a seed.
you from your life, your experience. Enjoy.
Now, imagine a fifty-five gallon
drum filled with those seeds. By
spring imagine all those seeds East
have been planted and sprouted.
Between early spring and mid-
Each day begins at dawn, when the radiance of the great
summer’s day, there is a revolution fire of the sun glows over the eastern horizon then breaks
of growth and change on the into sunrise, pouring its light over the land like warm water.
surface of the earth, which is called
“rapid, explosive growth.” Imagine Birds lift their voices, heralding the fresh light, the new day.
the field that would be big enough Humans rise from their dreams and plants lean sunward. All
for each alfalfa plant to grow to its
fullest expression, perhaps four
visible creation expectantly turns to a new beginning, sud-
or five feet tall, and maybe three denly renewed with energy.
or four feet in diameter. The field The season paralleling the time of sunrise is Spring. The
stretches on towards the horizon
in all directions as far as your eyes wet, swelling soil blushes with sprouts of grass and fragile leaves
can see. bud like green mist in the trees. Wet little babies stumble into
By midsummer, the alfalfa has
the excitement of life. Daylight lengthens, the air warms, and
filled the field. The bees are humans look ahead with energetic plans. Everything in the
visiting and beginning to pollinate natural world reaches towards the returning light with enthu-
the flowers. It is midsummer’s day
and the plants know, “It’s time siasm, inspiration, and a sense of renewal or rebirth.
for us to change our focus. Now If there is parallel time in the journey of a human life,
it is time to turn all that solar
energy from now to the end of
it’s the moment of birth: when a baby cries into the world
the warm season into preparation of light and oxygen for the first time. Suddenly the horizon
for winter.” The same amount of looms limitless with possibility: who knows who this little
solar energy still goes into the
plants but now it’s concentrated in human will become?
causing them to become strong, to The general energy of these times, of the East, is that of
be filled with wood. Wood is the
manifestation of new growth into tenderness and excited beginnings. The feeling is of renewal,
hardness, which will allow the fresh possibilities, and glad welcome; of Excitement and
plant to spread its seeds.
Inspiration.
continued...

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Southeast That time between the south and
the west, between summer and
autumn, is the time of making
As the sun rises, it arcs, sweeping and climbing southward. By fruits and seeds and storing
mid-morning, the golden ball is in the Southeast of the sky, in energy in roots for other plants.
mid-climb. Life warms up and kicks into gear, jump-starting It’s a time of internal development,
internal preparation. And it is just
into action. The day-light creatures begin the work of the day, as profound and powerful as the
the robins establish their worm-hunting grounds or search time of explosive growth.
out the best twigs for nest-building, the humans sharpen their J Y, “Alfalfa”
tools, turn on the computers, and motivate themselves into the Seeing Through Native Eyes,
work du jour. audiotape

The parallel season is late Spring, when the young plants

burst with green growth, rapidly building bodies of foliage
that orient to the light, winds, and walls of their environments.
Plant energy, devoted to abundant external growth, develops
its physical form and orients to its world.
The parallel time in human life is childhood, when we
measure a child’s rapid growth with pencil marks on the walls
and bills for ever-new shoes and clothes. Children instinctively
follow urges to test out, experiment with, and orient to the
surrounding world. They play (watch out!) with the forces of
gravity and fire, and they learn so much, becoming sturdily
prepared for full lives as adults.
The dominant energy of the Southeast is that of move-
ment, jump-starting into action, rapid external growth; so
we focus on Orientation and Motivation.

South
The sun reaches its zenith when it sits enthroned in full glory
in the South at mid-day, noon solar time. Around this time,
the birds immerse themselves in the full-throttled work of
feeding and building, while humans are in the full swing of
their day—focusing, sweating, out in the fields, inside busi-
ness meetings, taking classes, working hard. Inertia has been
overcome and everyone and everything is in the groove.
The parallel season is Summer. Through long days with
hot temperatures, the tall, green grasses and other plants
flower in bold reds and yellows, enticing shapes, and alluring
smells of rose or lavender. At this zenith, the flowers attract

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A Saturday in November was busy pollinators and provide sensual delight. Humans labor
approaching the time of twilight,
and the vast tract of unenclosed hard to take advantage of the long daylight.
wild known as Egdon Heath In terms of our human lives, adolescence parallels this pin-
embrowned itself moment by
moment. The face of the heath
nacle when external growth matches internal development. It
by its mere complexion added is time to center on self, to question and search. If inspiration
half an hour to evening; in fact, is an in-breath, perspiration filters that input into building an
precisely at this transitional point
of its nightly roll into darkness the identity. Devoting furious energy to “flowering,” dressing in
great and particular glory of the name-brand shoes and hip clothes, at this time every action
Egdon waste began. The somber
stretch of rounds and hollows
attracts attention. Focus is narrowed and sharpened, and most
seemed to rise and meet the everything else outside of that focus becomes “uncool.” Notice
evening gloom in pure sympathy, the singularity of vision and action.
the heath exhaling darkness as
rapidly as the heavens precipitated The general energy of these times, of the South, is that of
it. Twilight combined with the hard work and busyness; so we key on Focus and Perspiration.
scenery of Egdon Heath to evolve
a thing majestic without severity,
impressive without showiness, Southwest
emphatic in its admonitions,
grand in its simplicity. After reaching its peak, the sun lowers itself down into the
Southwest at mid-afternoon, but its heat lingers. The plants
T H, Return of the
Native, Twilight on Egdon Heath droop, and the birds and mammals mostly lie silent and still, as
they feel the urge to rest and nap. This is “Siesta.” The insects
stay busy, giving voice to this time of day through their buzzing
and throbbing tones and rhythms. Lizards move about quickly
if they have the shade they need, or take refuge in intense heat.
At this time, when the school day ends, work loses productivity,
and everyone just wants to take a break, a nap, or a dip.
In terms of the seasons, this is Late Summer. The birds’
work of nesting and feeding comes to an end and they drift
off to get some time alone. The plants dry into shades of gold.
Now, fully pollinated, they focus their energy on hardening
stems, on producing the internal woody strength that will
support the coming fruit.
In terms of a human life, this is the transition from ado-
lescence to adulthood, the time to find oneself apart from
parents, to develop inner strength for independent adulthood.
Nowadays, this could mean college, or perhaps youthful travels,
when young leave the protective care of their parents and expe-
rience things never before possible. In the midst of this transi-
tion comes, hopefully, internalization of identity and ownership
of personal gifts. Among cultures whose ancient routines are

204 |
intact, this is an intense time of training, rites of passage, and initiation into
the roles, responsibilities, and spiritual challenges facing adulthood.
Southwest energy is that of internal growth and of taking care
of the physical need for rest from the hard work; Relaxation and
Internalization.

West
Finally, the sun sets more or less in the West—depending on the time of
year—signaling the end of the day, throwing oranges and pinks from the
horizon out over the sky. At this time of day, birds like the squawking geese
congregate in flocks to fly to their roost for the night. At this time, humans
arrive back home and sit down together to eat dinner and share their exploits.
Completion and celebration fill the air.
In terms of seasons, this is the Autumn, or the harvest season, when
everyone gathers together to reap and celebrate the bounty of the year.
Singing and dancing, storing up and giving thanks—the community comes
alive. The reds, golds, and crimsons of the autumn leaves reflect the sunset’s
vibrant colors. In the life-cycle of the plant, this time bears ripe fruit—nuts
and squash, corn and apples—finally achieving their fullness to make a con-
tribution to the community.
The parallel stage in a human life, young adulthood, one bears fruit that
nourishes everyone—either literally in the form of children, or metaphori-
cally in the maturation of vision, role, and identity. Often demonstrated as
the abundant productivity of a career, or masterful honing of a set of skills,
adulthood marks the time to be of service to the greater whole. The mutual
celebration arrives when parents really see their children develop into com-
rades, friends, and peers.
The essential energy of the West, is that of gathering together, in
community, to share our bounty; of Harvest and Celebration.

Northwest
When the sun goes out of sight, light still lingers and slowly fades away into
the darkness of night. The true transition to night-time happens at twilight,
when the sun is in the Northwest, out of sight and behind the Earth. Birds
settle in their roosts, and humans prepare for sleep, giving up this day and
turning towards the next.
In terms of the seasons, this Late Autumn time causes leaves and annual
plants to decay back into the earth. Unused crop plants turn back into the

Orienting to the Natural Cycle | 205

ground, as the work of the whole year resigns to the growing darkness. The
feeling is of letting go and death. Interestingly, all across the globe, human
holidays reflect on death and the passing of ancestors—Halloween, All
Soul’s Day, Day of the Dead, Shamhain, Ghost Supper.
In terms of a human life, at this time, energetic adulthood winds
down because children have reached adulthood and age begins to show.
Development and attention turn from personal accomplishments to one’s
place and role in the community as a teacher or leader. At this time, one
surrenders the past and gleans wisdom from experience. Facing unfinished
inner work, at this time we ask, “What did Grandmother or Grandfather do
in times like this?” “What will I leave for the next generation?” This is a time
of transition into the role of an elder.
The energy of the Northwest is that of letting go, of looking back on
what has been, and preparing for a role of leadership as an Elder in the
community; the growing darkness generates Reflection and Release.

North
The sun sits in the north, firmly on the other side of the Earth, at mid-
night. In this time of deepest darkness, the song birds sleep soundly, so do
the humans.
The season is Winter. Days are short and nights are cold. Humans seek
warmth indoors. They work on crafts, listen to stories, sleep, and dream. The
seeds of the plants lie dormant in the ground. The whole year’s cycle—and
all of the hope for continuation of that species—now lives in a tiny seed.
In human life, this time of elderhood, turns hair white like snow, and one
becomes less active physically. During this time, patience and wisdom seem
fully realized, and the mothering and fathering instincts turn toward the
entire community. In a healthy society, Elders take on the subtle and gentle
role of passing on culture and values to their many “grandchildren” through
storytelling, providing a patient and non-judging ear, and guiding the pro-
cesses that take children into adolescence, adolescents into adulthood, and
adults into the roles and responsibilities of leadership.
The reflection of the Northwest has sifted through all past-experience,
and now in the North, essential nuggets of wisdom filter back into commu-
nity life, just as the work of a plant’s life distills into a tiny seed, waiting to
integrate back into the next cycle of life.
The general energy of these times, of the North, is that of dormancy,
the culmination of experience, of wisdom; of Distillation and Integration.

206 |
Northeast
Still out of sight, the sun now moves towards the East, into the Northeast,
pre-dawn. Light gently seeps into the world, muted and gradual, and yet
the stars still twinkle, so one wonders: is this still the night of the previous
day or morning of the next? This time holds mystery and uncertainty. The
humans are deep in the dream-time of sleep. For many monks, yogis, martial
arts masters, and holy men and women, this also happens to be when they
wake up to do their practice of prayer and meditation.
In terms of the seasons, the nebulous time when Winter lingers and
Spring hesitates, we call the “Thaw.” In the life cycle of a plant, this time of
miraculous spark back to life, the seed mysteriously awakens and secretly
germinates, so life begins anew. Maybe this actually marks the “death” of the
seed? Perhaps the event marks both new life and the seed’s death?
In terms of human life, the Elder gracefully breathes his or her last
breath: death. But one wonders: Maybe this end begins some other life?
The Northeast is a mysterious, or some would say “spiritual” time, when
the death of the old twinkles and transforms into rebirth of the new. Some
people take note of a special bond between the very old and the very young.
Perhaps they each touch this place of mystery.
For in addition to being the place of death, the Northeast undergoes
conception, a sperm unpredictably gets through to a certain egg, or a dor-
mant seed at last finds all the conditions perfect for germination, suddenly
sparking into underground movement. And soon enough, after gestation
time—be it a day or so for a plant or nine months for a human baby—a seed
shoots its eager head above soil, a baby cries its first breath, the sun returns.
The energy of this Northeast time, therefore, is that of transition
from one cycle to the next, of being near the mysterious source of creativ-
ity; of the invisible connection between End and the Beginning.

Orienting to the Natural Cycle | 207

Chapter 10
THE NATURAL CYCLE OF LEARNING

We’ve been with wild kids in the woods without designing ways of orienting
to the Natural Cycle, and we’ve seen disaster. Those colorful cloths linked to
directions at The Art of Mentoring program seemed hokey at first, but they
turned out to be an incomparably helpful way to shift our mentoring con-
sciousness from crowd control to orchestrating a learning experience.

How to Use this Chapter

This chapter offers detail and flow-charts for using the Natural Cycle to ori-
ent Learning:
Orientation for Flow Learning — Use the Flow Learning Cycle as a guide
to planning the dynamic flow of an educational experience whether you call
it a lesson, activity, outing, course, program, or walk in the woods.
Some Representative Models — Apply the Cycle in a variety of situations.
Read through a detailed narrative showing how it works with a “Tracking
Club,” then study a set of charts showing models of short and long nature
courses.
Shifting Direction: Adaptation — Once acting within a planned design,
use the Fifty-fifty Principle and Improvisation to observe energy patterns
and adjust as needed.

208 |
Profiling the Learning Journey — Over time, watch for the cues that help
determine the Profile of the Learning Journey with the folks you serve with
mentoring to anticipate growth phases and be prepared for passages.
Orientation for Larger Groups and Complex Programs — Mentoring
needs low ratios of mentors to participants and outdoor education requires
attention to program logistics. The Natural Cycle offers tips for coordinat-
ing mentoring teams, grouping participants, and managing programs.

Orientation for Flow Learning

Two decades ago, Joseph Cornell, in his well-loved book Sharing the Joy
of Nature, developed the idea of a natural rhythm that he named “Flow
Learning” for outdoor education. Introducing it, he said, “In leading nature
activities over the years, I gradually realized that there was a sequence for
using games and activities that always seemed to work best, regardless of a
group’s age, its mood, or the physical setting. I became convinced that the
reason people responded so well to this particular sequence was that it’s in
harmony with certain subtle aspects of human nature.”
Teachers, parents, and outdoor educators have long agreed, and so
do we: Cornell’s Flow Learning uses a time-honored notion to follow the
Natural Cycle:

1) Start by creating enthusiasm

2) Move into focusing attention
3) Concentrate on direct experience of nature
4) Gather and share the inspiration.

Cornell’s model is brilliant. The Natural Cycle we present is very similar, but
more detailed. The Natural Cycle has eight aspects to it rather than four, it
develops more subtle energies that are experienced during the learning pro-
cess, and we apply it not only to educational design but to the entire workings
of nature. Many people take away the Natural Cycle as the tool from our
workshops, because they can apply it in so many ways: from organizing their
lives, to strengthening organizations, to writing songs or papers or books.
Both the Natural Cycle and Flow Learning share one primary assump-
tion: people aren’t necessarily ready for focused learning when they show up,
such as at the start of a day. So if your teacher routine always begins with

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 209

instruction, you’ll be happier if you climb out of that box. When you begin
in the Northeast, listen and watch very carefully to meet the people you
mentor where they are at. Take into account what mental and emotional
state they will be in when they arrive, and how you can inspire and motivate
them into following your lead around the cycle.
The context and timing of learning is equally, if not more, important than the
content. A Coyote Mentor always has his or her eyes on both—presenting good
information and lessons and activities, but doing so in contexts timed and set up
for success. Going with the flow of the Natural Cycle of Learning is critical.

Designing the Flow

Northeast—Open the Learning Experience
Create a ceremonial opening that “shakes off the road dust” and brings every-
one to the current time and place. Depending on age and circumstance, this
can be anything from a long deep breath, to a “pop-corn” thanksgiving, to a
regalia-filled invocation, or a simple song.

East—Inspire
A good way to start is by inspiring, pumping up, filling with enthusiasm
(notice the Latin roots, En + Theo = God inside). Tell fresh personal stories
or rousing hero stories and demonstrate an impressive skill for your listen-
ers. Raise a powerful question in their minds. Create a vacuum within them
ready to suck in learning. Look for wide eyes shining with excitement and
body language showing eagerness and curiosity.

Southeast—Activate
Activate people into learning. Activate Child Passions to kick them into
action. Bridge the gap between excited inspiration and focused learning by
being an encouraging coach and an action-based role-model.
This may include getting their bodies moving and ready to pounce with
Animal Forms, or getting the group mind chattering to figure out what must
be done to track the mystery. This may also include orienting them with
clear instructions—explaining ground rules, or creating community agree-
ments. For this phase of transition, from Inspiration to Focused Learning,
role-modeling is key.

210 |
 Integrate

Reflect

Open and Close; Listen

for What’s Next

Gather and Share Inspire

Take a Break Activate

Focus

The moods of the Flow Learning Cycle

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 211

The beauty of Flow Learning is
that it shows you how to begin
South—Focus
where your students are … Flow Channel energy into first-hand experience and focused learning.
Learning allows you to create
an endless variety of nature Use the Art of Questioning to prolong inspiration and curiosity
experiences, each ideally matched as long as you can. During this time “the lesson” shows up.
to present circumstances and no
two ever exactly alike. Plan an activity that may include scientific investigation,
researching field guides, journaling and sketching, mapping
J C, Sharing Nature
with Children Volume 2
the territory, gathering and counting, building a structure,
making a fire, cooking a meal, or tracking an animal. The les-
son can definitely be disguised as a game, but its key ingredi-
ent involves mental focus and eventually arrives at “learning
something” whether or not they realize it.
A Few Suggestions for Good
Teaching Southwest—Take a Break
1. Teach less, and share more
2. Be receptive After working hard, rest easy. Plan time to allow different
3. Focus the child’s attention people to finish up the lesson at different paces, to have a
without delay
4. Look and experience first; talk
snack, drink some water, or play a casual game while a few
later take a nap under an old tree or by a warm rock. This offers
5. A sense of joy should permeate the perfect time to wander around, walking with no agenda or
the experience.
destination, just flowing like water. Let the efforts of work be
J C, Sharing Nature forgotten for a time and take care of your hard-working body
with Children, 20th Anniversary
Edition and mind. Be timeless. Think fun games, think laughter, think
afternoon naps.

West—Gather and Share

Using crow calls, drumbeats, or a Song Circle, gather the
refreshed group together to harvest the learning. In commu-
nity, invite them to show and tell their Story of the Day, add-
ing everyone’s contribution to the Map.
From your circle platform, use this time for Mind’s Eye
Imagining. Celebrate and be proud of what you’ve done and
appreciate each other’s accomplishments as well. Ask, “What
did we each learn? What was your favorite moment? What
are you thankful for from the day?” Sing songs, break out the
instruments, get happy.

NOTE: In short programs with younger kids, the contact time

with instructors might actually end in the West. But you can

212 |
certainly include a quick homework challenge (Northwest), or a short wisdom
story, nugget, poem, or reading. (North), and then be sure to end with a clos-
ing, however brief (Northeast). Even if your intentional learning program ends
in the West, be assured that reflection, integration, and new interest will hap-
pen naturally within the home community. When you meet them again, you
might check in to see what happened in the night.

Northwest—Reflect
Reflect, look back on the process, ask introspective questions, do some
“inner tracking.” Go deeper into the story of the day to reflect on its les-
sons, both natural and human. What do the strewn bones and fur of the
rabbit tell us about the nature of survival? Why did I get scared like that?
What is that telling me?
For younger kids reflection most often happens on the trail walking back
with the instructor to the pickup point, or back at home as they report their
news to the family who knows their history. With older kids and adults, sug-
gest talking in small groups, solo journaling, or reflective homework.

North—Integrate
In the North, we now have some nuggets of wisdom that the sifting reflec-
tion of the Northwest helped us to find. The thing to do in the North is
to take those insights—about ourselves and about the learning process—
and integrate them into the rest of our lives. Maybe someone felt extremely
helpless during a night-hike with no flashlights. What else in that person’s
life makes them sometimes feel helpless? Could the strategies used to get
them through the night-hike be applied to these other areas of life as well?
What are those strategies? When other similar situations arise, exactly what
actions will they take in order to create change?
This application of lessons to the big-picture of life could be done around
the camp-fire at night, in more intimate one-on-one sessions, or through
journaling. They could even take it home. The goal is to offer questions or
assignments that turn seemingly isolated, life-specific and short-term learn-
ing into long-term wisdom.

Northeast—Close and Listen for what’s Next

The Northeast of your lesson plan really begins the next lesson; the north-
east prepares the ground for new inspiration. Ceremonially close the past

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 213

“cycle” and get ready for the next. As the mentor or instructing team, get a
cup of tea, slow down, come to your senses, and be receptive to what wants
to be the subject of the next Natural Cycle of Learning.
Recall or observe the body-language of the people you mentor to tell you
what inspires them, listen to what the weather and the season offer, and
notice what surfaces in your own creativity. Like scouts, walk around notic-
ing everything from the front and the back. When the spark of creativity for
the next round comes, go with it. Be open to the moment.

Northeast Addendum – Open and Close

Everything begins and ends in the mysterious Northeast. Educationally,
this means marking the beginning and ending in a conscious way, so that
your teaching time becomes sandwiched between two ceremonial mark-
ings, like book-ends. Think, for instance, of the opening and closing cer-
emony of the Olympics. A ceremonial “opening” shakes off the road-dust
or the sleep-crust and brings everyone to the current time and place. A cer-
emonial “closing” wraps up the experience. When you do this, you allow
for transformative growth.
This three-part process is commonly acknowledged and practiced in Rite
of Passage education:

1) Separation — Do something ceremonially to separate your learning com-

munity from the normal, day-to-day tasks so immediate dramas and con-
cerns fall away.

2) Learning/Growth Experiences — Enjoy and take advantage of this

“sacred space” you have created, in which the duties and roles of mundane
life remain suspended, where you will shape opportunities for transforma-
tion and lasting learning.

3) Re-Incorporation — Mark the end of the time with a closing ceremony

that re-incorporates everyone, along with the boons and learning gained,
back into their day-to-day lives.

Openings and Closings don’t have to be elaborate. For a day-long pro-

gram, the opening can be as simple as singing a song or having a go-round
of sharing what each participant feels thankful for. The end may be a mir-
ror reflection of the beginning. Just doing something at beginning and end,

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defines the time of learning. Even at staff meetings, try doing this in order to
create a clear space for optimal communication and planning.
However, marking the beginning and end of longer programs—one year
or multiple years—can be elaborate. Think of the hoopla, the invisible rituals
beginning each school year: back-to-school shopping, parent-teacher socials,
opening ceremonies with the principal. Of course, we also remember more
about the commotion made at the end of the year: tests, final grades, year-
book signings, and the Big Boom—graduation.
At Yale University, a ceremonial gate marks a sacred place on the land
where students may walk through only twice: once when they step onto
campus, their first official act as freshmen, and the second time, four years
later at graduation, when they walk off the campus. We often invite Elders
to sit with the folks we are mentoring through programs, to witness begin-
ning-of-program commitments and goals, and hear end-of-program stories
(of course, with acute listening and pointed questioning). You can create
your own Rite of Passage traditions and use little ceremonies that open and
close them, but remember, always devise ceremonial bookends for even the
shortest of times with your learning community.

Applying the Model

Another time-honored tenet of good teaching: theory should be followed up
with examples. So, following you will find a set of examples. The Tracking
Club Model provides a narrative, showing how mentors organize the event in
their minds throughout a half-day tracking adventure with adults on a beach
near Santa Cruz, California. This is followed by a set of charts:

working with support from the NatureMapping Program of the

University of Washington (with a website inviting you to take on some-
thing like this with your classroom www.depts.washington.edu/natmap).

These examples flesh out the theory. Study the ones that approximate your
situation and imagine them with your people in your bio-region. We hope
they help.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 215

Tips & Thoughts from a Tracking Club
For this edition of Coyote’s Guide to Connecting with Nature, we want to pro-
vide a deeper framework for our readers, and especially for the folks who are
out there using this guide as their guide. We have had many conversations
about this section, and its importance to this work. This led to discussing
the section with some veterans of one Tracking Club. After reviewing the
first edition, we edited the older version, and added some feedback for our
readers—we hope this will help you in thinking about this model, or similar
models in your region.
Our friends from this particular Tracking Club were concerned that readers
might get the idea that in order to start a tracking club on their own; they would
have to have an infrastructure and a lot of skilled volunteers. They want you to
know that this is not the case. This model can work for just a few folks starting
out, or a larger group who’ve been together for ten years. The more seasoned
trackers offered some ideas and feedback on this section for us. In the begin-
ning, they assure you, they were not very good at tracking, and had never done
this before. With training in the Art of Questioning, humility and openness to
feedback from participants and one another, they grew as mentors, trackers, and
people. This has been a great experience. The tracking club model is wholly scale-
able, and if only a few people show up (besides your volunteer facilitators), then
you can just wander from station to station together as a small group. When a lot
of people show up, break into groups and circulate through stations. Try to keep
your group size small (three to four is ideal, six gets too big), and at least twenty
minutes to a station (so it is not too rushed). Less is more in tracking. Offering
fewer well-studied stations is preferable to many superficial visits—which can
serve to frustrate participants beyond necessity.
For developing new station facilitators it works best to have people who
have been to a few Tracking Clubs, experiencing how it works. When they
are getting ready to move into the position of station facilitator, it is good to
train them (using this book!) on the Art of Questioning. Have them shadow
a station facilitator for a few rounds. It’s also good for them to see a couple
of different experienced people in action—and in between groups at sta-
tions—to discuss things with the experienced facilitators. When it is time
to become a station facilitator for the first time, have a veteran shadow them
for a few groups to help them get started.
In between Tracking Clubs, try to stay in touch by sharing nature stories
with one another (by phone, in person, or on internet forums) and work on
your own tracking skills (the Kamana Naturalist Training Program is great

216 |
for this, as is the Shikari Tracker Training Program available through the
Shikari Tracking Guild).
Here’s a bit of history and perspective on one local model. It helps to
know what others have gone through to get started so that you can learn
from the example.

Tracking Club Beginning

This particular Tracking Club started sometime around 1997 with a group
of people taking workshops with Jon Young. This group of attendees wanted
to push their tracking skills further. They complained that the only time
they got together with others who loved tracking as much as they did was
when Jon visited their area every few months offering workshops—everyone
agreed this was not frequent enough. Jon suggested the group begin a track-
ing club; similar to the one Jon had started along the Skykomish River in
Washington State.
The next time Jon came there was still no tracking club—and the same
complaints. Jon reiterated, “Start a tracking club and you can get together
every month and track together. This will keep things going for you to learn
together as a community.” Jon visited once again to conduct a workshop
with still no tracking club. It was during his next visit in 1998, that Jon
ran a workshop on The Art of Questioning. The day after this workshop
the attendees went to a local state park, and “served up a Tracking Club
experience.” Secretly enrolled local docent volunteers were sent to ‘test’ the
tracking club model. The tracking workshop participants were paired up and
placed at stations as tracking club station facilitators for their first Tracking
Club gathering. As the “test participants” moved from station to station the
docents offered great feedback to help refine the model. With Jon along as
the time-keeper they were able to find red-legged frog tracks on the sand
dunes—indeed an amazing experience.
That was the first day. Now, ten years later, this particular Tracking Club
still persists as a monthly, volunteer-run event. If you would like to read more
about Tracking Club models, find help or discuss this more, visit the Shikari
Tracking Guild’s website (www.shikari.org) and enter the discussion forum
for Tracking Clubs.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 217

The Tracking Club Model
The model of the Tracking Club is good to look at as an example of how the
Natural Learning Cycle may be applied. Notice small cycles within a larger
cycle nested within a still larger cycle. Like the old nesting dolls from Russia,
each track and sign station is a small cycle, on a good day; the stations will
each be based upon the Natural Cycle. This circle of cycles is the “public”
part of the experience nesting within the larger and longer time cycle of
the volunteer staff that are lead facilitators, scouts, station facilitators, lead
trackers, time keeper, and other support. The staff holding the event come
in service to the larger community of participants, while serving their own
desire to learn and grow in their skills of nature connection.
Staff and volunteers arrive at 7 AM and stay after participants have departed
to debrief the entire experience. Adults, teens, and family participants arrive at
7:45 AM, the program runs from 8 AM to around 11:30 AM depending on
the weather, the group’s interest level, and the tracks themselves.

Northeast for Staff – Minds Together

& Service Intentions Set 7:00 AM
The volunteer scouts and staff facilitators arrive at the tracking site, grate-
ful to be together so early in the morning. This is the best time to track
since everything is pristine; the ground still holds moisture, and most of
the year the sun comes across the tracks at a great angle. Everything in the
early morning sun is beautiful. The lead facilitator usually acknowledges
the beauty and reminds everyone of the need to be in service to participants
arriving later that morning. Someone will offer a brief kick-off to start a
Thanksgiving circle. Others may contribute with a quick Northeast round
of gratitude. This creates a space for everyone to set aside their “grocery
lists” enabling them to “see” this place and each other. The birds’ alarms
speak of hawks and coyotes. This magical time for volunteers and staff
establishes anticipation as everyone excitedly begins to relish the stories
left by the tracks from the night.

East for Staff – Inspiration & Goals 7:15 AM

One of the lead facilitators of the scout team will help set the tone for the team
by bringing to mind what phase the moon was in last night, what the weather
is doing or has done recently. Usually seasonal ecology is discussed and pre-
dictions made about sign and track to be found, anticipating some interesting
stories. The group may have a quick discussion about projected attendance for

218 |
the day to plot out routes and goals. Much may be gleaned at this time, scouts
and staff break off individually to search out all the likely places.

Southeast for Staff – Track Station Errands at 7:25 AM

The volunteer scouts head out looking for “berries for Grandma’s pie”—in
this case the berries are really fun and engaging sites where tracks have been
found called “tracking stations”; the pie is the Tracking Club. After scouting,
they gather up and begin to share their findings. Noticeably animated, they
distill the best things they have found:

“There’s a badger trail across the sand between the dunes, it’s so clear, it’s so
perfect!”

“Whoa. I found some great coyote tracks where the male and female tracks
braid down the beach. I think they’re licking the kelp!”

“I found some really tricky mouse tracks that obliterate partially at least, the
front foot of a brush rabbit. The other foot is visible and the nails are clear in
the damp earth. This will be a great station to build mystery …”

South for Staff – Tracking Club Focus Begins 7:45 AM

The team of staff, scouts, and volunteers are about to become interpreters at
each station of track and sign, and selected individuals will remain at each
station until the last group of participants moves by. One will become a time-
keeper, and any remaining others will rove to “trouble shoot,” helping with
questions. The South truly kicks in as the team reviews their stations decid-
ing on an order and a flow for the participant groups. They set up between
three and six stations, or mentoring locations, and will rotate small groups
from the badger through the coyotes. Decided in a hurry, the stations arise
from: 1) the pick of the tracks; and then 2) ease of location; 3) proximity to
one another (a time-keeper keeps folks moving); and 4) varied landscapes (to
examine different substrates with tracks).
Now it is time to turn attention to the arriving group. Brace yourself, for
the South mind does not dissipate for three hours to come! It requires focus
on the part of the staff to hold the intention of the day, to represent the sta-
tions for the lessons they present—both intended and unintended, and for
the station facilitators to facilitate.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 219

Northeast for Participants Begins – Team Transitions
from Staff Cycle to Participant Cycle 7:45 AM
During this time, cars start to pull into the parking lot near the tracking site.
Some of the volunteers are there—greeting new folks, welcoming veterans,
and orienting people. Some are down near the tracking site, collecting arriv-
als into a group and sharing general conversation—dropping hints of the
finds of the day. Still other volunteers are out at the site, making last minute
preparations, and keeping the delicate substrate situations safe from acci-
dental erasure by passing feet. Everyone is told by email or on the website to
arrive at 8 AM, though often there are stragglers until 8:30 or beyond—it is
best to start at 8 AM for whomever is there.
As people gather, rumors circulate about the really cool stuff on the beach
this morning. No one knows the details of the cool stuff except the scouts,
but awesome mysteries await. A special visitor we haven’t seen in a while
too, the badger! People who arrive early move around a bit more quickly and
finish their to-go cups of steaming beverages. They also act, unwittingly per-
haps, as the “east network” helping us build the charge for the day by talking
to each other and guessing who the special visitor might be. Someone always
guesses cougar.

Northeast for Participants – Opening Words 8:00 AM

The group gathers in a circle, away from the street noise, but not yet near
the tracks. One volunteer begins the circle with a brief thankful welcom-
ing greeting to bring everyone to the present. Smell the scent of the season.
Listen to the wind. Feel the sun peaking over the ridge and the gentle air.
Look at those beautiful, puffy clouds, Ahhh. Watch as the birds settle back
into song. Wow.

East for Participants – Welcome, Introductions & Overview 8:10 AM

The chosen facilitator gives a quick overview of the day after sharing
Thanksgiving words. Hints are given and stories told. Staff offer suggestions
for group selection and organization. After staff and volunteers are intro-
duced the group process begins with people sharing their names, where they
are from, how many times they’ve been to the Tracking Club, and often a
short, but cool nature story—especially a recent one, or something they are
thankful for.

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Southeast for Participants – Facilitate Group Flow 8:25 AM
The learning elements are explained: stations, small groups, time keeping,
moving between stations, and call-outs. The timekeeper demonstrates the
“crow call” that will be used to move groups when it is time to move. Next,
the big group is divided into manageable, evenly sized small groups. The
number of groups is the number of stations. We try to divide up by skill level,
so the station guide can focus on everyone. The large group is directed to fol-
low the staff volunteers at varying experience levels who have their hands
raised, thus self-selecting into today’s work groups. Each group is given a
number matching the station number, and goes with that numbered station
facilitator to the track stations, i.e. Group 1 follows station facilitator 1 to
the badger tracks; Group 2 follows station facilitator 2 to the coyote tracks;
Group 3 lines up with their leader, and so on.

South for Participants – Focus on Track & Sign 8:30 to 10:30 AM

Here’s where the real work begins for the participants and station facilitators
alike. All groups move to the stations and some of them already go deeply into
the Art of Questioning. Each station facilitator has a method of bringing the
participants into the lesson, but they all agree to keep everyone wondering.
Through the Art of Questioning, the stories at each station build with every
observation—intensified by the many eyes, minds, and perspectives on the
track, sign, and surrounding ecology.

Cycles within a Cycle – Stations as Mini Cycles

A skilled station facilitator with some training, modeling, a bit of time and
experience can increase both the learning experience and fun for partici-
pants, while honing deep tracking and nature connection into their own
learning. This is the reward for serving as a volunteer at the Tracking Club.
To provide the experience of the Natural Cycle, the Art of Questioning, and
other Core Routines as a method for bringing participants into a nature con-
nection experience within the context of Tracking.
Each tracking station cycle can employ a brief Northeast moment to
open the learning experience offered at that station, helping people feel
present and ready. The East begins when the station facilitator shares sto-
ries of the track and sign discovered during the morning scout, throwing in
some natural history, and building each new group’s perspective to inspire.
The Southeast begins by activating the group’s engagement with the track,
sign, and landscape, maybe even using some imitation. The South kicks

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 221

in by sharing questions, offering perspectives, and adding more field ecol-
ogy and science. When foreheads wrinkle, and in the context of the time
allotted, the station facilitator senses it is time to take a break. At this
point the Southwest kicks in; perhaps folks drink some water, share a
snack, a body stretch, or even do a quick sensory check-in. The West fol-
lows with a “gather & share” recapitulation of the station, making observa-
tions with new perspectives celebrated, and individuals honored for their
contributions.
“Two minutes … almost time to move …” the call out is given …
A quick point of reflection is offered, the Northwest, wrapping thoughts
and observations, trailing questions offered over shoulders. On a good day,
a station facilitator can offer a bit of wisdom from the North just before the
group disperses to the next station—an integrating principle offered from
the context of track and sign knowledge, of group experience, and ecological
awareness. The group goes away with some parting words, a thank you, and a
reminder to pay attention to the birds, wind, and landscape along the way—
back to the Northeast on their way to the next mystery.

Back to the Participant Cycle – A Larger Perspective

Hours pass as groups shift from focusing on each set of tracks. Watching
from a distance an observer will see participants laughing, straining, literally
running their fingers through their hair in frustration and intent study. This
is a South kind of day!
It’s like watching trackers take a test and play a game at the same time.
No one ducks the Art of Questioning and everyone has a blast. Time
passes very quickly. The groups each begin to lag and straggle. The time-
keeper and coordinator help move things along between stations because
even facilitators lose track of time when the mystery is good—which it
always is.
Usually, the staff group aims to wrap up stations by 10 to 10:30 AM;
this always depends on the weather, the tracks, the number and interest of
participants and staff, which varies each time.

Southwest for Participants – Take a Break 10:30 AM

After completing their investigations for all stations, trackers disappear to
the bio-break facilities. Some sip from water bottles and eat their snacks
while watching the birds while others continue to focus on mouse tracks.
Some imitate the bobcat tracks to know which way it was looking. Over all,

222 |
blessed and relaxed chaos reigns. Most of the station facilitators gather up
with the coordinator to discuss what information was processed and how
the stories changed and deepened. They quickly agree on how the debrief
should proceed; in which order the station facilitators will speak, and how
much time there is for each of their reports. They will also discuss oppor-
tunities for participants to interject their thoughts, deciding when the most
experienced trackers should share, and to what level of detail. Most everyone
is mentally tired by now, and it’s good to be clear and succinct at this point
in the day.

West for Participants – Gather & Share 10:40 AM

Everyone anxiously gathers together, anticipating solutions to their puz-
zles. Shooting each other glances, everyone fidgets, moving from foot to
foot. Now, together they harvest the stations with the station facilitators
summarizing the trends of questions and theories that came from the
different groups. Honor goes to those who made great guesses or dem-
onstrated some special zeal. Laughter always accompanies this part of

Orienting to the Natural Cycle | 223

224 |
the day. Each station facilitator will ask what was learned or enjoyed by
the group. The facilitators often have to prompt discussion and touch on
highlights that were missed, and ask for feedback. Finally, the volunteers
reveal the Mystery Answers—or sometimes not. Even the station facili-
tator admits absence of scientific proof.

Northwest for Participants – Reflections on the Day 11:10 AM

The most experienced trackers speak up now and share the trends that tie
all the stories together. How the two coyotes come here every day for the last
several months. They descend from the hills on the other side of the highway
and use the culvert to cross through the willows. For the first time, some of
these people look up and around again. They look back over the parking lot
with searching and questioning expressions. They feel the intrigue build as
the tracks come to life. Movies are playing in their heads.

North for Participants – Integration until Next Time 11:20 AM

The leader of the team makes quick announcements for next time or other
related activities, and the senior member of the team shares some nugget of wis-
dom about badgers and tracking and how this can really help our local conser-
vation community monitor the rare, threatened, and endangered species. The
summary reveals wisdom about tracking’s time-honored role to serve the people
and gives thanks that it still does. Everyone breathes differently. Their body lan-
guage shifts yet again as their eyes now indicate self-reflection. They begin to see
their own lives weave with other people and with the animals themselves.

Northeast for Participants – Gratitude & Closing 11:25 AM

The person who opened the circle steps up again. She or he says, “Remember
how happy and grateful we felt for all the things of this world when we first
gathered this morning?” The group voices agreement woven through inter-
locking sounds and gestures. “Do we still feel this? I know I do!” The agree-
ment deepens. Thanks go to the volunteers and participants for driving
safely and bringing friends and families. Everyone is asked to bring good
stories home to our loved ones. We all disperse from the circle; some wander
to revisit the stations they are most interested in.

Back to the Staff Cycle, Southwest for Staff – Break 11:30 AM

Now it’s time for the staff and volunteers to take a short break. During break
time they will wander with participants to wrap up conversations perhaps

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 225

visit with friends or hang out by the vehicles for a bit. This is also a good
time to grab a snack, get a drink or satisfy other needs.

West for Staff – Debrief Circle 11:45 AM

The station facilitators often get together for a few minutes afterwards to
discuss how things went:

* Did everyone have a good experience?

* Did things run smoothly?
* Did it feel good?
* What could be better?
* Do we want to do something special next time?
* How do we get more people to come out?

Northwest for Staff – Experience & Mentoring 12:15 PM

Ideally the more experienced trackers help mentor the station facilitators
on their journey by providing tips, helpful information, and skills in track-
ing or natural history. The mentors can also offer “homework” to follow up
on for those inclined to take things a bit further. Natural history journals
are often filled in at this time; logging weather specifics, listing species seen
through track and sign, recording which birds were observed. The mentoring
approach offers a core group of people the benefit of learning on their own
during recreational journeys. Coordination of this team ensures that some-
one will always be there to run the Tracking Club if others cannot attend.

North for Staff – The Fabric of a Learning Community 12:30 PM

Now the “elders” of the staff community speak to the overall experience of the
Tracking Club. How does this community of staff best support the larger com-
munity of interested participants? How does this work fit into the larger net-
work of community-based learning in the region, in the country, and interna-
tionally? There are affiliates all over the world learning and developing models
like Tracking Club and sharing with one another through a variety of means.
Discussions about community development initiatives take place between
staff, volunteers and experienced participants. At this point we review what
will happen during the time between the next Tracking Club.

226 |
Northeast for staff – Until Next Time… 12:45 PM
A quick renewal of thankfulness for a good day of fun and learning, and
away we all go. Tired, but very, very satisfied, we know people will dream
of animals tonight and will look with new eyes at the forests and fields sur-
rounding their own homes and families.

The Tracking Club in Conclusion

Over time we learn from this experience how to facilitate a better experience for
participants and ourselves. The questions that come up from participants shape
our approach, as we follow their interests and direct them with questions. Their
questions often lead us to look at the tracks and their interpretation in a new way.
Each group coming through a station adds something to the story and we end
up with a fuller understanding of the tracks. Between stations, we usually have a
couple of minutes to contemplate the bigger story around the tracks, investigate
unresolved questions, or find new directions to lead the next group.
We typically run through some or all of the “who, what, when, where, why,
and how” questions. New station facilitators needn’t be intimidated by trying
to remember all of this, just go with what you know. If you haven’t had training

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 227

in the cycles, it may take a while to get into rhythm. We suggest that the six
questions be used for the initial framework. They are easy to remember, and
the investigation of just these questions is broad and endlessly deep.
Although you may not run your Tracking Club exactly like this, work to
hit all of the elements in your own way. We feel it is essential in mentoring
to make it your own, delivering it in an authentic way. It is important to
remember the model it comes from and to constantly refer back making sure
not to miss anything. As time goes by we anticipate some people will not
have all of this explained to them, it may even get watered down a bit, or not
used wisely. Having Tracking Club referenced in Coyote’s Guide is a valuable
tool, even for those of us who have been participating for a long while.

Representative Models
One-Hour Period with Kids of All Ages, any topic
Cycle Amount Activity
of Time

Northeast - 5 min Circle up, give a yip of thanksgiving.

Open

East - Inspire 10 min Inspire with a story or demonstration.

Southeast - 5 min Break into small groups and move outside with
Activate crisp instructions and clear boundaries.

South - Focus 20 min Coach each group to do a twenty-minute game or

project.

Southwest -
Take a Break 5 min Relax, fool around, and finish up. Water break.

West - Gather Circle up for map or story of the day with a few
and Share 10 min folks reporting for their comrades.

Keep the embers burning with a follow-up

Northwest - 3 min activity—a challenge or “super-secret mission” to
Reflect do at home.

North - Leave a question or weave a story to leave them

1 min
Integrate thinking.

Northeast - End with a renewed yip of thanks for the time of

1 min
Close fun and learning.

228 |
Day-long Outing (9am-3:00pm) in Late Spring,
topic Edible Plants
Time
Cycle of Day Activity

Gather in community. Play a plant-focused circle

Northeast - 9:00 am name game, go-round sharing what they feel thankful
Open for in the moment.

Tell a story like “Surviving on Greens” and

East - Inspire 9:15 am announce our activities for the day—to make a
wild edible meal!

Play “Plant Concentration” game. Take a peek at a

selection of plants you’ve hidden under a bandana,
Southeast- 10:00 then run out to find their matches and share their
Activate am larder locations. Give instructions and rules for a
Plant Scavenger Hunt, and then give small groups a
pouch for gathering wild edibles.

Go out in groups and gather in the field. The goal:

11:00 collect, identify, and draw as many edible plants as
South - Focus am you can. Use field guides and journal sketching to
identify and imprint finds, teaching and tasting safe
plants as you go.

Gather back together in big group for lunch. Each

Southwest - 12:30 group lays out its plants and sketches around the
Take a Break pm circle. Break. Play some fun games, “Eagle Eye” or
“Sleeping Fawn.”

West - Call in a Sharing Circle: Each person shows one

1:30 plant he/she gathered and sketched and puts it in the
Gather and pm bowl in the middle. Each group tells their story. Sing
Share
a happy song!

Assemble all gathered plants into one big salad.

Northwest - 2:30
Reflect pm Pretty up with wild flowers, add some dressing, and
pass around to taste in silence.

Give out homework challenge of finding one edible

North - 2:45 plant around home that we learned today and teach it
Integrate pm to their parents.

Northeast - 2:50 Close with a child-friendly song of thanks for plants

or a sharing of one thing each person feels thankful
Close pm
for from their day of learning.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 229

5-Day Summer Camp Program,
topic The Book of Nature
Each of the five days follows a complete cycle, but without the North or
Northwest directions (which we hope they’ll do at home with parents). Days
focus on chapters of the Book of Nature.

Day and
Cycle Chapter Activity

The site is permitted and prepared. Resources and nature

tables are set up, equipment is checked and ready. 40 kids
Pre-program age 6-12 show up and are organized by age into 4 groups
of 10 with 2 instructors for each group. Sign in, capture
the last medical forms, and touch in with families.

NE Welcome with appreciation, jump start with easy

active icebreaker games.
E Tell “Founder Story” – (we tell of Jon Young, Tom
Brown, Ingwe) to inspire Core Routines and set tone.
SE Play name games and build group identity. Create
Northeast and Day 1 common sense ground rules – respect self, others,
East – Awareness and Earth.
S Play Awareness games centered on using all the
Open and Inspire and Hazards senses, exploring hazards, and expanding comfort
zones, like Eagle Eye, Fire Keeper, etc.
SW Wander back, lunch, and check-ins.
W Story of the Day around real and perceived dangers,
mention the alarm calls of birds.
NE End with a group callout of thanksgiving.

NE Excite with running, jumping, body-flexing games.

Get happy.
E Tell a hero story to inspire excitement around
Motivating Species, Mammals, and Tracking.
Suggest the Six Arts of Tracking.
SE Practice Animal Forms that involve catching, eating,
Day 2 climbing, and hiding. Play Animal Forms games such
Southeast and
South - Motivating as Otter Steals Fish, Run Rabbit Run! or Cougar
Activate and Species, Stalks Deer.
Focus Mammals S Play Tracking games with Animal Cards. Ask Who,
and Tracking What, When, Where, Why?
SW Lunch and Explore Field Guides. Questioning and
Answering.
W Story of the Day makes a group map that marks
where you found animal tracks. Go back and show it
to other participants, instructors, or parents.
NE Wrap with a thankful song and a challenge.

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 NE Wake up the senses with games that tap into Child
Passions. Invite each to share what they love in
nature.
E Tell your own story to encourage awareness of plants
and aidless navigation.
SE Play “Plant Concentration.”
Day 3 S Take a Big Long Wander. Practice Body Radar and
Southwest - Take Plants and go on a Plant scavenger hunt. Hide and Seek. Gather
a Break Wandering for Mapping.
SW Long lunch and time for Exploring Field Guides and
Journaling. Notice the baseline twitter of birds. Play
games like Get Lost or Sleeping Fawn.
W Scavenger hunt check-in as Story of the Day and
eating Wild Edibles.
NE Wrap with singing a plant song and an Errand.

NE Gather with active cooperative games. Be thankful for

each other and all our natural relations.
E Tell any story or legend about teamwork, community
cooperation, or peaceable kingdoms.
SE Play Exploration Team or Wildlife Survey, find the
West - Day 4 connections between things.
Gather and Share Community S Do a team challenge, like Shelter Building, Blindfold
and Ecology Caterpillar, or Group Sit Spot.
SW Lunch and Capture the Flag or other big group game
(you might combine small groups for this).
NE Wrap with a Sharing Circle, appreciate everything
from the earth to the stars, the ancestors and the
children of the next generations.

NE Gather with active games

E Do a Bow-drill fire demo or inspire with Survival
stories. (Mention how the language of Birds helps
hunters.)
Northwest and SE Play Tree-Tag
North - Day 5 S Play Survival Scenario, 5-Minute Fire, or Meet-a-
Reflect and Trees and Tree
Integrate SW Lunch, check-ins, Exploring Field Guides and
Survival
Journaling to finish up sketches, or note things to
Northeast - Close remember.
W Story of the Day. Survival Priorities reflection.
NE Ceremonial Potluck with parents, giving thanks and
honoring each group’s participants and instructors,
marking the end of the week.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 231

School-Year course in a Grade Four science
classroom with 30 students, topic NatureMapping.
Each unit follows one complete cycle and it installs and practices core rou-
tines. Remember to begin and end with gathering up and giving thanks.
The Classroom teacher, supported by the NatureMapping Program of the
University of Washington, maintains the goal to “keep common animals com-
mon” and to preserve biodiversity. This approach trains individuals to know what’s
on their land by providing the tools to inventory and monitor their resources and
to encourage land management decisions that sustain and restore.
To gather your own support, please address our friend Karen Dvornich:
[email protected],http://depts.washington.edu/natmap/

Cycle Unit Activity

Set-up. Recruit, schedule, and train teaching team. Set parameters

for study; design the year curriculum. Your classroom’s goal:
to inventory and monitor 30 species of flora and fauna that are
Northeast indicators of your area’s 6 habitat types and provide scientific data
-Open Set-Up to NatureMapping Program. Identify your habitats and species
lists. Set-up nature tables oriented to 8 directions; set up gathering
circle. Have a kick-off celebration with staff and students (and
maybe your local mayor or other dignitaries) to begin ceremonially,
showing the community importance of the task that lies ahead.

Excite them with big picture of the year ahead. Start with field
trips to a NatureMapping Center and to your school site with a
NatureMapping leader. Take nature names by 6 habitat types and
30 species, and establish 6 habitat clans and 5 species societies
East- Late (animal, plant, tree, bird, and other). Establish Sit Spots by habitat
Inspire summer and begin sitting, journaling, and inventorying species in your
range. End with a guided tour of all Sit Spots. Work in clans to
produce a group wall mural of landscape habitat types. Introduce
routines of Thanksgiving and Expanding our Senses – through
Owl Eyes and blindfold games. Teach leave-no-trace etiquette and
hazards.

How to spot wildlife on the move. Visit Sit Spots regularly. Pace
100 feet out from center and map features of topography, soil,
plants, water, trails. Keep inventory of all wildlife observations.
Southeast- Introduce awareness and invisibility through the five voices of
Activate Fall birds. Introduce animal empathy through animal forms and the
five arts of tracking. Go on tracking expeditions and set out soot
traps. Explore field guides and understand range maps. Study
use of plants for food and shelter and create plant-animal habitat
terrain. End with a Thanksgiving show-n-tell day for parents.

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 Monitoring and tracking methods: Demonstrate NatureMapping
NatureTracker software at the NatureMapping Center. Learn the
scientific requirements for mapping habitat types, for how to locate
South- Early longitude/latitude, and how to keep data on Excel spreadsheets.
Focus Winter Plot everyone’s Sit Spot on the wall mural by latitude/longitude
from GPS equipment. Download aerial photo and plot Spots on
it. On PowerPoint, show layers of overlay on your site maps. Make
a group plan. Set up teams. Start gathering scientific data. Solve
problems.

Southwest-
Take a Midwinter Take a midwinter break. Change the scene. Stay warm inside! Do a
Break short unit on crazy animal perception strategies! Play some games!

Monitor and report in earnest in a sense of service to the

community. Start with a Bio-blitz, a twelve hour Rapid
Assessment for as many taxa as possible; then compare data with
West- Early predictions. NatureMapping professional naturalists support
Gather and Spring Bio-blitzes. What’s gone? What’s new? Continue to monitor
Share daily weather, plant growth, bird migration, and mammal sign.
Routinely come together to pool findings and troubleshoot
problems. Move Sit Spot journals into spread sheets using codes
and upload to NatureMapping website.

Native American natural history in your area: Begin with Spring

Equinox Celebration (March 21). Repeat Bio-blitzes as season
Northwest- Mid progresses. Distinguish residents from visitors. Continue through
Reflect Spring end of year. Invite extension of this to individuals’ sites outside
of school. Research natural history topics of your area. Interview
community elders. How were plants used? What stories did locals
tell about wildlife and human development?

Individual projects: Excite with a twenty-four hour overnight

Bio-blitz to visit the nightlife. Coordinate students and other
North- Late participants to follow up on personal passions. Wrap the learning
Integrate Spring up. Demonstrate individual Sit Spots. Tell stories of natural
history research. Create a portfolio of the whole project. Find
permanent homes for the terrariums. Complete the wall mural
replete with all species.

Finale and Rite of Passage. Send your final info to

Northeast- June NatureMapping. Hold ceremony with parents to tell your Story of
Close the Year, and to receive award for good work from NatureMapping
or other community leaders.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 233

Shifting Direction: Adaptation
The Flow Learning design sets you up for success. However, good design
takes not only forethought, but also experimentation. You try things out and
you learn what works—and what doesn’t. There are no mistakes, just learn-
ing experiences. Flexibility and spontaneity are essential to success. There are
going to be a lot of times when you’ll need to adapt your plans to fit opportuni-
ties that fly in from left field. You’ll go through the Natural Cycle yourself as
you plan, implement, reflect, and reintegrate ideas to make the learning flow.
Once in the throes of acting out a plan, you can use the Natural Cycle to
adapt to whatever energy actually shows up. Carry the qualities of the Eight
Directions drawn on the palm of your hand and continually check-in with
the mood of the moment. Make attitude adjustments!
When folks don’t respond to your plan, ask yourself, “What energy are
they manifesting instead?” What does their body language tell you? Are you
trying to begin on the Eastern Plains of Inspiration but it feels like a late
Southwest afternoon in the Wetland of Weariness? Maybe you feel deter-
mined to climb up the Steep Mountains of South Focus but your people
are in a private reflective mood that feels much like an Ancient Forest of
Northwest Stories? Were you just settling into a fine West sense of group
unity when an eagle screeched in overhead with a shot of East excitement?
What energy do your people really exhibit? What energy flows from
the season? Check yourself for the time of day and the birds’ behavior right
now? Is the sun or wind too much right at this moment? How has a sud-
den emergency or opportunity shifted the group awareness? How will you
shift direction?

The 50-50 Principle

Coyote offers a principle giving you permission to “go with the flow” and
adapt your plans as necessary. Spontaneity is essential and attentiveness to
this necessity has given rise to a guiding tenet we call the 50-50 Principle.
Plan all your allotted time, with half of it structured and half unstruc-
tured. It can mean this: after you plan everything out for a program, you go
into that time expecting only about 50% of what you plan will actually happen,
and the other 50% will consist of unplanned improvisation playing off of what
nature provides that day. This could be a long Wander that you plan for 50%
of your time. Or, it could be that you plan less, knowing that up to 50% of the
time will get unexpectedly filled with in-the-moment opportunity.

234 |
Scenarios
Following a Frog
Let’s say, in leading your group you have their attention and curiosity for
teaching about a tree; you move them toward a game where they smell it and
touch it and compare its leaves with the other nearby plants. Your plan is
working beautifully into the South. Then suddenly—a frog jumps onto the
path. All the participants instantly forget about the tree. Their bodies take
over and they chase into the bushes after the frog. What would you do?
The 50-50 Principle suggests mentally checking in with the Natural Cycle.
What just happened? You were in a South moment when that frog brought a
huge dose of Southeast motivation. (How do I know this? Well they actually
MOVED into a new formation all on their own. They were self-motivated).
After the frog disappears into the brush, ask some quick questions. How
high is the level of inspiration over the frog? Are they more excited about the
frog than the tree game? If so, can you shift your plans and make the frog the
beginning of a new, albeit unplanned, Flow Learning mini-lesson? How can
the East/Southeast opportunity from the frog be converted in-to the South
for study? Could frog biology, or frog handling, become the lesson of the day?
“Hey, you want to try to catch it? Oh, cool, you got it, Sarah…Now look,
let’s make sure we don’t hurt it…Yeah, get some water on your hands and
hold it gently just like that, and let’s not hold it too long because its skin
could be hurt from the salt on our hands. But—wooww!—check out these
colorful little spots right under its chin! What is this, anyway? Yeah, I think
it’s a frog, too. But what if it’s a toad? How do you tell the difference? Oh, I
see, cool, where’d you learn that? Does it look like it has a full belly? What
do these guys eat anyways? Flying insects, eh? Remember that place with
all those flies? What if we went there to look for more frogs? Do you know
where frogs like to hang out? No? Well, check it out. There’s a cool section in
this field guide about where to find frogs. Here, find the picture of this frog
in the book, and see if we can figure out what kind of frog it is. What color
is it? Does it have ridges on the side of its body? Wow! Look at this other
crazy-colored frog. What is that?” It wasn’t in the plans, but if you can adapt,
suddenly nature has offered you a whole new lesson.

Warren and the Skull

Warren was leading a group of ten kids on a Wander through the woods.
He had them in a “super-sneak scout formation,” all fox-walking in a
line, with front and back scouts, and everyone stretching their senses for

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 235

My first period 8th grade English sight or sound of any animals that might be lying in wait
class was reading Ken Kesey’s
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s to “ambush” them. (Northeast) In this heightened mode
Nest, the part where McMurphy of sensory input, the kids suddenly noticed lots of animal
crows about the dangers of being
“hypnotized by habit.” After class,
holes in the ground, and scat that they hadn’t seen before.
Jimmy—ordinarily a punctual Then, one of the kids spotted a bone just off the trail. They
straight-A student—didn’t leave were psyched! (East) They excitedly searched around and
his chair.
then, after digging after a few bones lodged in the dirt, they
“Why are you staying here?” I found the prize of prizes: a skull! (Southeast)
asked, “You’re going to get into
trouble for cutting second period
Now Warren pulled a Southeast-to-South Coyote Judo
History.” move: he pulled out a field guide. He saw a path of action for
their excitement to travel down. He also role-modeled enthu-
When he did get in trouble with
my team teacher in History and siasm about this cool book and what opportunity lay in look-
explained he was practicing “not ing through it. “Let’s figure out what this is! Want to?” All the
being hypnotized by habit,” his
consequence was an assignment
kids shouted their reply, “Yeah!!!”
to write a paper about the value Kids gathered around him as he held the field guide so
of his experience. The next day everyone could see into it. (South) Warren wanted to prolong
he returned with his paper titled
“Cultural Education.” the inspiration of the skull to yield as much learning as pos-
sible. So in looking through the field guide, he began with the
He made five points about how
Period 1 and Period 2 English,
pictures of the skulls least likely to be this particular skull.
although taught by the same He started with deer skulls, asking them questions to get
teacher with the same lesson plan, them comparing and therefore taking the skull in their hands:
differed. The group of students
was different. They brought in “What are the eye-sockets like? Oh, they actually look more
a whole different set of group of an oval-shape and not as big. Hmmm … Well, what about
dynamics and learning styles.
The time of day was different.
the teeth? Do the teeth look alike? No, huh? Yeah, they are
They were still sleepy in first sharper. What do you think these teeth are designed to eat?
period, more awake in second. Yeah, meat, you’re probably right ...”
English came before History
first period, and after it second During this series of questions, Warren noticed by watch-
period, so the first students were ing body language that focus was waning. They lost their origi-
imprinting the concept for the
first time, the second group was nal inspiration, started to change the subject or stare off into
fitting new information into an space. So he flipped the page to a picture of another type of
existing pattern. The teaching animal skull …”Maybe this is it!” The kids who had been fad-
was different—first period the
teacher was trying her lesson the ing—bam!—they came back inspired again. (East) Looking at
first time, some pieces were full this new possible match, Warren asked them new questions,
of excitement, some were blurry;
by the second time around, the slyly teaching them the basics of skull ID: (South) “What’s
this dilly-wack on the top of their head? Oh, look, the book
calls that “an occipital ridge.” What a strange name! Oh, and
continued... this tells how many teeth this animal has in its skull. How
many does our skull have?” And then when the energy waned

236 |
again, he would flip again ... and then again ... and again. excited pieces were dulled, the
blurry pieces sharpened. And
By now the kids had imprinted “search images” that they finally, in second period, there
instantly looked for in each picture: overall shape of skull, was a new fish in the school so
the swimming patterns were both
teeth type and number, shape and relative size of eye sockets, excited and disrupted by Jimmy’s
occipital ridge vs. no occipital ridge. They were now dialed into odd presence.
the process of skull identification. And finally, after looking at
This amazingly insightful paper
almost every other possible animal in the book, (East to South got him out of trouble!
to East to South) they came upon the matching picture—they
So, even in our modern classroom,
instantly knew it, beyond a doubt—an opossum skull! They the lesson plan is not the lesson.
yipped and high-fived. (Blast of West Celebration) Everything in the culture
After such an awesome learning experience, they deserved contributes to what each student
takes away as “learning.”
a break. So Warren led them to an open field where they
happily played a game of tag. (Southwest) Then they tiredly E H, Cultural Education
slumped into a circle and shared about the day, almost every-
one saying that the coolest part was finding the skull and then
figuring out what it was. (West, Story of the Day) By then,
their parents arrived and boy were they excited to tell what
they found that day. (North)

Improvisation
The 50-50 Principle gets a whole lot easier when, as the
instructor, you accumulate a large tool box complete with a
wide variety of knowledge you can draw from anytime. Your
teaching will relax because of your toolbox full of techniques
and you will feel ample space to perceive people’s passions so
you can change on the fly.
The 50-50 Principle balances your intentions with spon-
taneity. So, it calls for Improvisation. Musician, teacher, and
writer, Stephen Nachmanovich, says it well when he writes
that improvisation entails “a delicate balance of sticking to your
guns and remaining open to change.” Improvisation involves a
genuine sense of play, the same sense that Coyote models for
us. Improvisation expects risks: go out-on-a-limb, be willing to
fall and ready to get back up, laugh, and keep your eyes open for
the next turn. Improvisation is quintessential edge-walking.
Forget the modern image of the teacher as some authori-
tarian armored tank without a weakness or f law. Get into
the mud and muck, slip into the learning of the moment

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 237

In a real classroom, there are live with everyone else, be vulnerable and human and authen-
people with live needs … . You
have to teach each person, each tically in awe of life’s surprises. Art creates a fine balance
class group, and each moment as between dedicated study (planning) and in-the-moment
a particular case that calls out for
particular handling. A particular
creativity (improvisation).
tap in this direction will shift this Adaptation and Improvisation mix to make mentoring
person’s perspective… You cannot an art, a spiritual practice that connects you to the source of
plan these things. The teacher’s
art is to connect in real time, the creativity, that forces you to surrender to and work with the
living bodies of the students with process of unfolding life, that aligns you with the Tao, that
the living body of knowledge.
lets you in on the magic behind the trick, that floats you in
S N, mid-current of the Natural Cycle.
Free Play: Improvisation in Life
and Art
Profiling the Learning Journey
We also want to give you insight about how the Natural Cycle
profiles a person’s learning journey through long-term mentor-
ing. Of course, the model we present here is NOT black and
white. To begin with, everyone arrives at a different level of
learning. Every single person takes unpredictable routes and
detours on their journeys. This Profile of the Learning Journey
describes patterns and tendencies we’ve observed to fit both
the sequence and the archetypal energies of the eight direc-
tions. Knowing about the potential of Profiling will help you
anticipate and visualize people’s learning edges at any given
time, and so, serve them better.
Even though Nature Connection best describes our learn-
ing objective in this book, the natural progression of the Profile
Journey could be used to track the progress of anyone learning
anything: marketing, medicine, martial arts, music, or magic
tricks. Whatever the “platform” for those you mentor, using this
Profile keeps you thinking one step ahead, anticipating their
next phase. When the time comes for the actual phase-shift,
you will be prepared and ready to provide wise guidance.

Mentoring
According to the original meaning of the word, a “mentor”
guides the learning journey for another. In Homer’s ancient
Greek epic, The Odyssey, Mentor, an old “helmsman,” sits
at the back and steers the boat and takes a searching young
prince to sea to find his father, the King. But really, Mentor

238 |
guides so the weak-kneed prince will find his own “inner We are all improvisers. The most
common form of improvisation is
King” and step into his rightful role. Who hides behind the ordinary speech. As we talk and
form of this old man, Mentor? None other than Athena, listen, we are drawing on a set
of building blocks (vocabulary)
the Goddess of Wisdom, who carries an owl on her shoul- and rules for combining them
der. Athena, through Mentor, arms young Telemachus, (grammar). These have been
awakens him to his own inner wisdom, and sends him on his given to us by our culture. But the
sentences we make with them may
way full of strength and pride. never have been said before and
The awareness of the profile journey will orient your navi- may never be said again. Every
conversation is a form of jazz. The
gation. Sitting in the back of the boat, anonymous and unas- activity of instantaneous creation
suming, you always look well ahead towards the horizon for is as ordinary to us as breathing.
the people you mentor, and think of making subtle tacks and
S N,
maneuvers for the changing winds. With the sea and the Free Play: Improvisation in Life
weather, it’s up to your own keen eyes and your sea-salt-smell- and Art
ing nose to guess where they might be going next.
Although not a strictly linear pathway, profiling can track
the learning journey sequentially; both the positive and nega-
tive aspects of each profile stage can be used to understand a set
of behaviors to match the mood of any one of the eight direc-
tions. In the process of learning, we can hop from one profile to
another; we can go backwards; we can have “transcendent” leaps
to a profile farther around the cycle, if for only a moment.
Also, you’ll notice that for each profile of developmental
phase there is a potential shadow-side, or what we call a “nega-
tive propensity.” Expressed at a particular phase, negative energy
can be adolescent and ego-focused, arising from fear, needing
approval, addicted to perfection, wanting to stagnantly remain
in one phase, or many other sources. This can and does happen
when people take this journey, needing mentors and elders to
guide them along and keep their ego in check. An ego is a neces-
sary and good thing: if we train our mentoring eyes to be keen,
we will see these negative propensities for what they are, and
hopefully before they take over and run away with hard-won,
personal development.
In no way should this Profile of the Learning Journey be used
to judge people or raise some people up while looking down on
others. We are all at different points on the journey depending
on different areas or disciplines of life. I am further along the
journey of nature awareness than my father, but when it comes

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 239

to religious studies or fatherhood or a multitude of other things, he would blow
me off the charts. No one is complete and perfect with regard to anything. We
are all in process, and therefore can all support and learn from each other.

Northeast — Ready
Every journey really starts in the Northeast, where we feel openness and
receptivity for something new to enter. Sometimes a major life crisis strips
us down and humbles us to look for change. Or, maybe we just have a play-
ful willingness to experiment with what shows up. Or maybe by uncanny
synchronicity, we meet someone, we wander into a strange store, we receive
a book about a subject, or we watch an Oprah episode, we find just exactly
what we feel we need.

East — Set
Boom! The journey begins now, birthing the “baby” of a new path. Someone
reads a book that blows their mind open, and suddenly they are talking to all
their friends about it, looking online for related classes and dreaming of what
might lie ahead. When they show up at classes, all their light bulbs are flash-
ing. They talk a lot, wave their hands around to ask their questions and tell
their stories. Without a lot of direction and little experience, they don’t really
know a whole lot about the subject.
A negative propensity of this phase could be all talk without listening or
progressing. When you see someone in this state, give them clear directions
to begin movement. Better still, take their hand and lead the way at first,
making their transition onto the new path as unintimidating as possible.
This will naturally lead to the Southeast.

Southeast — Moving
Folks in the Southeast profile actually move. After a teenager talks and talks
about getting a guitar, he finally gets it, and starts strumming, doing some-
thing, even though he doesn’t know how to make music yet. When someone
arrives at the Southeast profile, the mentor becomes a “coach.” Time to step
in and teach them how to learn. Ask questions and give them simple errands.
Give them concrete and achievable tasks that keep them excited. Give them
success, encouraging them to keep moving.
A negative version of the Southeast profile shows up when people “flail”
or “flinch” or “don’t get it” so they give up in frustration. Review their basic

240 |
skill toolboxes and your learning objectives, so folks visualize where they
want to go next and ultimately how to get there.

South — Learning
People in the South profile narrow in and focus on a particular thing to
pursue. Perhaps at first all of nature thrilled them. But after orienting and
sampling the broad field in the Southeast, they feel sure they want to study
tracking, perhaps, or fire-making. They pour themselves into that one area
of study, almost to the complete neglect of everything else. Their focus is
incredible, their dedication admirable, their learning great.
One negative tendency of the South focus is that learners go so hard and
fast in their own ways that they teach themselves bad habits or somewhere
down the road they may have to “unlearn” them. This is the phase where dis-
cipline and techniques gained from an experienced teacher or mentor clearly
show their value.
Another negative aspect, arrogance, commonly appears in the South. In
this profile participants will have plenty of opinions for everyone else: the
best way to learn, what others should or shouldn’t be doing, who is the best
within the field and why. Their focus may be intense and their technical abil-
ity advanced, but their learning journey is not complete, even if they might
think so. As a mentor, use the Third Level questions that keep them humble,
listening to others, and pursuing their focus with a healthy modesty.

Southwest — Resting
Folks in the Southwest of their Learning Journey simply need a break. They
reach a plateau in their learning and relax. To a mentor, this might seem like
they’re getting lazy and you may want to “crack the whip,” but this is actually
a natural and necessary phase in the learning process. At this point in the
process of learning, people let go of attachments to techniques and disci-
pline, and start to play like kids again.
Just like the time of “Indian Summer” on a farm—when you tire of working,
allow yourself rest, enjoy the time to breathe. But as you rest, you remember
the coming winter and the work left to do. In this spirit of the Southwest pro-
file, honoring rest as part of the cycle, yet don’t forget much still lies ahead.
Internalization often comes through rest, your conscious mind takes a
break while your unconscious mind works below-the-surface to solidify your
progress so far. I noticed this learning a song on the piano. I would work and
work at it, and then, often frustrated at not being able to nail it, I would walk

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 241

The great sitar master Ravi away for a few hours or even a day or two. But when I returned
Shankar was gifted as a child both
in classical Indian dancing and to it, I would sit down and be able to play the song perfectly.
classical Indian music. Uncertain I just needed rest to internalize all my hard work. Learning
as to which direction to take,
he was tempted to pursue both.
transforms from being intellectual to being embodied right
But one of his teachers told him, here in the Southwest “resting” stage.
“Choose one and pursue it fully, A negative propensity of this profile is staying stuck in
until you master it. If you master
one thing, you will be able to rebellion. At this point there may be rejection of imposed
master anything else you desire responsibility and structure—even at the cost of others’ learn-
after that.” If we go through
the process of any one discipline
ing experiences in group settings. Learners don’t want to come
long enough, then we not only back to finish the work, nor do they see why they should. If
gain a high level of expertise, but this happens, give them some space before you call them back
also great wisdom about how to
process towards mastery. This to the center to remind them why they started in the first place.
can then be turned towards any Paint the picture of where they could go. Or, maybe they truly
direction we wish.
see themselves pursuing another focus. Simply bring con-
E MG, Ravi Shankar sciousness to their choices. Help them go down each possible
road in their imagination, vividly, and thereby help them find
what they most truly want to choose for themselves.

West — Arrived
I have discovered I am not alone in Once the learners arrive in the West, mentors can smile,
my listening, that almost everyone
is listening for something, that the breathe deep, and say, “Yes! They’ve arrived!” For instance,
search for places where the singing at this point, I’m no longer thinking about “notes” or “tech-
may be heard goes on everywhere.
It is part of the hunger all of us niques” to play a piece on the piano, but I am relating to the joy
have for a time when we were or “soul” of the music. In the West profile, learners can now
closer to nature than we are today.
look back and tell the story of their whole learning journey,
S O, Open Horizons even if it took five years. When they reach this phase, sug-
gest they celebrate their accomplishment by telling their story
in front of you or their community in some meaningful form,
even to a small group.
In this phase, they feel proud and confident in themselves,
and will eagerly share their experience, including laughing at all
their mistakes and bogus attitudes along the way. Ideally, this
profile marks an authentic maturity and a healthy humility.
A negative propensity to this profile sounds like just plain brag-
ging. If they blow their own horn too loudly, just try to keep them
humble by showing them what lies beyond the next mountain!
The West, marking arrival, also marks maturity and self-
sufficiency for learners. For many, the mentoring relationship

242 |
will end here with a fond farewell and the learner will depart for new terrain.
At this point, learners and mentors may begin anew on a different area of
interest, a new project. However, if you are both a mentor and a master of the
art, you may be able to accompany them deeper into the Northwest, North,
and Northeast phases of the process.

Northwest — Historian
In the Northwest profile, learners who have “arrived,” now may become histo-
rians of their subject. The “hero stories” that inspired their journey at the start
now take on new meaning. They reveal layers of wisdom and fascinating details
previously clouded in awe and mystery. Historians hear with different ears.
They begin to look for others who reached similar achievements:
“Ancestors” of their tradition. They ask, “How did they do it?” to guide
their path even further. For instance, once I am able to play in a jazz quar-
tet on piano, I then start to study others who have reached this level of
proficiency. I’ll start comparing myself to other greats that I’ve always lis-
tened to. Now I want to know about their process, how they lived and
learned. I pick up biographies written about them to glean insight. How
did they get to this point? Did they take a different approach that might
offer an important lesson I missed? What mistakes did they make that
I could avoid and learn from? And where did they go from here? Where
will I go from here? Mature artists of all traditions do this: they look back
and around for others with similar expertise and honor them; they make
the inroads necessary to meet previous masters or those who knew them
intimately; they link into the community of masters.
As a mentor, you can easily facilitate this process by referral. Suggest
biographies to them, introduce them to kindred elders, then ask them what
they think about the particular way they’ve found.
One negative propensity of the Northwest profile might be a sense of
“indispensability,” a burdensome belief that no one else can fill their shoes.
If, for example, the learner becomes the program expert, they may not be
willing to move on and let others step into that role.

North – Mentor
The North heralds arrival at a place of integrated wisdom beyond tech-
nical and intellectual accomplishment. After research and comparison of
themselves with other great practitioners (in the Northwest), the North
profile expresses confidence in one’s own unique style. Whatever art

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 243

or discipline is studied, it is now their own. Grounded firmly in per-
sonal experience, the mentor uses his or her own language and insight
to communicate with learners. In the North profile, masters become
master mentors. They see through the surface to the universal lessons;
they see the big picture rather than merely the techniques and details.
This perspective may be found in Zen in the Art of Archery, by Eugene
Herrigel, or Sacred Hoops: Spiritual Lessons of a Hardwood Warrior, by
Phil Jackson, the multi-championship-winning coach of Michael Jordan
and the Chicago Bulls. Their mentoring and teaching styles rose from
surprising originality because they saw the deeper ground beneath—the
potential in their art form for human or even spiritual development—
and operated from there.
A negative propensity of the North profile withholds the wisdom because
it’s simply too subtle to pass on, fearful of “casting pearls before swine.” Or a
potential teacher might be unwilling to let others in on such hard-fought-for
and proprietary knowledge. A third negative propensity of the North is to
micromanage the learning journey of another.

Northeast — Cultural Creative

This profile prompts us to say of a person, “He’s a natural,” or “She broke the
mold.” Their ability seems completely effortless, as if they were born to do
the task they mastered, more like an instinctive act. As a very accomplished
and scientific-minded tracker once said to me out in the field, “I don’t nor-
mally go in for the ‘spiritual’ or intuitive perspective on tracking ... but right
now, even though I can’t physically see any tracks, I know these are wolf
tracks. I can’t explain how I know, but I’m sure of it.”
If the “natural” also has maturity, he or she may become a “cultural cre-
ative,” a front-line leader described by Ray and Anderson in their book,
Cultural Creatives. The Northeast profile embodies the culture-driving
Trickster, the one who bares the cutting edge, expands possibilities, invents
new approaches, and finds a way out.
A negative propensity of the Northeast profile may turn out to be one
who gets so caught up in vision and dreams that the groundedness to actu-
ally mentor, lead, and make a difference in the physical world doesn’t hap-
pen. The heroic “natural” may live in an ivory tower; revising and refining the
vision to such an edge that no one can follow.

Appreciating Every Step

244 |
As a mentor at the helm of another person’s learning journey, take time
to acknowledge and appreciate steps of progress as they move around the
wheel. Such acknowledgment affirms and completes passages of the jour-
ney, allowing a person to keep moving with a feeling of freedom on their
path. For smaller-scale endeavors, such as constructing a rain-proof shelter,
you might celebrate by sleeping overnight in it. For longer learning curves,
stage completion offers opportunity to contribute skills to the community or
throw a party of thanksgiving for mentors, supportive parents, and friends.
To celebrate the end of a long and intentional learning journey, it can be
deeply integrating to support a learner on a solo vigil or retreat where he or
she can let go and open up to whatever might be next.

Orientation for Larger Groups

and Complex Programs
You now have a lot to work with, using the Natural Cycle to design Flow
Learning experiences and to profile the Learning Journey. For mentoring
just a few learners casually, that’s all you need to know. But, if you are
working with ongoing programs, or more than a dozen participants, or
complicated expeditions, we strongly recommend you don’t go it alone. “It
takes a village to raise a child,” and it takes at least a small community of
mentors to manage larger groups and complex programs. To complete this
chapter, we’ll just take a glimpse at how the directions of the Natural Cycle
can help coordinate a team of educators, organize small groups of learn-
ers, and spread out the responsibilities of program management. We won’t
take you around all eight directions here, but only suggest how to supply
your nature education program with balance and diversity by orienting to
the qualities of the eight directions.

Team Teaching
A deliberate ratio of more teachers to few learners may be bad for the bud-
get, but it’s great for the learners. This low ratio plays an essential role if
you’re tapping into the Child Passions of more than a dozen people out in
the boundless field. Be warned: it’s impossible for one lone teacher to mentor
thirty folks outdoors. We recommend making the effort to assemble a team
that will keep your mentor-to-learner ratio within range of the ideal 1:6. It
may be you and one other person, or a core few that meet regularly to design,
facilitate, and debrief the program.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 245

 Teaching in a team enables mentors to circle around the edges of a group.
It provides more eyes to watch the energy flow and the learning profile and
more time for one-on-one contact. It exposes participants to a variety of role-
models, and it exposes mentors to a variety of approaches.
One person can only know or offer so much. We each lean in different
directions, bring unique gifts, and specialize in certain areas. Some will
bring gifts in speaking in front of the group, while others will have one-
on-one magic. Different people approach planning and strategizing differ-
ently, and this—although it may frustrate you at times—turns out to be
a really good thing. What results from team teaching is creative tension.
If honored and worked through, this tension produces ideas, approaches,
and relationships that one person could never come up with alone (like this
book for instance).

Recruiting a Teaching Team

Initially, recruiting volunteers and training apprentices may present a
challenge; it might push your edge. But the truth is, many people feel the
importance of this kind of nature-based education in their bones; they
want to be helpful to a program that makes so much sense. The people
who will make up your mentoring community are out there waiting right
now. They drink coffee next to you at the local café, shop at the wild bird
feed stores, help out at local elementary schools, and volunteer at parks
and nature centers. If you dream the dream, take the first step, gather the
learners, build the fire circle, and put out the call, they will come. One vol-
unteer will bring in another, who will introduce you to another, who will
bring in his or her cousin …
The qualifications for recruits can be fun to imagine and they parallel the
qualities of the Natural Cycle. You don’t need experienced trackers, Coyote
Mentoring specialists, or talented teachers. You need a balanced combina-
tion of committed mentors who can inspire, activate, focus attention, apply
the 50-50 principle, gather stories, and offer good listening. You need mentors
who can ask good questions, hikers who know a few things, and personalities
who can work magic with other people.
Where do you go to find these people?
your friends and your younger participants’ parents.
naturalists, adventurers, trackers, fishers, or hunters.
Talk to volunteer docents or rangers at local parks and nature centers.

246 |
 Visit parks regularly and notice the people who come all the time to
watch the hawks or pick berries. Pull them in.
Run an apprenticeship program alongside your regular programs.
Offer your nature knowledge or mentoring wisdom in exchange for
their volunteer time. Train your alums to become your instructors.
grandparents, retired people, anyone with wisdom
on their backs and the sparkle still in their eyes. They have time and
experience to offer, and can connect with folks—especially the chil-
dren—in ways younger adults cannot.

After you have your core teaching team in place, try to expand it to include
occasional guest mentors. Consider the stages of life in the Natural Cycle
and look for representatives:

Invite younger siblings to give your participants opportuni-

ties to be caretakers and mentors to younger kids. Give your caretakers
clear responsibilities.
Invite an apprentice young person, a good role model,
maybe a scout or fisherman. Find people who can work with another
person who needs mentoring one-on-one in a project. Take time before
and after to give him or her guidance.
Invite experienced young adults, or even older
adults (who love the chance to play), as invisible scouts. You can have a
lot of fun with this. In hunter-gatherer cultures, “scouts” are the accom-
plished naturalists who go out looking for plant forage, game, or ene-
mies. They were superb at invisibility. The educational use of the scout
boosts awareness and constantly keeps people awake in their senses.
Unbeknownst to your participants, you can place an invisible scout a dis-
tance away and have them alarm the birds, or leave odd tracks and trails,
or hide in trees dropping twigs to see if folks are paying attention.
Invite in guest experts for a session, give them a grand intro-
duction, a seat and fresh water, then let them tell their story. Write a
thank you note.
You may not realize it now, but you need the presence of elders to
make moments special, especially ceremonial openings and closings. You
also need their counsel. They can stand in the wings, advise you along the

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 247

At the height of the early 70’s, way, help mediate conflicts with parents, and otherwise
I was part of a teaching team in
a private school in Manhattan catch you when you fall. More likely than not nowadays,
whose mandate was to team- elders may feel they need you, too; all people need to feel
invent and team-teach ancient
World History, matched up with
they have a place in community, to feel appreciated and
something in Science and English. helpful and honored for their counsel and presence.
“Religion, Law, and Ethics” was a
knock-out program at the brain-
and-energy level of 12- and 13- Training Your Recruits
year old kids: Magnificent kids,
late nights, road shows, special
Give your core teaching team plenty of advance time for train-
projects, and wilderness trips. ing. Assess your combined skills, fill in the blanks, design
the learning experience together, and then practice Coyote
Our team of three were quite
the crew to behold: a tough New Mentoring with each other before you meet the participants.
Yorker with a thick accent, a
proper Australian with an even If you’ve recruited Naturalists, train them to mentor,
stronger Aussie drawl, and me—a lead and teach with Coyote. Give them feedback and
Philadelphia debutante turned
California hippie. We were young,
spend time debriefing and evaluating the team’s design of
free, and married to our program. the learning experience. (Give them this book)
We were classically different types If you’ve recruited Teachers, train them in naturalist
of people and teachers, and at basics. (See the Kamana Naturalist Training Program)
first we tangled. Early in the first
year, running a retreat out in the If you’ve recruited Parents, train them to step out of the
New York countryside, very late box into Coyote Mentoring. (Study this Manual)
on the second night as the kids
still raced around, Robert and I If you’ve recruited potential Elders, find guidance for
found Suellyn out on the gravel
road in the dark with her suitcases them from other experienced elders and community facil-
packed, waiting for a taxi. We itators; then support them to step into their natural role-
had to beg her to stay and pay off
the taxi driver. But after that, we
modeling with confidence. (One resource recommended by
were a team, and nothing could numerous people is From Aging to Saging: A Profound New
undo us. Vision for Growing Older, by Zalman Schachter-Shalomi,
We forged goals together, taught creating a world-wide network of “Spiritual Eldering.”)
each other our boundaries,
circled around the kids in a tag Certify your team. About one out of every dozen parents who
team to draw out their individual sign up their kids for our summer camp programs checks
geniuses, and we spun a tapestry before registering that our instructors have First Aid certifica-
of communal learning that still
binds those students (and the tion and have been screened through the government files for
three of us teachers) today. any criminal records. You can find regional venues for certifi-
This experience convinced me of cation and background checks on the internet.
the necessity of team-teaching.
Growing into a Mentoring Team
continued...
Bringing your core people together in the first place can be a
delicate thing, like planting seeds. Growing them into a team

248 |
takes some intentional cultivation. Definitely involve your Having watched the same process
and its miraculous boons emerge
team in the planning process as well as in the actual mentoring from dozens of teaching-teams
so they feel empowered and responsible. Classroom teachers since, I am sure that teaching done
with a team multiplies the effects
know to expect this sequence as a profile for team develop- of education exponentially.
ment: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing. It’s an old
classic, look how it follows the Natural Cycle: Ellen Haas, Teaching Teams

1. East: Forming – Morning and intention. Begin with

appreciation for one another, and good communication.
Hello, who are you? Are we willing to work together?
What’s our intention?

2. South: Storming – Noon and hard work. The heat sets I mentored groups of 25 people by
in, the thunderstorms come, and the going gets tough. myself in the wilderness on Orca
expeditions, but these were adult
How can our skills, our personalities, and our roles com- volunteers, and I split them into
bine to do the work? What limits and limitations do we teams, which led to lots of friendly
competitions among them.
have? Some conflict. Ouch. Bounce back. Reorganize. Within a team, the structure
was strictly horizontal, i.e.,
management by consensus. Man,
3. West: Norming – Evening and harvest. The group gels, that was fun and boy do I miss the
delegates responsibilities and appreciates differences of people, the place, the creatures
personality and expertise. We turn our full attention to and the spirits.
leading the participants. We improvise and it’s just like R E, Team Sailing
playing jazz.

4. North: Performing – Night and wisdom. We’ve merged

our differences into a unified direction. We’ve learned to
swim together like a school of dolphins. We stand back
and watch with our hands on our hips and a sparkle in
our eyes like wise elders.

Briefing, Teaching, and Debriefing

with your Team
Briefing. Half an hour or more before the participants arrive,
carve out “sacred time” for your team to gather—time fully
committed to centering body, mind and soul in unity of inten-
tion. We call this “Bringing Our Minds Together.” You will
see this routine everywhere— the orchestra tuning up, the
football team stretching and huddling up, the family praying

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 249

A few weeks into my first summer before meals. Gather. Share thankfulness for life and the
of summer camps, I had an
experience with this model of opportunity in front of you. Sing. Appreciate one another.
team-teaching—by myself. I was Remember why you want to do this work. Speak aloud your
alone with a group of 12 kids
in the woods. I was still cutting
highest intentions for the day or the week.
my teeth, stumbling a lot. As an
apprentice, I had been working Teaching. During the time you teach together, each mentor
with the directional model of
team-teaching duties for the will perform a planned role that fits his or her skills. In addi-
past year. I was tired, at my wits tion, you might assign a direction or two of the Flow Learning
end. So at lunch I set the kids to
playing a game, sat under a tree,
cycle for each team member to keep an eye on, just as we
and pulled my hat brim down to described under the 50-50 principle.
just breathe for a minute.

I was startled out of my rest by Awareness yields connection.

a joyful yelp! I stood up, and
suddenly I scanned the situation
with startling clarity, checking
off the list inside my head: is their senses and in their gratitude—this is the Northeast
everyone feeling included? Yep, of your team.
but Ben seems to be feeling a little
alone. Are they able to focus on
the game? Yep, but they’ll need a
change soon. Has everyone been the group and each individual in it? Is the body language
drinking water? Hmm. Not sure. sagging? Has unexpected inspiration just flown in? This
Is there a sense of community person takes the title of East.
developing, and are they learning
to cooperate as a team? Yep, Southeast energy, making
except maybe for Ben, who seems
a little left behind. What is the sure everyone is activated and engaged: Maybe one per-
group needing now? son needs some coaching; another needs to be reminded
“Hey, everybody,” I yelled, “Let’s
of instructions for the game; or the whole group needs
play a water drinking game. Grab moving along.
your water bottles. Ben, you get
to go first!” South focus: Have they paid
close attention and actually learned something to take
I couldn’t believe how all this had
been programmed deep into me— home? Would that one participant with a passion for
like there was a team of teachers birds want help finding that thrush in a field guide?
on my shoulder conferring with
each other. Add to that the Southwest and signals “Break
elements of the Book of Nature time,” or “Let’s pause for a sip of water.”
I was juggling and all the other
layers that played in at different West.
times, and I realized that I bring
the team-teaching perspective
with me, even when I’m alone.
Northwest Reflection.
E MG, A Team of One

home tonight, taking on the North.

250 |
If your team consciously covers the qualities of all the eight directions, a sense
of balance and harmony will make your teaching day feel easy and whole.

Debriefing: After the program participants have left, gather again for at
least half an hour. Settle down, put on something warm and dry, share a
snack, and let each team mentor tell the story of their day. Aid the process
with focused questions.

and staff)?

Then end this debriefing with words that celebrate the day. Recap successes,
give appreciations to each other, and give thanks for the lessons of the day
and the support of the natural world and everything that contributes to the
process of personal growth, connection and education. Officially separate
the team so that each person can be free to turn their attention and whole
selves to other parts of their lives.

Cooperative Learning Groups

Your mentoring team and your extended community will bring diversity to
the learning experience, to circle around the edges, but be sure to put your
attention to the community of participants. If you have more than the opti-
mal 1:6 ratio of mentor for each small band of learners, if you have a group
too big for a circle so every individual feels engaged, then take time to sub-
divide your participants into little learning communities. This model shows
how you can design multiple groups where everyone can feel a part of each—
comprised of different people with varying opinions, passions, and gifts.
At the core of this, you create a setting so people mentor each other, with
Mother Nature as their book. You send them down children’s trails in small

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 251

In native cultures—especially cooperative learning groups to discover for themselves, run
hunter-gatherer nomadic
cultures—there seems to be a errands, and report back what they’ve scouted up. This mutual
cultural conspiracy to adopt mentoring is pure magic.
children as relatives. There were
lots of automatic roles for caring
for each other in these societies. Three Time-Proven Groupings
Children and adults, women and
men, weavers, warriors, wise men, The root words we use for these groupings can be found in many
elders, or scouts—all understood traditional cultures. For instance, you belong to clans or family
the dynamic of modeling and
providing opportunities to any
groups, but there might also be other groups, like the Masons
child who needed them. who focus on certain collective purposes, or guilds formed
around the practice of different skills, like blacksmithing, arrow-
J Y, Extended Family
making, or silversmithing. In the context of nature studies, we
offer these groupings because they have worked very well over
the years for our larger tribes and we recommend you try.

Clans. You could also call these “family groups” or “home-

groups.” With kids, we usually make these groups according
to age, by looking at the roster and putting numerical ages
together. Clans usually become the default grouping as it gets
reinforced the most. In clans, people get to know each other
best, just like they were indeed a family. Whatever the length
of your program, have one instructor stay with the same clan
to maintain the feeling of family. So if you have 24 participants
and one volunteer, you could have 2 clans of 12. Even better, if
you had two volunteers, you could have 3 clans of 8. Give clans
a “Nature Name” so each group forms an identity.

Societies. Societies, smaller but more numerous than clans,

have diversity in ways the clans have uniformity. Having soci-
eties breaks up clans and puts clan members with members
of different clans. For instance if you have 3 clans of 8 par-
ticipants, you could then have 8 societies with 3 people each,
so all three participants belong to and represent all 3 clans.
Definitely, some activities you will want to do with smaller
groups of threes, such as blindfold games or scavenger hunts.
For naming the societies, with older people you can use the
Natural Cycle as they did for me with my stick on a colored cloth.
You can make societies by directions, so one group will be name
the Easts, one the Wests, etc. Ask clans to regroup into societies

252 |
and stand in their direction. Ask societies to regroup into clans, In many traditional cultures,
someone refers to someone as “my
each member reporting back from the caucus of their direction. grandmother.” Immediately you
With advanced or older learners, you can also apply the think of your blood grandmother
and assume that this person
Program Management model (coming next) to them, asking must be talking about their blood
the Souths of each clan to help you keep the time and pay grandmother. You meet another
attention to details, or the Wests to help make sure people in grandmother, then another. You
meet a fourth grandmother and
their clans appreciate each other and work together. Lots of you say, “Wait a minute, who’s
possibilities for application come with the Natural Cycle. this person and what’s their name?
How many grandmothers do you
have?”
Guilds. Guilds arrange themselves based on the personal pas-
sions of the participants and the individual teachers who lead J Y, Grandmothers

the guilds. With your team of teachers, present the participants

with options and let people go where they want to go. Try bas-
ing your guild options by Core Routines, such as the Mapping
Guild or the Journaling Guild, or from the Book of Nature,
such as the Critter-Catching Guild or the Edible Plants Guild.
By using them regularly, the Clans, Societies and Guilds
begin to work cooperatively together making one big weave.
People of all ages participating will appreciate the rich diver-
sity within community. They feel honored in their personal
choices, as in Guilds, and yet also feel belonging within
an intricately woven social order, as in Clans and Societies.
Thus they experience the individual freedom so valued in our
Western culture with group affiliation so prevalent in Eastern
and Middle Eastern cultures.

Listen Up and Go West!

“Hey Listen up. Everybody get into your Clans,” and twen-
ty-four people scatter in three ways. “Now, quick, everybody
get into Societies and stand in your Direction.” Twenty-four
people stand around for long moments looking at the sky, and
then run to stand in their direction, veering as they watch oth-
ers decide ahead of them.
Whether in Clans, Societies, or Guilds, you can group
them for the day—to wander around the woods, to build
shelters, or to play games. Then you come back together at
the end of the day, as a Tribe once again, and tell the stories
to each other about what happened.

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 253

 Groupings can help the flow of sharing stories of the day, because you can
ask each Clan or Guild to select one or two storytellers to tell about their
day. People have so much fun representing the experience of their group or
likewise listening with glee to someone tell what they themselves did. Society
and Guild stories include bouts of laughter, seeds of inspiration, and great
swellings of excitement.

Orientation for Program Management

Outdoor education is a program more than a class. Students don’t come into
the classroom and sit down at their desks and then you teach them things.
No, in most outdoor education experiences, logistics must be planned:
signup, facilities, transportation, communication, equipment, timekeeping,
safety, payments. And to run an extended overnight expedition, these logis-
tics only multiply.
Delegate your team of instructors, apprentices, and volunteers to be
responsible for one of the eight aspects of the Natural Cycle, so you need not
worry, everything receives attention, all the time.
It may help to establish among your group the roles designated in the
summary chart below by the eight directions. With only two instructors,
each of you takes a set of the cardinal responsibilities. If you currently lead
alone, keep your owl eyes open and keep all of these needs in mind.

Direction & Pre-Program During-Program

Archetypal Activities Logistics & Actions
Role & Planning Teaching

Marketing & outreach for program with a

East sense of inspiration & invitation. Initiates
Inspire, Invite Outreach & Welcoming & & oversees clear & positive communication
& Welcome Marketing Communications among all stakeholders—staff, participants,
Participation families. Makes sure everyone feels invited,
welcome, & included.

Checks out site ahead of time, prepares the

Southeast Facilitating site, reservations & permitting. Handles
Site transportation, travel permissions, parking
Activate, Arrival & Flow
Orient & Preparation Into Registration logistics. Makes & posts signs. Orients for
Facilitate Flow & Planning & Activities low-impact site use & easy clean-up. Keeps
participants motivated & offers voluntary Child
Passion games, etc.

254 |
South Handles registration & payments; medical,
Commit To, Tracking of dietary needs & release forms. Makes
Participate Registration & Agreements, Time schedules & rosters. Watches the clock &
In & Track Roster & Attendance group attendance. Reminds everyone of
Agreements agreements & commitments.

Oversight of Hires & supports kitchen crew; engages

Southwest Facilities, Physical Needs volunteers in providing refreshments. Provides
Tend, Grounds, of Participants; for health & First Aid station(s); reviews
Maintain
& Improve Meals & Tending of medical & dietary needs. Encourages breaks &
Environments Refreshments Grounds & rest. Oversees tending of all facilities. Facilitates
Facilities end-of-program site clean-up & restoration.

Oversight Organizes teaching team to design &/or

of Learning implement curriculum. Gathers whiteboards/
West Planning, Activities, flipcharts, markers, field guides, nature
Gather, Lead Organizing & Supporting museum, handouts, other learning resources.
& Facilitate Celebrating Keynote & Guest Lectures, tells stories, runs games, leads songs,
Community Teachings Instructors, facilitates cultural mentoring, hosts community
MC of Group moments, provides information, facilitates
Sessions. sensory engagement & story of the day.

Three Pathways:
Staff Training 1) Providing
& Renewal; Cultural Context Three Pathways:
Northwest Research & for Teachings & 1) Shares & celebrates lineage of all songs,
Honor, Uphold Consultation Lineage; stories, teachings & techniques.
& Regenerate With Cultural 2) Integration, 2) Recruits, orients &/or trains Elders for
Elders, Support & program participation.
Lineage Resources & Meaningful 3) Mediates conflicts & offers personal
Other Lineage Participation of coaching.
Holders Elders;
3) Counseling

Keeps a pulse on the vision & mission of

North Team Behind-The- the program. Identifies recruits, provides
Develop, Development, Scenes Support training for, & delegates needed roles &
Budget of Teaching skills. Facilitates team meetings & team-
Coordinate & Oversight, & Team(s); building. Checks in at beginning & end of
Lead Team &
Community Community program. Manages any challenges that arise
Big Picture Relations Relations. among teaching team, participants, & families.
Represents team to wider community.

Three Pathways:
1) Quiet Mind Leads thanksgiving circles, sense meditations,
Northeast Assessment Exercises;
Facilitate Opportunities 2) Coyote Actions & other Quiet Mind activities. Tells jokes,
uses hiding games & other scout techniques.
Peace of Mind, & Facilitation toTrain Sensory
Awareness & of Northeast Awareness; Draws attention to bird language. Encourages
Creativity Goals 3) Facilitates & models use of Mind’s Eye Imagining &
Creative dynamic storytelling.
Expression

The Natural Cycle of Learning | 255

Chapter 11
INDICATORS OF AWARENESS I mentioned this Assessment
chapter to a mother of a one of
my summer students because I
knew she had a Ph.D. and had
just written a book on Genuine
Assessment. She said, “You want
to know about assessment? When

Radical Assessment my kid comes home from your

programs she runs up and gives
me a huge hug. Everything else—
Radical—root, foundation, bottom, essence; egregious soccer, school—she won’t even
talk to me in front of her friends.
and exuberant But when I pick her up after a
nature program, she’s all smiles
Assessment— evaluation, inventory, measurement, and hugs for me. That’s success.”
appraisal, review, consideration
E MG,
Indicator — symptom, pointer, characteristic, quality Genuine Assessment

We knew we wanted a chapter about “assessment of learning”

in this mentoring guide, so we started our writing process by
looking at the Washington State Essential Academic Learning
Requirements to design a curriculum that addressed them. But
in the end, we chose to focus on qualities of personal develop-
ment rather than academic outcomes, as our criteria for mea-
suring success. After twenty-five years of working with people
in both public and private education, we see this over and over
again: when human development is put first, academic, artistic
and vocational successes arise seemingly without effort.
We’ve decided to make a statement declaring what we’re really
aiming for and offering assessment criteria that fit. As Gandhi

Indicators of Awareness | 257

Washington State Essential and Martin Luther King so potently proved to us through non-
Academic Learning Requirement
for Social Studies. violent revolution, the means must be aligned with the ends. If
A responsible citizen our end is restoring healthy connection between humans and
q Uses knowledge of the past the rest of nature, then our means of assessing success must use
to construct meaningful natural, vibrant, vital, and sustainable criteria.
understanding of our history
in order to enrich and
enlighten our lives. (Historical Standards for Nature Education
Perspective)
q Uses knowledge of In most current assessment systems, Environmental Education
geographical concepts, such takes a back seat to the traditional disciplines like Reading,
as spatial patterns and both Writing, or Mathematics. Nature education, although rec-
human and natural systems,
to understand processes that ognized by many as “an integrating context for learning,” and
impact our world. (Geographic elevated by Howard Gardner’s recognition of “the naturalist
Perspective)
intelligence,” is still marginalized. It is added on in bits to the
q Uses a wide range of social
studies skills, including critical
traditional academic disciplines but not honored in its own
thinking, to investigate and right. The kind of mentoring we describe in this guide intends
analyze a variety of resources different benchmarks than such standard education.
and issues and seek answers.
(Critical Thinking Skills) Coyote Mentoring awakens people to be alive in their con-
q Uses effectively both group nection with the natural world. Our Field of Learning, as
process and communication Coyote showed us in the first chapter, includes
skills to participate in
democratic decision-making …
(Interpersonal and Group Awakening Sensory Awareness
Skills)
Cultivating Knowledge of Place
Restoring the Bond between People and Nature

This all involves primary learning, learning that uses our

“mammalian brain,” the one underneath the neocortex, the one
responsible for sensory awareness, emotion, and relationship.
Our foundational goal is to awaken and hone this native wil-
derness awareness, our birthright of “naturalist intelligence.”
Since the blueprint for all these primary skills and abilities
was laid in the DNA of the human being a long, long time ago,
you won’t be teaching so much as awakening them.
So, while we teach measurable skills in this guide—such
as scientific identification of flora and fauna, critical think-
ing, wildlife biology, tracking techniques, and the ability to
glean field guides for pertinent information—we emphasize
the healthy roots at the foundation of these measurable skills.

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 Self-Sufficiency

Awe and Reverence

Quiet Mind

Service to the Common Sense

Community

Caring and Tending Aliveness and Agility

Inquisitive Focus

Indicators of Awarenes

Indicators of Awareness | 259

These roots are qualities of being that lead to productive doing. For instance,
the quality of Inquisitive Focus gives learners a powerful edge for life-long
learning in all disciplines, academic, vocational, social, and spiritual.
Standards for learning within the nature education movement must
honor not only knowledge, but also the learners’ expressed happiness and
energy as individuals, and the qualities of their relationships with their
natural world. So, our criteria for success expressed by these Indicators
of Awareness may seem more qualitative than quantitative. We agree
with Ellen’s son’s first grade teacher who once said in a PTA meeting
on assessment criteria, “Sometimes evaluation of students’ success is
spiritual and intuitive; the most important learning can’t be measured
in numbers.”

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Sparkle in the Eye
We’re aiming for sparkle in the eye. When adults in their fifties look so
youthful and excited about life that their friends ask, “What are you doing
these days that makes you so happy?” Or, when a child comes home after
summer camp full of excitement, happy to tell the family what he did and to
show them what he knows, when such a child keeps that sparkle into the next
weeks, jumping into alertness with every track and bird call she sees, when
that sparkle extends into awareness of self and community, and ultimately
extends into a lifelong commitment to caring for the whole natural world—
that’s what we value, and that’s what we consider a successful outcome.
We believe—and Richard Louv’s research supports our belief—connec-
tion to nature creates a foundation from which healthy human functioning
and learning flows. Time in nature proves essential to our health as humans
because it impacts our psychological, mental, emotional, and physical well
being. So as mentors to adults, children, and perhaps most importantly, to
ourselves, we must realize that this work is nothing less than healing.
What Coyote does is transformative. As people grow in their connection
with nature and their awareness expands to the greater sphere of life, they
begin to change from the inside out in the way they perceive and express
themselves. Kids and adults alike feel freer and more supported to express
who they really are and what they really feel, and they discover what they
most deeply desire in their lives. Especially for adults, the journey may
arouse emotions of sadness or anger—people often say things like, “Why
haven’t I had this connection before now?” Thoughts and feelings expressed
along these lines are the beginning of healing.
Over the last twenty-five years watching people come into our nature-
based learning communities and then leave transformed, we’ve witnessed the
emergence of common primary learning qualities that we call the Indicators
of Awareness.

Indicators of Awareness
The Indicators of Awareness are both symptoms of successful learn-
ing and learning goals. Here, we’ll organize them through association
with the directions of the Natural Cycle. We’ll also point out Core
Routines and aspects of the Book of Nature that help produce them. So
this chapter pulls together all the threads already laid out and weaves
them into a vision of holistic human health. If “Nature Deficit Disorder”

Indicators of Awareness | 261

demonstrates one possible set of symptoms as a result of modern cul-
tural influences and lifestyle, the Indicators of Awareness demonstrate
the opposite—symptoms of health.
See these Indicators as symptoms to keep a pulse on your own personal
development. Be conscious of the Indicators as you wander, track, play
games, tell stories, and role-model habits of awareness and inquiry. Although
Mother Nature does a lot of the work for you, you must learn to cultivate
these innate skill sets by adding conscious intention to each person’s prog-
ress on the learning journey.
By understanding these Indicators, they then become conscious learn-
ing goals. They emerge naturally, but it helps if you model them yourself,
find teachable moments that explain them, and emphasize their value. In
organizations like the Boy Scouts, martial arts, or gatherings of traditional
communities, cultural virtues are routinely recited in opening ceremonies so
they become ingrained in the communities’ awareness. How you introduce
these values and bring them to consciousness will be up to you. Here, we
turn your consideration to the Indicators of Awareness at the roots of learn-
ing and focus your intention on nourishing their power.

East: Common Sense

The East marks the beginning, of the day, the year, and human life, so here
we place the foundational quality we want to see emerge: Common Sense.
Common Sense is a wonderful phrase we all understand. The origin of
this quality rises from the practical use of the physical senses. Taught by
experience, Common Sense uses good judgment about how to respond to
situations. In the city, we call it “street-smarts,” in the country; we know it as
“good sense.” Common Sense emerges from a basic habit of paying attention
with all senses alert.
You’ll notice how Common Sense shows up in people when they under-
stand how to dress for rain or safely step out into the darkness without a
flashlight. People who keep a distance from known dangers in their territory
use Common Sense and so do those who wield a carving knife in a sensible
way—pushing the knife away from their body and not using their leg as a
backstop for the sharp blade! You will see it in the way they approach a new
situation—pausing, observing patterns and behaviors of others. Often, peo-
ple with this indicator will approach the door slowly and listen for a moment
before knocking so as not to disturb folks inside.

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 Common Sense often has to do with physical safety. Studying Hazards
teaches Common Sense as few other things do. We learn where to stand
(and not to stand) in a lightning storm by understanding the nature of light-
ing. We learn not to go carelessly into a warm pile of rocks in the desert by
understanding the ways of venomous reptiles. We learn not to stick our
hand under an old table by knowing where black widows might be lurking.
We learn to be respectful as a palpable characteristic of our being.
By understanding the whole truth, Common Sense debunks myths
that cause people fear or panic. As you study hazards and get to know
and understand them, you’ll surely notice an easing of tension in yourself.
Understanding creates a relaxed sense of “it’s not time to worry yet,” making
Common Sense a casual intelligence in the face of a potential crisis. When
I was in West Africa, I watched my group of American adults cower and
shriek as huge insects flew in around us. Meanwhile, a native African boy
about five years old stood bored and relaxed. When one of the huge bugs
landed on his head, he simply smacked it with his hand and threw it aside.
Experience with the forces of life gives rise to Common Sense and it shows
up as skill in maneuvering through these forces with relaxed, stress-less intel-
ligence. People who live close to wild nature develop Common Sense partly
through their community’s stories and wisdom sayings, but more through
personal experience about the truth of those sayings. Hunter-gathers and
farmers grow up feeling the cycle of the seasons and learn the workings of
hazards in their environments. So, as a mentor using this model: let people
get wet and dirty, let them feel cold, feel discomfort, so they can discover
what brings natural relief and benefit.
Ingwe always used to say, “Common Sense is not so bloody common
these days.” And he was right. When we understand that Common Sense
only comes from experience, you can understand why. Instead of watching
over their every step and insulating them from the forces of nature, guide
people to learn for themselves: often the most miserable “story of the day”
holds an experience of a “mistake” they never make again.
Common Sense, therefore, means that, over time and with experience,
people grow more and more comfortable in nature. They won’t mind sitting
on the ground, or getting twigs in their hair, because they know it won’t
hurt them. Likewise, they acquire the knowledge of real hazards and learn
how to avoid them or deal with them. When people know what can and
can’t hurt them, they flow through the woods with confidence and ease.
Soon they will be covering themselves in mud and charcoal for camouflage,

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I will never forget working as a lying in huge piles of leaves while bugs crawl over them, mov-
parent with a third grade teacher
to prepare a rocky hillside off ing stealthily through ponds of muck with just their eyes
the classroom wall for a native sticking out, and catching the safe snakes and bugs. Many
planting lesson the next day. We
needed help to get it ready and
natural health practitioners have even observed that experi-
asked the after school Portable encing things in this way improves our immune systems.
day-care to borrow some of So keep an eye out for this Indicator of Awareness, use
their wards, just as a giant
thunderstorm loomed overhead. awareness of Hazards to bring it out, provide experiences for
sensible choice-making, and then watch thankfully as Common
I gave the kids big tools—pickaxes
and sledgehammers to gouge out
Sense becomes more and more common in our villages.
old turf and entrenched weeds.
The downpour came, sending
rivers through our furrows, the Southeast: Aliveness and Agility
kids got soaked and muddy head
to toe, I shielded them from Without a doubt, you’ll hear about Aliveness and Agility
adults telling us to come inside,
and those five boys left at the end
from the parents of the children you mentor. “I’ve never seen
telling their aghast parents that my children so alive before!” or “When I pick my child up
they had just had “the best time from your programs, she’s just bursting with enthusiasm!” or
ever in our lives.”
“I can’t get them to stop talking about everything they did.”
E H, Soaked and Happy Adults might say, “Hey, I think tracking might be the ‘foun-
tain of youth’.” Or, “I am picking up where I left off when I
was eight years old!” “I haven’t felt this agile in years.” Or
you yourself will get direct feedback from long-time friends:
“There’s just some light about you now, some glow.” Even
dogs and small children will gravitate naturally toward that
power of aliveness.
The Southeast direction provides all the practices respon-
sible for enthusiastic motivation and excitement in action.
As you tap into Child Passions, people will come alive. Be
ready. The fire will come into their eyes, a glint of mischief, a
spark of daring, a flare of excitement, a flame of fascination—
and they will begin to seize opportunities with boundless
enthusiasm. Coming out of the indoor culture which promotes
convenience and inactivity, they will burst alive with zest and
glee for raw life. More than anything, we aim for this pure
child-like happiness. Aliveness could also be characterized by
what my football coaches used to tell me, “Whatever you do,
really do it! Don’t just half do it—do it with everything you’ve
got.” Gilbert Walking Bull used to tell all of us, “Being truly
alive is like that feeling you get when you jump into frigid cold

264 |
water.” Ingwe once told me, “If you see a mountain and you say to yourself
you want to climb that mountain, don’t wait or put it off—do it now. Climb
the mountain now!”
When people’s spirits come alive, their physical ref lexes come alive
too. In the excitement their bodies awaken, their steps lighten, they twist
and squirm and jump with grace, their eyes scan, their fingers catch—all
with increased quickness. We call this agility. People will begin to amaze
themselves at how quickly their bodies move, children running up to tell
you their surprising feats—how they can catch things before they hit the
ground, jump logs higher than their waists. Adults will walk with spring
in their steps; their eyes will flash with youthful mischief. This Indicator
taps into something ancient and wild in their bodies, their “animal mem-
ory” and spiritual vitality return as neuromuscular and perceptual pow-
ers grow stronger.
Once you awaken their bodies, channel that aliveness into meaningful
connections. You can take this opportunity to stretch their muscle-imagina-
tion: “Jump like a grasshopper, run like a deer, land like an owl.” Use Animal
Forms as great teachers of agility; they enhance quick-jerk reflexes and deft
movements and encourage full abandonment into the art of acting.
Of course, Motivating Species are perfect for cultivating Aliveness and
Agility. What brings us more alive in enthusiasm and reflexes than a moun-
tain lion track, a frog, or a snake that begs to be caught? All through human
history, those species reappear again and again to encourage humans to
come alive in their bodies. If you haven’t spent time catching frogs or lizards
or butterflies, give yourself a day to go out and try it for yourself. Your body
will remember.
So watch for Aliveness and Agility, the sparkle in the eye, the quick
reflexes. Listen to the comments of the youth, the adults, and especially
the parents and spouses. And, be ready to join people when they move into
action. You might just have to get in shape yourself.

South: Inquisitive Focus

Another Indicator to watch for is a brightening of curiosity. Invited to grow,
this curiosity becomes Inquisitive Focus. Inquisitive Focus holds the tracking
instinct, the natural drive to follow mysteries and search for answers with hun-
ger and determination. The quality of perseverance lives in Inquisitive Focus, a
lasting willingness to keep following the trail of mysteries wherever they lead.

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Washington State Essential This indicator is tied to the wholly absorbed, hard-working
Academic Learning Requirement
for Scientific Inquiry: energy of the South. It is intense curiosity.
The student will You will notice this in people as they pull on you to go back
q Understand how to generate to an area so they can see if an animal has returned, eagerly
and evaluate questions that can tear into a field guide to look for information, barrage you with
be answered through scientific
investigations. question after question, or refuse to leave the woods until they
q Synthesize a revised scientific figure out what animal left this track!
explanation using evidence, Inquisitive Focus lies at the root of scientific thinking, the
data, and inferential logic.
deductive and the inductive kinds. Albert Einstein saw in
q Analyze why curiosity, honesty,
cooperation, openness, and
primitive hunting the origin of the scientific method. It is the
skepticism are important to ability to used by scientific icons and native scouts to hypoth-
scientific explanations and esize and test, to seek clues and investigate. Thomas Edison
investigations.
possessed Inquisitive Focus during his thousands of attempts
q Analyze scientific theories for
logic, consistency, historical until he finally got a working light-bulb. This willingness to
and current evidence, live within a mystery, to gather facts, to use the powers of rea-
limitations, and capacity to be
investigated and modified.
son and intuition, to compile the results into theories, then
test them out in comparable situations to see if they hold up-
q Evaluate inconsistent or
unexpected results from all these practices add up to Inquisitive Focus.
scientific investigations using Inquisitive Focus is at the heart of what Howard Gardner
scientific explanations.
identifies as the “naturalist intelligence.” Some people just
seem born with a propensity to pay attention to natural infor-
mation: they discern patterns, they imprint and use these as
“search images,” and they love to inquire into the natural rela-
tionships among rocks, plants, animals, and humans. All of
us are born with this latent potential; it is simply an under-
worked muscle in some of us.
I’ll never forget tracking a cougar in the snow: it stepped
inside the deep holes of elk-tracks and made it very hard to
make out the four toes and “m-shaped” heel-pad of the big cat’s
prints. My group had been following on snowshoes for hours,
but we lost the trail as the elk trails split off into many direc-
tions. Using both logic and intuition, I followed down one
trail, while others went down other trails. When I was nearing
defeat, our tracking leader found me, saw the dimming spark
in my eyes, and said, “You’re close, but you have to get down on
your belly to find the clues.” So I did, and just a few elk tracks
further, I saw an M-shaped print with sharp retracted claws
registering high above its toes in the snow on the side of the elk

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track: mountain lion, without a doubt. I gave out a barbarian, “Yowp!” and
the group gathered behind me to follow the freshly found trail. Relentless
Inquisitive Focus will take us to those amazing moments in life. Doggedly
following our curiosity, we each will get wherever we need to go.
Watch this Indicator of Awareness as it emerges, and fan its flames as
high as you can. Nothing draws out and trains in the brain’s deep-set abil-
ity to inquire more than exploring the mysteries of Mammals and Other
Trackable Critters, wisely guided by the endless questions they evoke.
Pursuing tracking mysteries challenges all the faculties of human inquiry
and intuition—drawing on the power of mental focus, imaginal resources,
and all of the senses at once.
Every person’s Inquisitive Focus will reflect a unique direction. Follow
some people and their fascination into mammal tracking expertise; note that
others will be charmed by plants, or lizards, or weather, or erosion patterns,
or pollination systems. Some will become academics, while others might
be healers or musicians. Whether they grow into biologists, accountants,
teachers, or business leaders, their powerfully trained Inquisitive Focus will
help them succeed in their life’s path.

Southwest: Caring and Tending

Everyone needs time for rest and relaxation, and the Southwest offers just the
place for physical and emotional recovery from the hard work of the South.
Caring and Tending is natural—we all possess instincts to wisely care for
ourselves, others, and the natural world. However, due to suppressive influ-
ences of our modern culture this attribute teeters on the edge of extinction,
just like the many wild, but endangered species. Therefore it’s vital that we
consciously cultivate this innate sense within our communities.
Odawa Peacemaker, Paul Raphael uses the expression, “Lay low and tend
your fire.” This image describes the essence of the Caring and Tending spirit.
We choose the word ‘tend’ as in tend your fire because we need to remember
to look after ourselves in a good way. The Earth itself exemplifies this nurtur-
ing spirit by continually providing for and supporting our lives. Tending for
the land and people in a caring way causes conscious awareness of physical,
emotional and community well-being. As Indicators of Awareness, Tending
and Caring embody nourishment and nurture, empathy and protection.
You will notice this natural development in people when they begin to
recognize and express their own needs. One might tap you on the shoulder

Indicators of Awareness | 267

during a hike to say, “I need to drink some water,” or, “I need to rest for a
minute.” Over time and with your encouragement, people will go beyond
asserting their needs into taking responsibility for them and being proactive
about them. You might hear, “I better bring my coat with me because I know
I usually get cold on cloud-covered days like today.” You might notice Caring
and Tending as they become proactive around camp or on an outdoor proj-
ect and begin to look after the needs of others.
Caring and Tending will show in behavior that cares for others. People
may notice someone’s thirst and respond by offering water. They may ask
others who seem cold if they want an extra coat or blanket, or they’ll find the
coziest logs for you and the others to sit on. Sometimes the Caring Tender of
the group becomes the protector who speaks out against violations of com-
mon decency or acts as a mediator in conflicts.
Of course, this same tending sensibility will also show itself as care for
the natural world—and especially one’s own native romping grounds. Your
people will develop a sense of protectiveness for plants, animals, and fragile
areas. When a new member of the learning community comes on the scene
who thoughtlessly whacks plants with a stick, the Caring and Tending per-
son will unreservedly speak up in defense.
The Core Routine of Wandering encourages people to attend to the
messages of their bodies, to rest or eat when needed, to get physically active
when that urge comes up, to follow a curiosity or intuition when it tickles. In
many ways, the experience of Wandering without a destination, or practic-
ing “body radar,” opens the door to listening to the wisdom of the body. This
innate sense of physical care will eventually translate into emotional care, as
people grow able to articulate emotions and discover what they need in order
to care for their own and others’ emotional well-being.
Connection with Nature’s Medicine Cabinet, edible and medicinal plants,
ties in with this indicator, supporting its emergence. As people experience
how to directly nourish themselves and tend to basic first-aid needs by picking
plants out of the ground with their own two hands, they gain an appreciation
of nature’s power to nourish and heal. You will see harvesters and gardeners
carry a pouch so they can gather plant medicines and wild edible plants—be-
ing ever ready to come to the rescue of a cut, bee-sting, nettle-sting, or satisfy a
hunger for sweet berries. Also, as many game-hunters will testify, getting your
food directly from nature evokes a natural desire to care for those species and
the ecological fabric that nourishes them.
The Caring and Tending Indicator naturally emerges as people grow in

268 |
connection and empathy for the world around them. You may Learn to hear voices in the wind
Music in mountain streams and
be surprised by the degree of compassion and concern that bird songs
some will demonstrate for the well-being of others. So watch Fall asleep under the stars
listening to the call of the owl and
for and cultivate this Indicator of Awareness as people grow the whippoorwill
more aware of simple needs and begin to act—as caring ten- And dream dreams with
ders of themselves, of others, and of the earth. the animals as your dream
companions
The most important point to hold about this indicator is Dreams so vivid, so real they will
that we must start by taking care of ourselves first. As I work not be dreams my friends
They’ll be visions
on taking care of myself as a priority in my own life, I am
rewarded with greater health and happiness, and this mod- N “I” P,
eling becomes a gift to all those around me. If you are read- Lean to Hear Voices in the Wind

ing this book, then like me, it’s possible that you too have a
natural tendency to give, give, and give away your energy in
favor of others. But if we don’t tend our own fires, what are
we teaching by our example? May we each learn to tend our
own fire first, for then we can—with skill, centeredness, and
endurance—tend to other and bigger fires.

West: Service to the Community

In the West, we move from self-centered activities to the circle
of the community that congregates for the harvest. So here
is the place in the Natural Cycle for mentors to look for the
desire to play the meaningful role of Service to Community.
It is no surprise that being in nature with peers and men-
tors naturally gives rise to an awareness that we are threads in
the community fabric. It is the Story of the Day core routine
that develops that awareness by weaving everyone’s unique sto-
ries, experiences, and personalities together.
When we experience ecology, we quickly realize that our
ecosystem is a functioning community. Every member plays
a pivotal part—no matter how small or big that part may
be—within the entire network of interdependent relation-
ships, lending vital support to the whole. Shrubs stabilize
soils, while fish feed the bears who fertilize the forest. Spiders
keep down the insect populations, and even mosquitoes help
feed birds. Bees pollinate flowers to make honey. On and on
and on it all goes—every little thing contributes according

Indicators of Awareness | 269

to its gifts. Learning directly from nature that we play a part in the bigger
story, we learn Service to the Community.
People of all ages always feel eager to figure out where they fit in and how
their gifts can contribute. When our community appreciates us, we feel good
and begin to appreciate ourselves on a rather profound level. Competitive
folks whose identity originally formed around being “better than” will even
shift their approach to group situations when they discover the pleasure
of being “helpful to.” Traditional cultures around the world recognize this
dynamic, holding the belief that each human born into this world brings a
unique gift for the well-being of the community. Naming ceremonies often
reflect the unique talents and tendencies of a person; quests and initiations
help humans get in touch with their gift, their truest, most helpful self. We
call this the “Gift Concept,” and we think it explains why adolescents act
so self-centered—it’s necessary! Only by finding one’s inner gifts can one
truly and powerfully be helpful to the community. We think Lao Tzu, the
ancient Chinese author of the Tao Te Ching, meant community service when
he wrote, “the greatest gift we can give to the world is our own self-transfor-
mation.” It is the mentor’s job, and the role of the elders, to help this trans-
formation along. Ultimately, the process is one of discovery, of alchemy:
finding in the raw material of a human being some unique golden gift that
makes the entire community richer.
As time goes on, you will see this Indicator of Awareness evolve into
everyday forms: people serving whenever possible and proactively seeing
what they can do to help out. They’ll see that the firewood stash is low
and refill it when no one’s looking. They’ll run out to help Mom or Dad
bring in the groceries. They’ll see that more seats are needed for everyone
and disappear, then return with chairs or stumps for all. People will begin
to realize they have gifts that others don’t, and they will cultivate these,
not with a sense of superiority, but with a sense of humility. Once they
discover what their community appreciates about them, they won’t need
to be asked to express it. The ancient Hindu writings of the Vedas call
this instinctive service to the community, “dharma,” one of the three basic
drives that motivate humans.
As people grow to appreciate their niche in the community, they notice
others who fill different niches. Self-confidence leads to generosity and
encouragement toward others. When this attitude reaches a critical mass
in the community, you will know it. The group swims through the day like
a school of dolphins or a formation of geese, trading off the lead, resting

270 |
in the wakes of others. An immense appreciation for commu- I walked outside for a cigarette,
but what I found was the universe
nity unifies them. Just imagine a world in which the humans in dark trees and gravel hard to
live out their gifts and unique talents in a great symbiosis of the feet and
stars that trembled. In that cool
sustainability—a veritable “ecology of gifts.” night, I trembled,
Obviously, awareness of Ecological Indicators fosters the not from the cold but from the
awareness about how every little thing connects to everything facing of my life,
of my pained and joyous stay upon
else. Attentiveness to inter-connections and mutual depen- this spinning earth.
dence naturally builds desire for sustainable living. So watch E MG, A Moment
for and nurture this Indicator of Service to the Community as
everyone you mentor comes to appreciate how they fit into the
bigger ecology.

Northwest: Awe and Reverence

Sometimes, when a bird cries out,
In the Northwest, day dissolves into night, autumn sinks into Or the wind sweeps through a
winter, and the individual human life slows toward taking on tree,
Or a dog howls in a far-off farm,
the role of Elder, willingly relinquishing its youth to history, I hold still and listen a long time.
reflecting on the death and continuity of life processes. This is
My world turns and goes back to
the time of awe and reverence. the place
An experience of being “awestruck” translates into being Where, a thousand forgotten
humbled by something bigger than yourself, or stunned into years ago
The bird and the blowing wind
silence, or quieted down. We see in almost all nature-based Were like me, and were my
cultures a respect for elders and a reverence for ancestors. This brothers.
willingness to lay aside one’s personal wants and needs in the My soul turns into a tree,
presence of something bigger, older, wiser, more timeworn, And an animal, and a cloudbank.
more powerful describes both Awe and Reverence. Then, changed and odd, it comes
home
The well-known permaculture teacher, Penny Livingston- And asks me questions. What
Stark often says, ‘the key for establishing a regenerative, sus- should I reply?
tainable culture lies in understanding that we are not only a H H, “Sometimes”
part of nature, but that we are a keystone species within the
larger pattern of evolution.’ That is to say, we are not here to
be observers, but active participants in determining what the
world will be for at least the next seven generations to come.
This understanding naturally accompanies the sense of Awe
and Reverence. Over time it evolves into a deep, spiritual
acceptance of our responsibility for the health of the children
and their environment two hundred years in the future.

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I revere
The explosive song of birds
Awe
that welcome the blush of dawn. You will see Awe in people when you climb the mountain and
The sacred voice of the wind they gaze out in silent wonder, or when you find the bright
that stirs my searching soul. purple salamander that leaves them speechless. You will see it
The music of mountain streams when you tell them an old mythic story and they listen with
that fall in crystal showers. unblinking eyes and profound stillness, visibly touched by the
The flaming torrent of color
ancient images and motifs. You will see it when folks assimi-
that pours from the evening skies. late over time how one tree might provide edible foods, sur-
vival tools, shade, root-stabilization, and legendary character-
The call of the whip-poor-will
that takes me to my dreams. istics of life-guidance. If the West is where we find our role in
the here-and-now community, the Northwest is where we see
These my gifts from Mother
Earth
our place in the community across time: the community of
I revere. ancestors and future generations. This is the meta-story of the
evolving universe where we live. With a little contemplation,
N “I” P,
“I Revere” Echoes of Kenya and we feel Awe and Reverence for the immensity and majesty that
Other Poems lie beneath “the face of the deep.”
Awe comes first and always gives us pause. We find many
things “awesome,” a dewdrop dangling off the tip of a leaf, a
loud bolt of lightning quickly followed by thunder, the first
lightning bug, a glowworm in the path at night. “All things
The gale increased, the great trees wise and wonderful” have a power to stun and make us “lose
bent to and fro and the earth
trembled beneath them. There
our mind and come to our senses.” They leave us speechless
was a tremendous crash as one and fully engaged in the moment. Whenever nature hands out
of the largest lost hold and fell, an awe-inspiring “magic moment,” people naturally stop every-
the ground shuddering with its
impact. Then another leaned thing to absorb it. A powerful elder who shares deep wisdom
nearby and I watched as it slowly from connection to the land and ancestors’ teachings inspire
moved downward, bringing with
it a shower of bark and branches.
awe naturally. Whether you and your participants experience
At that moment I knew fear and extraordinary moments or moments of seeing the extraordi-
wonder and an inner exaltation, nary in the ordinary, always let them know such miracles are
… a sense compounded of being
one with the elements, the trees, more important than “the lesson plan.”
and the wild forces they bow to.

S O, Open Horizons Reverence

During my first season leading summer camps in the Pacific
Northwest, I was leaving an area in the forest with my group
when I caught a scent of what smelled like a dead animal.
Following my nose into a patch of bushes, I discovered some-
thing that few people ever find—the body of a Bald Eagle.

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 For a very long moment, I was seized with a sense of Awe and Reverence
for this creature, famous not only for its natural history but also as a central
symbol in Native American traditions and the symbolic essence of the United
States, engraved on every quarter and dollar bill. I wondered how the kids would
respond to the sight of this eagle, or to the sight of me in such an awed state.
I expected the kids to yell in excitement, but instead they were silent and
big-eyed—for five long minutes we all crouched around in a state of deep rev-
erence, respectfully admiring and contemplating this great bird. After most
of the kids left to play a game, one child, who had been in those nature pro-
grams for years, stayed behind. In silence he knelt down next to the three-
foot long body and gently picked up the huge, curved, sword-like talons in
his hand. For minutes he sat quietly, just holding that Eagle’s hand, in a state
of complete reverence.
Even young children experience reverence in response to powerful
glimpses of nature, and being in the presence of dying or dead animals evokes
a deep sense of mystery and compassion for living things. Learning to gather
our own food from nature—be it plant or animal—really brings this home.
Respect and reverence radiate from young people in the presence of a pow-
erful elder or grandparent who draws from the land and its ancestral teachings.
It just seems to be a natural thing for young children—and even adults—to
listen to their stories in rapt amazement. Grandpa can get them to listen to
things parents never could. Elders can get through to adults like no one else.
No wonder, then, sustainable communities place the Elders in charge!

Respect for Heritage

Eventually, Reverence leads to what some nature-based cultures call “a sense
of the sacred.” One is struck with how precious life is, and how the conti-
nuity of life from generation to generation is sustained by a unifying force.
There is a feeling of being caught up in a much larger story rooted in thou-
sands of years of history, and continuing through our lives and through the
lives of our children.
“Reverence for life,” as Dr. Albert Schweitzer called the philosophy that
led him to dedicate his life to healing people and animals in Africa, leads
to a lifelong commitment to hold the fabric of life sacred—to care for the
earth to “leave it better than we found it” for our grandchildren. In this way,
the concepts of permaculture and sustainability make sense; people gladly
contribute to endeavors that cannot be completed in one lifetime. My horti-
culture teacher in college once told me, “A man knows the true meaning of

Indicators of Awareness | 273

life, who plants a shade tree that he’ll never feel the shade of.” Ingwe always
said, “If you believe in the future, plant an oak tree.”
Whenever possible, find ways to link people’s experience and practical
understanding to myth and lore of the Heritage Species and the ways of the
ancestors in your area. Learn how nature-based cultures revered certain spe-
cies or elements of nature—through ceremonies, stories, art, or life-styles
built around such icons as salmon, eagles, oak trees, or natural springs—
people can’t help but resonate with Awe and Reverence. Guided reflection
often leads people to reverent revelations about themselves, seeing their own
life-story reflected in the folk-myths, metaphors, and hero stories of the
larger culture. In this way, you may lead children and adults, and yourself,
through the realm of mystery and into reverence.
So continually lead people into wonder-filled experiences in nature.
Watch for those big eyes, that gaping mouth and silent reverence. Help them
channel those feelings into skills for lifelong concern for the health of the
natural world. Equip them to pass it on to the children of the future, and
above all, inspire them with knowledge that they are indeed a keystone spe-
cies on this earth with an important role to play in protecting earth for the
future generations, seven generations to come.

North: Self-Sufficiency
The North symbolizes the time of winter when snow covers the ground,
the fruits and greens are gone, and you make do with what you have. North
and Winter test our ability to adapt and improvise to survive. This time
of deep winter sleeps—with all its forms and pressures—offers a power-
ful training for all the ‘storms of life’ whatever form that they take. The
deeply restful nature of the North provides opportunity for everyone to
meet challenges with clarity, calm, and true personal power.
The Indicator of Self-Sufficiency is all about calm, flexible wisdom. Rather
than complaining or wishing things were different, you take what you have in
front of you and improvise to solve the problem at hand. Self-Sufficiency adapts
to the flow of life, instead of futilely struggling against it. Remembering North
is the place of the mature and seasoned Elder, this makes even more sense. The
more you experience, the more trials you endure, the less things seem scary.
“I’ve been there, done that. I know I can take care of myself.” A sense of Self-
Sufficiency integrates one’s life wisdom into every task and situation through a
deep sense of trust in the process of things and in one’s ability to ride the waves.

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 Ingenuity: Cleverness, resourcefulness, initiative, creativity,
inventiveness, originality, skill, cunning

Self-Sufficiency also means problem-solving. Practicing sur-

vival skills fosters this indicator better than anything, con-
stantly presenting “problems” to be figured out. “So you need a
shelter … what are you going to do?” You may observe at first
people will feel helpless, wanting to lean on you for answers
to each “situation” (a good substitute for “problem”). Initially
they might whine, “I don’t knoooow!” But have the courage to
lead self-sufficiency out of them. Ask questions to get them
thinking for themselves. Have them experiment and show
them that mistakes hold the keys to learning and growth.
Over time, they will learn to say, “Okay, I need a shelter and The student will think
what I’ve got in front of me is sticks and leaves. Look … there’s a analytically, logically, and
creatively, and integrate
fork in a tree that will hold up the main beam of our roof. That’s experience and knowledge to form
how we’ll do it!” As they build the shelter, many more little reasoned judgments and solve
decisions and choices force them to solve their own problems by problems.

negotiating with natural forces and with other human beings in Washington State Essential
the group. The skill to assess needs and creatively address them, Academic Learning Requirement;
Goal for Critical Thinking
serves children and adults in every other area of their lives. Met
with challenging situations, we learn to trade in fear for “real
hope,” action-based hope just like Derrick Jensen writes about
in his Orion Magazine essay, “Beyond Hope.” “When we realize
the degree of agency we actually do have, we no longer have to
‘hope’ at all. We simply do the work. We make sure salmon sur-
vive. We make sure prairie dogs survive. We make sure grizzlies True survival will be measured
survive. We do whatever it takes.” in whether the archeologists
find ruins or continuing oral
Trees: Tools of Survival, are our best teachers of Self- traditions.
Sufficiency. We learn which trees have the hardest and sturdi-
J Y
est woods and how to recognize those limbs. Over time, we
learn which wood burns without sending off sparks and which
has a nice texture for carving. Many of the Survival Activities
in this book, such as Five-Minute-Fire, create situations where
people need to be Self-Sufficient, to recognize what they
have to work with, and to make quick and intelligent choices.
You can imagine the incredible value of this life-skill. This
Indicator begins to show up in creative choices people make,

Indicators of Awareness | 275

Hunting in my experience (and by such as how to lean against their backpack to comfortably take
hunting I simply mean being out
on the land) is a state of mind. All a nap or how to make a bridge for others to cross on.
of one’s faculties are brought to Notice this indicator in people as they grow self-confi-
bear in an effort to become fully
incorporated into the landscape.
dent in all areas of life. They’ll become more easy-going with
It is more than listening for changes of plans and able to “go with the flow” of the day.
animals or watching for hoof They’ll stop watching the clock and relax into the moment.
prints or a shift in the weather. It
is more than an analysis of what Beginning to trust themselves, they step right into the natural
one senses. To hunt means to have flow of things. Also, notice it in yourself when you no longer
the land around you like clothing.
feel anxious or stay up late to plan out every detail of your
B L, Arctic Dreams mentoring experience, your lecture, your job, or whatever you
spend your time doing. Over time, and through meaningful,
survival-based connection with nature, you discover yourself
trusting more and more in the process, in the moment, and in
your own ingenuity and creativity rather than spending hours
worrying and planning.
Watch for this indicator of Self-Sufficiency and foster it
Children know just how to wait:
They wait by jumping up and through activities that provoke improvisation. Help facilitate
down saying, “I can’t wait.” the group to work with the power of creativity and unity, and
U
help everyone see possibilities on both small and grand scales.
As those you mentor become much more comfortable with
change, and much more confident in their abilities to maneu-
ver through seemingly tough situations, those “dark winters”
of life seem more inviting. This profound and gentle force of
the North inspires true leadership of the archetypal Elder:
piercing the future with a powerful vision for real hope that
comes from the knowledge we can and will do whatever is nec-
essary to make it through.

Northeast: Quiet Mind

Imagine that moment in the wee hours of the morning, just
before the soft pink light of the dawn starts to chase away the
stars. As it is said, ‘the darkest hour is just before the dawn.’
There is a stillness, a mystery, a pregnant calm …
When the indicator of Quiet Mind begins to show, you
will be looking at a well-rounded success of connecting with
nature. The whole of this approach has been about coming
alive, feeling passionate and healthy, and about awakening the

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Sparkle in the Eye! The peak of it all appears as the Quiet My father could hear a little
animal step,
Mind, an intensely alert ability to be still, peaceful, present Or a moth in the dark against the
in the moment, and listen. We notice an active, unobtrusive screen,
And every far sound called the
receptivity to what is happening everywhere at all times. listening out
And yet, the Quiet Mind also signifies the beginning, the Into places where the rest of us
place you want to start, with every person, the quality to invis- had never been.
ibly and deftly cultivate from the beginning. Our Elder, Gilbert More spoke to him from the soft
Walking Bull, always said, “Start with the Quiet Mind and wild night
Than came to our porch for us on
through this, all the other sacred attributes will emerge.” Tom the wind;
Brown calls this the “sacred silence.” Athletes call it “the zone.” We would watch him look up and
Brain-wave scientists call it “theta.” Various meditative or reli- his face go keen
Til the walls of the world flared,
gious traditions name it yet differently. Quiet Mind represents widened.
a state of alert attention and complete presence that accompa-
My father heard so much that we
nies our daily activities. It’s not religious, only natural. People still stand
immediately reach their Quiet Minds in nature through hid- Inviting the quiet by turning the
ing games where they sit up and listen up. face,
Waiting for a time when
Notice this Indicator emerging when sitting-still becomes something in the night
natural and easy. Up until then, your participants might have Will touch us too from that other
place.
fidgeted a lot, but now you see them grow relaxed as their Quiet
Mind strengthens. Eventually, this translates into Sit Spot time W S, “Listening”
they take for themselves during lunch or other breaks. Or, you
might hear about it from parents who tell you their children
can sit under a tree for hours. Sneaking also helps to induce the
Quiet Mind. At first people tend to be loud, dependent on speed
or strength in moments of stealth. Time with nature brings a
very natural ability to move with stillness, patience, and ever-
present listening. A sneaking scout—whether playing a game or
stalking a wild animal—no longer darts mindlessly from bush
to bush in spurts of noise and movement, but waits for a gust of
wind to rustle the leaves and cover up other sounds. The scout
then moves in a way that blends into the overall patterns already
present in an environment. The Quiet Mind—uncluttered,
calm, observant—begins to reveal the “art of invisibility.”
Listening to the Language of Birds supports this emerg-
ing quality of Quiet Mind. Midst the screaming of children or
thunder of traffic, listening to the birds’ voices causes people
to reach out with their ears to discern “the still small voice
midst the storm.” Also, as we often hear rather than see birds,

Indicators of Awareness | 277

My Grandmother’s sister, Aunt we can often be inspired to stop in our tracks, look around, or
Carrie would take me on walks
when I was a little boy, down by even sit down, to see the bird making such sounds. To encour-
the bay she lived near. She didn’t age development of the Quiet Mind, send people out into the
really talk during those walks.
She wouldn’t say anything at all.
woods to sit and LISTEN—for birds, planes, wind, and peo-
She gestured with her chin; she ple’s voices—as intently and widely as they possibly can.
gestured with her eyes. She told Having a Quiet Mind, however, doesn’t just mean stillness
me where to look by looking at
things. She held my hand, and alone in nature. You will also notice an internal peacefulness
whenever it was time for me to that prevails even when a person mingles with a large group of
explore something, she would let
go of my hand. That would be my
people. This is “peace of mind.” Those you mentor will really
instruction, and I would go off a listen when you share a story or a teaching, and they will also
little way and look closely. listen to each other without needing to interrupt. They won’t
There was a lot of old country have to fidget. They will grow peaceful with stillness. As a
tradition in Aunt Carrie’s Polish long-practicing Buddhist elder and jazz pianist once told me
Catholic ways. She told me that
birds spoke to her. When I would
when I asked if he had a meditation room in his house, “No...
ask, “What do they say, and how Every room is my meditation room!” Ultimately, our quiet
do you know they’re saying that,” mind creates “the zone” that we walk with, where being fully
she would say, “Just listen.”
present and alive to our senses becomes our default mode. The
J Y, Aunt Carrie thinking, analytical, and “to-do” list mind becomes more like
a pocket-knife that we keep on our belt. When we need it to
fix a computer glitch or solve a math problem, we simply pull
it out. Otherwise, we feel alert and alive to the moment, while
our mind rests in quiet, attentive peace.
When people discover this ability to be still and peaceful,
notice how they develop a more insightful sense of thankful-
ness. Their thankfulness reaches to new depths. When people
first take part in a Thanksgiving Circle they might say nothing
or say too much. As they grow in peacefulness, all their jumping
up and down impatience falls away and transforms into a serene
listening for what they feel truly thankful for, and they speak
from that feeling.
So watch for stillness and emerging patience, attentive
listening to bird calls and others’ stories, peaceful presence,
genuine thankfulness, and long sits in silent awareness. Use
hiding, sneaking, bird language, long pauses in stories, and
role-modeling to cultivate and lead out the apex of all the
Indicators of Awareness, the Quiet Mind.

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Reviving the Original Blueprint
These Indicators of Awareness offer the final layer of intention
for you to be conscious of for guiding your people back into their
most natural and powerful selves connected with their place.
Wonderfully, the Core Routines and species in the Book of
Nature match up with the Indicators of Awareness. Eventually,
everything interweaves with the integrity of a basket which,
woven green, tightens into place as it matures into a woody and
lasting container.

Indicators of Awareness | 279

280 |
Chapter 12
WRAPPING THE BUNDLE

From Theory to Practice

If you have made it this far in reading Coyote’s Guide, you’re
at the end of a long walk through a landscape of many ideas.
We could call this the Land of Theory. At the end of this
journey is a gate—the land beyond we could call the Land
of Practice. Before we take this metaphor any further, we
have to stop and think about something: to the people from
whom we have received this style of mentoring, this stuff is
not theory, it’s life. Their wisdom flows in their bones. Native
people’s knowledge is truly embodied, passed through gen-
erations of personal experience from people who had to be
connected with nature or they would have died. These are
our ancestors. Their lives—and our future lives—depended
on their knowledge of place. It’s time-proven stuff and your
living hands holding this very book demonstrate the connec- Who are elders? Paul Raphael
has some criteria. You get
tion between theory and practice.
butterflies in your stomach when
However, for many who have not had nature connection as a you are about to go visit elders,
sacred part of life, we have to re-train ourselves in this old method, because you know they will be
able to look right through you.
and wake up the ancient memory in our bones. We’ve laid it out
as well as we could in the form of this book, and now it’s time to J Y

Wrapping the Bundle | 281

bring it to life. For as martial arts legend Bruce Lee once said, “Knowing is not
enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do.” This chapter is the
gate, a few short pages that lead from the Mentor’s Manual—with its theory
and philosophy—to the Activities—with their application and practice.
We want to acknowledge the “ancestors” of this Coyote Mentoring lineage,
the elders of indigenous cultures from around the world, Gilbert Walking
Bull of the Lakota of the Great Plains and Ingwe of the Akamba in East
Africa. To these mentors, this was not about “ideas” or “theory” at all—they
lived this way of life. Practicing these old ways will get you so comfortable
with the application of these ideas that you gain a new fluent “language”—
one you can speak when you need it and lay aside when you don’t.
Let’s recap the “Story of the Day”—your reading journey through this
Mentor’s Manual. In wrapping these core ideas into a bundle, we create
what primitive fire-makers call a “tinder bundle”—a bundle of fine, shred-
ded materials, often inner bark or fluffy seed-heads, with a consistency like
a tender handful of dryer lint. The tinder bundle only awaits the spark, the
little embryonic coal with some air blown into it, to become a blazing fire.
That spark, that coal—is you.
For we want nature connection to be alive within our children and our
communities, with a life of its own, just like fire. Right now, all over the
world, small fires are blazing strong in the form of schools and communities,
and they grow steadily through personal experience, inspiring and starting
other fires along the way. Following the Activities, you will find “Coyote in
Context: Weaving the Web” written by Jon Young. Through his storytell-
ing, we visit the realm of future possibility and what is possible when nature
connection is taken seriously. Beautiful and amazing, the vision Jon paints is
a mosaic of stories and images from real-life communities around the world
where the fire of nature mentoring already blazes.

A Tinder Bundle of Ideas

Ready to make some fire? Alright, then. Let’s bundle-up the tinder of this
Mentor’s Manual.
We can remember back to that first story of mine, that day in Redmond,
the home of Microsoft, when a Coyote led me from my car and my errand-
busy mind, and through the clear-cuts of new development, edge-by-edge,
until I came to a relationship with a wild patch of woods, with its trees, and
birds, and bones. The first idea of this book is that Coyote Mentoring is
about constantly straddling, stretching, and pulling edges. It’s about leading

282 |
people from edge to further edge, not by coercion or force-feeding, but by
subtle cues and mysterious hints that wake up human curiosity and empower
it into self-led action. It is about starting where people are at. Nowadays this
means concrete roads, houses and cars, computer-based technologies, fears
and misconceptions about nature, and internalized patterns of disconnec-
tion from nature, others, and our selves. We must accept the reality of what
is and begin there. Our imagination of what else is possible—fresh ways
of learning and shifted routines of connection—takes us from edge of pos-
sibility into new reality, which shows us the next edge, and so on. Coyote
leads exactly in this way. Our goal is to entice the people we mentor through
personal experience and meaningful connection with nature toward a more
natural conception of reality.
The Core Routines of Nature Connection—proven over thousands of
years—lead humans to deep and personal learning. They are not ideas that
we teach, but practices we instill in their everyday lives. As mentors, we
encourage the “dirt time,” of personal experience through practice of the
Core Routines, while engaging dialogue and reflection about those experi-
ences. Through this dynamic process, our personal edges get revealed, our
curiosity is stoked, and we feel inspired for yet more experiences. Back and
forth the dance goes—experience, reflect, question, experience, reflect, ques-
tion. Find the edge and go into it. It’s a dance that awakens self-challenge, self-
propelled learning. The Core Routines are the foundational dance steps.
But we can’t force people into doing the Core Routines; we must lead with
artful, almost mischievous guidance, employing the phenomenon of Child
Passions. By tapping into what all humans get excited about and love doing,
we sneak the Core Routines in so that they become default behaviors asso-
ciated with fun and exhilaration. Through the doorway of Child Passions,
the Core Routines are invisibly woven into the fabric of people’s lives. Core
Routines just feel natural, because they cause everyone to feel happy and
alive. Playing games, taking adventures, exploring landscapes, asking ques-
tions, telling stories, singing songs—Core Routines enter into peoples’ rou-
tines through these avenues of fun.
The central idea in the Book of Nature presents learning through rela-
tionships: meaningful relationships and real connections. We recommend
making connection one of the fundamental intentions in your mentoring.
That’s why we included “connecting” in the title of the book. We empha-
size real relationships with real animals, real plants, real clouds, real
mountains, and real people. This emphasis brings us back to the personal

Wrapping the Bundle | 283

experience behind Core Routines. We encourage field guides with mud-
stained pages, eating the things we study, touching them, feeling them,
wearing them … and through these experiences, learning to love them.
The Book of Nature points out to us as mentors the most fertile places to
start growing nature connections.
Yet when we invoke such aliveness and close connection, we had better
have an awareness of how to handle all that energy and direct it in posi-
tive ways. That’s where the Natural Cycle shows us a framework of energy-
flows—for an hour, a day, or a year—grounding our plans (and improvi-
sations) in common sense and observation. Ultimately, the Natural Cycle
gets us to the question: “What is really needed right now for learning or for
integration of learning?” Our imaginations leap forward to plan for success
based on orientation to the Natural Cycle; it can save mentors a lot of hit-or-
miss. Because we’re not always in control, it teaches us to look for optimal
contexts and conditions for learning so we continually adjust our timing and
settings. Even in teaching about nature, we are nature, and subject to the
whole flowing equilibrium.
The big idea behind Indicators of Awareness admittedly rests upon an
assumption on our part—the assumption that connecting with nature is a
natural thing for human beings to do. If this is true, then certain outcomes
and qualities will emerge within the nature of people themselves. That’s
exactly what all of our founders, elders, and instructors have observed over
a long time of watching. Qualities like Common Sense, Inquisitive Focus,
and Quiet Mind are the fertile soil from which all learning naturally
grows, according to the seeds of curiosity in a person’s mind and heart.
These ways of being indicate both successful learning and learning goals.
We think it’s the job of the mentor to take care of the soil and to leave it
up to the seed to determine the shape of the plant. We also think a similar
re-visioning of the outcomes that measure success in education is needed
in our modern world, and we offer the Indicators of Awareness as one way
to begin doing just that.

Bursting into Action

See these elements—Core Routines, Child Passions, Book of Nature,
Natural Cycle, and Indicators of Awareness—as layers of intention that lie
behind Coyote Mentoring. To continue the fire metaphor, these layers may
behave as the starter materials—the shredded bark and thistle fluff—for
wrapping into a nice, tight tinder-bundle. All that’s needed is the coal of

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action. That’s where you come in and that’s what the rest of When you have something to
offer, you have to keep offering it
this book is about. Each Activity combines specific layers of until somebody comes up behind.
intention meant to produce specific results of nature connec- When we recognize what needs
to be done, then we should roll
tion (of course they’ll also generate a lot of opportunity for up our sleeves and get to work.
connection we could never predict). [That’s] the way life is. What
You can pick and choose among the eight sets of activities you are doing is you’re teaching a
different way of looking at things.
in the following Activities Guide. They are organized so you
can select your best tinder to Introduce the Core Routines, J S, Art of Mentoring
and Coyote Teaching audio
Set up the Learning Landscape, then engage people with
Plants and Wandering or Mammals and Tracking or other
chapters of the Book of Nature. We divided each of the
activities into four sections—Primer, How-To, Inside the
Mind of the Mentor, and Alternatives and Extensions—to
enable you to shred out the bits most likely to catch fire in
your situation.
These activities spark into flame with the “Key” that
introduces each activity. This five-idea Key reveals how the
big ideas of the Mentor’s Manual are invisibly inserted into
learning situations. It de-constructs each tinder-bundle of
an Activity, showing the separate threads of intention that
underlie the fire-making. It helps put you inside the Mind of
the Mentor, asking:

Name of Chapter Here | 285

 1. What Core Routines are being invisibly practiced through this
activity?
2. What Child Passions are being invoked to make this activity a fun
and engaging experience?
3. What species/elements of the natural world, as organized in the Book
of Nature, are being connected with?
4. What’s the general energy of this activity? Where might it likely fit in
the Natural Cycle of your program?
5. What Indicators of Awareness are being cultivated in participants
through this activity?

The intention and attention that mentors use to design and facilitate learn-
ing can shift a “simple game” into a transformational learning event. The
clearer our intentions behind a story, a lesson, or a game, the more potent the
opportunity will be for teaching and learning.

Making It Your Own

Of course, there are many more possible layers of intention. Don’t feel you
have to limit yourself to our layers of intention. Right now, ask yourself:
What are my most vital intentions in education? What do I care about?
What do I stand for in the world? How can I integrate these intentions into
educational activities? Rather than give out recipes for you to follow, the
intention of this book is to unveil the principles behind the recipes so you
can create recipes yourself.
A music mentor once told me that he had a collection of the very first
recordings of the Beatles. Every one of the forty tunes was a cover-song—writ-
ten by other bands. His metaphoric point: first we get really good at playing
the creations of other people; then as we internalize the principles behind the
songs—or the Activities—we begin to write our own. Now think of the huge
plethora of original songs that the Beatles eventually wrote. You are capable of
doing the same in nature mentoring. Start with the bundle of Activities here,
but let them eventually launch you into your own creative scene. When you
become strongly centered in your own intentions as an educator and or men-
tor, and artfully weave these intentions into the experiences you facilitate, to
the point that your intentions are invisible, then you are dancing Coyote.
At this point, we should know that the nature of Coyote Mentoring will
be invisible to other people. It’s meant to wake up curiosities so that your

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learners feel like they did it all by themselves (because really, they did). You
may get people who say, “The instructors didn’t teach anything.” You may get
supervisors who wonder if you’re doing your job. Finally, you may grow frus-
trated, deciding you’ll just have to explain it, and start teaching workshops
on mentoring (that’s how our mentoring workshops got started). Even if you
never explain it, people will start to see it. The results will speak for them-
selves. You’ll get invitations from the parents of children you mentor, or your
adult participants will bring you hand-made baskets as gifts or show up to
do spontaneous repairs on your house. Trust us: Coyote Mentoring works.
The Coyote Mentoring journey is like the growth of an old oak tree. It
will take a while for it to grow, and even longer to bear fruit, but it will grow
strong and sturdy and productive, and stand firm over hundreds of years.
And when it meets the fire, it will burn long, slow, and hot. The outcomes
and relationships that result from this mentoring journey will be rich and
rewarding. But, at first, it might be hard.
Therefore, as fellow mentors, let us begin by appreciating each other.
Thank you, whoever you are with this book in your hands, thank you for
taking this journey. Thank you for the work it’s taken to get through this
Manual. Thank you for following your curiosity this far and for your desire
to empower others’ curiosities. Thank you for the mentoring you are doing
and intend to do. Thank you for tending the earth and its many-life forms
… whatever direction you may go. Jon, Ellen, and I sincerely look forward to
meeting you and hearing your stories.

Sparking the Bundle

In closing: this book isn’t much without action. It is a tinder bundle, just sit-
ting and waiting. The spark of fire exists in you as your creativity. Each time
you step outside now with someone and ask a question—or tell a story, or
play a game—each action, big or little, is a breath blown into the tinder bun-
dle. Eventually, momentum builds, the ideas actualize into your own bril-
liant, unique mentoring style—and the fire burns into magnificent shapes
no one could predict. Ever-changing, yet always dancing with universal ele-
ments and principles of nature, the flame goes on. Humans grow. Evolution
moves forward with greased wheels. And Coyote, looking back at us from
that next edge of dark woods—wags the tip of a tail—and vanishes again.

Wrapping the Bundle | 287

ACTIVITY GUIDE

Name of Chapter Here | 289

290 |
Introducing Core Routines
ACTIVITIES

Stories and Activities that

set up and inspire continual practice and
create life-long learning habits
The activities in this section introduce the Core Routines of Nature
Connection. By core, we mean they are starting places, foundations, to be
continually practiced over time in as many ways as possible. You can add sto-
ries, songs, and your own adaptations to fit your people and place. Activities
introduce you to the magic of each Core Routine. After participants have
done them once, repeat and interweave in an infinite number of ways. Never
let them become boring chores or disciplines—in fact, younger children
should never even be told they are practicing “Core Routines.” Always keep
their magic alive.
In this section, we preface each activity with a personal story that could
be told to inspire others and set-up the activity. Feel free to re-tell these if
you like them, or use them as triggers that evoke stories from your own life.
In the Suggested Reading, you will find a multitude of stories from natural
history writers that you could read or adapt to inspire the practice of Core
Routines of Nature Connection.

Introducing Core Routines | 291

Sit Spot
Sit Spot, Expanding Our Senses, Mapping,
Questioning and Tracking, Listening for
Bird Language, plus all other Core Routines.

Hiding, Spying, Discovering,

Seeing Animals Close Up

The whole Book of Nature

Northeast: Open and Listen,

Southwest: Take a Break

Inquisitive Focus, Caring and Tending, Quiet

Mind, and all other Indicators of Awareness.

Story: A Whole Different World, by Evan McGown

Do any of you have a special place you like to go in nature, maybe in your
backyard or a park near your house? Some of you might already have a Sit
Spot, a special place somewhere in nature that you visit all the time, a place
that’s just yours, a place that you know better than anyone else, a place where
you know wild animals as your friends.
I have a Sit Spot in my backyard. When I go there, I enter a secret world
most adults don’t know about. I want to tell you a story about this other
world, the world of nature, always around and waiting for us. I once lived
in a house on the busiest street of a small town. Cars would drive by all day
and I could hear them from my house. But this house backed up to a park,
and that’s where I had my Sit Spot. To go to my Sit Spot I slid down a steep
bank at the end of my backyard. Here my neighbor always dumped his grass
clipping and leaves, and no one else ever went down there, or probably even
thought of going down there! But me—I would leave my shoes in the house,
walk across the nicely-cut lawn, nice and cool on my bare feet, and slide down
that hill on my butt, sometimes getting good and muddy.
Down that hill, I entered a whole different world. Everything was wild,
cottonwood trees and snowberry bushes. The muddy-ground was often full
of tracks from all kinds of animals—deer, raccoons, feral cats. It took me a

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while to tell who left what tracks, but after a while I could read the tracks
pretty well. The muddy ground became a storybook that told me about my
animal neighbors and what they had been up to the night before.
This place down the hill was so special to me that I explored it as much as
I could. There was one particular area I loved the most. I called this my Sit
Spot, and even though I would tell my friends stories about it no one knew
the exact location. The park had a nice big stream flowing through it, and the
spot where I loved to sit was right on the bank of the stream. I would sit there
for hours, especially at sunrise and sunset, because that was when the magic
would happen … just like it did on a day I’ll never forget.
On this day, I woke up very early, before the sun rose, when it was still
dark and little chilly. I slowly Fox-Walked out into my backyard careful not
to alarm any sleeping birds, and then I otter-slid down the hill. Everything
was quiet, the air was cool. I Fox-Walked out to my Sit Spot and sat down
by the stream. After 20 minutes, the eastern sky started to turn light pink,
and I was basking in the beauty of the first rays of sunlight, when sud-
denly—SPLASH!—a sound came from the creek right behind me. It was
behind my back where I couldn’t see, and it seemed to be only two or three
feet away. I heard other smaller splashes, and decided to sit as still as I
could and hold my breath.
I waited, my heart pumping, when out of the corner of my eye I saw a
large animal walking in the stream. My heart beat faster and faster, and
soon that critter ambled out of the stream right in front of me: it was a big,
beautiful raccoon. It waddled toward me and then came right in front of me
without reacting to me. Then my owl eyes picked up another movement, and
then another, three baby raccoons paraded in a straight line right in front of
me. Following their mom they looked so cute! I could have reached out and
petted them. Still none of them seemed to ever see me, hear me, or smell me.
Then the last little baby raccoon suddenly stopped right in front of my lap,
stood up on his hind feet with his front paws dangling in the air, and turned
towards me and sniffed the air. It must have been wondering, “What the
heck is that?” That moment seemed to last forever as we stared at each other,
but in a flash it turned and loped playfully back to its family.
Sitting at that one spot, I watched those baby raccoons grow up, finding
crayfish to eat and playing with each other in the stream. I also got to know
other wild friends that lived there: deer sniffed me and stared at me before
crossing the stream, beavers carried sticks up and down the stream, eagles
swooped right over my head, great blue heron stalked up behind me silently

Introducing Core Routines | 293

and scared the heck out of me, and even a little springy jumping mouse once
jumped right into my lap!
I spent a lot of time sitting at that one special spot, and it seemed the ani-
mals accepted me as a natural part of that place. Going there felt like going
home. Even the song sparrow who hung out in a nearby patch of knotweed
eventually stopped chipping its alarms at me; instead while I sat, it would
come to the bush behind me and sing its beautiful song right over my head.
I named it Singer. I had so many amazing, unforgettable experiences, just
sitting quietly in this place until I became part of the other world of wild
animals and nature. You can do the same thing. All you need to do is find a
special place, a Sit Spot where you can go to explore, sit still, and watch and
wait for that world to welcome you.

How-To
Inspire. First, make sure to inspire people. Tell a story like the one above or
ask them if they’d like to be able to see or touch a wild animal.

Find a Spot. Wherever you are, ask the participants to go out and find a Sit
Spot where they will sit still and be silent and wait to see what they notice. Ask
them to Fox-Walk to find a spot that calls to them in the nearby area. You can
take a group along a path and let individuals veer off one by one. Keep every-
one at least in earshot. Once they find a spot, they will sit as still and quiet as
they can, and turn on their Owl Eyes and Deer Ears to see what comes.

Give a Time Limit. Tell them you will call them back in a few minutes, and
ask them not to come back until they hear your call. The amount of time you
have them sit will depend on your group. Start with an awesome 5 minutes
for five- or six-year-olds; older people might find their initial capacity for sit-
ting still at around 15 minutes. Adults completely vary, but some can easily
sit for hours. Expect a wide range of reactions. No matter how long they sit,
some will want more, others less.

Return with Story of the Day. Call them back in and ask them what they
noticed. Participants will often come back with excited tales to tell of ani-
mals they think they heard or butterflies or birds they saw. If the inspira-
tion is alive and flowing in the group, encourage them to find a Sit Spot at
home and come back next time to share their stories. Making time for telling
personal Sit Spot stories from home is a great way to start a day. Use this

294 |
opportunity to role model your own Sit Spot practice. This also helps us
mentors stay grounded in our own Sits Spots and learning journeys.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Wait until they seem ready. Your goal includes everyone adopting a Sit Spot
at home, and visiting it daily, even before sun-up and after dark. But we want
it to flow naturally from a love for nature—never a forced or boring activity.
Therefore, before you introduce the conscious routine of Sit Spot, we sug-
gest you wait until your people feel comfortable enough in nature to accept
the idea of sitting alone. Games such as Eagle Eye or Sleeping Fawn help
increase their comfort level. Introduce Sit Spot at the right moment; other-
wise it may be a Nervous and Uncomfortable Spot, or an idea they’ll rebel
against. After only a day or two of playing hiding games to invisibly expand
their comfort zone, and after hearing their friends tell Sit Spot stories, even
fearful people will spontaneously want to find a Sit Spot.
Love the One You’re With. As we said in the Mentor’s Manual, the
search for the perfect Sit Spot might entangle some people in frustration and
competition. So, show them how to use their Body Radar (See Wandering
activity) to sense out a spot that attracts them, but encourage them to enjoy
whatever place they land. Once the stories come home, everyone will realize
sitting reveals the perfection, because every spot is perfect.

Alternatives and Extensions

Go Often. Incorporate the Core Routine of Sit Spot into your ongoing
program, so participants get to visit the same spot in different times of day
and weather.

Equipment. We do not recommend taking equipment, lunch, pets, or

friends to the Sit Spot, because the whole idea is to be private, fully attentive,
and make no disturbance—to “lose your mind and come to your senses.”
However, certainly exceptions to this rule include: binoculars help near-
sighted bird-watchers; jeweler’s loupes reveal amazing detail in mosses and
leaves; sketching in a journal can help quiet down a fidgety body; and map-
ping the surrounding terrain can focus Mind’s Eye Imagining. If your pro-
gram calls for keeping good scientific records of life around your Sit Spot,
then by all means, include equipment. But just remember that any kind of
secondary activity can detract from the purity of the Sit Spot experience.

Introducing Core Routines | 295

Pine Cone Bird-Feeder. For a more immediately engaging introduction to
Sit Spot, have everyone make a home-made bird feeder: take a pine cone,
spread peanut butter over it, and then roll it in birdseed. Attach a string and
go find a Sit Spot and hang the bird feeder in front of them and observe the
birds that come to feast. Great for younger people.

Group Sit Spot. Find under Community and Ecology Activities

Story of the Day: Sharing Circle

Story of the Day, Questioning and Tracking,
Mapping, Exploring Field Guides, Mind’s Eye
Imagining, Journaling, Thanksgiving

Telling Stories, Listening to Stories, Acting out

Stories, Show-and-Telling, Singing, Laughing

Whatever shows up

West: Gather and Share and Northwest: Reflect

Service to the Community, Aliveness and

Agility, Inquisitive Focus, Awe and Reverence,
Self-Sufficiency

Story: The San Bushmen of the Kalahari, by Evan McGown

The San Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert in southern Africa live as one of
the last remaining groups of hunter-gatherers on the earth: some of them
still get all their food from hunting and harvesting wild roots and plants.
Their hunting success comes from their incredible knowledge of nature and
especially the art of animal tracking. Just by looking at tracks in the sand,
they can tell you whether a leopard is a male or female, what state of health it
is in, or when it made the trail. Such skill comes from long hours of tracking,
and ultimately from hunger—if you can’t track, then no meat for you.
Now imagine: you are a Bushmen and you go out for a day of hunting
with your bow and arrows. You pick up the fresh trail of a steenbok, a slender

296 |
African antelope, and you start tracking it. You jog along, silently following
its trail, looking ahead to predict where it will go. Always listening for birds,
you know they will warn you of the lions, water-ox, or other dangerous ani-
mals. Eventually you catch up with the steenbok, but it is full of energy and
easily bounds away, out of sight. The day grows late, and you know you must
turn back to the village before the night comes because lions and leopards
and hyenas take over the dark landscape of the night.
When you get back to the village, you sit around the fire with all your
friends and relatives, and you tell the story of your day of tracking and
unsuccessful hunting. As you tell the story, you mention all the tracks you
found—porcupine, leopard, rhino, eagle, owl—telling the whole day like
reliving it. When you finish your story, another hunter tells about his day
hunting in a different part of the land, and he tells of all the tracks and
plants he came across, describing his day in detail. He was unlucky, too,
no meat. Some tell about the patch of root-plants they found where they
played, and hand some to you to eat. They tell you the story of the tracks
they found on the way there, and ask you about them. Think about how
much people learn from each other.
Then, just as the sun sets, another hunter returns with a small deer-like
animal slung over his shoulder. Because of a good hunt, he has brought back
meat. He shares the meat and everyone is happy. Then comes the time for
him to tell about his hunt; everyone listens intently. He explains how the
tracks changed as he went along, how the deer tried to hide, what the deer
ate, and finally how he snuck up on it, shot it with his bow then followed
its tracks until it lay down for the last time. The videos I have seen of these
hunters show them dancing the movements of the animals as they tell about
them, and dancing their own hunting steps; the story comes alive in their
body as they act it out.
This happens over and over: tracking, exploring, hunting, and harvesting
plants during the day, and then returning to tell stories around the fire. Some
storytellers love to act out their story, while others tell it more calmly, but
usually everyone laughs and eats and share stories until sleep time. Telling
each other stories of what happened at the end of every day means everyone
benefits from each person’s adventure.
I like that. That’s my idea of a good time: have crazy-fun adventures dur-
ing the day and then come back at the end and trade stories.

Introducing Core Routines | 297

How-To
Formal or Informal. Make The Story of the Day a conscious routine every
time you gather. It can happen as formally or informally as you want. The
above story clearly sets it up as a more formal thing, around a fire, with the
whole community. In your program, everyone could gather after a dispersed
adventure, sit in a Sharing Circle at lunchtime, or circle up before heading
home. But it can also be casual, a few people talking on the way. In fact,
sometimes this works a lot better, as participants feel less pressure to speak
and stories come naturally. Try to keep these casual chats from straying back
into the world of human gossip or TV shows.

Sharing Circle. Generally, an effective way to share Stories of the Day comes
through a Sharing Circle where everyone can see and hear everyone else.
People can share their stories one by one around the circle, or “pop-corn”
style when they have something bright to say. For large groups subdivided
into smaller groups, one person can represent the group story—with other
group members invited to add on.

Talking Stick. Sometimes, it helps to have a physical object to pass around,

signifying whose turn it is to talk. It can be anything, a pine-cone, a stick,
or a rock just found for the occasion, or a decorated and honored “talking-
stick” kept in the Nature Museum and brought out for the Sharing Circle.
You could call it a “talking stone,” or better still, a “listening stone.” Whoever
holds it becomes the one listened to by everyone else.

Telling and Listening. Be sure to role-model dramatic, colorful, five-sen-

sory Storytelling, not only to expand your skills but to draw out the more
confident, expressive people in the group. (See Storytelling in the Mentor’s
Manual for lots of advice.) Remember, though, good listening complements
good storytelling. So role model and coach for attentive listening that values
everyone’s voice.

Focal Questions. To help the sharing f low more easily and mitigate the
overwhelming feeling of, “I don’t know what to share,” narrow things
down with a specific question: “What was your favorite part of the day?”
“What one thing did you learn today?” “What bird did you hear alarm-
ing today?” “What funny thing happened today?” “What made you laugh
the hardest today?”

298 |
Inside the Mind of the Mentor
When people share personal stories from the day, they express themselves, their
creativity, and their own experience of life. They affirm the validity of their expe-
rience, they gain confidence, they find their own voice, and they also find the
edge of their knowledge and become inspired to go back out and learn more.
Sharing Circles for Story of the Day create opportune times for mentors
to listen, watch, and artfully question the people we mentor, so we can lead
them from one edge of knowing to a farther edge.
Celebrate. Just as important, through Story of the Day, each person’s
experience and learning gets celebrated by the community. People feel pride
in what they’ve seen, learned, and felt; they also have their passions and gifts
seen and acknowledged by others. A little “performance” in front of a com-
munity raises awareness and imprints nature in their memory.
Be Creative. The Story of the Day can happen in a lot of ways. Do not
shut people down; let the excitement and aliveness get expressed and cel-
ebrated. Bless it, and do what you need to in order to keep the cycle going:
have adventures, and then come back and tell stories that inspire more adven-
tures. So it goes on, without end, a perpetual round.

Alternatives and Extensions

Mapping. Mapping is a perfect thing to combine with the telling of the Story of
the Day. Draw a big map on the board or large paper, and mark on it the location
of each story-event. This can engage all the scouts in refining their Mind’s Eye
Imagination of the whole landscape and seeing their own story in context.

Journaling. With teenagers and adults, written journals of the Story of the
Day grow into awesome collections. With younger kids, this can be dictating
or drawing.

Beyond Story. If you have a more expressive group, try to help them create a
song or rhyming poem that tells about their day. You can also act out stories in
skits which can be quite hilarious. Ask people to collect or create something to
Show-and-Tell and then add their artifacts to the Nature Museum.

Field Guides. Story of the Day also generates the perfect time to Explore
Field Guides, identify things you found, pursue questions, and inevitably
find new things to look for when you go out again.

Introducing Core Routines | 299

Short Version. When running low on time, go around in a circle and ask
people to share one word (or two or three or four) of what they learned or feel
thankful for from the day.

Expanding Our Senses: Animal Senses

Expanding Our Senses, Animal Forms,
Mind’s Eye Imagining, Exploring Field Guides

Running, Jumping, Catching, Sneaking,

Imitating, Pretending, Being Animals,
Making up Characters, Playing House

Birds and Mammals

Northeast: Open and Listen, South: Focus

Quiet Mind, Aliveness and Agility

Story: Evan’s OWLs, by Evan McGown

One day I had an unforgettable experience with one of the most elusive and
most beautiful of birds. Leaving my Sit Spot just as the sun started to set, I
decided to jog on the trail back to my car.
Jogging, I used my peripheral vision, what we call Owl Eyes, intentionally
causing my eyes to see more than normal. I also used all of my senses, sniff-
ing the earthy air, listening to the last bird-songs of the day, and feeling the
breeze on my skin. Suddenly I heard a great big “whoosh!” right behind me,
stopping me in my tracks. It’s a good thing I ducked, because a bird about
as big as a cat swooped right over my head. It landed on a tree branch about
three feet away from me, settled its wings, and just stared at me. Can anyone
guess what flew at me? It was a Barred Owl.
Standing there, my heart beating fast, I thought, “Owl … if I want to
learn to use Owl Eyes, here is the greatest teacher I’ll ever meet.” So I stared
back at the owl with its huge eyes and imitated the way it perched on the
branch, completely calm and quiet, blending into the woods around it. My

300 |
whole body relaxed like Owl’s, and I slipped back into Owl Eyes, allowing
my eyes to go soft and wide. As I did, my body relaxed.
I became Owl: when he turned his head slightly to follow the sound of
leaves rustling on the ground, I also turned my head, feeling my neck as a
well-greased machine, turning on bearings. Rotating my head and using my
Owl Eyes, I could see almost the entire landscape around me.
I’m not sure how long I stood there. Time didn’t matter, maybe only fif-
teen minutes passed. Suddenly I saw a movement ahead of me. I quickly
turned my owl-head to focus: a pair wings thirty feet away, opened up and
sailed into the air … and came straight towards me. In a moment, this second
bird landed three feet away on the other side of the trail … another owl!
So now, one owl perched three feet to my left, and another one perched
three feet to my right. Can you imagine my excitement at being so close to
these two wild animals of the night? I returned to my Owl Eyes so I could
see both owls in my peripheral vision. I looked at their beautiful, long, sharp
talons, but didn’t feel fear. Instead, I imagined I was just another owl, sitting
with my relatives. I felt the fluff of feathers all over my body. I gripped my
toes and imagined talons clutching the branch. Moving my shoulders ever so
slightly, I felt great wings resting at my side.
The sun sank below the horizon, and the woods around me grew darker
and colder. I listened, and smelled, feeling the wind blow against my skin.
Then I heard a sound down the trail. In the exact same moment, all three
heads turned … mine and two Owls’. Using Owl Eyes, I recognize a joggers’
shape through the trees. We heard footfalls and heavy breathing. When that
jogger was still down the trail, Owls and I made eye contact one last time,
then they lifted silently, and flew about twenty feet into the woods where
they perched a bit higher. They dissolved into the darkening web of tree
branches silhouetted against the sky.
I took a cue from the Owls and took just one step off the trail, next to a
tree, then relaxed back into being an owl, blending into the leaves around me.
Watching, my Owl Eyes detected the swooping flight of bats. I could still
make out the lump-shapes of the two owls. I wondered if they watched to see
to see if my owl disguise would hide me from the jogger.
As the jogger approached, he ran with his head down, huffing and puff-
ing away. I kept being an owl as the man ran by … and didn’t notice. Whew,
he didn’t even see me. But the instant I thought this, he must have seen a
glimpse of my bright yellow shorts, because he suddenly screamed, tripped,
and fell on the trail, looking up at me as if I were a ghost.

Introducing Core Routines | 301

 “What … wha … what are you doing? You scared me to death!” He was
shocked, not understanding why I would just be standing on the side of the
trail like that.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you … I am watching and imitating Owls,
see up there in the trees?” He didn’t even look where I pointed, but just got
up, turned around, and ran off, running more quickly this time.
I had to let out a giggle … so this is what it’s like to be an owl. Silent,
catching every single movement with their eyes and ears, hiding just enough
so that people can’t see them … except; it seemed I still had some work to
do on my hiding skills. I thanked the Owls for the lesson they gave me and
walked the rest of the way in the dark, my senses drinking in the landscape.
The Owls taught me about using my senses to notice everything happen-
ing around me and how to stretch those senses far out into the distance. By
doing this, we can see others before they see us. Since then, I’ve used Owl
Eyes and my other senses to see animals before they see me: I have stalked
herons, and leaping frogs, massive bears, and tiny shrews.

How-To
After inspiring people with a personal story about using all your senses, such
as the one above, have everyone stand in a circle outdoors. Then invite the
group to expand their senses by imitating the following set of animals. You
can adapt these however you see fit. If you have an attentive group, you can
do them all together. Or, you might break them up over a series of days,
practicing a new sense each day.

Owl Eyes. This is a way of using peripheral vision. Pick a single point some-
where straight ahead of you, glue your eyes on it, and imagine that your eye-
balls can’t move, just like an owl’s eyes. Owl’s big eyes are literally stuck in
place, so they turn their heads all around when they want to focus. They
spend most of their hunting time open eyed and gazing widely, waiting to
notice the tiniest movement in the field that would be their food. Imagine
and become an owl perched on a tree; feel the wind ruffle your feathers, feel
your sharp talons and the strength in your wings.
Still anchored on that single point, let your eyes go soft into peripheral
vision, and notice that without moving your eyes, you can actually see in all
directions for 180 degrees. You naturally use this type of vision when you
look at the night sky hoping to catch a shooting star, or when you want to
catch the hiders in hide and seek.

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 Now stretch your peripheral vision: hold your hands straight out in front
of you and wiggle your fingers. Notice that you can see the wiggling move-
ment. Now move your arms slowly out towards your sides while your eyes
still look absolutely straight ahead; stretch the edges of your vision sideways
as far as you can to still notice the wiggling. Bring your wiggling hands back
in front of you, then stretch one up and one down. Widen your vision again,
this time vertically.
Relax your arms and now notice with your Owl Eyes if you can see tiny
movements of leaves when the breeze lifts them and all the people in the
circle, even the ones next to you. Notice all the different colors you can see,
the different shapes, the shades of light and dark—all without moving your
eyes even once.

Deer Ears. Let your ears become the huge ears of a deer. Deer ears have
huge bulging muscles that can turn about like satellite dishes to focus on
different sounds. To put on deer ears, cup your hands behind your ears and
turn your head to focus on certain sounds. Do you notice that the sounds
become louder? Now cup your hands and put them in front of your ears, so
you can hear behind you without turning around? Does it make a difference?
Wow, you can hear twice as much as your eyes can see because your hearing
picks up a full 360 degree sphere of sound.
While also keeping your vision wide, pay attention to all the sounds
around you. What do you hear in front of you? From your sides? Behind
you? Are there constant sounds, like wind or running water, car traffic, or
maybe your own breath? Listen for soft sudden sounds like little birds or
buzzes. Where are they coming from? What is the closest sound? What is
the farthest sound?

Raccoon Touch. Now, use the touch of raccoons. Raccoons practically feel
their way through the world. They don’t have good vision or great hearing, but
they have long and amazingly sensitive fingers. They can use them to break
into our garbage cans and then feel for the food they want. So, while keeping
your Owl Eyes stretched and your hearing tuned, feel with your skin.
Feel the clothes on your body. Feel your feet touching the ground. Do you
feel heavy? Light? Do some parts of your body feel cold and some warm? Feel
the sun on your skin. Feel the wind on your skin; which way does the wind
blow? Feel your heart beating.

Introducing Core Routines | 303

Dog Nose. Think of dogs you have seen walking down the street, with their
noses to the ground, or sniffing around every bush, smelling every thing as
they go. Turn into a dog and pay attention to your sense of smell. Take quick
sniffs of the air around you like a dog. What do you smell? Smoke from a
fire? The grass or the flowers? Yourself?
Can you smell differently with a long breath than with quick sniffs? Try
taking a long slow breath in through your nose. Try sucking in a tiny bit of
air through just parted lips. Get down on all fours like a dog, or pick up a leaf
or handful of dirt and hold it close to your nose. If it’s safe, taste your leaf.
What do you smell? Does it smell like it tastes? How would you describe it?
What smells hit your nose the strongest? Still keep your Owl Eyes wide and
your Deer Ears perked and your Raccoon Touch sensitive.

Synthesis. Now turn on all your senses together. Let your eyes be soft and
stretched, listen with your ears to the little sounds around you, feel the wind on
your face, smell the air with long breaths. Hold this whole, wide-open aware-
ness for as long as you can stand it. How long can you simply pay attention like
a wild animal? Some animals do this all day long, that’s why we never see them.
By expanding your senses, you too can have the awareness of a wild animal.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Feed them bit-by-bit. With young children, or people new to the nature
experience, you usually can’t hold their attention and take them through
every aspect of all five senses at once. For them, make it fun and introduce it
bit-by-bit in bundles of story, games, and sensory practice over the time you
have with them. Continually follow-up and reinforce these ways of using the
senses through role-modeling, games, and storytelling. Seize sensory oppor-
tunities. You don’t need a formal lesson to introduce or practice any of the
senses: an aromatic morning may mean you invite everyone to smell for a
minute in silence before you tell your morning story; a blustery wind invites
everyone to roll up their sleeves to feel all they can.
Pay Attention. We want to awaken the senses at every opportunity by
creating a need to pay attention. By introducing hazards, heroics, and hunts,
you can bring your learners’ senses to life. Maybe the poisonous plant smells
really bad? Was that an alarm call? Who can hear the furthest away sound?
How many spider webs can you count without moving from your spot?
Which berry tastes sweeter, the blue ones or the red ones? Was that a bear
outside my tent?

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Alternatives and Extensions
Seeing Games. As humans, vision easily dominates our senses, so play one
of the many games or use tools to inspire looking more widely or closely
or colorfully. Pick ones that guide attention toward natural patterns and
processes and that keep their eyes open wide. Coach them to look for subtle
quick movements, shifting patches of brightness, the shadow of wings on the
ground, dark areas where light should be … And, since seeing dominates,
blindfolding the eyes for any number of games reminds us of our visual ori-
entation, and awakens all the other senses.

Cornell’s Listening Game. Joseph Cornell has a simple and wonderful

game to help people get into listening. Simply have them close their eyes
for a few minutes and count on their hands how many different sources of
sound they can detect.

Raccoon Touch Game. Beforehand, gather a handful of natural objects that

each have unique textures, such as pine cones, fern fronds, or rocks. Stand in
a circle or a line blindfolded or with eyes closed. Pass each item, one at a time,
around to the next person in the circle or the line. Ask them to feel each
object, name it, and give it a number (the first one, third one, fifth one …).
After all the objects have been touched by everyone, hold them behind your
back and discuss, as a group, what they thought each one was, finally reveal-
ing the objects and letting them see them and handle them. This can range
from basic to advanced, i.e. “What kind of tree grows this kind of leaf?” or
“Do you think this rock has basalt, quartz or composite qualities?”

Scent Trails. Prepare a patch of ground ahead of time by using essential oils
or air freshener sprays to lay out a trail of scent about twenty feet along, and
mark the end of it in a hidden way with a stick or a small prize. If you have a
big group, you can create three or four separate trails, each with a different
smell. Take a few participants to the beginning of each trail and ask them
to sniff out the trail and follow it to the end. They will be crawling on the
ground, sniffing everywhere—the ultimate dog-nose experience. Beware,
though, some people could be allergic to artificial odors.

See Sensory Awareness Activities for more games.

Introducing Core Routines | 305

Questioning and Tracking: The Six Arts of Tracking
Questioning and Tracking, Expanding Our
Senses, Animal Forms, Exploring Field Guides,
Listening for Bird Language

Detecting Clues, Pursuing Mysteries, Asking

Questions, Being Asked Questions, Exploring

Mammals, Birds, Ecological Indicators

South: Focus

Inquisitive Focus, Common Sense,

Aliveness and Agility

Story: Giant Tracks by Daniel Evans

If you’re anything like me, you love to solve mysteries like a detective; track-
ing wild animals makes some of the juiciest mysteries. Once I was lucky to
find some giant tracks of one of the largest animals in North America. I
learned a lesson I’ll never forget.
I wandered in and out of some forested sand dunes with friends, and
came across some messy, sand-blown tracks. The sand was so dry and loose
we couldn’t tell what kind of animal had been there, but we wanted to figure
it out. We didn’t think it was a person with large boots on: the pattern looked
like it moved on four legs, not two. We first guessed elk, cow, or bear.
Following the tracks, we thought, “Maybe if we found more clues, we could
determine what this animal was doing, helping us discover who made the tracks.”
The trail led behind a hedge of hairy manzanita and evergreen huckleberry. In
the shade of the shrubs, the wind and sun hadn’t crumbled the tracks; the sand
was firmer and moist. Looking at those tracks, we could clearly see five toes with
claws, the shape and size of a wide human footprint. Who do you think had
made those tracks? Yep—we knew it had to be none other than a black bear!
The tracks led to the huckleberry bushes. Noticeably, the upper branches
were broken and the berries and leaves had been stripped off. I think that
bear just put the branch in its mouth and pulled with its teeth. We had
found one of its feeding areas!

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 We could see how it wandered from bush to bush, eating here and there;
we stopped following when we saw the tracks led down a steep ravine into
some thick rhododendron. We felt more than a little scared to go down
there. “Where is the bear now?” we wondered. “Was it still napping down
there, in the cool shade? Does it sleep in the same place every evening?” We
were full of questions about where that particular bear went, and when.
Since we still felt a little scared about encountering a bear in the ravine,
we decided to figure out how long ago the bear came by. We returned to
where we saw those first, clear tracks in moist sand protected by the bushes
from the sunshine and wind, and they still looked fresh to us. Not much
sand had fallen into the tracks, so we could see the claw marks clearly. But
where the sun blazed down and the wind blew, the tracks were almost
flat sand, barely recognizable. They looked more like sunken bowls in the
sand. “How could the same set of tracks look like they had been made both
yesterday and moments ago?”
A friend asked the question, “Does anyone remember when the wind
started to blow?” That was it! We used that clue because we had paid atten-
tion to the weather all day. It had been windy when we went to bed last night,
but there was no wind when we woke up that morning. Between breakfast
and lunch, the wind returned to blowing hard for the last three hours. So
when do you think the bear had been there?
Looking back at the clear tracks, I suddenly noticed a bizarre detail. On
all of the hind feet, where the big toe should be, there was a pinky toe! On
our own feet, the big toe sits on the inside of the foot, and the pinky sits on
the outside. But, here, it was reversed on the bear! I thought, “What in the
world?” Maybe the bear crisscrossed its feet as it walked? To figure it out, we
took off our shoes, got down on all fours, and walked like bears in the sand.
Believe me, if you crisscross your legs while walking on all fours, you end up
with a face full of sand. Back at camp, we looked in our Tracking Field Guide
and it showed us that bears actually are opposite from humans—their big
toes are located on the outside of their feet, where our pinky toes sit. Can
you guess why?
When I first learned to track I would have been happy just to see some
tracks and say “Wow, that’s a bear,” then just walk away. Now if I act like a
detective, and ask lots of questions, I find out so much more. Sometimes I
don’t want the mystery to end. It’s more fun to be on the hunt, talking with
your friends as you try to figure out your mystery.

Introducing Core Routines | 307

How-To
We like to approach tracking through the “Six Arts of Tracking,” based on
the most basic questions answered by any mystery novel or piece of journal-
ism: Who? What? When? Where? Why? and How?
You only need a situation allowing you to use these questions: tracks or
sign you find in the field, or indoors with an interesting object from nature.
Once you find a mystery, have your group gather around making sure every-
one can see and no one damages it by stepping on it.

The Six Arts of Tracking. Remember the Art of Questioning through the
Six Arts of Tracking. Small groups work well because questioning becomes an
interactive dialogue between all involved. Use the Three Levels of Questioning
(Listed below in the Mind of the Mentor. For full discussion, refer to Chapter
5, Questioning and Answering) and carry a tracking field guide to help find
some answers. The questioning tactics begin with looking at tracks, but fan out
into everything about the animal. We list the questions only in the rhythmic
order people learn them, and although many have no right or wrong answer,
most inspire questions specific to your own situation.

Who? – Identification
Who made the track? Look at size, weight, shape, number of toes, claw
marks, tail drags? Can you identify its species? Can you find its Latin name?
What else can you tell about this individual animal?

What? – Interpretation of Behavior and Habits

What do the tracks indicate about behavior and habits? Explore the vicinity
of the tracks. What direction did they come from? What direction are they
going? What gait is the animal in? Did it stop or turn? What was it doing?
What do these tracks suggest about the animal’s common activities, habits,
and behaviors? What does it eat? What eats it? What do you need to know
if you encounter this animal?

When? – Track Aging

Look for evidence of the effects of sun, moisture, and wind on various sub-
strates. When did it leave this track? When is it most active? When does it
sleep? When does it mate? When does it have babies?

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Where? – Trailing for Home and Habitat
Follow the tracks to find out about home and habitat. Where does it live,
feed, and sleep? Where are its sources for food and water? During different
seasons, where does it move? Where does it raise its young? Where is it right
now? Where in the world can it be found?

Why? – Ecological Tracking and Prediction

Look around for Larders and Lacks. Of all the places it could have been, why
was it here? Why does it want to be here? Why is this animal running? Ask
why about the who, what, where, and when questions.

How? – Empathy
Imitate the way the animal moves. How does it move its body? How does it
feel to be this animal? How big, little, or muscular is it? How does it perceive
the world—Sight? Smell? Hearing? Touch? Radar? A combination of these?
Pretend to be the animal and make a track pattern in the same way it did.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

When people exhibit curiosity around found objects or tracks, this activity
almost plays itself. Ask questions that prolong their questioning (and thus
“questing”) state. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know the answers yourself,
because what’s being learned is how to ask good questions. The feeling of being
on a quest excites the mind, awakens the senses, and creates life-long learners.
Remember the Three Levels of Questioning strategy: 1) questions you
know they know the answer to, 2) questions that they’ll have to put effort
into solving, and 3) an inspirational one, a bit beyond their league, that will
give them a satisfying “A-ha!” when they close in on it at a later date. (For full
discussion, refer to Chapter 5, Questioning and Answering.)
For people who feel apprehensive about tracking, discomfort outdoors,
or shy about sharing their opinion, questioning works best when it plays to
strengths they already have. Those who love wandering, and not standing-in-
one-place focusing, often engage when a question allows them to follow the
tracks. Along the way, as you lose the trail and find it again, everyone asks
questions that open up an expanded awareness and knowledge.
Remember, Tracking isn’t limited to mammals. Apply the principles of
the Six Arts of Tracking for anything that interests your group while out in
nature—plants, insects, fish, geology, weather, or whatever.

Introducing Core Routines | 309

Alternatives and Extensions
Carry Field Guides. Generally, in small groups, it helps if everyone can
gather around the book. In larger groups, a few people may be excited to be
designated researchers who help spotlight questions onto particular species,
habits, and habitats as they discover and answer the clues.

Don’t Carry Field Guides. Record measurements, draw tracks and jot sign-
clues into journals for later research in field guides. Perhaps after research
time, a Story of the Day session can report the answers.

Inclement Weather? Stuck Indoors? Challenge your participants to come

up with twenty questions of who, what, where, when, why, and how about
a nature object that captures their fascination. Field guide or drawing time
follows as they research the questions most interesting to them.

Tracking Games. See under Tracking Activities.

Animal Forms: Fox-Walking

Animal Forms, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Imitating Animals, Acting Out Stories, Running,

Jumping, Crawling, Chasing,

Hazards and Mammals

East: Inspire and Southeast: Activate

Aliveness and Agility, Common Sense, and Quiet

Mind

Story: Straight from the Fox’s Mouth, by Nate Summers

Any number of people who have tried out this Core Routine can probably
share stories about how practicing Fox-Walking, an Animal Form, has
enabled them to see wildlife or get close to wildlife. Of course, very few of
those stories actually involve a fox.

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 Late in the fall, a couple of naturalist friends and I went hiking in the
Cascade Mountains. In the middle of the afternoon, light snow was fall-
ing. As perfect light dust, we actually followed very, very fresh rabbit tracks
through the snow.
The characteristic “Y-shaped gait pattern” clued us in; we followed a rab-
bit on the side of the mountain, probably a snowshoe hare. Hoping we might
spot the animal making the tracks, I decided to try to impress my friends by
demonstrating an Animal Form I had learned, Fox-Walking.

Soon, all three of us slowly tried to imitate the movements of a fox with
careful, delicately placed deliberate steps. We held our heads steady, all our
senses alert, followed the trail of rabbit tracks through the snow. We must
have made quite a sight.
Only a few minutes later, we noticed another set of tracks following the
rabbit tracks ... The tracks were small, just a little bit bigger than cat tracks but
not quite big enough to be coyote tracks. Sometimes the tracks had claw marks
and other times it appeared obscured by fur so we couldn’t be sure. After a bit
of head-scratching and trailing, we finally realized we tracked a fox. Our Fox-
Walking had led us to something very interesting indeed!
Now, here’s the best part of the story: not too long after we discovered
the fox tracks, they peeled off to the left and disappeared into the brush. We
decided we should probably head back to the cars since it was getting late
and the snow was falling harder. On the way back, following our own trail
through the snow, we had an interesting discovery that had not been there
on the way in. Right on top of our tracks, someone had deposited a fresh scat

Introducing Core Routines | 311

and yellow snow nearby indicated a urine marking as well. None of us felt all
that surprised when we all caught a whiff of the characteristic musky smell
of fox urine! We had been out-foxed by a fox while Fox-Walking!

How-To
Inspire. Fox-Walking can be inspired by the hope of being so invisible that
you can actually sneak up on an animal. Just ask, “How many of you like to
see wildlife? Who would like to learn how to get close to wild animals?”

Demonstrate. Next, demonstrate how to Fox-Walk. Bend the knees a

little, relax your body, and then gently step forward with one foot, toes
first. If, as you begin to set your foot down, it seems like you might make
noise, simply lift the foot and place it elsewhere. Once the foot rests quietly
on the ground, shift your weight into that foot, and repeat with the other
foot. Imagine with each step, you check out the ground like a fox to see if
you can step quietly.
Also with Fox-walking, make sure to hold your head nice and steady
(not bobbing up and down like most people when they walk). Make sure
you look up, and not down at your feet. One of the main reasons we use
Fox-Walking: it frees up our dominant sense of sight so that we can tune
in to the whole world—not just our feet! You should start out nice and
slow, but over time you can walk at almost a normal walking pace. Also, it
helps greatly to picture in your Mind’s Eye a fox walking carefully through
the forest. (Additional resources can be found including more detailed
descriptions of Fox-Walking like Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Nature
Observation and Tracking for Children).

Try it Out. After demonstrating, have the people you’re working with try
Fox-Walking. It might be best to walk around in a circle to slow the pace.
See if the participants can Fox-Walk and not talk. Make sure they keep their
eyes up and use Owl Eyes.

Take it on the Trail. After several minutes of practice, see if they can take
their Fox-Walking out on the trail. Check to see how animals respond to
your group now that you can all Fox-Walk. A great thing to do from here
would be to have each person Fox-walk to their Sit-Spots, and notice how it
feels compared to other times they’ve gone there.

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Inside the Mind of the Mentor
There are two main aims in Fox-Walking. One: to free up the eyes and other
senses from focusing on the ground and broaden awareness and brain-pat-
terning. Two: to get people into a conscious relationship with their bod-
ies and the way they move through the world. Ultimately, there no “right”
or “wrong” way to do Fox-Walking. There’s only your own way. Whatever
works for you, works, as long as it’s quiet, smooth, and empowering to all of
one’s senses and faculties of awareness
Realistically, many people you work with will not be able to suddenly
become Fox-Walking experts. However, anything that can slow them and
quiet them down will enhance their experience with each other, with wild-
life, and with the landscape around them.
Notice which people do Fox-Walk slowly and quietly. Maybe they can
role-model for others. Also, this exercise gets increasingly better with time
so we use it in several of our other Animal Forms games like Firekeeper.
Perhaps people need to demonstrate their Fox-Walking prowess just before
they play one of these games.

Alternatives and Extensions:

Have a Fox-Walking Competition. Who moves the quietest? Who goes
the slowest? Who moves quickly but still remains quiet?

Use a Variety of Surfaces. Try Fox-Walking on dirt, pavement, logs, grass,

or whatever presents itself.

Do the Opposite of Fox-Walking first. Try to stomp around and be mon-

strously loud and noisy. Then compare that with the feel of Fox-Walking.

See Animal Form Activities for more games.

Introducing Core Routines | 313

Wandering: Body Radar
Wandering, Expanding the Senses,
Story of the Day

Exploring, Being Animals, Surprising,

Wondering, Following Intuition

Everything

Southwest: Take a Break,

Northeast: Open and Listen

Self-Sufficiency, Aliveness and Agility, Inquisitive

Focus, Caring and Tending, Quiet Mind.

Story: Another Sense, by Daniel Evans

It’s easy to remember how the forest felt the day I went looking for cou-
gar. My friends and I wandered into a deep section of old trees, Douglas fir,
cedar, and hemlock. An amazingly happy little brook babbled away and even
though clouds covered the sky, the dawn light slipped in underneath them
and lit the place up. Even as we searched for evidence of the mysterious, pow-
erful, and elusive cougar, our hearts felt light and happy.
Actually, we were on a tracking expedition in a nice sized patch of mature
forest. For two whole days, we had combed the area, made maps, and noted
all the areas where we found signs of deer and elk. We hoped to find an area
that didn’t have deer or elk because they were afraid to go there. That would
be where the cougar’s trails would go.
On our last day of tracking, we felt excited to once again find cougar sign,
although we all noticed a feeling between us: we felt kind of lazy. Our laziness
turned into a buzz of excitement once we found something! When a tracker
finds scat, we use it to tell us what kind of animal we have discovered and what
it’s been eating. This great big pile up of elk scat told us we were just minutes
behind the animal. I know this may sound gross—but the pellets were steam-
ing and stuck all together with strands of what looked like mucous.
I felt both scared and excited as we followed the trail of crushed vegeta-
tion. What would the elk do if we got too close? Is it possible to run away

314 |
from a charging elk? Would we be able to get close enough to see it without
scaring it? These questions and more bounded through my head as we fol-
lowed the trail. Soon though, the questions disappeared. We trackers had
our eyes to the ground, to the trees in front of us, what lay beyond, and we
longingly watched the sun disappear up into the clouds.
An elk trail is both easy and difficult to follow. Following through thick-
ets, we could see tender branch tips were broken by 800 lb. bodies moving
past and in a sea of ferns, we saw fronds stepped on, pushed down, but hadn’t
sprung back up. I felt a little like a bloodhound dog. With the rest of the pack
behind me, my eyes picked up important clues to lead us to the Elk.
Walking through a section of ground covered with just pine needles, we
felt we had lost them. We rested for a while, because following tracks can be
intense work, and we felt really tired. After we ate a snack, we decided, since
we couldn’t find the trail of tracks, we would just wander wherever we felt
curious to go. Maybe then we would find more tracks.
We entered a zone of sword ferns again, and the trail seemed to lead right
through it. Walking through those ferns, something strange happened: I
felt my body being pulled in a certain direction, and I found myself walking
towards a group of bent over trees, shaped like an open umbrella. “Odd,”
I thought, “Why am I going down here where there aren’t any elk tracks
around? Why do I want to go this way?” As I took a few more steps, some-
thing even stranger happened: I felt a weird sensation in my body, like walk-
ing through an invisible wall of molasses mixed with tiny prickles and air. If
the invisible wall could have talked it would have growled deeply, but with
a voice far away and distant, “Go away.” My body almost listened. Without
even thinking about, I started to turn and form the words to tell my friends
I had gone the wrong way. But, I wrenched back. There was something irre-
sistibly drawing me forward to explore. My curiosity felt stronger than the
“Go away” threat.
I’m glad I continued on. At the very edge of the umbrella vine maple lay
the biggest vertebrae bone I had ever seen. A tingle of the excitement of dis-
covery shot up my spine. More bones came into view, a giant leg bone, some
more vertebrae, even the atlas joint. Then wonder of wonders, I found my
first elk skull.
We dropped to our knees as if we had been blessed by a buried trea-
sure. We passed the bones from hand to hand. They were clean, com-
pletely white, and moss already started to grow in places. We tried to
assemble the vertebrae together, and fit the atlas joint into the skull. Then

Introducing Core Routines | 315

I noticed some marks on the back of the skull. I had heard about little
forest rodents gnawing on bones for their mineral content, but these
seemed different. Deep gouges seemed like they had been scratched into
the skull. I didn’t think they were rodents. We sat under that umbrella
tree for a long while, we made up stories of what we thought had hap-
pened. What do you think?
After that day, I would always remember what mysteries and magic treasures
you can find when you let your body and your curiosity lead you where it will.

How-To
Introduce Body Radar. Try introducing the Core Routine of Wandering by
inspiring others with the possibilities of what we call Body Radar. Body Radar
encourages us to let go of our plans and agendas and listen to the unconscious
knowledge and guidance of our body. Notice dogs that wander and sniff, or
cats that walk a little way, stop, look and listen to the left, to the right, ahead,
behind, and above. Like dogs and cats, people intentionally using Body Radar
seem to find things that others usually miss—feathers, bones, tracks, hide-
outs. So, encourage your people to be conscious of the way their bodies can
intuitively lead the way to amazing discoveries and experiences.
Just before you enter a natural area, ask everyone to pause for a moment,
to be still and silent, and to use their senses. Maybe even have them close
their eyes. Then ask them to physically turn their bodies until they feel a
direction calling them. That feeling comes differently for everyone—tingling,
warmth, solidness in their gut, just some unexplainable knowing, or maybe
nothing at all. For some it helps to stick their hands out in front of them to
sense with Body Radar. Some will dismiss all this as unscientific and decide
to just wander without such silliness.

Practice Body Radar. After each person feels which way they’d like to go,
help the group negotiate which way they’ll go first, assuring them that oth-
ers will get to go in their direction later. Begin wandering in the chosen
direction and stop periodically to let the group check into their Body Radar.
Go again wherever their body curiosity leads. Sometimes you may want to
loosely set a group focus—find a skull, catch a frog, or find a neat place to
have lunch. Continue your Body Radar wandering for as long as you wish or
until you “find where you need to be.” Often some place out there waits for
you to enchant the whole group: a pile of bones, a group of fallen trees that
serves as a climbing gym, or a patch of delicious flowers.

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Story of the Day. At the end of a wandering experience, form a sharing
circle and ask everyone to share their Body Radar experience. How did this
differ from the usual way of just walking along a trail? What did they like
about it? Was there anything uncomfortable about this new way of wander-
ing? What do you think might happen if you applied this same approach not
just to walking through the woods, but to other life choices as well?

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

The main goal in Wandering is to change agenda-driven habits and develop
confidence in participants’ own sense of curiosity and inner direction in the
moment. Pausing to check into Body Radar encourages this. Allowing them
to take turns being the leader of the group can be a huge confidence builder,
as well as excellent training in leadership.
Wandering regularly with Body Radar, over a period of time, in groups
or with more experienced mentors, people gain enough confidence that they
feel comfortable wandering off-trail to follow their curiosity at their own Sit
Spots, in their backyards, or at local parks or wilderness areas. This confi-
dent relationship to the innate wandering spirit creates children’s trails so
local landscapes everywhere become joyful romping grounds. In such places,
mystery and discovery will soon outshine the thrills of indoor video games.

Alternatives and Extensions

Short Body Radar Activities. Place a stone in one hand and a grass blade
in another. Have people feel, not guess, which hand holds the stone. Place a
nature museum artifact outside. Ask the participants to find it using Body
Radar. If someone loses their keys or glasses, have the group locate the lost
item using Body Radar. Note the million variations here.

Extend the Analogy. Teens and adults can use wandering quite effectively
to reflect, think about, and gain insight into all the challenges in their life.
Encourage the habit of pausing to intuitively feel which way to go in moments
of choice.

See Plants and Wandering Activities for more games associated with
Wandering.

Introducing Core Routines | 317

Mapping
Mapping, Mind’s Eye Imagining,
Story of the Day, Wandering

Drawing, Hide and Seek, Scavenger Hunt,

Creating Stories, Telling Stories, Show-and-
Telling, Keeping a Diary, Helping Each Other

Ecological Indicators

Southwest: Take a Break/Wander,

West: Gather and Share,
Northwest: Reflect and Home-based Challenge

Common Sense, Inquisitive Focus,

Service to the Community

Story: Scout Camp Blows My Mind, by Evan McGown

Every year at Wilderness Awareness School—after a year of developing nat-
uralist skills in interpreting bird language, tracking, and imitating animal
forms—a group of thirty teenagers and adults go to a weeklong camp: Scout
Camp. Basically, with four or five teams, Scout Camp means five days of one
big Capture-the-Flag game. You better be on your game if you don’t want to
get caught during this week.
When it was my year, I felt both excited and a little nervous about going.
I’ve never been the most graceful and athletic person, and so I figured I
needed to rely on other things to help me out. My strength came from visit-
ing my Sit Spot everyday that whole year, and from drawing weekly maps
of my Sit Spot area. I drew everything I observed. On my maps, I included
what animals and plants I saw, tracks I found in this or that place, trees and
bushes and what kind of bird nests they held, the kinds of birds living where,
and how much each bird tended to alarm. I had wandered around my Sit
Spot area and drawn so many maps of it—probably close to a hundred—
that I felt like I knew how to keep from getting lost and could navigate a
landscape with the skill of a sea captain.
At the beginning of the week, I donned the dark green suit of clothes I

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would wear during the whole week, and I completely covered my clothes and
skin in natural camouflage, using mud, charcoal, leaves, and dirt, anything
to help me blend into those woods. Rest assured, I smelled really terrible by
the end of that week.
When the week officially started, and the game was simple: don’t be seen.
I had to see everyone first, before they saw me. The place differed completely
from my Sit Spot, with different trees, plants, and animals, so I began to get
to know it as well as I could. As the hours and days went by, with me sneak-
ing from place to place through bushes, groves of trees, and rock-piles, a map
formed in my head of the whole place and the location of all the elements:
where the rock-slides were that made a lot of noise, where the yarrow plants
grew on the hillside that would stop my bleeding when I got small cuts, and
which holes and rock ledges had rattlesnakes in them. The coolest thing I
learned and put into my mental map was where the killdeer, a ground-nest-
ing bird, had its nest. Killdeer loudly alarmed at anyone who traveled on
what I called “the beach.” Thanks to the killdeer’s alarms, I could tell exactly
when anyone was sneaking through near the beach.
On the final day I lay on the ground by a lodge-pole pine; I had a
scenic view of everyone as they left base camp after a meal to return to
their secret territories. While I memorized each person’s trail and added
that to the map in my mind, suddenly something happened—the whole
map clearly appeared in front of me in my mind, a three-dimensional
image of hills and trees and animals. I was blown away by how much
information I had taken in about this landscape in just four days. This
place was hundreds of square miles, and now my mind-image formed as
clear as if I had a map sitting right in front of me revealing precise detail:
where the alarm birds lived, where the deer trails cut through the thick-
ets, where the best travel routes were, which trees were easiest to climb,
where the best and most invisible look-out points were, and of course the
location of all the best hiding spots. I so amazed myself by what I imag-
ined in my Mind’s Eye, I forgot everything else and shouted, “Wow!” Just
then, someone walking by heard me and turned to look uphill, but they
couldn’t see me. I laughed and laughed, trying not to be heard … but it’s
hard to laugh and hide at the same time.
The next morning, as the sun dawned, signaling an end to the five-day
game, our team had the most flags and we celebrated our victory. Driving
home, I still felt dumbstruck by how my brain had been re-wired to soak
up so much information about an unknown landscape and turn it into a

Introducing Core Routines | 319

detailed map in a matter of a few days. From then on, I get excited whenever
I have the chance to draw a map or look at a map … and the next time I go to
Scout Camp, I’ll be even more ready.

How-To
Link with Story of Day. Start with one big piece of paper or a dry-erase
board mounted on the wall. Set up the paper or board beforehand by draw-
ing the most basic, bare-bones frame of a map of the area you want to explore
that day. Later, as people tell their Story of the Day, simply fill in the map,
asking questions to guide your drawing and get participants building a men-
tal map inside of their own minds. Be sure to mark North and ask about
the exact shape of the pond? Where did that path get really steep? Mapping
can go hand-in-hand with telling the Stories of the Day, or it can be done by
individuals in their journals.

Process More Important than Product. Map accuracy or the right scales
do not matter. More important are the questions that get asked, causing
people to go back in their minds and think of the landscape from a bird’s-eye
view. Then they tell their story in mapping terms: directions, landmarks,
noting relationships between habitats and animals, linking places and trails
together, and so on. If they are visual learners and get a lot from seeing the
map, then all the better.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Learning to think from a mapping perspective prepares younger people to
grow into their developing intellects and become eager to work out their
own maps. But while they are young, your worthy accomplishment will be
to get them thinking from this perspective—build a Mind’s Eye map of the
place and make connections about things in the landscape. And of course,
Mapping also establishes brain patterns and creates relationships with the
larger ecology of a landscape. Whether navigating in a big-city or a vast wil-
derness, the forming of those patterns and ecological relationships will serve
them for life.

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 Ultimately, your goal will be for every person to have a map-based knowl-
edge of the land similar to the story above. I’ve observed people who develop
deep knowledge of place—they feel confident and at home in nature, they
know really valuable information like how not to get lost, where certain
plants grow, where to seek shelter from the rain, and where to find tracks or
nests or certain animals. Mapping brings all their knowledge together into
a three-dimensional image in their mind. These confidence and belonging
indicators mean they are becoming “native” to their place.

Alternatives and Extension

Map Your Home. Challenge yourself and others to draw maps from mem-
ory of their room, their house, their yards, and the routes they take to get
places.

Puzzle. Make copies of a contour map with roads left off the area around
your meeting place. Let them figure out how contour maps show steep and
flat places, and then challenge them to fill in the missing landmarks.

Map your Sit Spot. Challenge yourself and others to keep a map of an
area—maybe 100 feet—all around your Sit Spots. Note the compass direc-
tions, and draw out features of geography, waterways, vegetation, and trails.
Redraw the map every once in a while as people get to know their Sit Spots
better. As experience grows, add animals’ trails, birds’ nesting and perching
sites, and changing larders.

Play at Map-Making. Hand out paper and markers and art materials and
invite each person to make a map of a Make-Believe place. Inspire imagi-
nation of wonderful places they dream about. Ask how its peaks and val-
leys, caves and meadows, rivers and seas, would be connected in their perfect
Make-Believe World. Let them draw, and ask questions to pull out more
information or get their brains processing in new ways. For an inspiring
example, check out the maps from Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings.

Introducing Core Routines | 321

Exploring Field Guides: Field Guide Treasure Hunt
Exploring Field Guides, Questioning and
Tracking, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Reading Picture Books, Solving Riddles,

Running Errands, Hunting, Finding, Collecting

All

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate,

South: Focus, North: Integrate

Self-Sufficiency, Inquisitive Focus,

Common Sense

Story: Murie, by Evan McGown

Imagine spending six years in the heart of Alaska ice and snow, doing noth-
ing but tracking and studying one species of animal—Caribou. You know
these animals from our imagination—Santa’s Reindeer, those members of
the deer family with stately, beautiful antlers. Imagine tracking and watch-
ing these animals every day for six years. One man did that, Olaus Murie.
He saw them slide out onto ice, like they had roller-skates on their hooves.
He heard them bugle for their mates. He saw the little babies grow and find
their way in the world. Following all along their route, Murie watched the
magnificent Caribou herd migrate, coming and going with the seasons.
He didn’t just watch, oh, no. He loved tracking animals so much that wher-
ever he went, he sketched any and all tracks he didn’t know. He did this for many
years beyond his Alaska experience. Murie continued to track until he was an
old man, tracking almost every mammal in North America. He used his track-
ing abilities to help create the boundaries of National Parks so they preserved
the land where wolves, cougars, elk, bears, wolverines, and other animals actually
spent their time. With all this knowledge and experience, he did something no
one else had ever done before: Olaus Murie wrote a book about Animal Tracks.
He filled it with thousands of drawings he had made over the years of
every kind of animal, from tiny shrews to huge buffalo. He told wonderful
stories about these animals. Imagine how many years of experience, how

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many hours of tracking and animal-watching have gone into this one book.
To learn the most important lessons he learned about tracking and animals
… we only need to open THIS book.
This is the story of just one book. Looking at our shelf of field guides over
there, imagine how many people’s lives have been spent gathering all that
knowledge. How many hours of time in the field went into making each page
so we can simply pick up and read? We’ve got it so easy.
Think about this too: whether studying caribou for six years with other
biologists, or learning the names and edible properties of every local wildflower,
every author started out learning from another person who had knowledge.
Who were the knowledge-carriers those people learned from? The knowledge
contained in these books doesn’t just equal one person’s life, but the lives of doz-
ens or maybe hundreds or thousands of people who came before them. These
books contain ancient magic, the best trackers’ hard-won wisdom, the most
clever scouts and observers. Now it’s all gathered in one place: a field guide.
But it doesn’t stop here. The author of the next field guide might be sit-
ting right here with us: YOU.

How-To
To introduce a group to using field guides, custom design a Field Guide
Treasure Hunt for your bioregion and your particular group of people.

Build a Library. First, you’ll need to buy or get from the library a set of
field guides for your area By set, we mean a field guide each for tracking,
trees, flowers, birds, and mammals; these would be the minimum require-
ments for a Treasure Hunt. Of course, there are many more, like butter-
flies, spiders, fish, and so on; the list is quite extensive (check out our rec-
ommended reading and resources lists in the Book of Nature chapter and
the Suggested Reading).

Create a Treasure Hunt. Devise a series of challenges, framed in riddles

and word puzzles, that involve using the index, comparing the field marks
from pictures with those found in the field, finding differences between like
species, finding common names and Latin names. You have infinite possibili-
ties, like these samples:

(Have them bring you a few needles).

Introducing Core Routines | 323

 crowned Kinglet (Have them show you the picture in a book)

requires finding out where aplodontia live.

Well, for this one, how about you grab a bird field guide and see for
yourself?

The Game. Using field guides, they must figure out the name of the species
that the clue refers to, and then go out and bring back a sample from the field
or provide evidence of its passing (take you to an actual track … even if it is
pigeon poop on a railing). You can verify the answer and give out a new clue,
or you might hide an envelope with a new clue in the place where the answer
can be found.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Our goal is to turn field guides, usually a bit on the dry side, into exciting
resources. The Treasure Hunt format invisibly excites participants into dis-
covering indexes, comparison charts, range maps, various ways of categoriz-
ing plants and animals, common and Latin names, and all the species differ-
ences. So, without knowing it, they become adept at researching and finding
answers to questions.
As they flip through field guides in search of information, a wonderful
thing almost always happens: their innate curiosity takes them down side-
paths of learning. They see a bird with weird red feet they’ve never heard
of—completely unrelated to the challenge/clue at hand and say, “Wow!
Check this out!” Or maybe they see the picture of a bird they see a lot, but
never knew the name of, so they learn the name and begin to read about
other birds of its kind.
Once people have been drawn into comfort with field guides, the pictures
and bits of surprising information grab their curiosity and lead them to lots
of learning that we couldn’t have planned and that we’ll never be able to doc-
ument. Field guides offer information tailored to an individual’s curiosity
and personal experience. It is amazing what search images and vocabulary
can sneak in and how powerfully it can stick.

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Alternatives and Extensions
Go as complex as you want. You can put envelopes inside of envelopes inside
of envelopes as clues. Once each clue is solved, the next envelope can be opened.
Each clue could indicate characteristics of an important twig to be gathered for
use in fire making. Then the last clue challenges: make a fire in five minutes!

Inside Only. On days when you just can’t go outside, field guide Treasure Hunts
can be can be played with sketches replacing the “go out and find” part.

Warm-Up. These Treasure Hunts eventually set people up to gener-

ate their own research questions and warm them up nicely for a Tracking
Expedition.

The Core Routine, Mind’s Eye Imagining, is a natural partner, leader, or

follower of this activity.

Journaling: From the Ground Up

Journaling, Thanksgiving, Mapping, Story of
the Day

Keeping a Diary, Drawing, Wordplay

Animals, Plants, Trees, Birds, Ecological

Indicators

South: Focus, West: Gather and Share,

Northwest: Reflect and Home-based Challenge

Inquisitive Focus, Awe and Reverence, Quiet Mind

Story: Making the Ordinary Extraordinary, by Ellen Haas

As an elementary school child, I lived in Pennsylvania in a rolling, hilly neigh-
borhood with creeks running through all the connected backyards. In sum-
mer, with nothing to do and the air muggy, I would gather up my sketchpad

Introducing Core Routines | 325

and soft-lead pencil (I didn’t like those hard-lead school ones), a big ther-
mos of lemonade, and wander off toward the creek, checking on things as I
went—the waterfall, the old stone springhouse nearly buried by time in the
neighbor’s yard, the dam I’d built to make a swimming hole—and find my
way to the little meadow where the trees thinned out and the creek-cooled
breezes made a fan of fresh air.
Each time, I settled into a comfy place, opened my journal, and began. I
always started by recording the weather of the moment and my exact loca-
tion. Since it was usually hot, I made fun searching for words describing
the hot—“sticky hot, muggy hot, dry hot, eye-stinging hot, dirty-sweat hot.”
And it was always easy to look around and picture where I was sitting. I had
names for favorite places and used people’s houses as location landmarks—so
I might write “On the root sofa, facing Hughes house.”
Then I’d decide what to write about. At home, my father loved big words
and used them in funny ways all the time. He’d come in for breakfast, look
out the window and say, “What a pregnant day!” meaning it was full of prom-
ise. He gave our pets and my friends long funny nicknames, changing all the
time when he noticed silly things they did. So I too loved finding words for
things that made them seem special, just like he did.
I had games I’d play with words in my journal. Sometimes I’d write down
the alphabet in a list and find something that began with each letter. “Ant,
Beetle, Cerulean blue sky, Dogwood, Easy going grass.” I knew a few poem
forms that required exactly so many syllables in a line, or certain rhyme
schemes, and I’d pick something that caught my eye as worthy of a poem,
and ponder it until I found the perfect words to fit the rules. Or I might do
just the opposite, write what they called “stream of consciousness,” just write
everything that came to mind without ever stopping to think. Sometimes I’d
talk to a tree, have a little conversation in my journal, which was a good way
to find out how it feels to be a tree.
Hours could go by on these summer days until my lemonade was gone, and
all the while my brain felt happy making small everyday wildflowers or leaves
into something extraordinary by clothing them with delightful words. And,
of course, hunting for words made me look, and feel, and touch tree bark or
water flows or vine tendrils really close and long until the right word came. It
felt almost as if they spoke to me and the word popped into my head.
Sometimes back home at dinner, I’d read my day’s journal. I remember
pretty clearly what usually happened. My Mother said, “Oh Honey, that’s
just beautiful. You’re going to grow up to be a writer.” And my Dad would

326 |
say, “Let’s try to improve on that third line,” and then we’d spend the rest of
dinner hilariously finding new and different words.
So, because I grew up loving words, keeping a journal was fun. And
because I kept a journal, words came easily. Maybe you already like words, or
maybe you feel a little clumsy with them. Either way, go outside, look around
until something speaks to you; then listen for good words to pop into your
mind—this brings nature alive in your mind’s eye. Maybe nature wants you
to tell its story. Try it. It’s fun.

How-To
First, get equipped. Everyone needs a journal and a pencil, a way to make
color, to sharpen, and erase. The journal can be a portable sketchpad, or a jour-
nal at the desk—or both. You’ll also want an accessible set of field guides.

Heading. The first lesson creates the heading box. This should be put on
every single journal page of an ongoing journal. Somewhere on the page,
wrapped in a box,

Monday, June 6, 2006

late morning, light rain, no breeze
facing east toward the sun from a hill
The Journal Page. Then find a good time to settle down and draw and/or
write everything happening in this moment’s window of the natural world.
Most people journal more easily when you provide some instructions or lim-
its, rather than “ just go find something to write and draw.” So, you can pro-
pose things to focus on.

your Sit Spot.

what’s going on behind it. Then write how you feel about this thing
you’ve just witnessed.

Introducing Core Routines | 327

Inventory from the Ground Up. Writing an inventory works well for one
time-tested journaling framework. Challenge yourself and others to keep a
field inventory journal of one, or all, of the following things drawn from the
traditional Thanksgiving address of the Mohawk. This full inventory calls
attention to all niches of nature, from the ground up.
1. The People in our lives
2. Earth and its under-soil beings
3. Waters and their beings
4. Low lying herbaceous vegetation and bushes
5. Animals
6. Trees and their beings
7. Birds in song and flight
8. Air and wind, clouds and rain, and the weather they make
9. Sun, Moon, and Stars, their force, beauty, and stories
10. The qualities of the East, South, West, and North
11. The Creative Force that Moves Through All Things

In their journals, older folks can do what our Kamana participants do —

keep a running inventory of things happening in the ten layers (check out
the Kamana program to see a good example of a structure). Start with a
pad of “templates” with all layers indicated, then jot down notes on it every
day for a week until it seems pretty full. Start a new one with a new head-
ing box the next week. If you inspire them to journal a different layer of the
Thanksgiving Address each day, in ten days they’ll have a beautiful little
ecology journal to display. If each of ten participants journaled a different
layer for ten days, then you would have a group book.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This initial exercise just emphasizes how to set up the journaling experience.
But of course, keeping it up anchors their brain patterns to creativity and to
learning. Repeated frequently, the heading box itself becomes a story. In the
end, journalers seem most captivated after the fact, when their journal grows
into a thick wad of pages chronicling the whole Natural Cycle and Book of
Nature, as discovered in their place, through their eyes.

328 |
 Above all, encourage everyone to find his or her journaling gifts. Many
people seem to fear the idea of writing or drawing, and say, “I can’t, I won’t,
and you can’t make me.” This resistance probably harkens back to some
unfortunate schooling. Talking and writing come from different brain areas.
Some people talk with complete comfort, but the words get stilted and for-
mal when they write them. And the reverse will be true of others. Do your
best to pull them through that edge, looking for their writing and drawing
gifts, and appreciating whatever they do. For younger kids or folks who can’t
write, you can take dictation and show them what their words look like in
print. This can be very exciting.
Sharing Journals. All their hard focus and good art deserves to go pub-
lic. So, create ceremonial performances of their journaling work. They can
break into small groups and share what they’ve worked on, they can put their
journals out for everyone to see, and they can have a big deal finale where
they display their books to their parents.

Applications and Extensions

Journaling from Field Guides. Kamana participants draw journal pages for
one specific plant, tree, animal, or bird. Such a page includes many varia-
tions, but generally, a heading box which gives common and Latin name,
taxonomy, a range map, and field guide source(s). Then, using the Mind’s Eye
technique of looking at the field guide picture, then drawing from memory,
next looking again and improving. The subject sketch contains labels point-
ing to key field marks. Words below may note information about habitat and
habits, mating, nesting, tracks, voice, perceptive strategies, comparison with
similar species, and personal encounters.

Maps. Another variation on journaling—after the ever present heading box—

participants draw maps in their journals, with themselves at the center, and
notable trees, hills, waterways, roads, and paths to show the orientation. On
this map, they can make notes about compelling events that happened as they
sat and watched or wandered. Some note the two birds that landed and com-
panion-called, the dog that ran through off-leash, or tracks discovered.

Writing Starters
-
teen syllable poem in three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables.

Introducing Core Routines | 329

 structure, but change the situation.

smell, what would it be?

Drawing Starters

a wrapper sketch—what it looks like from the outside. Draw a skeletal

sketch—the veins of the leaf, the bones of the body. Draw a spirit sketch—
the gist of its movement, a typical pose in just a quick line or two.

cheap at used book stores). Collage the qualities of each of the four
directions into a circular picture (some call this a mandala).

Resource. For a wonderful inspiration, check out: Keeping a Nature Journal:

Discover a Whole New Way of Seeing the World Around You, by Clare Walker
Leslie and Charles E. Roth. Foreword by Edward O. Wilson.

Survival Living: Survival Scenario

Survival Living, Mind’s Eye Imagining,
Thanksgiving

Creating Stories, Taking Challenges

Plants and Trees

East: Inspire and North: Integrate

Self-Sufficiency, Common Sense, Awe and

Reverence, Quiet Mind

330 |
Story: Practicing Survival, by Nate Summers
I still remember the first time I tried to practice my survival skills on my own
on an over-night outing. I went out in the late summer to a sandbar on a river
near where I lived. I took lots of camping equipment with me just in case I
needed it: a sleeping bag, a pot, water filter, a knife, a lighter, a little food, and
some warm clothes. This might seem like a lot of stuff for a “survival” trip,
but I was going to try not to have to use any of it.
The day was beautiful: sunny and dry with blackberries still on the
bushes. I found my campsite pretty quickly and started building my debris
shelter. Since it was mid-morning, I figured I’d have plenty of time to work
on it. I picked a nice place under a hemlock tree, but it took me a long time to
finish. Alone was a lot harder than when I had practiced with a group. I felt
hungry and thirsty, and the sky looked well past noon.
I drank the last of my water, and decided I had better make a fire so
I could boil some water and then go look for some food. Of course, being
dehydrated and hungry makes it kind of hard to make a bow-drill kit from
scratch. In fact, before I knew it the afternoon sun was fading, and I didn’t
have a fire or water or food.
I ran out and grabbed a handful of berries to help with the dehydration
and hunger. Then I started to get a bow-drill fire going. I had kindling, a
tinder bundle, some bigger pieces of wood and a fire site all set up, but I
could not get a coal. It was sure a lot harder on survival than when I prac-
ticed at home. I tried and tried, until it grew dark. Finally, with it almost
too dark for me to see, I grabbed my lighter to light my fire. It was either
that or no fire at all.
I lay down next to the fire feeling very thankful for lighters. I poured
some water I had gathered into my pot and boiled it on the coals. Thank
goodness for pots. After drinking some and burning my tongue a little, I
crawled into my debris hut and collapsed. I was tired, hungry and thirsty,
but at least I was warm and alive.
The next morning I awoke at sunrise, it dawned misty, cool, and unbeliev-
ably beautiful. I breakfasted on blackberries and water. I only had a couple of
hours out on the sandbar before I had to leave, but I had a great time track-
ing, wandering, and snacking on dandelion leaves.
As I packed up my equipment, I realized how thankful I felt for bringing
it all with me and how lucky we were to have things like lighters, knives, and
pans. Later, at the grocery store I drooled over all the food and wondered
about the sheer quantity of it.

Introducing Core Routines | 331

 There’s nothing like a little survival trip to make us appreciate what
we have.

How-To
Inspire. To introduce the Core Routine of Survival Living, participants
might imagine themselves in a scenario where they would have to use their
skills to help themselves out. It might be nice to set up the scenario by first
reading a survival story like, My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead
George or The Tracker by Tom Brown, Jr. These will really help participants
realize possibilities in a survival situation.

Create a Scenario. Once the tone has been set, take the participants on an
imaginary journey. A plane crash scenario always works, but it could also be
a trip back in time or an imaginary trip to an existing hunter-gatherer vil-
lage in a remote setting. Let them really get into the feel of the situation of
not having any of the comforts of modern civilization. You might find this
movie, Into the Wild with Emile Hirsch based on a book by Jon Krakauer; or
best yet, read the book: it brings survival skills to a new level of importance.

Art of Questioning. Next, ask them some questions about what they would
do. What would be most important for them and why? How long do they
think they could survive? How did other people do it in the past? How do
they do it now in remote parts of the world? Let the participants explore
their answers and develop their own survival scenarios.

Pass an Item. You can also take a simple item, such as a pocket-knife, a
t-shirt, or a shoe-lace and pass it around the circle, asking everyone to volun-
teer a different task that they could use it for in the survival situation. Could
we carve a fire-making set with the knife? Would we use a shoelace to lash
together branches for a shelter? How creative can we get? What would our
needs be?

Imaginary. It can work to end the experience by just letting the participants
imagine this experience. This can also be a jumping off point for all of the
other survival activities in the Trees and Survival Activities section.

332 |
Inside the Mind of the Mentor
Definitely use Survival Living to “push the edges” of your people some. Make
the scenario realistic and at least a little frightening. How do they react?
Who thinks they know what to do? Who really knows what to do? How
many of them have actually thought about this before or have had an adult
introduce these ideas before?
Watch the level of excitement with the participants. When they have
reached a high level of excitement about the imaginary scenario can be a
good time to propose or announce an upcoming survival adventure.

Alternatives and Extensions

Play the Lifeboat Game. Provide a list of possible things they could take
into their lifeboat from a sinking ship and have a small group decide on the
top ten things they’d take. Alternatively give them a list of types of people
(skills, professions, character types) and have the group pick the ten invited
into the lifeboat to live together on an island until rescue (which, of course,
will take 20 years). Or, instead of a list, you could give each participant a slip
of paper with an item or character type on it, and invite them to make an
argument for their worthiness to get on the lifeboat.

Research. Give participants scenarios in different settings (arctic, des-

ert, mountain) and have them do some research into how natives of those
regions survived.

Natural History Museum. Take them to study indigenous survival tools

in your area and then play this game asking what raw materials they’ll need
to make their tools and clothing and shelters. Or research a field guide that
shows indigenous uses of plants and trees for food and medicine and ask
them to pack up a larder of plants they’d want for survival.

Real Life. Have the participants spend time during one day noticing every-
thing they use that enables them to survive comfortably. Then pare it down.
This can be pretty funny when they want to keep the TV but have nothing
to run it on.

Introducing Core Routines | 333

Mind’s Eye Imagining: Talbott’s Game
Mind’s Eye Imagining, Expanding our Senses,
Questioning and Tracking

Peek-a-Boo, Hide and Seek, Challenges

Any and All

Northeast: Open and Listen, East: Inspire

Self-Sufficiency, Inquisitive Focus, Quiet Mind

Story: Surviving Talbott’s Game, by Nate Summers

I remember it all so clearly. I was about to be put on the spot at a class
where I was training a large group of instructors to mentor others in nature
skills. The speaker at the front of the room was talking about the importance
of always paying attention to our surroundings.
He had just asked one of my friends what was on the wall behind
him, and we could all see that he desperately wanted to turn and look but
couldn’t. That was the whole point of Talbott’s Game which we’d been
playing for a few days. How much were we really paying attention to your
surroundings?
My friend had to admit that he didn’t know. Just as he was doing that, I snuck
a quick glance at the walls all around me and noticed above the back door, a
bright painting with a circular face in many different colors. Not hesitating a
moment, the speaker turned to me and asked me what was behind me. I paused
for a moment, “A painting with a circular face in many different colors.”
“Not bad,” the speaker said after a pause.

How-To
Talbott’s Game is utterly simple, but, thrown into the lesson aptly and
often, it works effectively to get everyone (including mentors and parents)
to pay more attention to their surroundings. The simplest form goes like
this: when you see your group getting slack in their awareness, announce
to everyone, “Alright, folks, close your eyes.” Soon, this simple phrase

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will produce a multitude of groans as everyone realizes their awareness
will be challenged. You might ask:

Be sure to ask questions that at least a few people will get right. Try to vary
your questions to emphasize different skills. Make sure to include all of the
senses in your questions—not all of your questions should revolve around
sight. The possible questions, even the answers, will prove hilarious.

Once you have asked a question, give everyone a moment to imagine in

their Mind’s Eye what they remember. You can put individuals on the spot
on purpose to wake them up, or you can let those who do know the answer
show off, or just invite everyone to call out what they remember. Then they
can all open their eyes and check to see if they were right.

Once everyone knows the routine, you can ask multiple questions each
time you have them close their eyes. Perhaps the questions get harder and
harder each time! This will definitely get your group in the habit of paying
more attention to their surroundings.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

The purpose of this exercise motivates more awareness and increases and
enhances Mind’s Eye Imagination. The blind challenge gets the adrenaline
going, and then the act of checking imprints the image in memory.

Alternatives and Extensions

After introducing the game, encourage all your participants to call the
game and ask the questions whenever they see group attention slacking.
This will keep you, the instructor, on your role modeling toes!

Introducing Core Routines | 335

During breaks in an indoor day, quietly move a picture from one wall to
another, change your shirt, or shift around the furniture, then when the
group gathers again, ask, “What changed?”

Before beginning an outdoor session, plant some bright unnatural litter on

the edge of a field, or move a log into the path, or hang a flower in a tree, then
wait to see who notices.

Listening for Bird Language: Bird Language Skits

Listening for Bird Language, Expanding Our
Senses, Animal Forms, Thanksgiving

Acting out Stories, Performing, Dressing Up,

Singing, Whistling, Clapping, Stomping,
Shouting, Throwing, Pushing, Racing, Chasing,
Playing Tag, Imitating, Laughing

Birds

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate, West: Gather

and Share, Northeast: Open and Listen

Common Sense, Aliveness and Agility,

Quiet Mind, Questioning and Tracking

Story: Animal Communication, by Daniel Evans

If you’ve ever known a dog, you will know exactly what I’m about to tell
you. Even if Snoopy is the only dog you’ve ever seen, you’ll still know what I
mean. People CAN understand animal communication. Dogs communicate
with us in dog language, cats in cat language, and of course, gerbils use gerbil
language. Their language isn’t something they do with words of course, but
they do communicate.
Let’s go back to the dogs. When Snoopy feels frustrated with Charlie
Brown, he raises his eyebrows and without any words, his face says, “You’re
ridiculous.” When he feels excited, his tail wags all over the place while he

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bounces around the room. Have you noticed what dogs do if they feel scared?
If they’re hungry? If they want to go outside?
For the cat lovers out there, you know your cat feels happy when it
purrs. What if your cat flattens its ears and hisses at you? Animals that I
really admire, all the wild ones, also communicate all the time, just like our
pets. They use their ears, tails, bodies, wings, scents, and of course their
voices to communicate their feelings and needs.
One special group of wild animals uses language so important to survival
that all the other animals have learned to listen to them. These critters act as
the alarm system of the forest. We can listen in and hear the alarm, too, if we
pay attention. These animals tell you when hungry intruders sneak around,
or they alarm whenever some human being jogs through the forest. They’ll
tell you when they see a deer hiding in the woods, and if you’re fox-walk and
stalking-skills are good enough, you can use this information to sneak up on
them! These scouts are posted around the clock—so, all you and I need to do
is hook into their system of communication.
I remember pulling into a parking lot early one morning with my friend,
Evan. The air was still chilly as we opened our car doors. Immediately Evan
said, “Hey, what’s that thing making so much noise about? I’ve been study-
ing that bird … it’s called a Dark-Eyed Junco and that sound is its alarm call,
easy to remember, because it sounds like a kiss.” The bird was flying around
a ditch, clearly aiming its kiss-smack calls at something down in the ditch.
While other people just walked on by, wondering what we could possibly be
so fascinated about in a ditch, we peeked over the edge. Suddenly, we saw it:
a long-tailed weasel. It was literally bouncing all around the ditch, as if it was
looking for something it couldn’t find. Suddenly the light-bulb went off for us
both as Evan and I looked at each other and said at the same time, “A nest!”
The weasel couldn’t find what it was looking for, but it gave us a show in the
meantime, jumping up and over the ditch, back and forth, even bounding off a
nearby vertical wall with its nimble legs. After a few minutes, it loped off into
the forest. The Junco then started alarming at us, as we went into the ditch
and scanning the place with our eyes, eventually getting down on our knees and
squinting into the deep grasses. Sure enough, tucked away in a little dirt and
grass crevice, almost a cave, there was a little nest, with tiny little feather-balls
shivering oh-so-slightly in the morning chill. We got out of there so the mom
could calm down and instead put her energy into taking care of those babes.
If you love seeing wild animals and want to learn the secret of the “wild
alarm system” then, my friends, you need to learn bird language.

Introducing Core Routines | 337

How-To
Explain the Five Voices of Birds. Learn each of the five voices described
below for yourself. The first four indicate normal non-life threatening situa-
tions, ranging from relaxed to stressed. The last voice marks a break into fear
and panic. Jon Young’s CDs titled Learning the Language of Birds, found in
the Seeing Through Native Eyes series and Advanced Bird Language: Reading
the Concentric Rings of Nature, offer story-filled explanations.

Then propose Bird Language Skits with gusto as “improvisational theatre.”

Ask for two or three volunteer actors or actresses for each Voice. Give them
a little time to invent two skits: the first in Bird Language; the second in
“Human Translation.” Follow up each skit with a discussion of that voice.

The Five Voices of the Birds

1. Song. Who doesn’t love bird song? Trills and warbles, the rising and
falling of melodious voices. Have you ever noticed how on a cloudy day, a
sudden sun break might release a renewed intensity of singing? Singing birds
tell us they feel extremely comfortable, and males often advertise themselves
to the females or stake out their territory.

Skit: Have two or three participants be birds to act out a scenario demon-
strating singing in “Bird Language” by whistling or humming. Let the group
guess the voice. Next act out the same scenario in human language: create a
funny scenario that expresses the feeling and intent of bird-song. Humorous
characters and funny situations really make the point. Imagine a boastful
opera singer, singing loudly and grandly, with flourishes of the arm, “I am
the most attractive man in the world. Ladies come and visit me!” Follow up
with a discussion/explanation of this voice.

2. Companion Calling. A pair or group of feeding birds keep in contact with

each other as they rummage around for tasty seeds and grubs. Since each bird,
so intent on finding their food, calls to their vocal companion making sure no
nasty surprises sneak up on either of them. Some birds even flash colors on their
tail to tell mates and friends their whereabouts. Typically though, short chips
and chirps in a regular, back-and-forth rhythm indicate everything is still okay.
A bird struggling to eat a large worm might not be able to communicate to its
neighbor on the other side of the bush. The neighbor starts chirping a bit more

338 |
insistently, possibly even with a little panic, until the first bird responds again.
Then the chirps become softer and again go back and forth, as if they’re saying:
“I’m here, over here, are you there?” “Yep, I’m here too, you still there?”

Skit: Have a few participants act out a pair of birds ground-feeding, finding
big worms, chipping back-and-forth to each other without looking up, “Are
you there,” “Yep, I’m here,” Have others guess what they’re doing, and then
go to “Human Translation.” The actors might be a family at Disneyland, or
maybe cars trying to caravan along a route, with passengers using cell phones.
Or maybe a couple at a shopping mall, keeping track of each other. They
have some amusing small talk back and forth until one friend gets hopelessly
entangled in a rack of clothes. The other friend, unaware, keeps up the small
talk. Since he can’t see the entangled friend, he calls out earnestly for her,
until he hears a reply back, “I’m fine, I’m fine, I just couldn’t get out of that
sweater.” Follow up with discussion/explanation of this voice.

3. Juvenile Begging. Sometimes we call this begging, “Feed me! Feed

me!” The babies and younger juveniles beg their parents for food. They get a
large morsel shoved down their beaks, swallow, and then start loud begging
behavior all over again. Whether in the nest or following Mom and Dad
around, these young birds display incessant, agitated, and hungry begging.

Skit: Have two or three participants play baby birds in a nest, with one act-
ing as a frenzied mother trying to feed screaming babies. The babies chirp
loudly and insistently while the mother runs to and from the nest with food.
Let them try and guess the voice. Then during the “English Translation,” the
nesters might become annoying kids shouting for every snack food under
the sun, getting it, and then asking for more. Mom being stressed, and tired,
feels about ready to pull her feathers out. Offer this highly amusing varia-
tion, when kids ask for non-food items: toys, video games, sports gear. Of
course, it isn’t only kids who beg and demand. Invite your participants to get
creative. Follow up with discussion/explanation of this voice.

4. Male to Male aggression. Two males fighting over territory sound like
rabble-rousing squawkers. They push and chase each other all over the place.
By not actually fighting, they make sure no one really gets injured. The inten-
sity and feeling in this voice could be confused with predator alarms—but if
you hear other birds singing all around these two noisemakers, then there’s

Introducing Core Routines | 339

really nothing going on to scare the other birds. It’s just a lot of testosterone
putting on a show.

Skit: Have two participants act out this scenario: birds chirping harshly at
each other, standing each other off with nasty looks, and eventually butting
chests and shoving with their bodies. You might have one eventual victor,
while the other backs down or flies away in retreat. Have the audience guess
the voice, and then do the skit in “Human Translation.” Imagine two young
men arguing over their “territory.” “This is my side of the line, don’t you even
cross it or I’m gonna get real mad!” “Oh yeah, what do I care, I can do what I
want, I’m my own boss!” Back and forth they go, being ridiculous with their
insults and bumping chests. Nobody ever gets hurt and a couple other actors
on the side just going about their daily life, get exasperated by their behavior,
saying “If you just ignore them, they’ll quiet down some time.”

5. Alarm. This reaction perceives a threat. This particular squawk also

alerts all the other birds and mammal species. Those who don’t listen, usu-
ally end up being eaten by the owl, fox, coyote, or weasel. When you hear an
alarm, watch what happens next. Sometimes everyone hides and goes silent.
Perhaps one brave little bird will follow the predator, from a safe height of
course, and keep pointing out with its beak and voice, “They’re over here,
look, look! Hungry wolf over here!”

Skit: Have a few participants act out a peaceful setting as feeding birds. Then
one becomes a predator who enters the scene and provokes intense alarm calls
as the birds flee for their lives. Diving predatory birds usually cause fleeing in
silence. Hunting ground mammals may cause birds to fly higher, fly away, and
alarm loudly. Have the others guess this voice, and then run the skit through
the “Human Translation.” The humans might be happily Companion Calling
when suddenly they see a predator. Seeing actors dive for safety and cry out
in panic can be highly amusing. The improvised skit might end up with a dra-
matic scene of victory for the predator, or an equally dramatic victory for those
who hide, flee, and warn their friends. Follow up with discussion.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

You may choose to act out these voices yourself with other instructors. This
wonderful opportunity reveals your playfulness and role models fun impro-
visation and self-expression, without caring what others think.

340 |
 During the discussions, people will often excitedly want to tell of when
they’ve seen or heard this voice/behavior before. Let the stories flow and the
whole group will internalize and learn so much more than you planned.
Once the skits have imprinted the idea of Bird Language, any activity, any
game, any lesson, or any lunch, could be interrupted by sudden awareness of
a change in bird behavior and intense curiosity about the cause. The whole
energy of a group can change when someone suddenly sits up and points
their ears, saying, “Did you just hear that?”
Unfortunately for your wildlife watching interest, most people will cause
bird alarms when they excitedly run into the woods. If all of you want a
chance to watch birds, and even mammals more closely, everyone will need
to practice patience and slow movement. So when you make people aware
of birds’ Alarm Calls, you create the perfect hook to inspire practice of Fox-
Walking and Sit Spot.
Watch out for a few hazards. First and foremost, please remember, we
designed this activity to inspire empathy—the listening for the emotion
behind a bird call. Many folks grow frustrated because they can’t identify
a particular bird’s vocalizations. They want to identify the bird. We stress
that you don’t need to be able to identify every species by their calls in order
to notice an alarm signal; however, the two studies blend and strengthen
each other. Let any frustrated participants know that identification will
come with time and study. Have them begin watching one extremely com-
mon bird, such as the American Robin until they can distinguish song from
alarm. As they begin to understand the emotional nuances of companion
calling, begging, and male aggression, rest assured that they have begun to
internalize the auditory and visual cues of species identification as well.
Another hazard: interpreting the Five Voices of the Birds applies strictly
to Passerine ground birds. Certainly all birds display some of these voices,
but the passerines regularly pull off all five. Every bird in the Corvid family,
which includes jays, crows, and ravens, act mischievous and sound vocally
complex. They do not follow the rules presented here.

Alternatives and Extensions

Identification. Once you’ve presented the Five Voices skits, it can be fun to
identify the particular voices of each of the common ground birds of your
area. This practice will help participants draw their Maps with individual
birds and their calls on it.

Introducing Core Routines | 341

Make a Mix-Tape. To help with identification we recommend you find some
bird vocalization recordings, which can be found at bookstores or online.
Then make a “mix-tape”: the authors of this book used to make them with
actual tape cassettes, but nowadays the format would be CDs or digital play-
lists. Take the 5 most common ground-feeding birds in your area and put
their recorded voices in a mix along with all your favorite songs. Then listen
to the mix over and over, as you drive or do other work.

Fox-Walking and Sit Spot can be experienced with a focus on birds. How
close can you sneak up on birds without causing the voice of alarm? What
body language can you observe that shows nervousness before the actual
vocal alarm call?

Thanksgiving: Circle of Thanks

Core Routines: Thanksgiving, Story of the Day,
Mind’s Eye Imagining, Expanding Our Senses

Imagining, show-and-telling, telling secrets,

keeping secrets, giving and receiving, seeking
treasure, hugging, cuddling, holding hands

The Whole Book, from the bottom up

Northeast: Open and Listen, West: Gather and

Share, Northwest: Reflect, North: Integrate

Awe and Reverence, Caring and Tending,

Quiet Mind

Story: Community Thanks, by Daniel Evans

One of the most wonderful programs I’ve been a part of is a nature-based
alternative high-school. Their main classroom is a big hut with a dirt floor
and a fire-pit in the middle. The program called “Community School” has
been around Wilderness Awareness School about ten years now in one
form or another. As the ‘students’ of this ‘school’ come and go, they are all

342 |
different, all unique, and always amazing people to be with.
Some of these young people can track an animal until they touch it, oth-
ers can tell when a bobcat is passing by what the birds are saying, and others
can make a hand-drill fire in a matter of seconds. After a few months in the
program, each one of them finds what it is that they most love to study, and
then they focus almost entirely on that one subject.
Even though each person is so different, following so many different paths,
one of the ways this group has found unity and togetherness is how they begin
their day together. After getting a fire going (always using primitive methods
such as bow-drill or hand-drill), each person takes some cedar they have gath-
ered and says something they are thankful for. After they’ve spoken what they
are thankful for on that particular day, they place the cedar frond in the fire.
A magical hissing and popping happens as the oils of the cedar burn in the
fire. As they go around the circle, everyone else carefully listens as each person
speaks and then tosses the cedar in the fire. Also, no one has to speak. It’s an
option to not say anything out loud and instead be quietly thankful.
What I find remarkable about this simple and humble practice is that the
these participants, no matter how tough their life is at that moment, always
end up expressing gratitude for something.

How-To
Circle of Thanks. Simply gather in a circle and invite everyone to say aloud
something they feel thankful for. You can do this to start the day and then
again at the end of the day. You can do it going round the circle one by one,
or “popcorn” style, allowing folks to speak when the spirit moves them.
Changing the style, you can give thanks by saying just one word, or take a
longer time to allow little stories to unfold. You can be grateful for elements
of nature or for whatever happiness represents at the moment. Be serious or
funny, reverent or light-hearted, all while steering participants to lift their
hearts with a true sense of gratefulness. A circle of Thanks often results in a
peaceful sense of community and connectedness.

Role-Model. Make sure to be a good role-model yourself. Be sincere in what

and how you express gratitude and others will be inspired to follow.

Ceremony. The Circle of Thanks designs a way to enter your time together
as a group and also bring your time to a close. By design, you leave the
rest of your life at the gate and enter the intention of the gathering; then,

Introducing Core Routines | 343

at the end, a way of appreciating the time spent together, you release the
group and go back to your individual life. As a routine, Circle of Thanks
can become a gentle ceremony or rite of passage. If you practice a Circle of
Thanks repeatedly over time, you may find it at first awkward, then com-
fortable and natural, and ultimately, it can become the most treasured and
eagerly-anticipated part of the day.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Our friend Jake Swamp has published a book called Giving Thanks. You
might get a copy of this beautifully illustrated children’s book and per-
haps read it with your audience as well. Jake Swamp based his book on the
Mohawk tradition.
Jake tells us his Haudenosaunee People greet the day with Thanksgiving,
begin each important gathering with Thanksgiving, and end every meeting the
same way. Greeting your day with Thanksgiving upon waking makes a beauti-
ful way to start every morning. Greeting your dreamtime with Thanksgiving
forms a beautiful way to end every evening. Gathering family and friends in
a Thanksgiving Circle creates a powerful way of uniting a group. A private
Thanksgiving before important decision-making clears the way for maintain-
ing balance and perspective. Giving thanks to the elements of the natural world
roots our hearts to the land. Being aware of gratefulness develops another
sensory antenna to add to seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching.
Developed through practice, gratefulness becomes almost a sixth sense.
With any formal, ceremonious activity like this, you want to be especially
careful about not stepping on anybody’s toes regarding religious beliefs.
Done appropriately, inviting people to be thankful should be so universal
and simple and true that no one finds it objectionable.
Inviting expressions of gratefulness creates great opportunities to find
out what motivates people, what rises in their awareness to be truly thankful
for? Often, you can also get an early sense of who might be having a bad day
by the way they handle a circle of thankfulness.
If people feel reluctant at first, try having your thanksgiving circle related
to something specific, like water, or sun, or a favorite toy or beloved pet.
Over time, expand to include other things of value. This works especially
well with younger people. With consistency and time, their awareness will
come around to true feelings of gratitude.

344 |
Alternatives and Extensions
It Doesn’t have to be a Circle. Set participants in pairs or small groups to
tell the Story of the Day in terms of people, emotions, or things they feel
thankful for. You can also invite people to approach it on their own or at
home by journaling, drawing, dancing, or freestyle rhyming. Many people
write daily gratitude lists to keep their hearts feeling positive.

It Doesn’t have to be Out Loud. A long pause—three minutes of silence,

perhaps—while attending to what we feel grateful for can be an amazingly
powerful, scary, awkward, and moving experience.

It Doesn’t have to be Spoken. Thanksgiving lends itself wonderfully to

singing, acting, and art. You can invent a rhythmic praise song with a simple
refrain with improvised verses shouted or rapped out. You can gather natu-
ral objects you feel grateful for and just place them in the circle.

Enjoy the ascending model of the Thanksgiving Address (page 76). Invite
your group to start with the ground and work their way all the way to the
sky, naming things from the natural world they feel thankful for.

Introducing Core Routines | 345

346 |
Setting Up The
Learning Culture
ACTIVITIES

Activities that shape the culture of nature study,

set the tone, and create shared values
for your learning community
If you take part in a program using this Coyote Mentoring model, you will
probably first encounter activities to create the Learning Culture. Why?
Because these activities set the tone for all the learning that will follow.
These activities excite, inspire and set parameters. They help create a land-
scape for everyone to travel through together. They set up the sign posts, the
game rules, the agreements, and the basic vocabulary giving an inspirational
taste of what they can hope to learn.
These activities “flip the switch,” temporarily removing people from
their day-to-day culture and rapidly relocating them. This different culture
embraces nature studies, healthy serious fun, curiosity-based exploration,
and personal-community respect. Setting up the Learning Culture activities
will establish the culture of your learning community.

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 347

Nature Names
Animal Forms, Exploring Field Guides,
Mind’s Eye Imagining

Role-playing, Receiving Gifts

Any and All species

Northeast: Open, East: Inspire, and South: Focus

Inquisitive Focus, Awe and Reverence,

and Caring and Tending

Primer
Some people think of animals and plants as each having a special “medicine.”
Their medicine represents a bundle of abilities and powers: cougar medi-
cine means being silent, sneaky, independent, and strong; squirrel medicine
includes climbing well or getting a lot of work done quickly, like gathering
and burying pine-cones or acorns before winter sets in.
In ancient China, martial artists studied how animals move by sitting
alone in the woods for hours until animals showed themselves. When mar-
tial artists needed to get fierce, they could “step into the mind” of Tiger, or
if they needed to stalk silently through the dark, they could “become” the
Crane standing in the water, and move so gracefully that they wouldn’t make
a sound or be noticed. The root of martial arts today comes from really, really,
really knowing the wild animals themselves, until you can become them.
Today is a special day. We challenge you to “become” your own animal,
and each one will be only for us. We’re each going to pick a Nature Name out
of a hat. You might pick a plant, bird, insect, or mammal, but remember, the
name you pull out may have something to teach you, something very special,
because it’s only for you. Some people say we pick the name out of the hat;
other people say the name picks us. Whatever name picks you, only you can
figure out why.

348 |
How-To
Create a Master List. Start by using field guides to compile a master list of
Nature Names you want to include. Make your list based on your bio-region
and what may likely be encountered and learned about from direct experi-
ence in the field. You can choose all mammals, all birds, plants, or other
species sets, or you can mix into one grand list.

Create Slips. Write them on paper, be as ornate as you wish, and cut them
into bite-size bits of paper. Make sure you have enough for all participants
and mentors. Yes, mentors need Nature Names too.

Pick Names. With your people in a circle, pass a hat or other receptacle
around that holds all the Nature Names. As each person picks one, they
announce their Nature Name to the rest of the group. This creates a nam-
ing ceremony, so you might want to add music and other elements to make
the moment even more special: a drum beating in the background or a song
softly sung by everyone as the hat goes around.

Reinforce. Some people will strongly associate with their name right away, and
some may forget their Nature Name by the next time you meet. To establish the
Nature Names firmly as part of your learning landscape, we suggest sharing them
in circle at the beginning of each day or referring to them whenever it comes up.
Some folks will even prefer to be called by their Nature Name all the time.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Having people receive Nature Names does a few beautiful things. First, ani-
mals and plants become teachers; in a short time, they are recognized for the
gifts they offer us. Further, receiving a Nature Name provides the opportu-
nity for a deeply meaningful, personal relationship with one particular spe-
cies. Receiving the name of a creature prompts a natural curiosity and desire
to learn about your namesake.
Often, learners will dive right into field guides to find out about their
Nature Name; their face reflects their own personal understanding of the
qualities of the animal and how they relate to themselves. “I really am
Fox, because I am sneaky and very curious.” This proud association can be
built upon through research and experiences in the field, strengthening a
human-creature relationship until it becomes truly magical.

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 349

 Nature Names also creates peer-to-peer mentoring; people naturally
learn from and share with each other about their names, thereby building
collective knowledge of locally important species. Simply hearing a slew of
local Nature Names every day provokes a lot of learning, but as individuals
develop relationships with their namesake creatures, they often share new
information, adding to group knowledge. Peers mentoring peers, yes!
Perhaps most important, care-taking attitudes toward Nature Names
emerge through empathetic relationships, and empathy for wild creatures
fosters a broader care-taking mind-set towards the whole natural world.
The simple experience of having a Nature Name and combining it with field
time, peer-to-peer sharing, and unified learning can change a life in a very
personal and powerful way.

Alternatives and Extensions

Give Names with the Seasons. If you have a group during the school year,
you might choose a new name each season/quarter from a different sea-
sonally-focused species set. This gives a chance for everyone to learn about
multiple species at the applicable and meaningful times. Examples: birds in
spring, plants in summer, trees in winter.

Highlight Latin Names. Write only the Latin names on the slips of paper
instead of common names, and challenge them to discover the identity of
their Nature Name. Have a stack of field guides nearby, and watch as they
dive in to discover their namesake, and learn to use an index along the way.

350 |
Nature Museum
Story of the Day, Wandering, Exploring Field
Guides, Questioning and Tracking

Show and Tell, Artifacts, Storytelling

Whatever you come across…

Inspire, West: Gather and Share, and

Northwest: Home-based Challenge

Inquisitive Focus, Caring and Tending,

Awe and Reverence

Primer
We create a very special place that we will always want to keep beautiful:
our Nature Museum. Our Nature Museum will be a collection of all the
most memorable, favorite, or mysterious things we find in nature. What will
make this museum really special comes back through the objects put there;
you know each story—where it was found, who found it, and how it was
found. So if you ever want to hear a story or remember a good time you had
in nature, you only need to go to the Nature Museum.

How-To
Harvest Discoveries. This one is simple. Just encourage people to bring back
the coolest things they find during their exploration into nature and create a
beautiful space for them to be kept and displayed. You can create a space for
the museum in whatever way you want; bookshelves or low tables often work
well. Do make sure they harvest plants or other living things ethically and
in the best interests of the landscape. Sometimes this means leaving some
things that otherwise they would love to bring back for display.

Design a Museum. “Museum,” a fancy word for any place to securely show
and tell discoveries, can be inside or outside. With a little imagination,
your Nature Museum could be a fully designed classroom layout of shelves,
tables, wall boards, and computers, or “little altars everywhere,” or even a

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 351

little living zoo or herbarium. This place becomes a “museum” when your
community gathers a collection that everyone treats with awe and respect.
Nearby, you arrange a field guide library.

Role-Model. Be the role-model and keep a Nature Museum yourself. Bring

back the enticing things you find and tell the Stories of the Days that go
with them. Start a personal Nature Museum at your home. Your stories will
imbue your objects with an aura of myth and magic. As members of your
communities begin to do the same, the Nature Museum will become a very
special place.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

The Nature Museum is a marvelous addition in any gathering space, con-
tributing much more to the learning landscape than can be put into words.
Remember the two big things it can do: 1) Inspire curiosity and passion for
exploring nature, and 2) hold stories of experiences in nature, always per-
petuating the telling of Stories of the Day.
As your tables and shelves fill with an assortment of feathers, bones, col-
orful rocks, insect skeletons, hornet’s nests, we highly recommend you place
the Nature Museum somewhere in the flow of traffic and away from the rain,
like right by the door so you see it as you walk in.
Essentially this “naturalist booby trap,” triggers their curiosity and
draws them straight into the wonders of nature. With the appropriate
field guides nearby, participants will get drawn into what the Nature
Museum holds, and they will be enticed to explore nature so they can
add their own special object to the museum. The Nature Museum offers
inspiration, naturally.
We use this activity like an extension of the Story of the Day. When
folks come back with objects, you have the most golden opportunity to pep-
per them with questions about what they found, taking them deeper into
their experience and knowledge. Where? How? What happened to it? Their
displayed object physically represents their experience of that day and can
be referred to through its story told again and again. The Nature Museum
becomes a collection of “objects that teach on display”—just by having them
around to look at, touch, smell, ask questions of, or hear stories about, the
objects continually teach.

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Alternatives and Extensions
Story the Landscape. You can also use stories to turn the entire landscape
of nature you most often visit into a place full of objects on display that
teach. Tell songline stories of experiences you had at this or that place, give
places names according to such happenings. In this way, your living land-
scape will fill with story and myth that surrounds a person whenever they
go out. The Nature Museum lives all round them; the local woods now hold
that same magic. Of course this happens slowly as you and others develop
relationships with your place.

Document the Collection. Have participants become curators of the museum,

ask lots of questions, and use field guides to make information cards for each
object. Even better: make info-cards with all the answers written on the back,
and on the front have three or four really good questions about the object for
any viewer to ask themselves before checking the answers.

Home Nature Museum. Inspire people to make nature museums at home and
either bring objects to show or take pictures to share with you and others.

Animal Calls
Animal Forms, Listening to Bird Language

Make Believe, Imitating, Being Loud,

Codes and Secrets

Any species, but especially Birds and Mammals

East: Inspire and Southeast: Activate

Aliveness and Agility, Awe and Reverence

Primer
Alright everyone, we get to develop our own set of secret codes. We need
to pick sounds to communicate signals with each other so other groups

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 353

won’t know about our plans. Of course, if anyone else hears our sounds in
the woods, they need to be hearing common nature sounds, like bird calls,
cricket songs, or squirrel yelps. What do you think our call should be?

How-To
Choose a Sound and Synchronize. This activity is fairly straightforward.
Work with your group to come up with nature sounds that have the specific
purpose of helping to keep the group together. We use “sounds” in separate
groups as the set-up suggests, but also in the big group. It’s a great way to gather
a disparate group together for an activity or announcement. Sometimes one
mentor will just decide on a sound and get it going in the whole group.

Learning the Crow-Call. To show people how to do a decent crow-call,

explain that there are two elements. Start with a plain “caw” sound. Have
everyone try that. Then have everyone try the second element, a “coughing-
up-hairball” sound. Then, just combine the two sounds together into one.

Create Sounds for Different Purposes. For instance, many times at

Wilderness Awareness School the loud, “Kawww! Kawww! Kawww!” sound
of a crow call can be heard to help gather everyone together. This works as
well at adult programs as it does at children’s programs.

Here’s a list of some signals that you might want to develop:

Feel free to expand with your own concepts and ideas from this beginning list.

Role Model. For many people who lead this activity, they encounter a major
stumbling block in their own reluctance to try to make animal sounds.
Almost everyone can make this short list of sounds:

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Listening to electronic recording of birds and other animals can be a great
source of inspiration for both you and the participants with this activity.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

You should keep two key components to this activity in the back of your mind.
First, you want to get people to try making nature sounds as much as
possible. This helps them imprint on a whole different set of stimuli from
their personal normal like cell phone rings, car horns, TVs, and microwaves.
By imprinting on the different nature sounds they will almost effortlessly
start to pay more attention to their surroundings especially noticing the nature
sounds all around them. Suddenly, the outdoor becomes a noisy place with
information being communicated all the time.
Second, the participants literally create a unique language they just use
with each other. This develops a group identity as well as cohesion and unity.
The “secret codes” you start with may very well lead to people creating their
own language.

Alternatives and Extensions

Sign-Language. In addition to audio signals, you can also create a group of
hand signals or sign language unique to your group. People, and especially
kids, enjoy using this silent mode of communicating for sneaking as a group
or moving in “scout formation.”

Sound Imitation. Play a sound-imitation game, where you go around the

circle, with each person creating a sound of a different animal. Then every-
one else has to imitate it then name the animal.

Follow the Animal Sound. In an open field or in a clear-floored classroom,

have participants partner up and together choose an animal sound. Then
blindfold one of the partners and take them, along with all other blindfolded

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 355

partners to the center of the room or field. Then have the other partners cre-
ate a perimeter encircling the blind-folded participants. Have them rotate
around the room to hide their original position. Then when you say “start,”
the people on the outside begin calling their animal sound. Using ears only,
the blindfolded partner needs to find the way to their partner.

Four-Directions
Mapping, Sit Spot, Expanding the Senses, Story
of the Day, Mind’s Eye Imagining, Journaling

Detecting Clues, Pursuing Mysteries

Ecological Indicators, Heritage Species

Northeast: Open/Prepare,
West: Gather and Share

Common Sense, Inquisitive Focus

Primer
It was quite common in many places around the world for whole cities, towns,
houses, and even rooms, to be laid out in the four cardinal directions of North,
South, East and West. In many cultures today, the directions play a heavy role
in ceremonies and stories to help people orient to the landscape around them.
Besides increasing connection and awareness, this developing “sense of direction”
establishes the most basic form of “lost-proofing.”

How-To
Check In with the Directions. This activity offers a huge amount of room to
play around with a basic concept. In the simplest form, you want to continu-
ally ask everyone “Where are we now?” Keep them aware and alert about the
location of the Four Directions. The key is persistence. Just make it a core
routine to continually check in, “Where did the sun rise today?” “Where’s
East?” “Where’s Northwest?” Which direction is the wind coming from?”

356 |
Design the Meeting Place. This can be as literal as having a big E, S, W, and
N taped onto classroom walls showing the directions. Or decorate the interior
classroom with directional themes: focused materials, such as book-shelves
might go in the South, and a focal point for sharing, like a blackboard, might
sit in the West. On a fluid and dynamic long wander, deep into a natural area,
ask participants to identify their location in space and time of day.

Follow Clues. This activity can be less explicit and obvious. Maybe set out
symbolic item for each of the Four Directions at the place where you hold
your program. These symbols could be exciting and fun nature objects that
naturally draw people in. After folks feel familiar with the symbols, use
questions so the participants will discover why we have four separate sym-
bols and what their layout means.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor:

Where Are We Now? You are trying to create awareness of the Four Directions
at all times. Make sure your learners understand their orientation at their
starting point, help them keep that awareness as they move along. This can be
done most simply by asking them what direction they are traveling in.
Start at the Edge. In the first place, not everyone knows one direction from
the other. Start at that edge. Spend some time orienting East to where the sun
rises, at mid-day the sun sits in the South location, and the sun sets in the West.
The simple acronym, Eat Slimy Worms Now helps some remember. Also, find-
ing Polaris or the North Star is a great way to show people how to find North.

Alternatives and Extensions:

Eight Directions. Work on 8-directional awareness including the four ordi-
nal directions of NE, SE, SW, and NW.

Compass Indicator. Combine this activity with both Mapping and

Journaling to get a sense of the surrounding landscape. Get in the habit of
beginning all maps and journal entries with a compass indicator.

The Natural Cycle. The story of The Natural Cycle adds depth and under-
standing to this learning journey. It can be laid out dramatically by gathering
participants to form a circle with big rocks or logs placed at each of the four
directions (help them find Middle, and adjust). Then walk round and round
the circle tell the spiraling story of how the sun goes round the directions every

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 357

day; and the seasons go round the directions every year; and the life of an alfalfa
seed goes round the directions from sowing to harvest and beyond; and then
get everyone engaged in seeing how the journey of a person’s life goes round the
same directions. These stories bring in a consciousness of the ancestral signifi-
cances of the directions, which then brings metaphor and imagination into the
times when they stop, look around, and ask “Where are we now?”

Home Practice. Have them take this home with them and practice finding
East, South, West, and North at their house, at their Sit Spot, on the road.

Constellations. Combine this with a lesson on astronomy and the constel-

lations. Which constellations lay in the South in summer? Which ones can
be found in the Eastern night sky in winter? The Stars, a wonderful child-
friendly book by H.L. Ray, the author of the Curious George books, will
assist your efforts to turn folks onto the stars.

Eagle Eye
Sit Spot, Expanding the Senses, Animal Forms,
Mind’s Eye Imagination

Scouting, Hiding, Sneaking, Challenges

Hazards, Mammals, Plants, Trees, Birds

East: Inspire, Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility, Awe and Reverence,

Quiet Mind

Primer
Eagles have incredibly keen vision. From hundreds of yards above a field or
sitting high in a nest overlooking a river, they can spot a small rodent or
splashing fish. When they do, they lift and swoop right down to grab that
little morsel of delicious food. Humans have good vision too, but we can
learn a lot by watching eagles and hawks. Eagles and hawks don’t even have

358 |
to move to spot something because they use their keen vision. If you practice
using Owl Eyes—or Eagle Eyes—you’ll be able to see more animals hiding
from you. Do you think if we all went out and hid, you could stand still and
spot us without moving or walking around?

How-To
Directions for the Eagle. This game is a sedentary variation on hide-and-
seek. Play it in an area with some decent cover for hiding: bushes, ferns, tall
grass. Be sure to check the area for hazards (like poison ivy) before playing
there. One person will be chosen as the Eagle who must stand in his “Eagle
Nest,” about the range of his/her pivot-step. I usually start by having a men-
tor stay with the Eagle during the game as facilitator. The Eagle closes his/
her eyes and counts to 60 while everyone else hides in a broad circle around
the Eagle Nest (define the boundaries).

Directions for Hiders. All hiders or “voles/mice/rabbits” must hide them-

selves in such a way that they can see the Eagle with at least one eye at all
times. This means no hiding completely behind trees, etc. They must also hide
within the boundaries. The goal of this game moves the hider as close to the
Eagle as possible and without being seen. This is the true test of invisibility.

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 359

Eyes Open. The Eagle opens her eyes, looks, and listens all around for every-
one hiding, but she cannot leave the nest. When the Eagle sees something
that might be a person hiding, he must describe the colors of the clothes or
hair he sees and point to the exact location, it will be clear that the person
has been seen. That person comes to the Eagle Nest and sits down, remain-
ing silent not giving anyone else away. Again, the Eagle listens in the silence
for any movements of other people hiding.

Sustain Pace. After a while, when the Eagle cannot see any more people,
have her close her eyes and count to 30 while everyone quickly hides again,
moving at least 5 steps closer to the Eagle this time. Keep playing like this
until Eagle finds everyone or until one person remains. Ask the last person
hiding to give a bird call so everyone may locate their number one hiding
spot. In this way, the game stays interesting and fun for everyone involved,
without lagging or becoming boring.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This is consistently one of the most popular games at our Youth Programs.
We love it and often introduce it right off the bat because it inspires partici-
pants for a long time to come about 1) hiding, scouting, and invisibility; 2)
using their eyes and ears in more focused ways; and 3) practicing patience in
looking for animals in the woods.
We also really love this game and similar games because it gives energy-
filled people, young and old, the experience of Sit Spot: sitting still outdoors.
Hiding games “trick” people into breaking into new comfort zones where it is
“okay” to be belly-to-the-dirt or in a thicket full of spider-webs and scratchy
branches. They soon become at home in the natural world.
I can’t tell you how many times hiders come back to the Eagle Nest after
being seen not caring that they’ve been caught—instead they walk into the
Nest talking excitedly of an orange and black caterpillar that crawled right
by their face or the way the clouds moved so fast in the sky and made such
cool shapes.

360 |
 Left alone to sit quietly in nature, children discover Awe and Reverence,
without any prompting. But since they likely won’t sit alone in the forest with-
out a good reason, hiding games such as Eagle Eye provide a space for this to
happen. But of course from their perspective, they are just playing a game.
Also, this game gives an excuse to remind ourselves about Expanding our
Senses—one of the most powerful Core Routines for a human to practice.

Alternatives and Extensions

Habitat Ecology. Learn about habitat ecology with Eagle Eye by playing
this game in a range of environments, from tall grass fields to thick forests to
rocky areas. You can turn this into a discussion about which animals it would
be best to imitate and learn from when hiding in a certain area, and how dif-
ferent habitats compare, the pros and cons from the animal perspective.

Challenge Good Hiders. Have them wear brightly-colored bandanas on

their heads when hiding, or stand on one leg, or hide in two’s.

Challenge Mind’s Eye Imagination. As they look for and describe colors
they see, ask the Eagle which hider was wearing what color of clothes and
the color hair for each hider. For really skilled Eagles, ask about the color of
the hider’s eyes.

Imprint Search Images. As you describe the boundary landmarks or ask

the Eagle to describe to you where they see somebody hiding, ask them what
kind of bush they are referring to: “You mean that sword fern or do you
mean that bracken fern? What’s the difference? The Bracken Fern stands
taller and fluffier.”

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 361

Firekeeper
Animal Forms, Expanding the Senses, Sit Spot

Sneaking and Getting Caught, Challenges,

Treasure-hunting

Mammals, Ecological Indicators

East: Inspire and Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility, Common Sense, Quiet

Mind

Primer
There’s a mythic story that has been passed down through the oral tradition
of nature mentors in connection with this activity. It goes a little something
like this …
It is said that a long time ago, back when humans still talked to animals all
the time, the humans on the earth would spend their winters shivering with
cold. Why? Because they didn’t have fire to warm their bodies and they didn’t
yet know how to make fire by rubbing sticks together. There was fire on the
earth—one fire that always kept going, but the humans could never get near it
because huge monsters called Gazoombutts guarded it. These monsters were
enormous, very quick, and also greedy, wanting the fire all for themselves and
never sharing the fire with anyone else, never letting anybody get near it.
However, the monsters had one weakness, they had no eyes. To compensate
for their blindness, they could hear extraordinarily well, better even than deer
or rabbits. They could hear a mouse’s footsteps a hundred feet away. So all day
and all night they used their hearing to guard the fire, catching any human who
might try to sneak in and steal a bit of fire. Do you think you could sneak in and
steal the fire from the Gazoombutts? Well, you’re about to get your chance ...

362 |
How-To
Set up Playing Area. Have everyone stand in a large circle and use their
shoes to mark the edge of the circle, or you can allow the circle to be an
approximate size that everyone remembers. Depending on the terrain, you
can invite everyone to take off their shoes and go barefoot so that they will
be able to walk even more quietly.

The Goal. The goal of the game is for someone standing on the outside of
the circle to stalk into the middle of the circle and steal the keys from under
the nose of the Firekeeper without ever being heard and pointed at by the
Firekeeper.

Select a Firekeeper. Ask one person to be the Firekeeper. The Firekeeper

sits blindfolded on the ground in the middle of the circle.

Place the Fire. Find something to represent a good fire. Take your car-keys
or something else noisy when handled, and place them about a foot out in
front of the Firekeeper.

Catch Sneakers. If the Firekeeper hears someone sneaking in, he or she

will point in the direction of the sound. If the point is accurate, you will
announce it and ask the person to return to the edge of the circle. If their
point was not accurate, tell them so. You will probably want to limit the
number of “inaccurate” points to 6 or 7, so the Firekeeper will be forced to
really listen and not just point everywhere. Also, ask the Firekeeper to make
a clear point that goes out quick like an arrow, not waving in all directions.
The Firekeeper can also “check the fire” every 30 seconds or so, by feeling to
see if the keys still lie there.

Manage the Crowd. Each “sneaker” on the edge of the circle waits until you,
as referee, point at them offering them a chance to sneak in. Allow only 2 or 3
sneakers at any time. This prevents the chaos of ten or twenty people sneaking
in at the same time, a smaller number also makes the game challenging and
exciting. People can hardly wait to have their chance to steal the fire!

Setting Up the Learning Culture | 363

Inside the Mind of the Mentor
This game will get participants Fox-Walking and sneaking. People seem to
really “get” the importance of moving slowly and quietly. They realize how much
noise they make when they move normally and they see how easy animals and
other humans can hear their approach. They begin to understand they create
disturbance and can choose to control and lessen that disturbance.
For these reasons, playing this game early on boosts the quality of all
future sneaking. Their sense of balance comes alive, they become confident
in their movement, and they feel inspired to sneak up on animals or humans.
This game will cause participants, without being told, to make Fox-Walking
a part of their everyday life.
This game emphasizes the power of listening, training the ears of the
Firekeeper into finely-tuned instruments. As someone who has been a
Firekeeper many times with the stealthiest of children sneaking toward me,
I understand how this game stretches hearing as few exercises do. An intense
need to hear subtle sounds expands our ability to hear.
This game also offers opportunity to take off shoes and expose bare feet
to the earth. For many people in the modern world, this is a simple yet pro-
found experience. Invite people to take their shoes and socks off for this
game and introduce this primary connection to the earth in a safe and moni-
tored environment.

Alternatives and Extensions

Vary the Surfaces. Play in as many different substrates to experiment how
they each impact sound and hearing. Try wet and dry grass, sand, forest duff,
concrete, even go inside and try carpet and hardwood floors. When people
understand that different substrates react differently, they will start to rec-
ognize the diversity of ground-cover as they go through the woods with an
eye towards a potential sneak. Their eyes and brains begin to see diversity in
their landscapes, rather than one homogenous chunk of nature.

Play with Two Firekeepers. With especially sneaky people, raise the bar by
putting two blindfolded fire-keepers in the middle, facing each other.

364 |
Setting Up the Learning Culture | 365
366 |
Sensory Awareness
ACTIVITIES

Activities that focus on expanding our senses,

through the use of blindfolds, hiding, sneaking,
and bird language
Sneaking through the forest, listening for bird alarms, looking for someone
hidden, or being blind-folded—these activities greatly enhance peoples’ con-
nections to the world around them and actively involve several child pas-
sions. By exploring the activities in this section, the door to enhanced sen-
sory awareness will begin to crack open and impressive results will follow.
In these activities, we really begin to Expand Our Senses, often in fun,
mischievous ways that might include taking away our dominant sense: sight.
Some mentors familiar with this curriculum even say that with the simple
prop of a single blindfold, they can keep folks engaged, learning, and enter-
tained for hours.
People really and truly love the games and activities that follow in this
section. So beware … you could easily over-do them. Use them regularly yet
also sparingly, and always keep riding the edge.

Sensory Awareness | 367

Blindfold Drum Stalk
Expanding Our Senses, Animal Forms,
Mind’s Eye Imagining

Taking Challenges, Stalking like

Blindfolded Ninjas

All

Northeast: Open and Listen,

Northwest: Reflect, Southeast: Activate

Quiet Mind, Self-Sufficiency

Primer
Sandbar Sighting, by Evan McGown
A friend of mine drove out to the river for a quiet day of fishing. There’s a
great place with a sandbar island right on the edge of the river where we
hold our Tracking Club. You can see all sorts of tracks and sign there, and if
you’re lucky, sometimes you’ll even see the animal. Bear, cougar, hare, coyote,
otter, eagle, salmon, deer, elk, and bobcat visit this place. On this particular
day though, my friend reported a strange sight. Hunched over his tackle box,
a slight and curious rustle in the nearby bushes caught his attention. Out
stepped a blindfolded and barefoot young lady. She paid no attention to my
friend and continued on down the trail, avoiding the blackberries and slip-
ping through some more bushes to re-enter the forest.
Fortunately for my friend, he knew the young lady. Seeing her blindfolded
was no surprise. In fact seeing her avoid thorny plants and walking down a
trail with ease—while blindfolded—was no surprise either. This courageous
girl had been practicing improving all her non-visual senses for years.
Try eating your dinner with your eyes closed. I guarantee it will taste
better. A whole world opens up to us when we close our eyes. For opening up
this other world, the next activity is one of the most powerful self-challenges
we know of.

368 |
How-To
Set-up. Space your participants apart from one another and blindfold them.
Explain this game as a solo experience that requires silence and listening. Put
everyone at ease by ensuring them that you (and your team of mentors) will be
watching to make sure everyone stays safe and doesn’t fall off a cliff or into an
underground cave full of starving Grizzly Bears. A good distance away from your
group of participants, sit down with something loud and resonant to drum on.

Goal. Have the participants stand silently, “Until you hear the first drum
beat.” Then, they will navigate their way across the landscape towards the
sound of the drum, until they touch the drummer. Remind the participants
that this is not a race. If anyone wins, it will be the one who goes the slowest,
because they will learn the most.

Drumming. The drummer beats infrequently, but often enough to inspire

movement from the participants. Make a drumbeat every five or ten seconds.
Be sure your spot will project the sound, such as from a high hill, or stand
on a tree-stump.

When You Reach the Drum. Before beginning, instruct the participants
after they touch the drummer, they will move silently away and sit and watch
others arrive. Or, to avoid sniggering at the funny site of their peers strug-
gling to walk blindfolded, ask them to sit and be quiet, keeping their blind-
folds on until everyone finishes. Challenge the early-comers to sit so still
and quiet a bird might come and land on their shoulder. With younger kids,
another instructor may be needed to facilitate this.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Talking with folks after playing this game is always interesting. They will
have many stories. Getting the opportunity to watch them move blindfolded
lets you recall your story as well. I will usually have the opportunity to watch
someone, in an amazing feat of blindfold sensitivity, walk over, around, or
under an object without having ever touched it. The participants get excited
when they hear these events; this is one of the goals, to get them excited
about nature by stretching their other senses open. If one of your partici-
pants forgets about the drum because they’re having an amazing time feeling
grass seed heads or tree bark, consider the outing a wild success.

Sensory Awareness | 369

 This activity can be a wonderful one to do at the beginning of a rela-
tionship with a learner, especially adults. It seems to wake people up to the
moment, what is directly in front of them, and gets them out of their heads,
which may be full of worry or thoughts about things they need to do at home.
It shakes off the road-dust and brings them to the here-and-now. Also, unless
someone has done this sort of thing before, this activity seems to humble us
and press the “reset” button on what we thought we knew about awareness
and nature. It “prepares the soil” and creates fertile ground for teaching lots
of things: Fox-Walking, Expanding Our Senses, tree identification—what is
that tree with the really smooth bark?—and more.
Conversely, this can also be a great activity, a wonderful “graduation test”
to put peoples’ awareness skills to the test. The great thing about this exer-
cise, no matter how advanced you get; you will always learn something—
about the natural world or about yourself.
During the debrief of this activity, I like to say, “It could be that the way
you moved through this activity almost exactly reflects the manner you move
through your life. Were you calm and patient? Did you rush forward and hit
your face on branches? Is going the “fast” way and getting to the drum first
really the point? Or did you move so slowly that you wish you had gone faster
and kept up with others? What do you consider “success” in this activity?
What do you consider “success” in life?”

Alternatives and Extensions

Level of Difficulty. Determine if your group’s needs can be better served by
setting up an easy course for touching the drummer as opposed to a difficult
course where only a few will finish. Be aware, playing in a field or meadow
can be quite difficult; it’s actually harder to pinpoint where the sound is com-
ing from. This game will teach you a lot about the way sound travels over
land and around objects, or doesn’t.

Challenge. To add challenge and up the ante, the drummer can move while
drumming, the participants can go barefoot, or they can also carry a precious
object like an egg or a cup of water. The intention is to go slow and simply
experience every moment.

Wetness. With advanced and willing folks, you can push the edge by having
them wear bathing suits. Then, make it so that the participants must travel
through mud, pond sludge, shallow water, or other things that will get them

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squealing, “Ewww ... OH MY GOSH!” all the while laughing and giggling
at their own foolishness. Upping the level of challenge over time can make
this activity an evolving measure of people’s self-confidence and ability to
gracefully move through the forest.

Nutty Squirrels
Expanding the Senses, Animal Forms

Crawling, Throwing, Chasing,

Being Blind-folded, Hide-and-Seek

Squirrels

Northeast: Open and Listen, East: Inspire,

South: Focus, Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility, Quiet Mind,

Service to the Community

Primer
(Note: This game was originally called “Tank,” with tanks and tank-drivers,
but we re-imagined it to send a natural-history-based message to young kids
instead of a war-based metaphor. With older participants you may find it
kosher to introduce it as “Tank” in order to simplify. However you do it, this
is reliably a favorite activity, particularly for teens and adults.)
One of the hardest parts of being a young squirrel is leaving your
mother to find your own territory. Your friends and neighbor squirrels
will no longer be happy to see you, they will chase you away. Older and
bigger squirrels also compete for new territory. Luckily physical fighting is
rare; most squirrels argue with loud chattering and vigorous tail-waving.
In this game, you be the Baby Squirrel whose Mother has decided to teach
you early-on how to defend yourself when you look for territory. However,
Baby Squirrels are born blind and don’t develop the ability to see for a
while. Your Mother thinks it would be funny if she taught you to throw
nuts while you’re still blind!

Sensory Awareness | 371

How-To
Pair up as Mother and Baby Squirrels. You’ll need a minimum of three
pairs to play, although larger groups work better. Ask for a volunteer Baby
Squirrel, and blindfold the Baby.

Goal. Mother Squirrels guide their blind Babies with code-language to

navigate the playing field, collect nuts, and fire them at other squirrels. Hit
Squirrels go to the sidelines. The last squirrel left in the field, wins.

Set Up. Use markers to define your natural boundaries. Play this game bare-
foot by both partners, with their socks balled up, tossed into the middle of
the playing field, to become Nuts. Remember to check the field for barefoot
hazards before playing.

Set-up Signals. Before starting, partners agree on sound signals as their

own secret code language with which the Mothers will guide the blindfolded
Babies. Mothers very quietly stay close to their Babies at the beginning with-
out touching them; Mothers don’t want to draw other blind squirrels’ atten-
tion to their Babies. Signals cannot be words; they need to be unique to each
pair. Taps, squirrel-like chatters, and quick yelps work great.

Refereeing. To monitor larger games, you will need multiple instruc-

tors. When a sock-nut hits a Baby Squirrel, Baby and Mother must silently
walk out of the playing circle and watch the remaining squirrels fight for
their lives. If only the Mother gets hit, the Baby Squirrel stays in, now “on
their lonesome” to do everything—with their blindfold still on. (Although
best done with more mature participants, they absolutely LOVE this lone-
some part). Watch the concentration of the last few blindfolded Babies as
they listen for nearby footsteps and quietly Fox-Walk so they do not to
betray their location. Watch for folks who demonstrate an uncanny ability
to throw their nuts to hit the target, even before Mother Squirrel prompts
them. Either their blindfold is loose or they’re more than ready to become a
fabulous birder-by-ear.

Last Squirrel Standing. The last squirrel standing wins the round. Have the
squirrels on the sidelines—when they aren’t rolling on the ground quietly
laughing—remain quiet and throw miscast nuts back into the game-field.

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Inside the Mind of the Mentor
People generally love the focus this game evokes. It requires a mix of silly
mayhem and serious concentration. It’s hard to believe that they can exist
side by side, but the need to throw nuts accurately while blindfolded makes
it so. Without this blend, the game will usually produce lackluster results.
Disclaimer/Warning. This game is best for older people (8 years old and up),
and can simply end in disaster with younger kids. If your group has recently had
aggressive streaks or lack of focus this game may exacerbate those situations.

Alternatives and Extensions

Advanced Play. Later rounds of Nutty Squirrels can have different twists to
them. Try any of these: Mother Squirrel has had her voice taken away, now she
only communicates directions through taps. For advanced players, if Mother
Squirrel is sidelined by a hit, she can direct Baby Squirrel from the sidelines,
using the non-verbal directions they’ve developed. The pairs might create clever
signals to suggest directions like turn right, turn left, duck, or throw.

Real Squirrels. Of course, field observation of real squirrels lends itself

nicely as a tie-in activity. Participants can research and observe mating, feed-
ing, and aggressive behavior. Watching how squirrels and crows interact can
be comedic as well.

The Wildlife is Watching

Sit Spot, Expanding Our Senses

Hiding and Seeking, Getting Dirty

Plants, Mammals, Birds

East: Inspire, Southwest: Take A Break,

Northeast: Open and Listen

Quiet Mind, Awe and Reverence

Sensory Awareness | 373

Primer
How often have you sat and watched wildlife right in front of your very eyes?
Never? A few times? If you asked the animals how often they’ve spied on
you when you go walking out in nature, you’d be surprised at their answer.
Many animals hide from humans by just being still and silent. Animals may
be just five feet away, on the side of a trail, completely hidden by their natural
camouflage. In this activity, you will do the same thing. You will learn about
hiding, and also how to use your eyes and awareness to really see.

How-To
Create the Playing Field. Use a section of trail or path with very good hid-
ing opportunities. Mark out a beginning and ending point along the trail.
Between these two points, make sure your group has ample room to hide.

Create Roles. Divide your group into two. The hiders (the “wildlife”) will
have five or so minutes to camouflage and hide themselves within five (your
choice) feet of the trail’s edge. The seekers must remove themselves from the
immediate area until the hiders feel completely hidden. You may use this
time to review Fox Walk and Owl Eyes with them.

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The Game. To begin, the seekers will Fox-Walk slowly down the trail, one
at a time, a reasonable distance apart, and count to themselves how many of
the hiders they’ve spotted. The seekers may stop in the middle of the trail at
any time, but they can only move forward. Once they take a step, they can’t go
back. They may not touch the plants or point out any hiders they’ve spotted.
When the seekers get to the predetermined end of the hiding zone, they can
whisper into the ear of the awaiting instructor how many they spotted.
Once everyone has finished the walk, let those hiding show off their hid-
ing places, their camouflage, or their strategy to stay hidden.
Switch up the roles of hiders and seekers and play again.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This game appeals to the universal desire to hide or seek. Like Eagle Eye it
presents an opportunity to get familiar and comfortable with natural sur-
roundings. While hidden deep in a thicket, people will see the intricate
designs of the spider web right in front of them, or the myriad leaf shapes
decomposing into the forest floor.
Draw out the time the “wildlife” stay hidden for as long as you think
beneficial. Once you release the seekers, the hider’s hearts will start to beat
rapidly since they don’t want to be seen. The more often they play, the more
they will discover an alert but peaceful state of being. Undoubtedly, this will
be useful when they begin to have real wildlife encounters.
Often younger kids will hide only if you put “camouflage” on them. I’ve
seen many a child preoccupied with the avoidance of dirt suddenly embrace
leaf mold and old fern fronds with passion when playing this game. As an
amusing side-discovery, participants realize the difficult task of hiding in
their typical street clothes. Over time, participants may trade out hot pink
pants or white hats for earth tones. (You might suggest they start with
these in gear lists for your shorter programs.) People who change their
attire also demonstrate their desire to “fit in” with nature and may be ready
for more focused explorations.
For the seekers in this game, this opportunity puts the Core Routines of
Fox Walking and Owl Eyes to the test.

Alternatives and Extensions

Variety. Try shrinking or expanding the area to hide in and the time to
hide.

Sensory Awareness | 375

Two Ways. Let the seekers move down the trail twice, the first time at their
normal “city” walk and the second time using Owl Eyes and Fox Walk.

Camouflage. Precede or follow up with a lesson in camouflage and/or hid-

ing techniques. Interests may be split between learning about other animals’
techniques, and practicing camouflage themselves.

Head Honcho
Expanding the Senses, Listening
for Bird Language

Following the Leader, Imitating, Making Music,

Whistling, Clapping, Stomping, Performing,
Keeping Secrets, Helping Each Other

All the rhythmic sounds in nature

East: Inspire, Southwest: Take a Break, West:

Gather and Share

Common Sense, Aliveness and Agility, Service to

the Community, Quiet Mind

Primer
You want a challenge? This game challenges everybody to use their Owl Eyes,
the sharp wit and awareness of a tracker for the Head Honcho, and a pok-
er-face and rhythmic abilities for the Tracker Detective. You can take the
opportunity to review Owl Eyes with finger wiggles before starting.

How-To
Create the Circle. Everybody sits cross-legged knees just about touching, or
stands at arm’s length distance in a circle.

Choose Roles. First, ask a volunteer to be the Tracker Detective. Then ask this
participant to leave the circle, go behind a tree, and cover their ears. They do this

376 |
so that they won’t know who the person is that you pick for the next role.
When you are sure the Tracker Detective can’t hear the group silently
picks a Head Honcho. His or her job starts a follow-the-leader rhythm circle
using dance moves or bodily slaps, claps, snaps, any beat with a rhythm. The
Head Honcho begins a simple movement, and then everyone else follows.

The Game. Invite the Tracker Detective back to stand in the middle of the
circle. His or her challenge will be to identify the Head Honcho, using all
of their senses to figure out who is leading the movement. Head Honcho
changes the rhythm pattern about every 20 seconds. Everybody else copies
the Head Honcho’s movements, doing their best not to give him or her away
(such as looking at the Head Honcho out of the corner of their Owl Eyes
rather than directly staring).
The Tracker Detective in the middle has three guesses to figure out who
changes the rhythm. Whether or not they get it, ask some questions to the
Tracker Detectives to see what informed their choices. After each round,
pick a new Tracker Detective and a new Head Honcho.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

If participants sit in a circle to play, use this game for winding down the
energy towards the end of the day, possibly leading into a Story of the Day
Sharing Circle. Prepare to play it for a long time, because usually everyone
wants a try at one or both positions. The constant rhythmic movement
makes this a gentle, relaxing game, and seems to promote idyllic revelry on
enjoyably warm days.
If they stand in a circle, you can use this game to break the ice in a group.
What better way to create a community feeling than moving in synch all
together and trying to keep a secret? Head Honcho practices leadership and
receives personal affirmation as everyone enjoys the movements that originated
from his or her creativity. Sometimes this turns into Physical Education when
the Head Honcho does strenuous jumping jacks or toe touches … whew!
Of course, the action puts Tracker Detective on the spot, so make sure
you have a willing volunteer.
This game gives mentors a good opportunity to observe people in the circle
as they follow the Head Honcho. Who seems to have a good grasp on Owl
Eyes? Also, use questioning to find out what the Tracker Detective is paying
attention to. Was he or she looking for movement … locating the first change
in sound … reading facial expressions or body language … or using intuition?

Sensory Awareness | 377

Alternatives and Extensions
Owl Eyes and Deer Ears. Use this game to expand on sensory awareness and
to enable you to evaluate their continuing abilities in Expanding the Senses.

Jam Session. This game may evolve into forgetting the Tracker Detective
part and simply enjoying the rhythmic synchrony. Consider the spontaneity
to create a driftwood instrument rhythm jam spontaneously. A good time
with such natural drums could go on and on for a long time.

Take the idea outside. Explore the sounds, rhythms, and reverberations of
nature. Press your ear up against a tree with a woodpecker tapping on it.
Listen to the different kinds of sound that come from rocks and minerals
tapped together.

Bird Language Scenarios

Listening for Bird Language, Animal Forms,
Expanding the Senses, Exploring Field Guides

Imitating Animals, Creating Stories, Acting Out

Stories

Catchables, Hazards, Birds, Mammals

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate, South: Focus

Aliveness and Agility, Service to the Community

Primer
Remember when we did the Bird Language Skits and had so much fun?
Well, now we’re going to take it to the next level.

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How-To
Improv Set-Up. This activity extends and develops Bird Language skills learned
from Bird Language Skits (refer to Core Routines—Bird Language). Simply put,
give them a specific bird-life scenario to act out for each other. Using a common
technique of improvisational theatre, give them a scenario and very little time to
plan, and then enjoy watching them improvise. Don’t help them. They need to
apply their knowledge from the Bird Language skits. Small groups work best for
this activity with six to eight participants per group.

Scenarios. These scenarios work well for this activity:

of a predator bird, like a Sharp-Shinned Hawk, nearby.

of male birds fly into their territory. How does everyone respond?

As the human walks through, a weasel sneaks off through the bushes.

through. Then a few minutes later after the jogger passes, a per-
son doing Fox-Walking and Owl Eyes walks through. How are the
responses different?

These scenarios offer just a few basic ideas. Feel free to expand with your
own scenarios or let the participants come up with their own.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This activity should be fun and actively engage the imagination. This is more
important than whether or not they got the scenario “right” or “wrong.” You
can debrief the skits, asking participants what they saw or didn’t see, what
they might have done. Then, send them to Bird Language resources (refer-
enced in Core Routines—Bird Language) to check on their accuracy.
Also, watch your participants to see which roles they choose for them-
selves. Who tries to be the “director?” Who wants to be the “star?” Who
suddenly comes out of their shell when they get to be “on-stage?”

Sensory Awareness | 379

Alternatives and Extensions
Use it with Mammals. Take the basic premise of this activity but switch the
subject matter: act out scenarios based on tracking mammals or how reptiles
and amphibians respond to predators.

Use it with Sit Spot. Spend time at Sit Spots and then come back and act
out individually the scenario of what happened.

Record. Have the participants illustrate, record, or film their scenarios, then
enjoy reviewing them like you were a football team looking back on your plays.

Silent Stalker
Expanding Our Senses, Animal Forms, Listening
for Bird Language, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Performing, Discovering, Catching

Predator/Prey

Northeast: Open and Listen, Southeast: Activate,

Southwest: Take a Break, Northwest: Reflect

Quiet Mind, Awe and Reverence

Primer
Watching the Stalker, by Evan McGown
Animals that hunt for a living must rely on their stealth. They need to sneak
into a good hunting position and time their attack just right. Most of the
predators are so much bigger, stronger, and faster than their prey, the food
they eat. How come predators usually fail? Well I’m sure you know all about
special adaptations, like the snowshoe hare’s wide, large feet that allow it to
weave and dance out of the grasp of the lynx.
But there’s something else at play, a gift that all animals, including humans,

380 |
have at their disposal. You can feel when someone is looking at you. For some
people, they say the hair on the back of their neck stands up, for others they
just have a sneaking suspicion so they turn to find someone staring back. Here’s
a true story from my life about this unexplained sense. It actually saved me.
After I graduated from high-school, I went on my first big road-trip.
Everything was great, but near the end of the trip, I was in a large metro-
politan city. Being in a big city with so many people packed together created
new sensations for me. Well, I was hungry, and when I saw this line of people
waiting for sub sandwiches being carried out huge and packed full of food, I
knew where I was going for lunch. So I joined the line of people, which slowly
moved towards the food counter. This place was packed.
Now, I had just started learning about Owl Eyes and Body Radar, but I
was darn hungry and a little weary from weeks of traveling, so my awareness
slipped a little. Luckily I noticed a sign on the wall of the restaurant. It said,
“Beware of Pick-Pockets.” Woah, I thought to myself. I had never had to
watch out for pick-pockets before. I wondered how a Pick-Pocket might try
to steal my wallet as I felt for my wallet in my back pocket to make sure it was
still there … when suddenly I felt a strange sensation.
Without realizing why, I quickly turned my head around to see a man, who
was standing against a far wall, staring straight at me. Looking at him, I thought
he was out of a Mafia movie. He looked tough and mean … and he was staring at
me. I looked away as if I hadn’t really seen him and just played it cool. Suddenly,
I felt the strange sensation again, but this time without realizing why, my head
jerked to my right, to see another man, very similar in appearance, standing at
the other wall, and again—staring straight at me. By now, I was a little freaked out.
But I stayed in line, trying to keep calm, and staring straight ahead. Fortunately,
I had something they didn’t count on: my Owl Eyes.
So while staring straight ahead, I could see the guy to my right in my
peripheral vision. But he didn’t know I could still see him. He started mak-
ing hand-signals in the direction of the other guy on the opposite wall. Then,
pretending to cough, I turned my head backwards enough to see the other
guy making gestures back. Okay, they were planning something. I couldn’t
just leave, although I badly wanted to get out of there; they stood right by
the two exits. “What should I do?” I wondered. I just kept watching them
in my Owl Eyes, and when I got to the counter to pay, I slipped my wallet
into a different pocket. By then, I noticed the guy to the right was sitting at
a table, and opposite to him there was an open table. Well, sometimes the
safest place is in the eye of the storm itself. So I went straight to that table,

Sensory Awareness | 381

and when the guy looked up from the newspaper he pretended to read—I
stared right back at him, straight into his eyes, and said, “Hello.” I saw his
body language shift uncomfortably in reaction. Then he grunted and went
back to his “reading.”
As I ate, I pretended to read a bit of newspaper, but in reality I was con-
stantly in Owl Eyes, watching them both for signals. I was ready to cry out for
help at the slightest indication of some joint movement toward me. You never
know what a Pick-Pocket might do if his trick is spoiled. I watched as the guy
got up from the table, shot me one more look, and walked out of the place as
if disgusted. I saw the other guy on the far wall also leave. They didn’t seem
happy. I guess they were worried I’d turn the cops onto them when I left.
Not only had my awareness skills kept me safe from their preying on me,
but it also ruined their game for the afternoon. So I left, a bit shaken but still
keenly aware that from now on, in this city or anywhere I went, I wouldn’t
let my awareness slip. I also left that little sub shop with a new appreciation
and curiosity for the human powers of perception.

How-To
Set-up. All the players form a loose circle around a participant in the middle.
The center participant picks a Prey animal to be, puts on a well-tied thick
blindfold, and pretends to be hidden in a ring of trees. One participant in the
circle must now be silently picked as the Predator, and everyone else becomes
one of the Trees.

The Game. The Predator’s job is to quietly raise hand and eyes, and using as
much focus and hunger as he or she can internally muster, point to the Prey
in the middle. The trees will just be peaceful, arms and eyes hanging down,
watching the action with their Owl Eyes. The Prey in the middle gets to turn all
around, staying in the middle of the circle, using Body-Radar to sense the area
where the mean hungry Predator is poised and finally, point straight at them.
The Prey person gets three guesses to “spot” the Predator by pointing back.
For multiple rounds, once your Prey is blindfolded in the middle, have
the outer circle shuffle and find new spots before beginning again.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This game fascinates most anyone who plays. To children, as well as most
adults, the possibility of a “Sixth Sense” seems irresistible. Even those who
disbelieve in the concept of intuition can’t resist playing. People with martial-

382 |
arts training, hunters, bird-watchers, professional detectives, and most folks
who have developed reverence for nature take to this game easily.
I watch for two things when this game is being played. First, everyone
needs to be in their role. The acting required in this game is all internal.
Exuberant Trees or meek Predators don’t work.
Watching the Prey pointing is crucial. Think of ways to acknowledge suc-
cess besides celebrating the occasional person who points straight at their
predator: I encourage the Prey to slowly turn in the middle, to feel the whole
circle before they point. I’ve seen two general patterns 1) in their turning,
the Prey hesitates right in front of the Predator, or, 2) their first point lines
up with the Predator, but to the opposite side of the circle. Is this a success?
Possibly. You can tell the group what you noticed and ask them what they
think. When someone feels disappointed because they didn’t succeed after
three tries, they usually feel thrilled to know they may have had success after
all—even if they didn’t realize it. But don’t make up things about their body
movements just to make them feel better. Call a spade a spade.
The point of this game is to get people experimenting with intuition for
themselves, not to force people to “believe” something. This game seems to
create a question for most people: Does a true intuitive ability exist in humans?
Let each person decide for themselves. Some people decry this game and the
premise it implies. Such tension drives people to question and search out
answers for themselves. This also presents an opportunity to engage in open
dialogue and critical thinking. If teens or adults become very curious about
this phenomenon, we recommend a book for reading and discussion: The Sense
of Being Stared At, by the English scientist Rupert Sheldrake.

Alternatives and Extensions

Hot/Cold. Being blindfolded is hard for some. Make this game easier by
offering guidance to the Prey in the middle. Using terms like cold, warm,
hot, or burning helps them out.

Discussion Starter. Because this game is such an experiential sensitivity

enhancer, it creates a fabulous lead-in to exploring any topic involving birds
and sensitivity.

Research. The relationships between all prey and predator species can be
examined. Inspire research into the other sensory and physical adaptations
that prey use to avoid predators or that predators use to catch prey.

Sensory Awareness | 383

384 |
Animal Form Games
ACTIVITIES

Activities built around playful imitation of

animals for physical development, energy release,
and empathy and imagination
Most of the activities in this section work great to begin the day, because
they quickly engage people, release rambunctious energy, and set the tone
of play and free self-expression. Energetic openers break down barriers
between participants and through play, everyone gets to know each others’
names and personalities.
Many of these activities carry the energy of the “Southeast”— that of a
busy spring morning, excited bodily movement, and the joy of childhood.
These can also be used to spill out an overabundance of raucous energy, or
to bring about a celebratory feel of community at the end of the day.
Based on basic animal behaviors and predicaments, Animal Form
Games invite participants to empathize with animals, to imitate their atti-
tudes, and, to the best of their human-bodied ability in the throes of a
game, practice animal ways of moving.

Animal Form Games | 385

Otter Steals Fish
Animal Forms, Expanding the Senses

Tagging, Sneaking, Jumping, Lunging,

Getting Away, Risk-Taking

Otter, Heron

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate,

Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility

Primer
Have you ever seen a Great Blue Heron catch a fish? Imagine this: Heron
stalks into a river or lake quietly, picking up and putting down its skinny
stilt-legs so slowly that it barely disturbs the water. It stands completely
still for as long as it takes, maybe even an hour, until a fish swims right
below it. Then “BAM!” Heron strikes like a bolt of lightning as its long,
sharp beak spears the fish. Then it pulls the speared fish out of the water
and in a quick acrobatic movement, throws the fish into the air, opens its
beak wide, and swallows the fish whole. It’s amazing to watch … I hope
you get to see it someday.
As you can tell, Heron works long and hard to catch a fish, so you can
bet it doesn’t want anyone else to steal it. Sometimes, Heron or other fish-
catching-animals will pull their catch to the shore and lay it down to eat it.
This adds risk, because there are lots of things that might sneak up and try
to steal that fish: Crow, Eagle, Fox, or the animal who loves fish as much as
any other animal, and who is quick as a flash: Otter.

How-To
The Fish. You will need a small, soft article of cloth for this game that will
become the fish: a bandana works best or a hat or glove also will work. One
person starts out as Heron protecting its fish. Everyone else will be Otters

386 |
waiting nearby and watching. Heron stands tall in the middle while the
Otters circle him or her. The Heron holds the fish in hand and tells the
Otters how many steps away they need to be in order to start the game (this
gets important as the game re-starts a lot).

The Action. When the Heron feels ready, dropping the fish to the ground
begins the game. Then it’s simple: the Otters all swarm in and try to steal
the fish from the Heron without getting tagged. If an Otter is tagged, he or
she has to drop the fish and go back out to the edge of the circle and start
again. The game becomes a frenzy of activity as Otters dive for the fish and
the Heron frantically moves around, looking constantly in all directions and
reaching to tag anyone close.

Successful Steal. To be successful in stealing the fish, the Otter must get the
fish back to the original circle edge before getting tagged. Often this results in
heroic full-body lunges. If someone succeeds in stealing the fish, they become
the next Heron (unless they opt not to, as some participants will). If someone
steals the fish but gets tagged on the way out, they give the fish back to Heron
who gives new directions for how far away Otters must be.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This game is a flurry of fun, even if you just watch from the perimeter. It
brings out the Awareness Indicator (from Chapter 11) of Aliveness and
Agility as much as any activity we’ve encountered. It brings folks fully to
the moment, gets their bodies moving in new ways, and teaches them to act
quickly and decisively.
Playing this game yourself or watching people as they play it, the excited
nervousness feels palpable as you ponder going in to try to steal the fish. The
edge of risk, failure, apprehension, fear of being tagged all cause a state of
fight or flight. But it is beautiful to witness as players summon the courage to
push through small fear and crack into full-bodied exertion to take the risk,
even if they don’t steal the fish.
Therefore the quick-paced, moment-to-moment intensity in this game
offers one of the best opportunities to gain insight into your players. Some
will be very reserved and stay back, while others will go in without any
thought or hesitation. You can tell which people have an easy time with
adventures and adrenaline-pumping challenges, and who prefers more set-
tled activities. You can see some who have natural athletic quickness and

Animal Form Games | 387

others grow quicker and more confident over time. You might notice some
people depend on sheer quickness while others plot and plan very carefully,
memorizing the patterns of the Heron’s tagging strategies and finding the
moments and places where the fish can easily be grabbed. Sometimes, par-
ticipants will team up—without saying anything to each other—in order to
create distractions so that others have a better chance to steal the fish.

Alternatives and Extensions

Otter and Heron Forms. Precede or follow-up this game by researching
Heron and Otter. Look at their body forms, tracks, gaits, and typical pos-
tures, and then have everyone try to imitate these movements as they play
the game.

Freeze Tag. Try this variation—if you get tagged, you don’t go to the edge
of the circle and start over, instead you freeze in place. After you play this
awhile, you can try the more advanced version of this—if you lay frozen and
accidentally get tagged again, you become unfrozen. Talk about confusion!

Tag and Out. To raise the stakes, alter the rules so that if you get tagged
once, you are out for the whole round.

Run Rabbit Run!

Animal Forms, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Running, Chasing, Being Chased,

Playing Tag, Imitating Animals

Hazards, Catchables, Mammals

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate,

Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility, Caring and Tending

388 |
Primer
If you are a Rabbit or a Hare, you have those big ears for a good reason. You
must always listen for animals who want to eat you. Foxes, Coyotes, Bobcats,
even Hawks and Owls eat Rabbits. Imagine you are a Rabbit, and you have
a network of rabbit holes, and other little homes in thick brambles of black-
berry or other plants. Of course you can’t just stay in your safe little hole all
day: you have to go out and find food, yummy dandelion greens and other
fresh vegetables.
My friend Laura once watched a European Rabbit peacefully eating on
dandelions in a meadow full of Rabbit holes. Suddenly a Mink appeared
and leaped towards the Rabbit. The Rabbit was alert, however, with its
ears constantly twitching to hear in all directions, and it heard and saw it
coming in a flash and ran to the nearest hole like a burst of lighting. But
just as Rabbit reached the entrance to the hole, the Mink was there to
grab it and eat it down. Can you imagine if you lived in a world where this
could happen at any given moment? What if you were a Rabbit who had to
hop from hole to hole? Do you think you could survive and outsmart the
Minks, Foxes, and Coyotes?

How-To
Create the Rabbit Holes. This very fun version of tag requires a bit of set-up
that participants can help with: mark the outline of two or three circles on
the ground using bandanas, coats, backpacks, whatever you’ve got. Make
each circle about twelve feet wide, big enough for all participants to squeeze
into while standing, but not too big. These circles are the “rabbit holes.”

Set-up. Choose one person who will be the Fox (or other local predator of
Rabbits). Have everyone else be Rabbits who stand inside one of the Rabbit
holes. The goal of the game is for the Rabbits to continually run from hole to
hole without getting eaten (tagged) by the Fox.

The Action. Rabbits run from hole to hole, trying not to get tagged. They
strategize when to run, to which hole they go, etc. It’s up to them to plot and
choose and take risks. The Rabbits can leave a Rabbit hole at any time. If a
Rabbit is tagged, it becomes a Fox, until only one Rabbit is left, who then has
the choice to be the Fox in the next game.

Animal Form Games | 389

Predators Must Always Circle the Edge. If all the Rabbits are safe in their
holes, the Fox cannot just stand in between the holes, conveniently waiting for
his prey. Instead, the Fox must circle around the outside of the Rabbit hole
until a Rabbit pops out to run across the field to another hole. Ask the Foxes
to really get into their character by panting, sniffing, baring their teeth, lightly
growling, making a trotting motion with their hands as they circle the hole.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Animal Form tag-games such as this one strongly relay a bodily experience
of what it feels like to be both the hunter and the hunted, predator and prey.
Nothing compares to the feeling of being one of the only rabbits out of the
hole, within grasp of a predator, with only your wits and your quickness to
keep you out of their reach.
This creates an experience of empathy for the lives of wild animals that
constantly live on the edge of life and death. For a brief period we step out
of the box of the human way of life, and we taste, firsthand, what life is like
for rabbits, foxes, mice, deer, coyotes … this game and others like it trans-
form abstract notions of animals—from photos, stories, and zoo visits—
into bodily empathy.

Alternatives and Extensions

Sitting Rabbits. A more challenging variation on the game has the rabbits
sit down whenever they are inside a rabbit hole. It is much harder to make a
running break from a sitting position, and it requires a different strategy and
a different brand of patience.

Teach about Predators. The unfortunate slant people sometimes put on

predators such as wolves portrays them to be mean, bloodthirsty, and evil
killers. Games that feature predator and prey relationships provide the
opportunity to teach about consequences in the life of predators: eating other
animals is simply their way of surviving just as the rabbit’s way of surviving
is to run away and kill dandelions trying to grow. You can also mention that
humans are predators, too, and our teeth structure is similar to that of foxes,
coyotes, and other predators.

Population Dynamics. You can follow-up this game with a guided conver-
sation, prompted by questions such as: “What happens to the foxes when
only a few rabbits remain?” “What happens to the rabbits if no foxes or other

390 |
predators were around?” Science has produced an abundance of evidence
that predation on prey, such as rabbits and deer, actually benefits the prey
species as a whole by 1) keeping populations at a sustainable level for the
amount of vegetative food and other resources in an area, and 2) improving
the gene pool over time by preying on the weakest, and therefore ensuring
that the most fit and survival-strong genes get passed on. Predation makes
both predator and prey species stronger.

Cougar Stalks Deer

Animal Forms, Expanding the Senses,
Questioning and Tracking, Listening
for Bird Language

Sneaking, Imitating Animals, Challenge

Mammals

Southeast: Activate, South: Focus, Northeast:

Open and Listen

Aliveness and Agility, Quiet Mind,

Common Sense

Primer
Cougars hunt Deer by sneaking up from behind so stealthily that they
remain unaware. A Cougar stalks slowly, moving low to the ground, making
almost no noise as its hind foot lands exactly where its front foot had been.
After a stalking Cougar gets close behind a Deer, they powerfully lunge onto
the deer’s back, biting into the neck. I bet you didn’t know this: Cougars
actually have nerve endings on the tips of their big canine teeth so that they
can feel exactly where to put their teeth and bite, immediately severing the
spine and killing the Deer quickly and painlessly.
The only protection a Deer has from a stalking Cougar is its sensory
awareness. If it hears something and turns to see the Cougar moving, the
Deer can bound off easily to safety and the hunt ends. However, deer have

Animal Form Games | 391

limited vision and can only clearly recognize moving animals. This means,
you can stand completely still right in front of a Deer, and the Deer will not
see you.! But don’t get cocky—if the wind blows the right way, the Deer will
smell you in a heartbeat! And if you make even the slightest noise, it’ll be out
of there in a flash.
So the trick for any Cougar sneaking up on a Deer in the open is the abil-
ity to stop moving and freeze in the same instant the Deer turns to look.
Lions in Africa stalk low through the grass just like this, freezing whenever
something looks their way, and then moving quietly closer when they look
away again—until they get close enough to pounce and kill. Do you think
you could do that?

How-To
This is a version of the classic game that many know as “Redlight-Greenlight.”

Choose the Deer. One or two participants or instructors become Deer.

Choose them and ask them to really get into the mind of grazing Deer. Have
the Deer stand a little apart from everyone else. They will imitate the way
Deer amble along, casually bending down to nibble on grass, occasionally
springing their heads up and looking around when they hear a noise, always
making sure they are safe. Except for when they raise their heads to look
around, their backs are to everyone else, and they can slowly inch away from
everyone else.

Create the Playing Field. The rest of the participants get to be Cougars.
Have the Cougars form a starting line, at least fifteen yards from the feeding
Deer.

The Action. Once you say start, the Cougars will silently and slowly stalk
towards the feeding Deer, always watching the Deer so they can freeze in
place as soon as the Deer turns its head to look around. The Deer can look
back when they hear a noise, or every ten seconds or so. If a Deer turns while
a Cougar is still in movement, that Cougar’s hunt ends, and he or she begins
again at the starting line. When a Cougar reaches Deer, it simply taps it on
the shoulder this Cougar now becomes the Deer. The caught Deer obedi-
ently moves to the side, has a seat on the ground, and silently watches as the
other Cougars continue the hunt.

392 |
Referee. You or another instructor will need to serve as referee to help the
game run smoothly and fairly, i.e., to make a call on any arguments about
people being seen or not seen moving, which of course will arise.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This game is awesome for learning stalking and body control because par-
ticipants practice and test out their Cougar-Crawl or Fox-Walk. They will
be challenged to always be physically centered, under control of their body,
and able to freeze and hold a position, no matter what part of a step they
are on. Along the way to gaining this self-control in movement, partici-
pants get frozen in many humorous awkward positions, as well as shaking
legs and funny falls.
Also, this game emphasizes the use of the ears and eyes to catch move-
ment, both on the part of the ever-watching Cougars ready to freeze and on
the part of the Deer listening and looking for any movements. You can invite
them to try Owl Eyes during this game.

Alternatives and Extensions

Change the Animals. If you don’t have Cougars at all near where you live, or
if you just want to change things, try changing this game into “Bobcat Stalks
Rabbit,” or “Housecat Stalks Robin.”

The Smell Factor. Ask Cougars to arrange themselves so the Cougars

always stalk from downwind. Guide them with questions to help them fig-
ure, in real time, the direction of the breeze, and where “downwind” would
be. This awareness of their relationship to the wind gets participants tuning
into their sense of touch regularly.

Make it Real. Challenge participants to touch an animal by using the stalking

style of this game to sneak up on real animals whenever they have the chance:
deer, robins feeding on the lawn, squirrel, even their own cat or dog.

Animal Form Games | 393

Fire in the Forest
Animal Forms, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Running, Chasing, Playing Tag,

Imitating Animals

Mammals, Birds, Reptiles, Amphibians

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate,

Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility

Primer
Do you hear that? It’s the terrible sound of a crackling forest fire, coming
straight towards us. There’s a fire in the forest, and every animal is running
away, trying to escape without being caught and burned by the fire.
There are all kinds of animals: mammals, like White-tailed Deer and
Long-tailed Weasels and Deer Mice; birds, like Black-capped Chickadees,
Pileated Woodpeckers, and Song Sparrows; reptiles, like Garter Snakes and
Box-Turtles, and amphibians, like Bull-frogs and Rough-skinned Newts.
But they all are running from the fire, trying not to get caught.

How-To
Create the Playing Field. For this game, you will need to mark a large rect-
angle or square as a playing field, using bandanas or backpacks to mark the
corners and some of the sides. Make it at least twenty or thirty yards long, and
as wide as you want: for this game, a wider field will make it easier to not get
tagged, and a narrow field can make it very challenging. So choose somewhere
in between based on your experience working with this group of participants.

Set-up. Have everyone stand on the line at one end of your rectangle, equiva-
lent to the end zone on a football field. Tell them you need the names of
three animals that live in those woods, and ask them to raise their hands

394 |
if they want to be one of the animals. After three local animals have been
chosen, explain the game. Everyone chooses to be one of those three animals
during the game. They don’t tell anyone else what animal they are; they just
remember it in their mind. Choose one person to be “The Fire”; this person
is “it” and stands out in the middle of the playing field.

The Action. The player who is Fire then starts the game by calling out one
of the three animals. When you hear your animal name, you run through to
the other end zone without getting tagged by the Fire. If you get tagged, you
become a Tree on fire, and you are able to tag people running through—but,
being a Tree, you cannot move from your roots; you can only pivot on one
foot (you might need to demonstrate a pivot). If the Fire person calls out,
“Fire in the Forest!” then all the animals have to run across to the other end
zone without getting tagged by the Fire or any of the Trees. The game goes
on like this, with animals running back and forth from end zone to end zone
as they are called out. The game will eventually get quite challenging and
extremely fun, as the Trees present an obstacle course reaching out to lick
you with their flames.

The End is the Beginning. The last animal to be tagged gets offered the
chance to be the Fire for the next game. Every time you start a new game,
select three new animals who live in your area, letting the participants brain-
storm and volunteer choices.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Besides the obvious fun of this tag-game, the magic is the way it slyly teaches
about what animals live in your area. The process of choosing animals for
the game often becomes a discussion through which participants learn what
animals actually live in their area, what they look like, and how they move
and act. Your people engage in the creation of a “Master List” of animals for
this area without even realizing it.
“You mean we actually have fox in our area? I didn’t know that?”
“Where do they live with all these houses around?”
“What’s a vole? Oh … I think I might have seen one of those before.”
“Isn’t a garter snake poisonous … it’s not? My mom told me they were.”

During discussions that spontaneously emerge from choosing local ani-

mals, you will see players correct erroneous notions they had about animals

Animal Form Games | 395

living around them, while everyone comes to understand the animals that
actually live in the places we explore. Most become naturally curious about
what lives close to them, asking questions and eager to offer answers when
they can. You can set parameters on the animals they choose by specifying
Master Lists: “Choose three types of amphibians,” for example, or mam-
mals, or song-birds, or insects.
In this Master Listing process, you build a foundation of search images
that can be drawn upon when you explore the natural areas around you. For
instance, if you find a track, you can say, “What kind of animals live here
that could have made this?” And you might just be amazed as they begin
to rattle off information about the local species: “Well, we have mule deer,
coyote, black bear … but black bear are too big to make this track.” In this
way, games and experiences in the woods build upon each other over time,
gradually instilling a deep knowledge of place without the participants ever
feeling their schooling.

Alternatives and Extensions

Play with the Names. It can be fun to make the names of animals very
specific to your area. For instance, if someone volunteers “wren” as an ani-
mal, I might say “Okay, how about winter wren … that’s the kind of wren
that lives here.” Another variation on this that can be fun for participants,
if you make it wacky enough, introduces scientific, or Latin names. Have a
field guide with you when you choose names and translate them into their
Latin names. Be humorous in the pronunciation and get everyone to say
out loud their animal’s Latin name. This can be a fun way for them to learn
“proper” names.

Practice Forms. Again, to the extent possible for humans trying to tag and
avoid being tagged, you can get creative and imitate the actual movements
and strategies of different animals. Infinite possibilities here for creative
versions. Deer can bound, rabbits hop, raccoons amble, and ducks waddle.
Birds could fly outside the boundaries. Could turtles burrow under mud?
Could beaver be safe in their lodges? Research and find out.

396 |
Predator-Prey
Animal Forms, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Running, Jumping, Imitating Animals

Mammals, Birds

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate,

Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility, Common Sense

Primer
Have you ever seen a Cat chase a Mouse? How about a Weasel or a Fox?
What chance did the mouse have in those situations? Well, you are about
to find out.

How-To
Set-up. This game turns into fun mayhem. Arrange your participants in a
circle. Each person pretends to be Prey, and privately picks in their mind
another person in the circle who they pretend is a Predator who wants to eat
them. Next each participant privately picks another person who represents
some protection, or a Protector. Once you shout “Go!” all the Prey must run
to arrange themselves so they always keep their Protectors between them
and the Predators.

Chaos is the Point. As invariably happens, the Protectors—who in their

own mind are also Prey with their own Predators and Protectors—also run
and try to hide behind their Protection, so the result is usually incessant
running around in laughter-filled chaos. Play many rounds.

Animal Form Games | 397

Inside the Mind of the Mentor
This game provides participants with the sense of never-ending change that
abounds in nature, as well as empathy for prey animals. After a while, you
just want it to stop. But for wild animals whose survival depends on eating
while not being eaten, there is never a moment where full peace is guaran-
teed … only occasional breaks, and even then you have to be alert and ready
to move in a second.
Since the running can go on indefinitely, this game relieves excess energy
in your group. It’s interesting to observe that the running often settles down
into an observable pattern (order from chaos), and energy conservation and
survival strategy become more than a concept for participants.

Alternatives and Extensions

After a round or two, ask the participants to try to figure out if they can
tell who thought they were a Predator, and who thought they were a
Protector. This brings Owl Eyes into this very active game. Who says you
can’t be aware when you’re running around like mad?

398 |
 Conversations about hunting and defensive strategies within the realm
of predator-prey relationships can be interesting and stimulate independent
research and reading.

Deer-Bounding Challenge
Animal Forms, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Running, Jumping, Imitating Animals,

Self-Challenge

Mammals

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate,

Southwest: Take a Break

Aliveness and Agility

Primer
One time, walking to my backyard Sit Spot, I scared a deer who hid in the
bushes. You know what it did? It was amazing. Suddenly it sprang straight
into the air and jumped UP over the neighbor’s fence, which was at least
six feet tall. That’s this high! It’s like it was a four-legged turbo pogo stick:
BOING! BOING! BOING! Deer have thin long legs just like pogo sticks,
and with them they are able to jump into the air like this so that they can get
away from predators. Forests often become thick with obstacles like fallen
logs preventing straight-away running, so deer need to be able to bound
high and come down delicately. And they sure can. Most gardeners know
even their fence meant to keep deer from eating their vegetables, doesn’t
always do the trick. Some deer can simply bound right over a fence.
The foremost ungulate behaviorist, Fritz Walther, believed that bound-
ing by deer and stotting by antelope had survival value because it helped the
animals observe or detect predators. Instead of climbing trees or flying, deer
can jump up and scan the ground around them.
So for humans who also want to be able to jump high, deer make the best
teachers. Deer-Bounding will allow you to move through a log-filled forest

Animal Form Games | 399

just like deer, or it can make you soar like an NBA player on the basketball
court. Want to play a fun game that will push you to bound higher and
higher, just like a deer?

How-To
Create the Playing Field. Ask everyone to stand in a line. Then take a cou-
ple of your participants’ backpacks (make sure its okay with them) and begin
by stacking two of them on the ground about ten feet from the beginning of
the participant-line. This stack of backpacks will be an ever-rising tower. The
challenge is to Deer-Bound over the backpacks.

Teach the Deer-Bound. Before starting, teach the Deer-Bounding Form

and demonstrate by bounding over the stack of backpacks. Give them a cou-
ple of minutes to bound around, practice getting as high off the ground as
they can. Then have them return to a line.

Raise the Bar Incrementally. Start out easy, with just a couple of backpacks
stacked. Give the signal for their turn to jump, after which they return to
the back of the line to wait for their turn to come again. When it comes
back around to starter, add to the stack of backpacks, making it a bit taller.
Again, let each participant Deer-Bound over the bags one-at-a-time, and
after that round make the stack even higher. Go on like this, going as high
as participants can. When someone knocks the stack over, simply rebuild it.
Throughout, continually encourage everyone to see whatever level they reach
is a success.

Invoke the Mind’s Eye Imagination. Before each turn, have them pause,
close their eyes, and imagine a deer bounding high into the sky, over a fence.
Ask them to feel the springy explosion of hooves leaving the ground. Have
them become the deer in their mind and then open their eyes and go for it!

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This activity usually carries an exuberant feeling of celebration and self-chal-
lenge, like the Olympics. With any healthy competition, put the emphasis
on competing with yourself and challenging yourself, and encouraging and
cheering for everyone else as they do the same.
This activity will improve physical fitness, and it will also light a fire
in folks to interact physically with the natural world. Deer-Bounding can

400 |
provide excitement around physical fitness and physical feats, prompting a
new orientation to the world around them. After this or similar activities in
which one animal form is emphasized, they often begin to interact physically
by looking to animals as examples and teachers of different ways to move.

Alternatives and Extensions

Animal Forms Course. With or without the help of your participants, create
a “course,” a specific route through a section of your landscape. Let the route go
through diverse terrain that will require different moves to traverse: a trail with
logs that can be Deer-Bounded, turning into a thicket of bushes to be crawled
through like a Raccoon, coming out into tall grass to be trotted through like
a Coyote, and later stalked through as a Cougar low to the ground. You can
show them animal forms ahead of time for each part, or you can walk through
it with them, asking them, “What animal form would be best to use for this
part?” and then allowing them to choose which animal forms to use.

Sleeping Fawn
Sit Spot, Animal Forms

Hiding, Laughing, Challenge

Mammals

Southwest: Take a Break

Quiet Mind, Happiness

Primer
You may not believe it, but I was once half-scared to death by one of the
smallest and cutest of animals. One day I was Fox-Walking out to my Sit
Spot right as the sun was going down in the west. Because the light was fad-
ing, it was harder to see through the woods and I used my Owl Eyes to adjust
to night vision and my Fox-Walk to keep from stepping on anything like a
rusty nail in the dark (I was barefoot).

Animal Form Games | 401

 I walked along peacefully when suddenly—BANG! Something
exploded from the spot of ground right in front of me, and my heart leapt
out of my chest as I screamed—“Ahhh!” All in the same flash of a moment,
this thing went springing into the air up to the level of my eyes and bolted
away through the woods like a bullet. I had to laugh that a little baby fawn
had scared me that much!
The spots on fawns, like Bambi, make the ultimate camouflage. Fawns,
born with absolutely no scent until they grow older, combine this with their
spotted camouflage and become almost invisible. They stay absolutely still,
hiding from predators and even allowing them to come really close. I was
only about two feet away from it when it bolted from me. I must have just
gotten a little too close or smelled a little too bad.

How-To
Set-up. This game can be played in covered or open area, as long as each
participant can find a place of his/her own big enough to lie very still on the
ground with their faces visible. All of the participants are Fawns sleeping
while their mother is away. The instructor is the Coyote or Wolf stalking
around for prey.

The Action. This game is based on the fact that Deer Fawns will stay still
and go unseen by predators that walk by, unless the Fawns move. The Fawns
must remain completely still while the Coyote or Wolf wanders nearby sniff-
ing around.

Funny-Face. You, as the Coyote, behave in true Coyote fashion, doing fool-
ish, bothersome, and unexpected things, making faces, yelping, scratching,
and fooling around in efforts to provoke movement or laughter, but may
never touch the Fawn or use words. This can get really hilarious. When a
Fawn is spotted moving, it must get up and go sit quietly in a designated area
for Fawns that have been “caught” by the Coyote.

Story of the Day. Once all the participants have been captured, you can play
again or also take the opportunity to chat about what it’s like to be still and
quiet for so long, or about having your own spot to sit still.

402 |
Inside the Mind of the Mentor
We’ve found no better way to connect folks to the earth than to have them lie
flat on it and remain still. Although not the practice of Sit Spot in the sense
of a place to be visited privately all the time, this game practices Sit Spot in
the sense of lying silently for a long time and soaking up the landscape.
We want to prolong this Sit Spot time, so when you are the Coyote, walk
away for ten minutes or longer before you even begin to prowl. For your
players, this game develops the ability to be comfortable with stillness and
quiet—another great primer for the full routine of Sit Spot.
It is important to note that this is a mellow game, one in which partici-
pants might possibly fall into a nap. This is a good thing. Try this one after
lunch for an entertaining siesta or whenever there is a lull of energy that
lends itself nicely to lying still. Observing the Natural Cycle of the day, this
is a perfect Southwest game.
Also, your role-playing of Coyote gives you the chance to role model
Coyote. Let loose, get silly, and have more fun than your participants by
being fully alive with the happiness of a child.

Alternatives and Extensions

Sit Spot Lead-in. This can be a perfect activity to preface a more formal Sit
Spot routine. You may wait to formally introduce Sit Spots to your partici-
pants: this game and similar ones may be something you repeat over a period
of time to slow down your participants and build in them an aptitude for a
conscious time of sitting alone.

Other Animals. Try mixing up the game by changing the predator to other
ones in your area: wolf, cougar, or bears (yes, bears eat fawns).

Participant Comedians. Let the participants take turns as the predator

when you trust that they won’t abuse the role … you’ll probably be surprised
at the brilliance of humor that comes out.

Tracking Deer. This game may provide inspiration for tracking a deer to see if
you can find and get close to one that might be hiding quietly (See 100 Tracks
in a Row in Tracking Activities.) If you go into the woods right after this game,
it can provide inspiration for Fox-Walking and Owl Eyes because you never
know when there will be a deer just off the trail, frozen still until you walk by.

Animal Form Games | 403

404 |
Tracking
ACTIVITIES

Activities that involve learning about

animals, the six arts of tracking, questioning,
and the following of mysteries.
Tracking ranks high among disciplines like music or chess—it is great for
people to practice regularly because of the way it develops the brain’s capac-
ities for critical thinking. In tracking, you will never encounter the exact
same situation twice. Every mystery to be solved is as fresh as every new day.
Depending on the weather, when you see the tracks, your mood, and the
mood of the animals, the tracking mystery varies endlessly.
The following activities have the potential to press the “on” button for
the tracker inside, to unleash the curiosity-driven questioner who pushes
learning as far as it can go and hunts down solutions to mysteries. These
activities get the ball rolling (and potentially rolling very quickly) towards an
insatiable appetite for learning the Art of Tracking.

Tracking | 405
Animal Cards
Questioning and Tracking, Exploring Field
Guides, Animal Forms, Journaling

Solving Mysteries, Getting Close to Animals,

Having Their Own Special Thing

Mammals

South: Focus, Northwest: Reflect

Inquisitive Focus, Awe and Reverence,

Caring and Tending

406 |
Primer
To introduce this activity, check out the Nature Names in Setting Up the
Learning Culture Activities.

How-To
Preparation. You will need to make up Animal Cards beforehand, each
with one local animal’s name in large type, as well as a physical description,
what it eats, where it lives, its character traits/symbolism, and so forth. A
picture of the animal—a photo, a sketch, a close up of its skeleton or other
distinctive feature—will bring more life to the activity.

Getting Cards. Each person receives an Animal Card held firmly to their
forehead or taped to their back so that everyone else can see their card.
They will have to use their detective-minds to figure out the animal they
represent.

Solving Mysteries. When each person has a Card, have them walk around
and ask each other “yes/no” questions (and only “yes/no” questions) about
their animal. Participants being asked questions can then read the informa-
tion on the card if they don’t already know an accurate answer. This game
will be complete and successful when each person solves the mystery of their
animal card.

Wrap-up. When they think they know their animal, have them come to an
instructor and first tell them all the clues they gathered, and then tell what
animal they have on their card. If they guess correctly, let them look at their
card; if they haven’t got it yet, encourage them and put them back on the trail
of the mystery. After everyone has found their animal name, circle up and
have a go-round where everyone talks about their animal a bit, proudly tell-
ing what they know about it.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This activity is wonderful for multiple reasons. First, it gets participants
interested and connected with one specific animal. Secondly, and perhaps
most poignantly, they learn to ask their own questions so they develop logi-
cal sequences of questioning by themselves. You can almost see their brains
stretching as they search for questions to help them solve the mystery, and as

Tracking | 407
they approach animals from many different angles, thinking of size, looks,
habits, habitat, food, character, and track shape.
In this game, of course, each person will be exposed to the animals of
all the participants and get more ideas for questions. In a half hour Animal
Cards can provide a novice who knows only a few animals other than dogs
and cats with a mental file-card bank of common wild animals of the area.

Alternatives and Extensions

Nature Names. This activity could be the way participants receive their
Nature Names to last for the duration of the program.

Picking a Personal Mystery. You can set up a ceremonial way for them to
pick their Cards, rather than just handing them out. You could set the cards
face-down in a circle on the ground and ask participants to walk one-at-a-
time around the circle until their Body Radar attracts them to one card that
will become their personal animal mystery.

Animal Medicine. You may choose to write a few words on the card about
the symbolism or legendary character traits commonly linked with that ani-
mal. People are often charmed by the idea of animals as guides or teachers,
who bring to mind special “medicine” or ways of handling life.

Insight into People. The animal that each person gets, as well as their reaction
to it (i.e., disappointment vs. pride), can give you memorable insight into those
you mentor. Once the trickster child who liked to push the edge of boundaries
drew the Fox card; I laughed at how perfect it was for him. Another time, a
quiet and reserved girl picked Spider, and the symbolism written on the card
confirmed for her the validity of her quiet, complex, and wise ways.

Doorway to Field Guides. Animal Cards can be easily expanded into

Exploring Field Guides to find more information. If you dwell on one ani-
mal you can search through multiple Field Guides for different approaches
to information about it—some have photographs, some have sketches, some
show tracks, some show its ecological niche and habitat companions.

Doorway to Animal Forms. Similarly, encourage people to identify and

practice imitating their animal’s typical movements, postures, sensory abili-
ties, and survival strategies.

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Stick-Drag Game
Questioning and Tracking, Expanding the Senses,
Listening for Bird Language, Mapping

Chasing, Following Mysteries, Playing Detective,

Role-Playing

Mammals and Birds

East: Inspire and South: Focus

Agility and Aliveness, Inquisitive Focus,

Common Sense

Primer
Human hunters long-ago used a special type of hunting, called Persistence
Hunting. Scientists say this represents one of the oldest forms of hunting,
but it’s also one of the riskiest. If someone has not trained well enough,
they could die. Basically, on a very hot day, you chase after an animal for
hours until it overheats and collapses. I once saw a video of an African San
Bushman tracker and hunter do this. He waited for a very hot day—over
110 degrees Fahrenheit—and then went out tracking in the sandy lands.
He picked up the very fresh trail of one of the biggest animals they hunt—a
kudu. He jogged after the tracks until finally he saw the herd of these huge
beasts. Then the chase was on.
He started jogging after them. Soon it became apparent which one was
the weakest and most vulnerable and he followed that one. The sun got hot-
ter and as he chased this animal, barefoot, across the hot sand, hour after
hour passed. Often the Kudu would get so far ahead he would have to track
as he ran along. For five hours he ran and ran, never stopping for a break.
Then the tracks began to show that the animal was getting tired and soon
enough the sweating hunter stood eye-to-eye with this handsome animal
who cannot sweat like us humans, but whose hairy body keeps all the heat
locked up inside, until they overheat. After more than six hours, the hunter
had done it. He then used his spear to kill it and took its meat back to his
people. When he returned, there was singing and feasting.

Tracking | 409
 Some biologists say this form of hunting helped humans evolve. Today
humans have such hairless bodies—and the capacity to sweat—as well as the
mode of walking on two feet, rather than four like nearly all the other mammals
on earth. Four-legged animals move much faster than two-leggeds over short
distances—like the sprinting cheetah, or the deer that bounds away into the
forest after you spook it. However, at lower speeds two legs work much better
for long-distance running, stamina running. Humans have even been known
to hunt cheetahs in this same manner and beat horses in 100-mile races—out-
running them over a long distance. Scientists from different specialized areas,
including genetics, archaeology, and biology theorize that Persistence Hunting
helped determine the biology of all humans, having originated in similar savan-
nas of Africa. Some people also say that our ability to read—to see a shape
or symbol and instantly match it up with complex ideas and images—came
from thousands and thousands of years studying tracks and hunting animals
on these African savannas. Interesting to think about, huh?
Now, put all those same human abilities of tracking, running, and sweat-
ing to the test. I will be the 800 pound Kudu, and you will be the persistence
trackers. Do you think you can track me down?

How-To
Set-up. Lead into this game using the story above or with a similar scenario/
story, and then explain that you will only have a two-minute head start; while
they close their eyes and ears, you take off running.

Dragging a Trail. As you run, you will drag a stick behind you on the ground,
making sure to leave a noticeable trail in the ground. This game plays most
easily in a sandy location, but it can also be played in forests or fields: just make
sure you have a sharp-point on your stick and apply enough pressure to leave
a trail. Also, make sure the stick is sturdy or else it might snap on you. You
might want a partner to help out. Stick-dragging leaves me hunch-backed and
cramping as I run along, not the most comfortable way to run.

Tactical Evasion. Give a crow call to let participants know it’s time to start
chasing. Continue running, even after they begin tracking you, and go on as
long as you desire or until you feel truly exhausted, as in the scenario. As you
drag the stick, occasionally make trailing challenging: go over some rocks or
hard-packed dirt for a bit before returning to soft, easy-to-track soil. You can
make this really fun for your participants by looping around behind them,

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crossing back over your trail, or going in a circle and hiding so that they walk
right by you as they follow your trail, eventually hiding and surprising them
with a shock. Or, if you want to build up their confidence—and you just
can’t take anymore running—sit tight until they track themselves straight to
where you “collapsed.”

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This activity can get people really excited about tracking. Something magical
and exhilarating happens when you follow a set of tracks to the very animal that
made them, even if it’s group leader. Also, the heavy stick-drag provides easy suc-
cess and confidence with tracking. For beginners and novices alike, this can open
up the world of tracking to them, making it real, meaningful, and accessible.
This activity also provides a genuine simulation of the adrenaline-pump-
ing hunt, allowing people to connect with this ancient part of our human-
ness. The thrill of this game sometimes stays with people for a long time to
come. This game also fosters empathy for animals, both those that hunt for
their food and those that are constantly threatened by being hunted.
Trailing someone for a long time across a landscape gets people notic-
ing and thinking about the lay of the land in ways that they haven’t before.
When I have done this exercise as a tracker, my mind automatically starts to
imagine a bird’s eye view of a map of the land as I try to anticipate where the
stick-dragger might have gone. You can also emphasize the involvement of
bird-language, so they track you not just the dragging stick track, and notice
the bird disturbance you create in each moment.

Alternatives and Extensions

Repetition. You can play this game repeatedly over the course of months or
years, gradually making the stick drag more and more subtle as people learn
to see better and follow tracks better.

Role Reversal. You can let participants be the Kudu, which provides a com-
pletely different yet incredibly vivid experience.

The Real Thing. If large mammals in your area are seasonally hunted, pre-
tend to be a common prey species—elk, bear, wild pig, or deer.

All Six Arts. This game is an excellent lead-in to the study of animal trail-
ing, and the complementary studies of track identification, gait and behavior

Tracking | 411
 interpretation, track aging, and ecological tracking, and empa-
thy. Encourage people to “get inside” the mind of the animal
and ask “if I were this animal, where would I go? What would
I be eating? Where would I sleep?”

Tracking while Being Tracked. For adults, you can also pump
up the dramatics of the scenario. Pretend it’s a “Fugitive Chase,”
some kind of criminal man hunt adds the element of forcing the
trackers to think of themselves not just as predators, but prey as
well, and to look at not just the tracks but to broaden their aware-
ness and keep all their senses alive so the fugitive cannot take
them by surprise. Bring props if you want to make it realistic,
such as water-guns (then, if you want, you can double-back and
hide out in the grassy knoll, waiting to squirt them).

Search and Rescue. Conversely, stir the protective instinct

in everyone, adult or child. The scenario could be all about
catching up with a lost child or person before they get hypo-
thermic or freeze to death. Maybe you need to reach them to
give them vital medicine they need to stay alive. In another
rescue scenario, you can sit in your grassy knoll dripping with
ketchup and turn this into a wilderness first aid lesson.

Tracking Expedition

Tracking, Wandering, Story of the Day,

Exploring Field Guides, Mapping, Journaling

Running Errands, Exploring, Seeking, Solving

Mysteries, Adventuring

Mammals

South: Focus, West: Gather and Share

Inquisitive Focus, Caring and Tending,

Service to the Community, Survival Living

412 |
Primer
I’m really glad we’ve all been starting to learn how to read and identify the
tracks of wild animals, because today, we’ve got a real job to do. It’s time to
put our skills and knowledge to use. The Department of Fish and Wildlife
has asked us to go to this area and take note of all the animal sign we can
find, especially those of any endangered species. Some people want to clear
cut this forest and the Department of Fish and Wildlife needs to know its
value to local animals.
We’ll keep a special eye out for tracks and signs of a few special species on
their list; you never know—maybe even live sightings. But we will also chal-
lenge ourselves to find the tracks, signs, or live sightings of as many different
animals as possible. We’ll split up into groups and cover different areas, and
at the end of the day come back and share with everyone else what we find.

Tracking | 413
We’ll take lunch and water with us, and spend the whole day outside … just
tracking! Ready? Well, grab your gear and let’s go.

How-To
Leader Prep. You will want to figure out ahead of time these things—what
species you will focus on and why. Create a need for people to go out and track.
This could be accomplished by telling inspiring tracking stories, but it will be
more potent if you find a true need or service for their tracking efforts.
Many schools across the country do this by contacting local government
biologists. In our experience they have been glad to give us places to track
that might help their efforts. Besides the above example, it could be some-
thing more local, such as “The neighbor’s chickens are being killed by some-
thing and she wants us to figure out who is doing it, what trails they’re using,
and how they’re getting into the wire cages.” You can generate questions to
fulfill needs for the school principal, some other authoritative figure, or your
personal curiosities. You can hook up with Nature Mapping (see resources
and programs list in back of book) or other non-profit organizations that
could provide you with professionals who will lead your group, and require
specific recording techniques. This is the “errand” phenomenon in action.

Pre-trip. Develop a list of focus questions about the place you will be explor-
ing: things you want to figure out about that place and its wild animals.
Using field guides and journaling, have every person research questions of
interest to them, as well as the local hazards. If you focus on one or two spe-
cies, you may want to journal the track and sign so as to develop a “search
image” in everyone’s brain.

On Location. Divide up into tracking teams based on any criteria you choose
(age, skill, personal energy, subject focus). Teams fan out into the landscape,
either wandering, following a route, or a little of both. Their goal is to cap-
ture as much information about their target species or area as they can.

Wrap-up. Come back early enough so that each team can present a story of
the highlights of their day: amusing moments, discoveries, species seen, and
signs seen. Create maps that include where tracks and signs were found. Then
you can begin to draw out connections to these stories happening within the
overall landscape. Piece together the findings of all the several groups into a
unified picture of what’s happening in that place, at that time.

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Inside the Mind of the Mentor
As Tom Brown, Jr. accurately says, “The greater the need, the greater the
result.” If you want people to be excited and persistent in learning tracking,
find a true need for them to track. Talk to local scientists, park managers,
and land-owners to see what kind of tracking projects you can form. It’s not
hard. Most people are happy to further the education of others, and some
will even come along to help out and learn themselves. And of course, they
will be thankful for your services.
Every game or Core Routine in this book can be done while on Tracking
Expedition. Indeed, during the time between finding and following tracks,
these activities serve to hone awareness, interest, and curiosity. I usually plan
out a few games or activities to serve the higher purpose of creating better
observations and excitement for my tracking team.
For most people, especially younger ones, their favorite way to con-
vey this experience afterwards to others downplays the expedition and
claims they walked around a lot and played some games. However little
they tell to their parents, you and I know a lot of primary education
happens on expeditions: balancing on logs, looking under leaves for
beetles, following bobcat tracks, sitting peacefully by a river eating
lunch, envying the person who found the skull, telling jokes to their
friends, and watching in silent wonder as a red-tailed hawk screamed
and soared in the sky above them.
With most groups, especially those with younger kids, things will go
more smoothly if everyone has a “role” or “ job” to do on the expedition.
This also reinforces the ideas of community niches and complementary
talents. Some examples: someone to keep a Master List of mammal tracks
and sign, a map navigator, a Story of the Day “teller,” someone keeping
their eyes out for hazards, a first aid person, field guide carrier. Look and
you will find roles.
Another way to generate a need to learn tracking is by returning it to its
original use: to hunt for food. Many people are now offering programs that
conduct hunts in a sustainable and sacred manner, offering it as a basis for
learning life skills, developing emotional relatedness to the world and tran-
sitioning into adulthood. Tracking Expeditions in this setting are group-
learning experiences focused around this sobering task of learning about an
animal in order to take its life.

Tracking | 415
Alternatives and Extensions
Flip the Script. Don’t create focus questions or look at field guides before
you go. Let their curiosity lead on an all-day, wandering version of Tracking
Expedition. Just tell a good tracking story and then follow their lead. Their
observations throughout the day can then be approached later with applied
questions and field guides.

Empower Leadership. With teens and adults, and more advanced younger
kids, turn the leadership of expeditions over to them once they get the hang
of it. Let them decide what the focus questions or species should be, let them
pore over maps and decide where different groups should go, let them facili-
tate the end-of-day debrief and pull out all the hidden connections and sto-
ries that the collective tracking of the group indicates.
What you track will only be limited by your imagination and interest.
Focus expeditions on ecology, geology, birds, edible plants, amphibians,
rare species, or all of these. See Wildlife Survey activity in the Ecology and
Community activities section.

100 Tracks in a Row

Tracking and Questioning, Wandering, Story of
the Day, Expanding Our Senses

Solving Mysteries, Meeting Challenges,

Getting Dirty

Mammals

South

Inquisitive Focus, Awe and Reverence

416 |
Primer
Blood-Tracking, by Daniel Evans
Once I accepted a challenge to find 100 animal tracks in a row in an hour.
“That’s easy,” I thought. I was on a river sandbar. “Everyone knows how easy
it is to find tracks on sand.”
I partnered up with two other friends, and we walked along until we found
a set of fresh deer tracks. They headed away from the water and toward the
forest. Off we went. At first the counting came really easy. Within the first
minute, we got 25 crisp, beautiful “heart-shaped” tracks right in the moist
sand. But the deer’s tracks headed off towards the larger cottonwood forest,
maybe moving from a feeding area towards a more hidden place so it could
lie down for a while.
The ground was now scattered here and there with the old, decomposing
leaves of the cottonwood trees. Every time the deer stepped onto a leaf, it
cracked a heart-shaped depression into the leaves. I thought that was really
cool to track an animal by following its prints on leaves. We counted 50
tracks so far, and had only searched for five minutes.

Tracking | 417
 As we got closer to the forest, the leaves became thick and abundant,
and the ground became firmer. Most of the leaves weren’t cracking any-
more. I thought, “Uh-oh, maybe this is harder than I thought.” But after
a few minutes of trying to measure how far each step of the deer took,
and so predict where the next track would be, my friend used his eyes,
and solved the problem: the deer still had sand stuck to the bottom of the
hooves. Near where we predicted the next step to be, we saw small dust-
ings of sand, about the same size as a heart-shaped track. We found 25
more tracks this way, but it took us almost 15 minutes and lots of detailed
looking and measuring.
Only 25 more to go! By now we stood underneath the big cotton-
woods, their thick buds were almost ready to open up for spring. The
sand on the deer’s hooves had worn off and the ground was firm. The
challenge seemed impossible. Our heads were on the ground, looking
for a grain of sand, a slightly depressed leaf, or a crushed grass blade.
That’s how we discovered the blood on the ground. Looking ahead we
found another drop. “Hey, our deer must have gotten scratched back
there pretty deep by a blackberry.” We followed our blood drops until we
saw … a few feet away from our heading, a nice patch of sand with, guess
what—our deer’s track in it! We scratched our heads; our blood drop
trail was 10’ away. What was going on?
We went back to where we had first spotted the blood, now we walked
instead of crawling on our bellies like snakes, we saw red drops everywhere.
When we smelled the red drops, it actually smelled like a sweet spice. It
wasn’t blood—it was Cottonwood sap, dripping out of the spring buds of the
trees above us. We laughed and got back on our bellies and found the last 15
tracks with just a minute left. It was tough ... but we did it!

How-To
Challenge your participants to find 100 tracks in a row.
Start with Success. Usually, people find deer tracks easy to follow and give
quick success, so start there. Initial success inspires further learning and builds
self-confidence. However, this depends on your local fauna as well as the local
tracking conditions. Maybe you’ll follow 100 frog tracks on the river-bank.
Whatever provides both success and challenge along one trail—go for it.

418 |
Set-up and Props. Groups of no more than three can work together nicely
for team versions and provide big lessons about the value of different per-
spectives and ways of seeing. This activity can also be done solo. Decide if
you will have a time limit to increase the excitement; it may also distract
from detailed looking. Teams should mark behind each track with a small
twig, toothpick, or Popsicle stick. Bring tape measures or “tracking sticks”:
braches carved or marked with pen/paint to indicate the average length of
step of the animal you’re following. Simply hold the stick alongside each new
track to approximate the whereabouts of the next one.

On the Trail. Once a team finds the animal’s beginning track, they move
either forward or backward along its trail. All team members need to agree
on the existence of each track before marking it and moving onto the next
one. Walk around, observing and only jump in to encourage or help when
someone or some group gets utterly frustrated.

Debrief. Talk out the experience afterwards. Who learned what? How were
challenges overcome? Celebrate everyone’s efforts, no matter how far they
got. Honor and acknowledge not a number of tracks, but rather the quality
of observation, perseverance, or teamwork you observed.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This activity inspires people to get down on their bellies and really study
beyond their surface judgments. They begin to recognize the meaning that
rests in the small and subtle markings, and begin to look at everything with
a closer, more thoughtful gaze.
Morning is an excellent time for this activity, when everyone can find
fresh, crisp tracks. If you haven’t gone over tracking protocol before do
this first (emphasize the importance of not stepping on tracks). Nobody
likes to have their tracking trail be mistakenly wiped out by a series of
misplaced steps.
Questions from the Six Arts of Tracking can break a locked intellectual
focus and return sensory awareness: “Who is it?” “Where do you think it is
going?” “Why do you think it is going this way?” and “Could it be watching
us right now?”

Tracking | 419
Alternatives and Extensions
Fewer Tracks. Start with finding fewer tracks and eventually move up
to more.
Target Species. Choose specific species of your area; research where you’ll
find them.
Map Drawing. Draw a map of your tracking area, and mark each animal’s
trail on it.
Math Lesson. Use the gait measurements as a doorway into a gambit of
possible math challenges.

Track Journaling
Journaling, Questioning and Tracking, Exploring
Field Guides, Story of the Day

Discovering, Asking Questions, Finding Answers

Mammals

South: Focus

Inquisitive Focus, Self-Sufficiency

Primer
Finally, Finally, by Evan McGown
After you spend some time tracking and probably do a few of the other activ-
ities in this section first, people need to record their observation and explore
natural mysteries they have found.
One of the best ways to become a great tracker is to draw the tracks you
find—especially the ones you don’t know. One of my good friends once
found some tracks on the edge of a pond that flipped him out—they looked
like a set of deer hooves in a regular walking pattern, except each one was
only the size of a large jelly bean! What on earth was this, he wondered. He

420 |
thought, “It’s either some sort of miniature deer that a mad scientist shrunk
down or a tiny Chihuahua dog with little deer hoof-shoes strapped on to its
feet!” He couldn’t figure it out.
So he took out the pocket notebook he always carries and spent at least a
half-hour drawing the tracks in as much detail as he could. He also sketched
quick pictures and maps of the trees, bushes, and water all around where he
found the tracks.
My friend spent the next eight YEARS carrying that notebook every-
where with him, always asking any tracker he could find if they knew what
had made those tracks. No one did. He showed his drawings to a few of
the top trackers in the world, and even they didn’t know. He researched in
libraries, searched on the internet, and finally found what the only possible
explanation could be: a Duiker, which is a very tiny antelope that lives in
Africa. How could it have gotten inside the U.S.? Maybe someone had one
as a pet and it escaped—you never know—stranger things have happened.
One day, eight years after he found those tracks, I was walking with my
friend out in the field with a bunch of kids. The kids began looking at some-
thing on the ground, and I walked over to see. It was pretty cool to me,
and I stood there watching with the kids for a while. Then my friend finally
walked over, and stared at the ground. He seemed frozen for a minute of
intense concentration, and then he began yelling. “OH MY GOSH!” he
screamed, pulling his hair out, his eyes popping out of his head. “OH MY
GOSH! I CAN’T BELIEVE IT! EVAN ... YOU JUST DON’T KNOW
... I MEAN ... OH MY GOSH!” I looked at him, sort of worried. “What’s
wrong?” When he finally calmed down enough he told me and the kids the
story: after all those years of searching, he had finally figured out what had
made those tiny deer tracks! In fact, he had now even seen them being made.
That’s how he knew for sure. If you watch an animal make tracks, then you
can be absolutely certain about that track.
What was the track? I could tell you, but I’ll have to ask my friend
first. Here’s a hint: they were in a drying puddle of water. He had worked
really hard for those eight years, always holding the question to figure
out those tracks, so solving the mystery was one of the most exhilarating
experiences of his life.
Instead of me telling you the end of his story, why don’t we let you experi-
ence this sense of adventure and mystery yourself. Would you believe that
all around are tracks, some no one else has ever seen before? Now it’s your
turn. Ready?

Tracking | 421
 Alright, trackers (or nature detectives), we’ll go out in the field and hunt for
cool tracks and mysteries. We’ll draw in our journals whatever mysteries we
find, and then we’ll come back to our field station to see if we can crack the code
and solve the mystery. Everybody will get to dive into our magical field guides,
compare sketches, and maybe make some new ones. By the end of the day, you
just might solve the mystery! Or ... it might take you eight years. Regardless, it
will be fun, and we’ll all get to share and hear each other’s stories.

How-To
Get in the Field. With this activity, you take the natural excited energy of
those people you mentor (East) and now get them focused (South) outside.
Find some track or sign in the field, even if you don’t know what animal
made it: then, either have everyone sketch it, or find a bunch of tracks in
a large area and let each person sketch one. A community will learn more
together if they each research a different type.

Journal for Detail. Use the “Six Arts of Tracking” (found in Introducing Core
Routines activities) to guide your note taking, include the answers in your jour-
nal. Use questioning to cause yourself and others to really see the tracks, in their
fine details. Notice every detail: which toes are the largest, which nails are the
sharpest, is it a right foot or left? Draw the pattern or gait of the tracks. Are the
front and rear tracks the same in size and shape? Shade in the deeper parts of
the tracks, get on your belly and lay your head on the ground so you can see if
parts of the ground are actually raised up as a result of the track. Wild dogs like
coyotes, foxes and wolves will actually pull soil into a high peak in-between their
four toes. You can draw a cross-section of the track to show this.

Observe the Big Picture. After zoning in on the micro-elements of the track,
look at the bigger context of ecology for that track. Draw a quick bird’s eye
view map of the surrounding ten or twenty feet, including plants, trees, dif-
ferent soils, rocks, other animal tracks, everything there. And always, when
you draw a map like this, find and mark North on your drawing. Based on
that, note which direction the animal was moving.

Research. Ideally, you have a set of tracking field guides that everyone can
share, or each person has their own. Have people flip through them until they
find pictures of tracks similar to theirs. It’s best for this to be a quiet activity
with each person conducting their own research in the field guides and then

422 |
quietly sketching and writing down information. Challenge them to research
and journal everything they learn about their animal. Create a need by remind-
ing them that each person will present what he and she found at the end.

Create a Post-Field Journal. Based on the tracks they find, when they’ve
looked through field guides and tracking books enough that they have at
least an idea of what made the track, ask everyone to do a final drawing. The
actual journaling process here doesn’t have to be complicated or sophisti-
cated. Here are some ideas of what people can include in their journals:

-
pare side-to-side with their field drawing.

-
bivore/omnivore, food-gathering strategy, sleeping habits, times for
mating, ask people to expand their list of questions.

This list only begins the possible research. Ask people to add more informa-
tion than this list. Encourage them to use multiple sources.

Group Sharing Time. To wrap up this activity, each person presents infor-
mation to the others using the journal as a visual model. Post the journal
pages on a board near your Nature Museum for more leisurely study. This
showcases the diversity of people’ styles of journals and allows everyone to
learn about each other’s discoveries.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

While some people will jump right into Track Journaling, others will drag
their feet. It might seem too much like homework. Two excellent strategies
help get participants get around these blocks.
One is role-modeling. If you pull out your journal in the field and do
everything (and more) that you ask everyone else to do, they will notice. They

Tracking | 423
will also notice if you don’t. When you all return, jump into the research
right along with everyone else. If you have your nose in a field guide while
you quietly sketch and write down information, then everyone else is a lot
more likely to do so as well. Then role-model presenting your information to
the group. In addition, you get a great excuse to further your own tracking
and learning while also mentoring others.
The second strategy for inspiring Track Journaling: wander around, offer
support, and ask participants probing questions to facilitate their process.
“What animal do you think it might be?” “Which field guide do you think
will be most helpful?” “How many toes did you observe for this animal?” Use
these few questions and you will think of many more.
Another thing to keep in mind is some of the people may be artistically
gifted and others very self-conscious about their ability to draw or sketch.
Remember, the key, people who journal about tracking will find out more
about what they discovered; therefore, some may end up being very heavy
in sketching/drawing and others may be very heavy in text. However, make
sure each journal has at least some sketching and some text. And let them get
creative to make it their own.
Finally, this activity works best with older kids, teens, and adults. However,
it is entirely possible to do this with young kids as well. For younger kids,
have them try to find pictures that match what they found. Then they can
make drawings (perhaps with crayons or paints) of the animal or the tracks
from a picture in a book.

Alternatives and Extensions

Other Species. Try this same activity, but journal tracks of birds, reptiles,
or amphibians.

Digitize. Turn this into a multi-media research project. Use the web and
have people design computer-based journals.

Mind’s Eye Sketching. Make this into an activity that develops the Mind’s
Eye by having people close their eyes after looking at tracks in the field, or in
the field guides, before writing or sketching in their journals. This way they
are not simply copying information out of books. They are stretching their
imagination and forcing themselves to imprint search images accurately
from the actual tracks they find.

424 |
Report. Turn the journal into a long report involving several days of research.
Final reports could be several pages with pictures, text, and diagrams.

Camera Stalk
Expanding Our Senses, Questioning and
Tracking, Sit Spot, Wandering

Hunting Elusive Animals, Self-Challenge

Mammals

Southeast: Activate, South: Focus, Northeast:

Open and Listen

Inquisitive Focus, Common Sense,

Self-Sufficiency, Quiet Mind

Primer
Hunting with a Camera, by Evan McGown
Jim Corbett was a hero. He grew up in the jungles of India, learning to track and
hunt from his older neighbors. He became so artful in tracking that he could
look at a Tiger track in the mud and tell you whether it was male or female, about
how old it was, and whether it was hurt. He could identify individual tigers by
their tracks just as you can recognize your friends when you see their faces.
Corbett became famous and revered throughout India for hunting tigers
that killed and ate humans from villages near jungles. Corbett was the only
man who could consistently show up, track the tiger, identify such nuances
from its tracks such as a wounding in the leg (wounding often seemed to be the
reason the tigers sought out easy human prey), and then shoot the animal dead.
He wrote books telling of his many adventures hunting man-eating tigers. The
books give fabulous insights into tracking, and are thrilling to read.
As years passed, Corbett realized these creatures, which he had come
to love and revere as one of the most beautiful and graceful creatures on
earth, were declining in population due to destruction of their native
forests. He didn’t want to hunt them anymore, but the thrill of the hunt

Tracking | 425
couldn’t keep him away. So he continued to hunt, except he no longer
used guns—he used a camera instead. He would use all the same tac-
tics he used to hunt the man-eaters: tracking them for days and study-
ing their patterns, listening to the bird language of the forest for signals
and secrets, and very patiently sitting still in a tree for long-periods of
time—until finally he’d get a beautiful shot of his beloved orange-and-
black-striped fellow-creatures. He went on to use these photographs and
the stories of his experiences to convince others of the need to preserve
forests so these animals could have their homes protected, and he suc-
ceeded. The very first preserved jungles in India are named in his honor,
where his beloved tigers still roam today.
The thing I forgot to tell you about his camera, though, it had NO
ZOOM-LENS. He lived in the early 1900’s, when cameras were a lot less
advanced than cameras today. No zoom meant that he had to get REALLY
close to the animals in order to get a good photo.
Do you think you could take an old camera, with no zoom-lens and get
a full-frame photo of some wild animal? It could be a bird, it could be mam-
mal, it could be anything you want. Are you up to the challenge?

How-To
Set the Bait. Tell a story or simply set this up as an enticing challenge too
good to refuse.

Buy Cameras. Buy some cheap, no-zoom disposable cameras, the “old” kind
that use real film and only have so many pictures. If you’re working with
adults, you may have them buy their own. If it’s youth, you may want to
provide each with a camera.

Happy Hunting. Set the ground-rules for the challenge: it has to be a wild-
animal that is not caught, it has to be a full-frame shot so they need to be
close, and they have as many chances as they have exposures on the camera.
This activity need not be completed in a single day, although there’s always
the chance that someone could. Assign this activity to be completed almost
entirely in non-program personal time; it may take months for them to fin-
ish off the entire roll of film. Keep the fire of inspiration stoked by periodi-
cally asking about their Camera Mission.

426 |
Research. If they are struggling, entice them with some field-guide research
that helps them get to know the habits and habitat of the animal(s) they are
tracking. Even if they aren’t struggling, take the opportunity to engage them
in learning about the tracks and sign that animals leave, or about the bird
language clues that will tell them about approaching animals.

Celebrate Success. When they finally get that full-frame shot, acknowledge
it and celebrate their efforts. Let them tell the story to a big group of peers or
elders, the full story of their trials and errors, and ultimately their success.
Frame the photo for them and give it as a gift, or somehow make this suc-
cess special. This is not an easy thing to do, and if someone has persevered
to succeed, that’s something to really give them credit for. The rest of the
community will be inspired by this person’s role-modeling.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This activity, one of Jon Young’s favorite missions to give to people (par-
ticularly adults), creates a fun and real need for people to learn and expe-
rience many things: long, timeless wanders through nature, the birth of
millions of questions about animals’ lifestyles, the study of tracks, bird-
nest locations, habitat, bird language, and natural camouf lage and scent-
covering, and of course our favorite practice— sitting still in nature for
long periods of time.
Camera Stalk sends people on an errand through which they will learn
many lessons in a completely self-sufficient manner. They will learn how to
Fox-Walk properly; the value of sitting still and being accepted by the birds
and squirrels; what bird calls really mean; what times of day certain ani-
mals are active—they will learn all this and much more, 100% by their own
experience. This activity works as a major Southeast motivating power tool,
because it activates people into direct experiential learning that otherwise
might not seem desirable.
Even if this activity does not reach youth with the intense level of study
and experience that it might for an adult, what could be better than engag-
ing kids in looking at the world through the eyes of a photographer, where
everything is potentially beautiful? Of course, they’ll also be running around
everywhere looking for critters: you can bet they’ll quickly learn that sala-
manders live under logs or rocks, or how to stay still enough for a butterfly
to land on them.

Tracking | 427
Alternatives and Extensions
Camera Game. Joseph Cornell has a great game that he calls “Camera.” It’s
of a similar spirit, but with a different emphasis. It’s simple: have people part-
ner up. One person is the “camera” while the other is the photographer. The
camera closes their eyes and is led to a nice photo by the photographer. With
eyes still closed on the camera, the photographer arranges them to get the
proper picture, perhaps giving an expansive view of the land or getting them
on their knees and craning their neck to get a close-up of a bright-colored
mushroom. When the camera is in the right position, tap the ear or the back
of the camera’s head. This button opens the “shutter”—the camera person’s
eyes. The photographer decides how long the shutter will remain open, and
then taps them again to close their eyes again, and then takes them to the
next photograph. After a dozen or so photos, switch roles and go again.

Preparing for the Real Hunt. If you have an older youth or adult who pas-
sionately wants to hunt and kill a wild animal, this activity is a great way to
train them. If they want to hunt a deer, give them the challenge to first get
a full-frame photo of a deer with a no-zoom camera. Such an exercise will
not only humble them in their outlook on hunting, it will also train them
in everything they need to know to do a real hunt: disguising their scent,
moving downwind, camouflaging, patience to sit still, how to move when
the wind moves. Whatever the gaps in a person’s awareness, this little mis-
sion will fill them in like spackle, preparing them physically and mentally for
what will perhaps be one of the most powerful experiences of their life.

428 |
Tracking | 429
430 |
Plants And Wandering
ACTIVITIES

Activities for learning plants in a meaningful

manner, as well as skills of wandering, aidless
navigation, and lost-proofing
We often group the study of plants along with the skills of wandering and
navigation, because the two go hand-in-hand. If one becomes equipped
with knowledge of edible plants and skills of wandering without getting
lost, one can roam the wilderness with practically nothing—in the warmer
seasons—for months. Plants live practically everywhere. So wherever you
wander, a meaningful relationship with plants will make them your con-
stant friends and allies.
Although we encourage the use of both maps and compasses on a daily
basis, the wandering and lost-proofing exercises presented here emphasize aid-
less navigation. Offer yourself and others this goal: to be able to move across
the land in the old way, using no more than the sun, natural landmarks, and
your wits to orient and find your way. The natural world will become an open
book that you can enjoy and explore with confidence and familiarity.

Plants and Wandering Activities | 431

Plant Concentration
Mind’s Eye Imagining, Exploring Field Guides,
Questioning and Tracking

Testing Memory, Collecting, Seeking Treasure,

Running Errands

Plants, Shrubs, Trees

South: Focus

Self-Sufficiency, Inquisitive Focus

Primer
Spying Skills, by Evan McGown
The first medicines of humans came from the plants they collected.
Peppermint was discovered to settle an upset belly and bad gas. Plantain
was found useful for soothing insect bites. Today, researchers hunt all over
the world for new medicinal plants. It is told that one explorer who was
sent into the jungles of South America used a twelve year old native girl as
his plant guide. She could identify a hundred and fifty different species of
plants from just the smallest torn leaf. Can you imagine that: a hundred
and fifty different plants, just from a piece of a leaf. She could tell you when
to harvest it, what part to use, and what its medicinal value was—whether
it made good medicine for eye infections, stomach aches, a bad cold, or to
stop bleeding and treat a wound. She gained all this knowledge by the time
she reached twelve years old.
Right here where you live there are dozens, maybe hundreds of plants
that you can either eat or make into medicine. But you’ve got to really know
plants, as this girl did, so you don’t poison anyone with the wrong plant!
We’re going to play a game to help you know plants.
The FBI, the CIA, and other agencies use this game to train spies. Why?
Well, just like a good herbalist or survivalist or tracker or scout, spies have
to be able to see something once and remember exactly what it looked like.
That way they can report every little detail. And they never can be sure what

432 |
will be important to remember, so they remember everything. I remember
watching a movie called Bourne Identity. It’s about a guy who was trained
as the highest level of spy, but then he hit his head and couldn’t remember
how he had come to have such amazing recall. There’s one scene where he
is sitting in a restaurant, trying to get the person with him to understand
his dilemma. He says something like, “Look, right now, without looking
around, I can tell you what the people in the booth behind us are wearing,
how old they are, and what they ordered for lunch. I can tell you the license
plate number of every car that was in the parking lot when we walked in, and
I can tell exactly where every single exit is in this building and which way I
would leave in an emergency. In a flash I know all of this stuff ... but I don’t
know how I know it all! It’s like my brain has been trained to notice all this
whether I want to or not.”
Well, the game we’re about to play will lead you down his path. I love
this game so much because it teaches us how to identify edible and medici-
nal plants, AND it also trains and sharpens our awareness to the highest
degree possible—equal to the world’s greatest spies, trackers, and scouts.
Ready to play?

How-To
Harvest Plant Parts. Secretly collect five to twelve plant leaves or frag-
ments, seeds, fruits, bark chunks, berries, or sticks, but keep them hidden
in a bandana or in your pocket. Pick a smaller number of plant-parts (about
five) for younger kids, and a larger number (up to a dozen or so) for older
kids and adults. Remember to collect only plants that have already littered
their parts onto the ground, or are in such quantity that a missing leaf is not
detrimental.

Create the Playing Field. Asking everyone to turn their backs so that
you can set up the game without them seeing, place the plant parts on the
ground, preferably on a bandana. Arrange them in some meaningful pat-
tern, the Four Directions for example. Spread the items over only as much
space as can be covered by your bandana.

Cover and Explain. Next, cover the items with a second bandana so they
remain hidden. Then invite everyone to gather around and explain the
game. Tell them, “Underneath the bandana I gathered an assortment of
parts from plants from this place. I will lift the bandana off the items, but

Plants and Wandering Activities | 433

only for thirty seconds. Memorize everything you see under the bandana
and where it is. Take a “mental photograph” of the items underneath, not
only noticing individual details, but also the arrangement of the parts as
they have been laid out.”

Replicate. After the thirty seconds is up, cover the items back up. Then
everyone (great to do this in pairs or groups) has four or five minutes,
you decide: they need to gather the same plant parts and arrange them
exactly as they were under the bandana. After time is up, ask them if
they want one more chance to see the items and add or change their
own replication. Most will say, “Yes!” Even as their witness, notice how
fascinated you feel watching how sharply they observe the second time.
You have turned something “on” inside their brain. All the gaps in their
brains soak up the information they missed before, like liquid spackle
that fills all the holes. Now they go off again, with lots of side glances
at other group’s piles, and comparisons of similar findings within their
group, and make their final arrangements.

Review Results. Choose any way you like to review results. It can be cooper-
ative or competitive, but the aim is to encourage and enjoy the development
of spy-like instant-accurate memory.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Even a quick ten-second peek usually “burns” the image of most of your
plants into the minds of people. This game, and variations on it, makes peo-
ple happy and excited to practice Mind’s Eye Imagination to imprint search
images. It gives new meaning to the phrase “learning by heart.”
Plant Concentration has powerful ecological linking advantages as well.
People will become familiar with plant associations, discovering that certain
plants always grow near each other, or for another example, grow only in
shade. I like to throw in a few tricks. Plants gathered in a different ecological
zone that can’t be found right here create an “aha” moment for players when
they eventually do see them again.
Also, I like to use this game with adults as a demonstration of how we
learn and pattern our brains. After the first assemblage of a replication, I like
to ask them what they each feel unsure about, what things they would look
for if they could have another glimpse. We discuss these, as people share
what their burning questions are: “I vaguely remember that plant, but I have

434 |
no recall of what shape its leaves were or how they grew off the stem!” Then,
when everyone gets to see the items a second time, it’s obvious what hap-
pens: people’s questions drive what they notice, learn, and remember. This is
the clearest example I’ve found of directly observing how our brains pattern,
and how important and fundamental our questions and curiosity feed the
process of learning.
Also, a trick for this game you can offer after one or two tries: when
revealed, count the total number of items. This provides a check-list to refer-
ence when trying to remember everything you saw.

Alternatives and Extensions

Haggle. I create a really strong need for the participants to succeed in this
game, by haggling with them over how much time they’re allowed to peek
under the bandana. Just as I’m about to pull it up, I begin haggling again to
their exasperated groans. When I finally lift it, they really want it!

Play Anywhere. Of course, you can play this game with any items, wherever
you are. Spy trainers probably do this. In a restaurant, use a napkin to cover
up such items as forks, toothpicks, or things from your wallet. Suddenly
anywhere becomes a potential training ground, and a dull moment waiting
for food can become a potent moment for “brain food.”

Group by Theme. Create “themes” under your bandana. Only fern frag-
ments, leaves from edible, medicinal, or poisonous plants, plants currently
decaying, just sticks, or just seeds.

Arrangements. For additional challenge, the participants have to arrange

their plants in the same pattern that you’ve laid them out—a few lines,
grouped by type, or maybe in a circle associating each item with a parallel
quality of the Natural Cycle.

Follow-up. After playing, pick one of the plants and get to know it better.
Journal it; discover its strategy for survival.

Plants and Wandering Activities | 435

Eating Wild Edibles
Survival Living, Thanksgiving, Exploring Field
Guides

Eating, Tasting, Collecting

Plants, Trees

East: Inspire, Southeast: Activate, South: Focus

Common Sense, Inquisitive Focus, Caring and

Tending, Awe and Reverence, Thanksgiving

Primer
Surviving on Greens, by Evan McGown
I remember the first time I went out by myself on a survival trip. I only wore
shorts. I went out into the sizeable forest that a friend of mine owns, and I
started wandering around. Soon I got hungry. That’s when I started to notice
the few edible plants I knew. I didn’t know very many. But I knew Dandelion
and I found it growing in one sunny spot where a road used to be. I also found
some Plantain there, so I threw a few of its leaves into my pocket in case I got
stung by fire-ants or a yellow-jacket. I even found a patch of my favorite—
chickweed. The leaves look like little mouse-ears and they are delicious.
Farther on, I saw a tree I had just learned, a persimmon tree. They produce
these delicious little orange fruits. I gathered a couple of them, and then I saw
another tree, although it wasn’t a wild one: an old apple tree. But I made sure
it wasn’t a poisonous look-alike. Luckily, just the week before my friend taught
me how to identify apple trees by the little spurs on their branches.
As the night went on, it got pretty cold. I shivered in my shorts as I tried
to make a bow-drill fire. But I had waited too long. It got too dark, and I had
to sit without a fire that night. When I tried to sleep, well, that’s another
story. Let’s just say I learned a lot about being comfortable in uncomfortable
situations. But, despite a sleepless night, I had plenty to eat. As I ate all my
wild greens and fruits, my body seemed to warm up from the calories. I was
so appreciative that someone had taught me how to go into a wild place and
find food. My life really has never been the same since!

436 |
 Have any of you ever eaten wild plants? What about a wild-greens salad?
Any berry-pickers out there? Maybe we could put together a whole meal of
wild plants, just like I did that night. That’s right, we could leave our lunches
in their bags and boxes today, and just go out and harvest everything we eat
from nature: a wild feast. The whole plant world is our grocery store and
everything’s free. Well, almost. The only price is intimate knowledge of the
plants. Would you like to learn some plants so that you find food wherever
you go? Let’s go for it, but let’s be sure we don’t collect any non-edible plants
or poisonous ones by mistake.

How-To
Do Your Homework. Eating Wild Edibles with the people you mentor
depends on how familiar you, the instructor, have become with wild edi-
bles. See the Resources under Plants in the Book of Nature chapter for field
guides that can help you know your plants—poisonous, edible, and medici-
nal plants in your area.

Gather and Eat a Wild Edible Salad. You can gather casually as you wan-
der through your day. Or set aside a specific time where everyone focuses on
foraging and meets back to put all the wild edibles in a big bowl. Toss with a
little oil, serve in special bowls, and chew in silence and gratitude.

Cook up a Wild Feast. If you have a program that includes camping over-
night, make a Feast. Gather enough for a wild salad or another dish you might
prepare by the evening fire. This can be like Story of the Day except with food.
Get creative and diverse: make yummy pine-needle tea, stir-fry dandelion
roots, mash up berries into a delicious jam, roast cat-tail rhizomes over the fire,
make salad out of edible flowers with wild greens, or grind acorns into flour.
When done safely, working with wild edibles can be extremely fun, satisfying,
and provide learning and exciting projects for a long time.

Dandelion. If you don’t know anything about plants, there is an easy place
to start—the delicious Dandelion. Often called a “weed” by the uninitiated,
this introductory edible is found in almost every yard in North America. As
an old organic farmer once told me, a weed is a name for any plant that you
don’t want to be where it is. After experiencing Dandelion’s gifts, you’ll likely
be happy with it in most places.

Plants and Wandering Activities | 437

Plant ID with a Real Plant. Eating Wild Edibles provides a fertile oppor-
tunity for us to learn about plants and develop new relationships with
creatures that live even under our feet and noses. It gives participants a
meaningful reason and a need to learn plant identification. Bring the peo-
ple you work with to a plant that you know to be edible. Explore the plant
with them, telling them you think this might be an edible one but you want
to make sure. Ask them and yourself—using your own genuine beginner’s
mind curiosity—some of the following rudimentary botanical questions as
you determine its true identity.

You can explore field guides with your participants to match your answers
up with a plant. Not every field guide covers the edibles, so demonstrate how
to go deeper, into another book if necessary. When you feel certain, take a
nibble. How does it taste? How would you describe the taste?

Gratitude for Plants. While eating from a plant, role model both a genuine
thankfulness for this food plant and also a Caring and Tending ethic. You
could ask: what would happen if we ate all the leaves or berries from this plant?
Do any other animals depend on this plant for food? How few or how many
of the neighboring plants match this one? How many leaves or berries do you
think we should take from this plant so it will continue to live and other ani-
mals can share it, too? What do you appreciate most about this plant? Can you
imagine a world without this plant or other edible plants in it?

Asking Permission. If you work with kids, we strongly recommend laying

a ground rule regarding edible plants: a young learner never eats anything
unless they’ve asked permission of an instructor or parent who knows the
plants. They need to first show what they plan to eat to make sure it is edible.

438 |
Of course, this might not apply to some of the common berries after you’ve
been eating the very same ones for weeks, but for everything else, make it
mandatory to ask.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

The inspirational power of being able to eat wild foods,
which people harvest themselves, opens the doorway
to learning about and appreciating all types of plants.
The joy of snacking on a dandelion can provide a mean-
ingful opportunity to learn about photosynthesis, root
structures, vitamin content, comparative nutrition, and
other aspects of a plant’s life. This appreciation can then
transfer to all nearby plant-life

Alternatives and Extensions

Journaling. You can ask participants to sketch the plant
before eating so that they can remember it really well.

Learning Wild Edibles can sink in with great power

when coupled with learning about similar-looking
plants that can kill you. The potential of their own
death catches peoples’ attentions very quickly. See the
next exercise, Meeting Poisonous Plants.

Meeting Poisonous Plants

Exploring Field Guides, Survival Living

Being Scared, Drawing, Collecting

Plants

East: Inspire, South: Focus

Common Sense, Inquisitive Focus

Plants and Wandering Activities | 439

Primer
Wild Iris, by Evan McGown
Edible plants can look a lot like poisonous ones, and some plants contain
such deadly poison that just putting them to your lips could cause you to go
to the hospital or even die.
One time, my friends and I spent an entire afternoon gathering edible
plants. That night we were going to cook them all up in a wild edible feast. I
was psyched. My job was to harvest greens for a salad. I harvested Dandelion,
chickweed, sheep sorrel, yarrow, plantain, salmonberry flowers, violet flow-
ers, and lots of other delicious things. While I did this, another of my friends
dug up some roots to cook for a stir-fry. And another of my friends had the
fun job: he went into a nearby swamp in a canoe and harvested the edible
young shoots of cattail plants. These were also going to go into the stir-fry.
Yummm, yummm ... I could already taste the delicious foods that we gath-
ered with our own hands.
We all met back at my friend’s house to cook. As we were washing every-
thing off, my friend who harvested the cattails pulled out a shoot, and said,
“Look at how beautiful this shoot is! And I bet it’s yummy, too!” Then he
took a bite of it, because we all read that you can do this with cattail. Then
another friend took a bite. Just as they were handing it to me to taste, the
first friend suddenly grabbed his throat. “Oh my gosh … something’s hap-
pening to my throat! It’s burning like a bunch of hot needles.” Then the sec-
ond friend started to feel the same thing. “What’s going on? This is cattail,
right? Could you have harvested the wrong thing?” We rushed to our field
guides and looked for any look-a likes that might be poisonous. Sure enough,
there it was, a picture of a plant almost identical to cattail, and right next to
its picture, a skull-and-crossbones sign. My friends had not eaten cattail—
they had eaten the poisonous Wild Iris. “Oh my gosh, are we going to die?”
they asked. I read the details about the poisoning, and it said that the result
is usually just illness, and death only when consumed in large quantities.
Needless to say, my friends still freaked out. They washed their mouths out,
and hours later, the tingling and burning in their throats started to fade.
They ended up fine, but things could have been a lot worse!
After that, we all looked really, really hard at any plant we wanted to eat.
We studied and made drawings and researched field guides of all the poison-
ous plants in the area. Whenever we saw one, we pointed it out to others.
The good news is that you’ll find relatively few poisonous plants compared to
all the edible or medicinal ones, but you better know those few.

440 |
 Before we make a wild plant salad, we need to learn all the poisonous
plants. We definitely want a Wild Feast, so let’s go out and get to know
some of the poisonous plants around here. That way you’ll keep yourself and
everyone else safe and happy. No tingling or burning throats for us.

How-To
Side-by-side. Understand that botanical comparisons use advanced levels of
knowledge (see below, Inside the Mind of the Mentor). Using a plant press,
side by side in-the-field observations, and field guides, introduce poisonous
plants and their look-a-likes. Give ample time to draw, research, or do leaf
rubbings of these plants in individual journals. This continually on-going
activity tests knowledge and awareness of poisonous plants as we introduce
new edibles to our learners.

Comparative Plant Press. Harvest two plants that look the same, but one
is poisonous, one edible. Then press them, mount and label them, and put
them on display. Make an easy plant press with two heavy duty cardboard
sheets, paper towels, and some strong rubber bands. A sample of leaf, flower,
or shoot gets sandwiched between two paper towel sheets on one of the
pieces of cardboard. Additional samples can be added, layers easily separate
by paper towels. Cover the plant samples with the remaining cardboard and
fasten tight with the rubber bands. The plant will soon dry out, flatten, and
be preserved. Moderately heavy books on top of these lightweight presses
can speed the process.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Although always wanting to waken others to the culinary delights of wild
plants, I’ve seen enthusiasm tempered drastically by the dawning awareness
that poisonous plants exist. Poisonous plants present an incredible opportunity
to introduce botanical knowledge to those you mentor. Making distinctions
between edible and poisonous look-alikes often settles into primary knowl-
edge when learners see the differences in flower parts or leaf structures. Once
people have that knowledge and awareness it acts like a scaffold to hold more
information, more plants, for the next level of knowledge and awareness.
For beginning and intermediate participants, I start by going over the
most toxic of the local plants. But I also make a point to balance this
hazard-based approach by simultaneously introducing the friendliest
edibles. If there are edibles that have poisonous look-alikes, I won’t tell

Plants and Wandering Activities | 441

someone about those (and therefore open the possibility to harmful con-
fusion) until the other person has very high skill in plant identification
and differentiation.
Note: Many organizations and communities across the country advocate
that people learn poisonous plants first before learning wild edibles. There
is merit in this position, but we feel it is also vital that people do not learn to
fear plants. Use your best judgment to find a balance between the two.

Alternatives and Extensions

Meeting Poisonous Plants is best interwoven throughout the Eating Wild
Edibles activity.

Songline
Mapping, Wandering, Mind’s Eye Imagining,
Expanding Our Senses, Survival Living

Finding treasure, Giving Challenges,

Connecting the Dots

All

Southwest: Take a Break, West: Gather and Share,

North: Integrate, Northeast: Open and Listen

Common Sense, Self-Sufficiency

Primer
Songline in Fast Forward, by Ellen Haas
Gary Snyder, an adventurous writer and poet, tells a story about a visit he took
to the Australian Outback. He went as the guest of aboriginal people whose
ancestors had lived there for thousands of years. Only very recently these peo-
ple began to include in their cultural ways modern things like pickup trucks.
He took a ride in the back of a pickup truck with one of the elders and as
they bounced along dusty clay and sand roads going through the great desert

442 |
toward the elder’s home, they passed rock outcroppings, gnarly trees, and
distant evidence of water holes. Gary tells of being at first surprised, then
bewildered because his host bumping along with him suddenly changed into
a storytelling dynamo, pointing at these landmarks as they whizzed by, and
keeping up a non-stop, fast, detailed, stream of legends and stories about
how they had been created, what their many names were, who had had fights
and love affairs—everything, but so fast that it seemed crazy.
After a while, Gary realized why. In the elder’s culture, it was a deep-
set custom to walk on foot through the landscape and as the people came
to a significant landmark, they
told and sang its story. In their
leisure time, these stories would
then get made into beautiful art
whose symbols would hold the
story. The children learned their
history, and found their way
because these stories contained
all those clues about landmarks.
Everything in the landscape had a
story, and all the stories connected
to each other. Anthropologists
call this wonderful cultural tradi-
tion “Songlining.”
Gary Snyder realized that he
was following the route of a tra-
ditional Songline and his host felt
compelled to honor everything
they passed with its story. Because
they rode in that pickup truck
instead of walking the Songline
route, the story about each place
came out of his mouth like a tape
running at Fast Forward speed!
Let’s us try to create a kind of
Songline as we go along today.
Let’s go on a treasure hunt using a
Songline map to find our way.

| 443
How-To
Set-up. Divide people into two groups and include an instructor in each
group. Each group will be given a “treasure” to hold onto (your choice).
Then, they hide that treasure somewhere for the other group to find. How
will they find it? The group will also create a written Songline for them,
filled only with clues that reveal landmarks and directions in the land-
scape. As you go to bury your treasure, follow a route, and create a series of
clues that lead from one cool place to the next, until you find a good place
to bury your treasure, camouflaging any signs of disturbance. Both groups
will then meet back at the beginning, swap Songlines, and try to find the
other group’s hidden treasure.

Making the Songline Map. The clues in the Songline will be imaginative
names, or descriptions of places in the landscape. Have the group begin by
looking around from their starting point. Look for obvious to not-so-obvi-
ous landmarks or unique places that stand out. The map is not a drawn map
but a written one containing a set of directions to landmarks. One might
say, “First head towards the Standing Tower Rock, turn away from the sun
and walk twenty five steps. Next, look for the
Tree Ring Circus. Walk into the middle and
look between Grandma Cedar and her grand-
baby. Head for Uncle Joe the mossy stump
and look under his hat.” This is what we call a
Songline. If your group just can’t seem to find
the hidden treasure, the other group might
need to re-translate for you, from where you
got stuck. The above example would translate
to “First head towards the tall, thin rock stand-
ing on end, turn away from the sun and walk
twenty five steps. Next, look for the circle of
trees. Walk into the middle and look between
the biggest and the smallest cedar trees. Head
towards the mossy stump that looks like it has
a face and find the treasure under the huckle-
berry growing out of the top of the stump.” If
you want to, you can turn it into a Dr. Seuss-
like rhyme that will undoubtedly tickle and
delight kids of all ages.

444 |
Inside the Mind of the Mentor
Games like this, especially started when children are young, create an excep-
tional awareness of their surroundings. As they get older and they wander
farther and farther, they begin to see each section of the landscape as unique
and of distinct character. It’s harder for them to get lost because they notice
and connect to specific places they have walked through previously.
Not only this, but the landscape also becomes alive as living, imaginative
beings who speak to our imaginations and our image-based and story-based
way of thinking. Some psychologists refer to this as participation mystique
with one’s landscape, noting that such a relationship is common in nature-
based cultures. As we re-story the landscape, we allow it speak to more than
just our rational minds.
A note for working with kids: when it is Songline-making time, some
kids may want to set up impossibly obtuse challenges for the other team. Use
this opportunity to help them learn to see and speak with subtlety. If they
want to refer to a part of the forest as a “black hole” for no reason other than
no one will figure it out, help them make it tricky but translatable.

Alternatives and Extensions

Songlines Every Day. Create Songlines as often as you can when you go
outdoors with people. Set this up as a technique they can use any time
they’re walking alone and don’t want to get lost. Instead of chatting as you
walk along a trail, make it a game to create a Songline. This will keep your
attention on nature and your imagination fired up. The group forms their
story and line of travel together, has lunch or snack, and then you test your
memory by simply playing the Songline backwards! Do this everywhere, all
the time. Over time, people will become lost-proof.

Mildy Toxic Hairy Cat's Ear Common Edible Dandelion

Plants and Wandering Activities | 445

Get Lost
Wandering, Questioning and Tracking, Survival
Living, Mapping, Story of the Day, Thanksgiving

Hiding, Seeking, Being Lost and being Found,

Taking a challenge

All

Northeast: Open and Listen, Southeast: Activate

Common Sense, Self-Sufficiency, Service to the

Community

Primer
The primer for this activity simply works through the surprise element: do
not let participants know your intention. You need to distract them from
thinking about orientation at all. Do this by going out for a Wandering filled
with engaging fun until, suddenly, you find that you are lost! Your distrac-
tions worked if they experience disorientation.

How-To
Wander. Wander with your group until you’ve gone into territory new
and unknown to them. Wander a bit off trail until you think your wan-
der-mates have become distracted from paying attention to where they’ve
been going. For kids, this might not require going very far. With adults,
it might mean a sizeable hike. But wherever you go, make sure you know
the area well enough to navigate out regardless of whether anyone else
has paid attention.

Put Forth the Challenge. Then, announce to everyone that you abdicate
leadership; you will pretend you have no idea how to get back. As a group,
they need to find the way back home. If they don’t, well … we’ll just be lost!

446 |
Prompt Dialogue. Get the group talking about how to get home. What will
their strategy be? Do they have a leader? Help facilitate conversation over
remembered landmarks. Help everyone express their voice. Choose when to
step in and “save the day” if necessary.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

In this activity, you want to generate a need for people to be aware of their
surroundings at all times. During wanders, if you occasionally spring on
them that you all are “lost” and they need to find the way back themselves,
they will begin to pay attention to bearings, directions, and landmarks, espe-
cially when you lead the group.
As a consequence of this sudden challenge, group dynamics really gel or
get pushed to break down. Your presence is crucial to keeping it a positive
learning experience. I find that non-cohesive groups just need reminding
that they do have skills for working things out together. I might have dif-
ferent participants take turns being the route finder while the others act as
council that advises. Once they start to find familiar turf, their excitement
will build up, and you might find yourself running after them. Be prepared
to explain yourself to family members who ask, “Why is my child so excited
about getting lost today?”

Alternatives and Extensions

Survival Priorities. The Survival Priorities activity can be played during
this game, as well as going over protocol for what happens when you really
are lost.

Body Radar. Encourage Body Radar and Expanding Our Senses as you go.

Songline and Map. If you feel you generated a greater need for awareness
of surroundings, follow up with the Songline activity on another day. Upon
safe return home, use Story of the Day time for participants to draw a Map
of their route.

Just Kidding … You can really take this activity to another level by NOT
letting them know you’re pretending to be lost yourself. This will definitely
push some edges. When you tell them at the end that you really did know
where you were, will they believe you? Will they ever trust you again? Be
sensitive to the possible implication of doing this.

Plants and Wandering Activities | 447

The Lost Test
Wandering, Mapping

Pretending, Self: Challenge

All

East: Inspire and North: Integrate

Self-sufficiency, Common Sense

Primer
Pretending to be Lost, by Daniel Evans
I used to practice getting lost as a kid. As I wandered the canyons and mesas
where I grew up, I pretended search parties looked franticly for me. In my
imagination, just as everyone gave up, I would walk out of the bushes and say,
“See, I wasn’t lost, I just went on a long walk.” Even when my parents took
me to the mountains or the desert, I would take any opportunity I could to
walk by myself, to pretend I was lost, of course.
I never really experienced the excitement of being scared or the happy
relief of rescue because I actually memorized as many details as I could
along my walk. I watched the sun’s angle, all the interesting rock formations
I passed, and I saw each group of trees as unique. I think I felt too afraid of
getting lost, so I paid attention really well.
For those of you who have never had the chance to go walking alone in
the woods or try your hand at getting lost, now is the time to test your skills
in the Lost Test.

How-To
Find and Create the Playing Field. Set up the Lost Test playing field—
before the participants show up. You need to find a place with a few impor-
tant characteristics. 1) It needs relatively dense vegetative cover and a trail
for everyone to string themselves out on. 2) It has to be okay for your
participants to bushwhack off-trail. Bring your participants to a starting
point, a well-worn trail or logging road perhaps. The participants will each

448 |
pick a spot on this trail, a good distance apart from each other and make
a marker on the trail at their starting point. First they walk into the veg-
etation alone a predetermined number of paces (dependent on age, skill,
thickness of cover, or presence of hazards). When they cannot see where
they started from, they will turn around, and find their way back as close
to their marker as they can get. Instruct people not to “trail-blaze” or mark
their path in any way, such as with broken branches. Give them an appro-
priate time limit and monitor their return.

Story of the Day. When they have all returned, gather around to hear their
Story of the Day. This may seem simple, yet it’s amazing how fear enters
and confuses, how landmarks that made sense going one way become com-
pletely strange coming back the other way, how detours around impassable
spots can disorient people, how what seems “straight” really isn’t—all kinds
of observations can be expected.
You will require support. Consider it necessary to have extra help for this
adventure. Have your helpers spread out into the playing field at a distance
farther than the players plan to walk. You need this insurance in case some-
one really does get lost. Set a time limit, and send your best tracker hunt-
ing when participants don’t return. Equip folks with emergency whistles,
walkie-talkies or functioning cell phones. Do whatever you need to do to be
absolutely sure you don’t really lose anyone.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Again, with this activity as with the last, we create a need for people to pay
attention to their surroundings by consciously practicing wandering and
lost-proofing techniques. The Lost Test helps by safely shocking kids and
adults alike into cultivating awareness of their place in the world. If anyone
comes out onto the starting trail in a completely different place than they
left, help them discover where their awareness lapsed. Did they ever notice
the sun, can they distinguish between plant species (or is it just a sea of over-
whelming green?) Was there panic involved? Depending on what you find
out, you’ve just set up some future individualized lesson plans.
For those already quite comfortable and reliable in the woods, this activ-
ity can serve as a testing, to make sure they feel ready for the responsibility
of leadership, and of spending more time in the woods alone.

Plants and Wandering Activities | 449

Alternatives and Extensions
Raising the Bar. The more participants try this, the further they can go. Set
them up in a place where they need to circle around impassable spots and
find a new way back. To vary a familiar setting a bit, have them go in and
then return blindfolded, or vice versa.

Buddies. Younger children can pick an older child as a buddy for the first
time trying this, if needed to reassure you and them about their safety.

Aidless Navigation. All of the mapping and wandering activities serve to

reinforce a person’s awareness of their place on this earth. Regardless, go
over what to do anytime you plan to go somewhere where someone might
get lost. This is of utmost importance. Definitely also role-model and inspire
everyone to learn the basics of using a compass and a contour map. Also get
familiar with other Aidless Navigation techniques through the great stories
Jon Young tells in Part 3 of the “Seeing Through Native Eyes” tape series,
under the topic of Wandering and Aidless Navigation. The other Six Arts
he reviews, in addition to Songlining, are:

1. Sight lining. Line up three objects in a straight line. Look at them.

Sight down them, and see that this Doug fir tree, that mossy rock, and
in the distance, that dead snag, line up to make the perfect straight line.
Now, walk to the mossy rock, and look back to the Doug fir tree, and
say, “I’m still in a straight line. Now I’ll walk from the mossy rock to the
dead snag, and I’ll make sure that I can still see everything in a line.”
Then pick a new object in the line for the next steps, and so on.
2. Backtracking. “I’ll find my way back. I’ll just backtrack.” Simple, right?
No. Tracking is difficult. If you can already back-track yourself out of
any landscape, you don’t need to be studying these skills to start with.
3. Trailblazing. Break branches in the direction in which you travel …
drag a stick … pile rocks … hang surveyor’s ribbon, etc.
4. Bird’s Eye View Mapping. Internalize the mental map. The very first
thing I did when I moved to my new home in Washington was to get
a county map. I found where I lived and marked it with a pen, and
I stared at it and stared at it. And I said, “Which way is this river?
Which way is that river? Where are the mountains from here? And if I
wandered this way off my property, where would I end up? What road

450 |
 would I cross? Would I even encounter a road?” I do this in every new
place I enter, whether for a trip or as a new home. I buy maps, draw
maps, and ask a million questions until I start to feel like I have a map
living inside my head.
5. Celestial Navigation and Landmarks. Use sun and stars to orient, as
well as larger landmarks in the landscape such as distant mountains or
the ocean coast.
6. Intuition. Something learned over years by practicing the above tech-
niques over and over and over.
Combinations. You can combine this activity with Mapping, Songlining,
Body Radar, Wild Edibles, and Story of the Day.

Plants and Wandering Activities | 451

452 |
Trees And Survival Skills
ACTIVITIES

Activities for learning trees in a meaningful manner,

as well as the skills, abilities, and ingenuity of
primitive wilderness survival
If you want to know how to survive in the wilderness, you’ll end up getting
to know trees really well. Whether we need to make shelter, fire, tools, or
crafts—we turn to trees. Conversely, if you want to get to know trees really
well, nothing else matches learning to use and appreciate their individual
qualities through the ancient skills of primitive survival.
These activities are not meant to and do not thoroughly transmit any of
these skills, such as fire-by-friction, survival shelters, or water purification.
Many wonderful resources in the Suggested Reading already do this well.
Instead, these activities provide a starting place, an inspirational doorway
into the never-ending journey of learning.
Survival teaches us about trees, while it also teaches about ourselves and
how to develop many virtues: common sense, ingenuity, self-confidence, per-
severance, mindfulness, and a fresh, grateful perspective on the conveniences
of the modern world.

Trees and Survival Skills | 453

Survival Priorities
Survival Living, Questioning and Tracking, Mind’s
Eye Imagining, Thanksgiving

Imagining, Taking Challenges, Creating Stories

Trees, Plants

East: Inspire, and North; Integrate

Self-Sufficiency, Caring and Tending, Common

Sense, and Awe and Reverence

Primer
Once with a group of friends, we spent a weekend testing our skills in the
wilderness. We went out into the rain of early Spring with nothing but
knives, the clothes on our backs, and one blanket each. We wanted to make
fire, build shelters, purify water, and feel good about how much we ate. Since
we went as a large group, we divided into teams for making a primitive fire
and building shelters. It was so helpful to have a village of people who had
been studying survival skills, because doing any of these things by yourself
when it’s raining can be really hard work.
By the end of the first day, our hard work had paid-off: we drank our
purified water and planned a meal of wild berries, nettles, cattail, and bird
eggs for the next day. We sat around the fire that night, proudly congratu-
lating ourselves, and looked forward to our first night out sleeping in the
shelters we had built with our own hands.
By the next morning, however, my group realized we still needed some
learning. We needed a roof that didn’t soak us with rain.

How-To
This Survival Priorities activity works well as a follow-up to the Survival
Scenario activity from the Introducing the Core Routines section. This can
also be done as a stand-alone. We want people to figure out what they need
and in what order of importance.

454 |
Question and Prioritize. While you make plans for a survival trip, actively
question participants about what they would do in a survival situation.
Brainstorm a list. Then try to find out how they would prioritize what they
need to survive. Do the participants worry about food before fire or water? If
it is raining or snowing outside, will locating shelter for everyone or building
a fire be more important?

Rule of 3s. Keep these guidelines in mind. We call this commonly-shared

tool the “Rule of 3’s”:

minutes—On average we can survive without air for only 3 minutes.

hours—We can only survive 3 hours without adequate warmth.
Hypothermia can set in and cause death.
days—We can survive up to 3 days without water, but many people are
relatively incapacitated after 1 day. This rule becomes very bio-regionally
specific. In a desert environment on a hot day, the air dehydrates your
body, and few people can truly make it 24 hours without water.
weeks—Believe it or not, the average person can go up to 3 weeks
without food and still survive.

Based on this new information, what would your survival priorities be?
Through questions, drills, and presenting different scenarios, use the Rule
of 3’s to get this important information across to people.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

The name of this game will be creating a space for dialogue. You want to get
people to seriously imagine themselves in a tough situation and start work-
ing out what they would really need to do.
With a little opportunity and coaching, you will begin to see people’s
ingenuity arise. Ask them questions about the immediate area? How would
you build a shelter and where? What would you use to gather water? With
true need and your questioning, you help people develop their improvisa-
tional intelligence, their MacGyver “working with what you got” mentality.
It’s fun to watch what creative ideas the folks come up with.
Watch for those who want to pick food over everything else. Play their
scenario out to its grim finish for them. Depending on your environment,

Trees and Survival Skills | 455

shelter or fire followed immediately by water will probably be the wisest
order of priority. If necessary, humans can go without food for weeks.
An important note: your priorities depend on the environment—the time
of year, weather, temperature, distance to water, and likelihood of rescue. For
instance, in a tropical environment, a warm shelter might be less important
than protection from snakes or biting insects. Likewise, in some very hot
places, water might trump everything. When would shelter from wind be
important? When would it be wisest to simply stay awake and keep moving?

Alternatives and Extensions

Use What You’ve Got. Bring out 3 objects, say a carving knife, a bandana,
and a shoe-string. First, have people list out as many possible survival uses
for each one, and then have them choose which one they would most want
to have in a survival situation. Walk in to your meeting place with a broken
TV under your arm. How could this be made useful?

Learn Some Skills. Any activity that involves learning and applying survival
skills works as an obvious extension of this activity (shelter, fire-making,
water boiling, edible plant identification, aidless navigation, or plant-aids
that repel insects).

Meet-A-Tree
Sit Spot, Wandering, Expanding the Senses,
Questioning and Tracking, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Being blindfolded, Tricking, Solving mysteries

Trees

Northeast: Open and Listen, East: Inspire

Care-taking, Awe and Reverence

456 |
Primer
For many cultures, there comes a time when teenage boys and girls antici-
pate going through special experiences which cause them to grow up into
responsible men and women. These experiences often involve a high degree
of challenge, putting their skills and character through intense testing.
We have been told of one such challenge put to young people as part of
their coming-of-age rite of passage. Each young person gets blindfolded and
led out of their village, miles into the wilderness, into regions where they
never spent time before. When they arrive, they were taken to a tree and
asked to sit with that tree and get to know it very well. So each youth would
sit at their own tree blindfolded, day and night, for three or four days. Then
they were led back to the village, blindfolded the whole way.
Once they returned, they could remove their blindfold. Then they receive
their challenge: walk out into the hundreds of square miles of wilderness
surrounding their village, and from the hundreds of thousands of trees, walk
to their specific tree. Remarkably, year after year young people could do this.
But to them, it probably wasn’t remarkable; it was required. When a young
person succeeded, the elders and the mentors knew they were ready to be a
mature member of the people.

Trees and Survival Skills | 457

How-To
Partner-up. People team up with partners, and decide who will be blind-
folded first.

Guide. Then guide the blindfolded person by hand or body-direction in a

confusing or circuitous pattern to a tree in the area. Even though you want
to disorient them, still be a compassionate and gentle leader: consider what
it will be like when your turn comes. The tree becomes “their tree.”

Get to Know Your Tree The blindfolded person then gets to know the tree
as well as they can using all of their senses—other than their eyes. They get
as much time as they want. Remind the person when they are first led to their
tree, to circle the tree, hug it low and high, rub their skin against its textures,
and smell it. Invite them to listen for Bird Language that might mean some-
thing, territorial aggression that might indicate a nest, or a woodpecker find-
ing bugs that might indicate its age or height. Encourage them to be creative in
the use of their senses to get to know the tree. When finished lead them back
to the starting point, again in a confusing or circuitous pattern. Then take off
their blindfold and put the challenge before them: find your tree.

Switch It Up. After the first person successfully finds their tree, switch part-
ners and let them have a go.

Story of the Day. Follow-up with a group Sharing Circle, and seize the
opportunity to work the Art of Questioning.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This game activates the sense of touch beautifully. This can be such a peace-
ful activity for some. I’ve seen young folks and adults alike just linger on their
tree for minutes, exploring all the details of the branching, bark, root, and
moss growth. It really does feel great to spend some time alone with trees
… and the blindfold gives them permission to touch and smell in a way that
might normally seem foolish.
People who weren’t able to find their tree often want to start over and go
again, and may need some active involvement on your part for them to find
success. Most often, they didn’t become familiar enough or aware of all the
nuances that a tree’s base can contain. On their second try, have them feel

458 |
longer and describe out loud all the sensations they encounter. Guide them
with sensory questions of all sorts. Help them remember the terrain on the
way there and back. Or show them three trees, one of which is theirs.

Alternatives and Extensions

Tree Introductions. Follow up by taking the whole group around to meet
all the trees. Participants can introduce their trees as new friends and tell
something special about them. The introductory part builds good etiquette
training, and opens an opportunity for Thanksgiving.

Multiple Trees. For advanced learners have the partners lead them on a
Meet-A-Tree course where they have to meet multiple trees and find them in
the order that they visited them.

Do It On Your Own. For participants who seemed especially touched by this

activity, providing additional opportunities for them to be truly alone with trees
can be an amazing way to develop their sensitivity. Perfect time for Sit Spot.

Tree Tag
Expanding Our Senses, Exploring Field Guides,
Journaling, Mind’s Eye Imagining

Playing Tag, Solving Mysteries with Clues

Trees and Shrubs, and everything else

Southeast: Activate

Aliveness and Agility, Inquisitive Focus

Primer
Who would like to play a game of tag? Alright, are you sure? Okay … I’m
warning you, for this game you better know a little bit about the trees around
here. But don’t worry … if you don’t, you’ll learn quickly. Ready?

Trees and Survival Skills | 459

How-To
Set-up the Playing Field. You’ll need a place with open running room and
a nice variety of shrubs and trees on the border or spaced throughout like an
orchard, open forest, or meadow with trees and shrubs growing at the edge.
Set up some outside boundaries.

Call Out Tree Descriptions. Gather up and choose a volunteer to be the

starting Chaser. The Caller (you) begins the game by shouting, “You’re safe if
you’re touching a (insert tree name or identification clue … such as “an ever-
green tree” or “an oak-tree” or “a tree that makes fruit you can eat”). These tree
types become the “base” where people must touch to be safe. Once a runner
finds the right tree, and tags it, they can’t leave it until the next round begins.
If a runner has tagged the wrong tree, they’re fair game for the Chaser. The
Caller can give out additional clues during the round if needed.

Play On. Anyone who gets tagged becomes a Chaser for the next round.
Chasers must re-form near the center of the playing field after each round.
For each new round, call out a new “base,” a different type of tree. The game
ends when everyone has been caught and turned into a Chaser.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This activity is a nice way to work previous botany lessons into an active
game. Depending on the age or knowledge of the participants, one might
use tree names, descriptions of plant parts, medicinal or edible clues. Add
a complication: mention certain lichen, moss, mammal, or bird species cur-
rently hanging out in one of the trees.
This game can help people get familiar with using field guides. Knowing
that you will play this game, pull out field guides beforehand. Help a partici-
pant state a question or observation and then empower them to research for
the answer. The time before the game starts, when everyone gathers around
books and trees is priceless. The mentor’s next job helps everyone construct
mental images that they can quickly recall once the running action begins.

Alternatives and Extensions

Field Guides. In its full version, this game relies on good local field guides.
Depending on a learner’s level, every variety of learning becomes possible,
from learning plant families to leaf structures to botanical terms. Have each

460 |
learner pick out a tree that interests them for further research. Or, have a
pile of tree field guides handy, and after you call out a tough clue, give them a
minute or two of “safety” to look through the field guides for help.

Circling the Edge. If your people seem inexperienced with field guides,
change directions and play this game using clues easily found in books, and
currently on or just beyond the edge of their knowledge. This sets up a moti-
vating desire to use the field guides later when you introduce a research time-
out in the middle of game time.

Beyond Trees. Why limit yourself to just trees and shrubs? This can be the
ultimate awareness tag game as well. Give the participants a few moments to
study the landscape and then fire away with any sort of question or detail you
can think of: Running water. Unnatural litter. A plant whose Latin name is
“Plantago major.” A cumulous cloud. A Snag. Quartz. Something with a square
stem. Challenge their ecological knowledge: Food for a robin. Moss on a tree.
A spot of sun. A dry place. A look-alike dandelion. Something that can heal
nettle stings. A mouse tunnel in the grass. Stretch your own imagination.

Shelter Building
Survival Living, Sit Spot, Thanksgiving

Building, getting dirty

Trees

South: Focus, West: Gather and Share,

North: Integrate

Self-Sufficiency, Service to the Community,

Awe and Reverence

Primer
The Village Scene, by Daniel Evans
Once, with an active group of six and seven year olds, a shelter-building

Trees and Survival Skills | 461

experience turned into the greatest game of “primitive” house. Since it was
summer, these kids needed nothing more than a simple lattice house of
branches and logs erected among the cedars. They built that quick as a wink.
So, they soon took their magnificent power of Make-Believe and turned the
whole area into their village.
They directed themselves in a series of tasks needed to keep the village
happy. They were builders, hunters, and rope makers, and still had lots of
time for just relaxing and having good conversation and games. I don’t think
those children even needed me there. They were home already!

462 |
How-To
Use What You’ve Got. If your group has researched shelter building styles
already, and has a specific plan, then find an area that satisfies your mate-
rial needs. Otherwise, you should be fine with downed branches, logs, and
plenty of leaf mulch.

Site Location: Pick a spot where the shelter remains unseen from trails, like
you’re in the middle of the wilderness. Depending on the season or length of
time you’ll use the shelter, you may want to consider needs like good drain-
age, sunlight, wind protection, and safety from hazard trees. This activity
assumes you have permission from the landowner.

Build. To build, basically let the fort-building instincts of the participants

take over. However, you can offer some suggestions on building and insula-
tion. Look to our primitive skills resources for more detailed information on
great shelter-building, but here’s a basic idea:

First—find or make a backbone

Second—put ribs on the backbone
Third—create lattice-work over ribs that can hold debris
Fourth—pile leaves and other debris on, as much as possible

Sleep in it! If you work with folks who can spend the night, decide to build
a shelter they will sleep in. This creates an extra motivator and really gives
them a need to do their best, and their experience of sleeping in a primitive
shelter will not be soon forgotten. For kids and adult beginners, this can be
a goal they work towards over a period of time.

UnBuild. On public land, if left standing to slowly decompose through

the year, your shelter will be considered by most other people a public
liability and an eyesore. If you work with kids in a daylight program,
after you finish with your shelter, celebrate and give thanks to the trees,
then turn it into an animal home. Remove the supports and let it col-
lapse. If you build your shelter in a public space, removal might be done
at the end of the day or week.

Trees and Survival Skills | 463

Inside the Mind of the Mentor
This is such an organic and naturally primitive process, about the only thing
needed by the mentor, once you accomplish the initial set-up, will be helping
people build something that fits the scope of their energy and focus. Building
shelters can be a carefree magical experience, where learners grow in awe of
their group handiwork. It can also be an experience in which the mentor
needs to dig down below the surface and help individuals, or the group, find
out and express what needs aren’t being met.
Taking breaks to look and survey your progress is good. I provide alter-
nate, non-distracting activities for those who truly aren’t interested.
For older groups who build shelters to sleep in, limiting the amount of time
to complete will really inspire a focused bundle of energy and teamwork.
If you have the opportunity to sleep in, or at least spend a long day enjoy-
ing your finished shelter, this activity has hit a home-run. When people feel
“at home” in nature, they form new pathways for expressing appreciation and
thanksgiving.

Alternatives and Extensions

Pressurized Scenario. If you want a quick shelter lesson that really
emphasizes survival, create a dramatic scenario such as “Oh my gosh a
huge storm is rolling in; we only have 20 minutes to build a shelter so
all of us can fit inside … or else we’ll be left out in the midst of a giant
thunderstorm! Quick, let’s get going!” This creates an amazing intensity.
Everything is suddenly heightened: learning that occurs, team-commu-
nication successes and break-downs, leadership skills, and physical activ-
ity. People usually feel astonished at what they can do. Such an intense
need will allow them to do things they never thought possible. This very
important and vivid lesson works magically for kids of all ages—this
includes adults too.

Fairy Shelters. For limited time lines or with fairy lovers, try building min-
iature shelters. I like to have kids build one over a rubber chicken. We then
pour water over it to see if the chicken stayed dry during the night.

Crafts. Some additional crafts that lend themselves to shelters are learning
knots and making cordage from fiber plants.

464 |
Shelter Hazards. There are many lessons that trees can teach. Journaling
and learning the trees of your area that are susceptible to root or trunk rot
and falling branches becomes a necessity for the serious shelter builder. Tell
them to go out for a whole day and follow the woodpeckers.

Five-Minute Fire
Survival Relationship, Questioning and Tracking,
Mind’s Eye Imagining, Story of the Day

Self-Challenge, Collecting Wood, Burning Things,

Playing out Scenarios

Trees

Southeast: Activate, North: Integrate

Self-Sufficiency, Awe and Reverence

Primer
Imagine this: all of us go out in the woods for a walk
on a fine crisp fall day. Our outing was fun, the picnic
food tasted great, but the weather turned cold and rainy,
so we start heading back home. Unfortunately, at the
river crossing, your beloved mentor or parent or spouse
slipped off the log bridge and fell into the icy river. They
managed to swim to shore, but now they’re in very real
danger of freezing to death. You all realize the heaters in
the cars are too far away so you better start a fire here.
But alas, all of the matches got wet except for three.
You have five minutes to gather everything you need
to start a small sustaining fire. Go!

Trees and Survival Skills | 465

How-To
Getting Started. This activity assumes you have permission to make fires,
an appropriate space, and trust in the people you are working with. As soon
as you can set this scenario, divide a large group into small groups, and every-
one understands the boundaries of their “fire area.” Ten per group works, but
if you have extra help, fewer works better. The participants will run off and
get busy collecting, debating, and arranging wood. Shout out the minutes
remaining as the clock ticks.

Lighting. At the end of the five minutes, they must try lighting their fires.
Hand out three matches to each group. With younger people, you will strike
the match, but ask first, where the group wants you to place the match. Have
them reveal their fire starting strategy to you. Shortly, the participants will
discover if their materials and arrangement worked.

Changing Plans. Back in the scenario for a moment, you suddenly might
“discover” just 3 more matches for each group, and give them another 5 min-
utes to learn from their mistakes and the collective wisdom of the group.

Burning Out. Take everyone on a tour of each group’s fire area to discover
what did and didn’t work. Burn up the remaining gathered wood if you can,
or disperse it. Make sure each fire feels cold and wet before you move along.
Teach etiquette for putting out fires.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Welcome to what is often the “two-hour” fire activity. Any mentor has their
hands full with this one, for it strikes a primal chord with pretty much
everyone. Fire! People will often want multiple chances, or lessons on all the
fine arts of fire making: such as tinder and kindling arrangement, or why
grass doesn’t burn, or the difference between wet wood and dry wood. Most
groups usually need help with momentary organizational dysfunction, such
as arguing over who lights the match; and ethical challenges like trampling
plants in their blind determination to save the fictional victim. I’ve gotten
in trouble with parents of younger children who weren’t able to make the
distinction between imagination and reality, meaning the story I used to set
up this activity was too strong and too scary.

466 |
 Asking the right questions after their success or failure is the key com-
ponent to translating their enthusiasm with fire into a skill. Small groups
afford you the opportunity to observe the particular dynamics that need
tweaking, and thus the questions you can be asking.
If you are fortunate, this activity’s closure will coincide with a meal time,
and everyone can gather around one fire (add a coal from the others) for good
cheer and story-sharing.

Alternatives and Extensions

Fire Lessons. Many valuable lessons can be taught around fire making, such
as ethical harvesting techniques, which trees have dry twigs in downpours,
where to find pitch, how and when or whether to ring a fire, how to use
matches and lighters effectively and safely, how to tend fires by arranging
kindling, tinder, and logs, and how to be sure fires are out.

Finding the Appropriate Edge. For advanced learners, do this activity in

the rain, or use only materials they’ve never tried before. Allow only one
match or create a competitive race with the instructors.
For intermediate learners, group them with beginners so they can pass
on good techniques and astute observations, or challenge them to use wood
only from plants they can name.
For beginners, give them longer than five minutes, or be prepared to offer
fire-making instructions between attempts.

Journals and Field Guides. This 5-Minute Fire Activity lends itself nicely
to many field or classroom based lessons. Make a collection of fire twigs that
people can use to find and match up with the proper tree. To raise their
awareness of this renewable resource providing our warmth, ask them to
guess the age of the parent tree that provided the kindling. Also, bring back
leaf and twig samples for sketching and field guide research.

Trees and Survival Skills | 467

468 |
Community And Ecology
ACTIVITIES

Activities that inspire team-building and

appreciation of human ecological connections
with the rest of nature
Can we stretch our imaginations and visualize animals gathered together
in ancient councils discussing the attitudes and behaviors of human beings?
Many legends from around the world recount versions of this story. Can we
humans learn anything about how to treat each other from observing the
relationships of the plants and animals around us? Does the key to restoring
ecological balance lie in how we appreciate our kinship with the rest of the
natural world?
The activities in this section may not answer these questions, but at least
they do ask them. By trying out team-building, taking on different roles, and
exploring local ecology, people will develop appreciation of how everything
connects to everything else. This section takes a deep look at our roles and
relationship with each other and our local bio-region.

Community and Ecology | 469

Blindfold Caterpillar
Expanding the Senses, Mind’s Eye Imagining,
Animal Forms

Helping each other, Pretending,

Taking Challenges

Things to Catch and Tend; Caterpillars,

Centipedes, and Millipedes

East: Inspire, Northeast: Open and Listen, West:

Gather and Share

Common Sense, Service to the Community,

Quiet Mind

Primer
Have you ever watched a caterpillar move along or looked closely at a centi-
pede’s legs? First the head wiggles forward and then each section follows the
leader part by part. It’s like watching a slow ripple. Do you think that as a
group you could move together like a caterpillar?
Let’s see how your parts can work together as a group. Are you ready for
a challenge? How about a blindfold challenge?

How-To
Blindfold Caterpillar works as a simple Animal Form activity to begin to
shape a group of individuals into a single coordinated community. It gives
everyone, including you, an insight into some of the stresses and strains of
acting together as one body with a group mind.

Being a Caterpillar. Divide people up into teams of at least three, eight at

the most. Each team will become a Caterpillar and each will have a sighted
mentor or group leader at the lead. Give everyone a blindfold and a small
paper cup filled to the brim with water. Get them lined up, each with one
hand on the shoulder of the teammate in front, and the other hand trying
not to spill the water in the cup.

470 |
Walking with Grace. Now the whole blindfolded team will walk as one
body, following your leader’s voice as you guide them around an area. Take
them through some obstacles. Urge them to find a way to move along grace-
fully. How do they do it? How much water remains in everyone’s cups?
Perhaps, if you repeat the activity, they will spill less.

Change the Leader. Every few minutes, switch the head of the line by send-
ing the leader, blindfolded again, to the back and moving the next person up
to lead. Ideally, everyone should get to be at the head of the caterpillar.

Debrief. At the end, take off the blindfolds and talk about how many parts
make up a whole. Where does “leadership” actually come from? How do
mental logic and physical instinct work together? What does blindness acti-
vate? Why do people feel different in their comfort with such close touch?
Who enjoyed it? Who felt frustrated? Why?

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

I admit it is serious fun to walk quietly alongside the Caterpillars and observe
how they navigate the uneven terrain with their many feet—and each other’s
personalities. Blindfold Caterpillar is designed to reveal group dynamics.
You’re likely to notice a few human types, such as:

Take mental notes as you watch your group evolve itself into a moving body.
These will give you foresight when it comes time for meaningful group unity.

Community and Ecology | 471

Alternatives and Extensions
Variations. This is a simple activity, an ice breaker, and it can be used with
any number of variations like:

them with water refills.

Other Teamwork Challenges. People often encounter similar group chal-

lenges in their lives, so while they’re at camp, in scouts, doing ropes courses,
and even at some schools, these personal challenges can be safely recognized.

Study Social Groups in the Animal World. Tell some stories, watch some
films, check out books, or experientially look into social animal groups such
as bees and colonizing ants. Learn together how to tend a beehive, or an ant
colony and study them over time. What can they teach about community?

Group Secret Spot

Sit Spot, Story of the Day

Adventuring, Hiding, Keeping Secrets,

Making Pacts, Building Forts

All elements of the Book

Southwest: Take a Break, and

West: Gather and Share

Service to the Community, Quiet Mind

472 |
Primer
Have any of you ever had a secret base? How about a tree house or tree fort?
Our job will be to go out and find one for our group. It will be a special place
for all of us to go and spend time. We can keep it secret from other groups,
and we can even come up with a secret code name for our base. Let’s go find
one far away from everybody else.

How-To
Find a Group Secret Spot. This activity is very straightforward and self
explanatory. It works with participants of all ages, especially if you have sub-
groups of a larger group, which will require separate meeting places for each.
Put simply, you need to find a place that your entire group of participants
likes and considers their secret group Sit Spot. Throughout the program,
this will be a special place for just your group. Having a regular place far out
in the natural world where your group goes for a break will work wonders for
building unity and connection to place.

Criteria. Pick a place off the beaten path. This minimizes human distur-
bance and also creates a sense of secrecy, which lends a sense of group bond-
ing, just as with tree houses or “clubhouses.” Old tree stumps work great,
as do rock formations or overhangs. It’s really important to find a safe place
with no hazards such as yellow jackets, venomous snakes, or large mammals
already using your Group Secret Spot.

Come to Consensus. The act of finding a place that everybody can agree on
can be quite daunting. If the Spot really will be the group’s base for a long
program, then it will matter to everyone that they pick a good place. This
provides an excellent opportunity for your group to work on consensus, dis-
cussion, and democracy. Consensus means that your group makes no deci-
sion until everyone agrees; a simple democratic majority isn’t enough. What
happens if five participants really like one place but four really don’t? Do you
find a new place or can you find a way to compromise?

Name the Landscape. Add a further element of imagination and fun by

having the group come to consensus on the name for their new place. Of
course, you won’t call it “Group Secret Spot.” “Secret Base,” “Fort,” “Hiding
Spot,” or perhaps “Secret Huckleberry Swamp Fort” would all work as better

Community and Ecology | 473

names. Encourage creativity, silliness, and imagination and realize this con-
sensus requires imagination and identity. Who takes this seriously and who
allows others to guide them? Again, watch the group dynamic. The hidden
goal in this activity: people realize that the process of coming to agreement
is as important as deciding on a name.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

While searching for a base, keep a keen eye on everyone. Who is really into
the activity? Who feels bored, just going along? Does anybody think to watch
out for dangers when finding a spot?
Coming to unanimous agreement about what makes a perfect Secret
Spot or name will press the group to form a group identity. With use, this
Secret Spot has the potential to bond the group as they develop it into a
comfortable, safe, private home with its own special language.

Alternatives and Extensions

Extensions for this activity seem almost endless. We give you just a few:

-
vival village” where natural tools and primitive crafts are abundant in
various stages of completion.

The list goes wherever you take it …

474 |
Wildlife Survey
Questioning and Tracking, Wandering, Mapping,
Exploring Field Guides, Listening for Bird
Language, Story of the Day

Seeing Animals, Discovering, Running Errands,

Exploring

Ecological Indicators and everything else

South: Focus, West: Gather and Share

Inquisitive Focus, Service to the Community,

Caring and Tending, Awe and Reverence

Community and Ecology | 475

Primer
All right everyone, we’ve been given a mission. We have a new job to survey
this park (lake, forest, mountain, desert, wetland, or whatever you’ve got)
top to bottom and find out what lives here. We need to find as many dif-
ferent kinds of wildlife, plants, and trees as we can. All of them need to be
positively identified by track, sign, or sighting and listed with their common
and Latin names. We have exactly X number of hours so grab whatever you
think we’ll need and let’s go.

How-To
Survey Team. Doing a bio-blitz style Wildlife Survey can do wonders for
bringing groups together and for tying together all the different pieces of
Coyote’s Guide. One of the best ways to do a Wildlife Survey of your area
is by running a big competition or race between two or more small groups.
Depending on your people and place, you can make up a scenario for who
gave you this “mission,” but for the competition, see which group can posi-
tively identify and make a Master List of the greatest number of species in
your place in the same amount of time. Motivation becomes one of the keys
to making this activity a success. Competition in a time limit creates one
form of motivation, but since everyone wins from playing along, some people
prefer win-win scenarios—perhaps everyone gets ice cream, no matter what
their survey results.

Compose Groups. Our species list from The Book of Nature offers eight
divisions of species. Assign individuals within a group, or groups, to find
examples of all of them.
For example, one participant will look for Hazards, one will look for
Catchable amphibians and reptiles. Mammals, Edible and Medicinal Plants,
Trees, Birds, Heritage Species, and Ecological Indicators will each have one
person assigned. This way each team has a complete group of wildlife survey-
ors and each participant has their own task. Of course, depending on your
numbers, you can also have multiple searchers for one species, or you can
drop a few of the species.

Supply Field Guides. Acquire enough field guides so everyone surveying

has good access to them. Make sure participants get their noses into field
guides—this essential part makes this activity a success.

476 |
Go Find. Send at least two groups out to find as many examples of all the
species as they can in a time limit. They should actually observe the species,
find their tracks and sign or hear their calls or song. They can feel positive
about their identifications, and double check them in field guides. When
they have confirmed their finds, have each group get together and make a
Master List of all the species they have discovered.

Report and Count. After the allotted time, the groups present their Master
Lists to each other, sort of a variation of the Story of the Day, and see who
found the greatest number. At the end, reflect with the participants on the
sheer number of animals, plants and trees they discovered. Pause here, give
thanks for all the many life forms that share this place with them.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This is quite similar to the Tracking Expedition activity (in the Tracking
Activities section), but with a different focus. The focus this time develops
community and interrelationships. This version also creates a broad, overall
awareness of a place rather than a careful, focused, species-specific search.
Although very similar, we present them both here to emphasize that you can
undertake similar activities with very different underlying intentions.
Nearly every activity in this book could be shaded to emphasize any one of
the eight approaches to nature education laid out in the Book of Nature. It’s
up to you and your intentions for what energy or results an activity will yield.
Once you have a strong “vocabulary” of all the activities, you can improvise,
and shade the same games with very different feelings and moods.
During the course of Wildlife Survey, people will be awed by how many
different species live in the area. They will develop a much deeper knowledge
of their environment. Inevitably, many questions will arise about the rela-
tionships between this great multitude of plants and creatures, all living in
the same place.
Encourage this questioning and pull out relationships in a manner that gets
the different groups intermingling and talking, asking questions about what
others found, creating strong, new interrelationships in the group. “You mean
the deer ate all of the foliage on the plants, so you couldn’t see any leaves? Gosh,
I wonder if we missed a lot of that plant we were looking for just because we
couldn’t see the leaves?” Or, “That’s where you found the most earthworms?
Funny, that’s where we also found all those Robin tracks and scat-piles.”

Community and Ecology | 477

 Be prepared for some people to feel frustrated or bored and lose focus during
part of the time you do this activity. That might be a time to change roles in your
group so the participant who looked for mammal tracks now looks for trees. Or,
take a break and play a game. Of course, towards the end of the game, you might
just remind them that the other groups probably stopped to play a game of Eagle
Eye or Firekeeper and they all need your group to do their job.

Alternative and Extensions

This activity goes really well with the next activity: Exploration Team.
Combining the two can give you days of activity for your groups or teams.
Instead of looking for many different species all at once, change the focus and
instead just look for as many mammals as you can find, or as many edible plants,
or as many birds. This can be done with any of the Book of Nature groups.
Combine this activity with Mapping and have the participants place
where they found each species on a group map of the area.
In the classroom, have participants do a survey like this using field guide
resources for a different bio-region than their own. Then compare and con-
trast with local species.
For information about the Bio-Blitz concept—mustering lots of people to do a
cross-species ecological count in a short time—and for support in running a Bio-
Blitz in your area, contact Karen Dvornich with the University of Washington
NatureMapping Program at http://depts.washington.edu/natmap/

Exploration Team
Mapping, Wandering, Questioning and
Tracking, Listening for Bird Language,
Story of the Day, Journaling

Adventuring, Discovering, Exploring, Telling Stories

Ecological Indicators, and everything else

Southwest Wander, West: Gather and Share

Inquisitive Focus, Service to the Community, and

Caring and Tending

478 |
Primer
All right everyone, we’ve been given another mission. We’re going to form an
Exploration Team to thoroughly explore and map this area. Specifically, we
need you to create a good map for those who assigned us this mission. At the
end of the day, we have to share what we found with the other groups, with
our invited guests, and Elders.
In order for this to work out, each person in our group will have a job so
that we make a good exploration team. Raise your hand for a job that cap-
tures your interest.

How-To
Exploring. This activity, like the previous one, has the potential for an all-day
or even multi-day event. The above primer is a customizable scenario. Inspire

Community and Ecology | 479

your Exploration Team to simply wander and explore an area for an extended
period of time. Choose a focus that fits your land, your people, and your situa-
tion. It could be checking for dangers and hazards to young children or Elders,
finding food resources, locating campsites or good hiding places, mapping out
and creating new trail systems, or envisioning sites for a retreat center. You
might even pretend you have landed on a new planet. The emphasis, however,
fits wandering as a team with a fun sense of wonder and connection rather
than specifically finding different species. Instead of motivating with competi-
tion, try to build up excitement for adventure and discovery.

Working as a Team. Each team member will volunteer to play a role on the
Exploration Team, so emphasize the different roles they need to fill before
you can begin. You might base roles on historical expeditions, such as Lewis
and Clark or the settlers who came to your valley. It’s up to you to define
roles best suited to your own situation. Also consider roles corresponding
with qualities of the Natural Cycle:

communication even when dispersed.

takes care of themselves.

the group doesn’t get lost.

the Day.

community.

travels.

nuggets of wisdom as assigned.

480 |
 Language and creates a ceremonial beginning and end to the day.

Most of these examples come from our mentoring approach. Roles can be
assigned by using the Natural Cycle, or the Book of Nature, or anything
that you like. Create a team where everyone is vigilantly conscious of their
contributions to the welfare of the group as a whole.

Story of the Day. After you have completed the exploration phase of the activ-
ity, come together for a celebration, to which invited guests and community
Elders have been invited. Welcome your returning scout groups, and give them
time to shows their findings, their maps, and to report their Story of the Day.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

This will really be a great activity for you to push the edges of the people you
mentor. Rather than letting them choose roles for themselves, you can assign
roles. This gives you an opportunity to test each person’s ability to adapt to
and stretch an area of personal discomfort. Perhaps the group’s noisy per-
son will be in charge of making sure your group moves quietly. Or, maybe
you put someone who is reluctant to serve in a leadership role in charge of
making sure everyone remembers their role. However, be careful of pushing
participants’ edges too far. Pick and choose appropriately.
This activity also tests everyone’s focus. How focused can your group
stay? How often do you have to remind them of their roles? What motiva-
tors can you think of to keep them in their roles? Thinking of these questions
ahead of time can help keep the experience valuable for everyone.
Finally, this experience actually peaks with the “performance” at the end.
Let each team present their Story of the Day in front of invited guests and
Elders. Feel free to help facilitate this process, but let the participants put
their story together in their own way. If they struggle and don’t put on much
of a performance, it can be a powerful learning experience.

Alternatives and Extensions

Turn this activity into a Scout Mission where your Exploration Team
shouldn’t be seen or heard by other groups, but must really scope out a place
and gather as much info as possible.
Plan on meeting up with other exploration teams out on the trails during
the day and swap stories.

Community and Ecology | 481

 Make this an overnight expedition with Exploration Teams going out
multiple times.

Capture the Flag

Animal Forms, Expanding Our Senses

Playing Games, Running, Jumping, and Chasing

NA

East: Inspire, Southwest: Take a Break, and West:

Gather and Share

Service to the Community, Aliveness and Agility,

Quiet Mind

Primer
Let’s Play Capture the Flag! (Usually all that’s needed ... )

How-To
Capture the Flag, in one form or another, has grown to be a familiar and
famous game loved worldwide by children of all ages. We have added twists
to incorporate some of the Core Routines, build teamwork, and still let
everyone have tons of fun.

Create the Playing Field. In the basic version, divide a large group into
two teams. Each team has one side of a playing field for their territory. A
neutral line divides the middle of the field, and if crossed, puts you in your
opponent’s territory. Each team also has a flag either hidden or visible (you
choose) at the far edge of their territory.

The Game. When in your own team’s territory, you are safe. If you get
tagged on your opponent’s territory, you must go to Jail at the back of
your opponent’s territory. The goal is to get into the opponents’ territory

482 |
and move their flag back to your side. If you accomplish this and don’t get
tagged, your team wins.

Jail: If you get captured and put in jail, you can be freed if a member of your
own team makes it all the way to the opponents’ jail and tags you. Then the
two of you have “free walk-backs” to your own territory.

Inside the Mind of the Mentor

Keep it simple and make sure the participants have fun. This is an active game
that can be great for the participants, particularly if they are in a high energy
state. We use it often when instructors feel burned out or overwhelmed by
a group. Be sure and watch for participants who try to get out of playing or
who fake injuries. Work the game out so that everybody participates.

Alternatives and Extensions

Variations: Capture the Flag emphasizes speed and teamwork. Since some
participants can feel a little left out if they are not good runners we’ve added
a few twists to make this more of a Nature and Awareness game.
Play the game in a forested area. Players consider themselves automati-
cally captured at the moment they get spotted on their opponents’ side. This
encourages silence, sneaking, and strategy.
Have the players use Animal Forms. Instead of just plain running—this
adds a bit of Simon Says to the play and requires a Referee. Examples include:
Stalking on all Fours like a Cougar, Running like a Coyote, or Bounding like
a Deer. To really keep them on their toes, switch the Animal Forms several
times in the middle of the game.
A version especially for groups of kids. Have the participants play as nor-
mal, but with lots of kids against fewer teachers or a group of parents. See
if they can use superior numbers to make up for the speed and intelligence
of the smaller number of adults. This really builds unity. And if they win—
which they just might (darn those rascals are quick)—they will never forget
the time they used teamwork to beat their teachers.
Have people pair-up and tie their wrists together with bandanas. Then
blindfold one of the pair. Now, everyone has to work with their partner to
play the game.

Multi-Day Adventure. We have seen yearlong programs culminate in a

multi-day version of this that pushes all naturalist and stealth skills to the

Community and Ecology | 483

max (See Primer Story: Scout Camp Blows My Mind, under Introducing Core
Routines Activity: Mapping). Find a large piece of land you can have all to
yourself, create multiple teams, a common safe-base for all teams to come
and eat or fulfill other needs. Use this as a task you build towards all year
with skills of camping, survival, awareness, camouflage, mapping, etc. The
larger adventure proves to be especially good for older teens and adults.

Ideal Ecological Vision

Mind’s Eye Imagining

Imagining and Pretending

Heritage Species, Ecological Indicators

Northwest: Reflect, North: Integrate

Caring and Tending, Service to the Community,

Awe and Reverence, Quiet Mind

Primer
Have you ever wondered what this area looked like completely covered with
old-growth trees? How many salmon (or catfish or bass) really used to swim
in these rivers? What was it like when whole herds of bison roamed the prai-
ries? How bright were the stars before electricity lit up the night? How silent
was the day before cars and airplanes?
If we could travel through time and see this place as it was a long time ago,
what would it be like? How many years back do you want to go? 100? 1000?
Let’s go for a walk and see …

How-To
Many of the activities in the Activity Guide section of this book are
straightforward and can be done with a minimal amount of preparation.
This is not one of those activities. It requires time, effort, and can be tricky
to pull off. However, it can be extremely rewarding for the whole group,
including the mentors.

484 |
Preparation: The first part of this activity consists of preparation and the
preparation consists of research. You need to look into your bio-region’s his-
tory and find out what it was like in pre-modern times. How plentiful were
the game herds? What did people use for food and medicine? Exactly how
big around were the old growth trees back then? What were the forests, riv-
ers, deserts, and mountains really like in pre-modern times?
You can find the answers to these questions or you can engage your par-
ticipants to find the answers by creating a whole unit on Indigenous Cultures
and Native American History.
Here are some facts to inspire your research:

could walk across streams and rivers on their backs.

to scavenger and finally into the trees of the forests for miles around the
rivers.
-
try that acorn mush was the staple food for the fall and winter and
enough acorns for winter sustenance could be gathered in a matter of
days.

descriptions of bird migrations, especially waterfowl and passenger

pigeons. It was said, the numbers of birds flying over were so great
you could throw a stone and kill one bird as the stone flew up and kill
another as the stone fell down.

hunter-gatherer people spent only 15 to 20 hours a week gathering

food and taking care of their survival needs. They used the rest of their
time developing complex cultural and artistic achievements.

By researching your area, you should be able to find similar facts or stories
about natives who resided in your bio-region. Once you and your partici-
pants have discovered these, take your new information out to the field.

Into the Field. When your group has researched enough, prepare them
for the field component of this activity by letting them know your group
will now explore their local area as if it were in pre-modern times. This

Community and Ecology | 485

requires a little bit of a serious tone, a quiet mind-set, and some serious
imagination.
As you begin your walk, encourage the participants to really try to see
with their Mind’s Eye Imagination what the land around them looked
like. Feel free to have them share with each other if they have an insight or
discovery.
Here are some scenarios:

participants all explore it with their sense of touch. Then have them
imagine a whole forest around them.

water. Let them imagine what the aquatic wildlife was before. Also,
have them imagine what it would be like to drink from any stream or
river they came across without having to boil the water first.

medicine, or clothes. They can only use what grows on the land around
them. Then show them some local edible or medicinal plants and trees.
Have them imagine being able to take care of all their needs in pre-
modern times just from their local bio-region.

Make sure that the participants have fun with this activity by engaging their
imaginations. Be open to what everyone has to say and realize they may
already hold a variety of points of view on this subject.

Story of the Day. At the end of your time in the field or when you have
returned home or to the classroom, have people share their reflections. You
might have them draw what they imagined. Also, have them think about
specific things they can do to help with restoration of their local bio-region.
This could lead into an excellent next lesson on native plant restoration or
reintroduction of endangered species or salmon ecology.

486 |
Inside the Mind of the Mentor
This activity gets participants feeling and understanding the impact humans
have had on the landscape, especially in modern times. We don’t want them
to come away overly disheartened, complaining, and blaming others over the
way modern humans treat the world around them. Instead, we want to cre-
ate hope and motivation to actively protect and restore the bio-region where
they live. We want them to become active members in their community to
create the change they want to see. It can help to have everyone make lists
of ways they can help with on-going ecological restoration or preservation in
their area, or contribute to education that help shift peoples’ awareness and
perspectives on nature.

Alternatives and Extensions

Combine this activity with a lesson on the Indigenous People of the area in
which you live. Better yet, if the native people still inhabit the area, invite in
a willing wisdom-holder to share about their culture and the ancestral con-
nection to the land.
Make this a world safari activity and have different people give reports on
the “ecological ideal” of places around the world. Have participants empha-
size places where the “ecological ideal” still exists.
Lead people on a “Storyteller’s Mind” journey of what the land might
look like in 10, 20, 50, or 100 years into the future. Emphasize the positive
impacts that could happen if more humans discover a personal connection
with nature and move toward living sustainably and taking positive political
and environmental action.

Community and Ecology | 487

Coyote in Context
EPILOGUE Written by Jon Young

Weaving The Web

Has someone said this to you lately?
“How do I thank you enough for saving my life?”
Or … “How do I thank you for saving my child’s life?”
Over the past twenty-five years, I have heard this a lot—so have many of
my friends who are skilled Coyote Mentors. Before undertaking this jour-
ney, take to heart the secret they all know—since the dawn of human exis-
tence, Coyote Mentoring has always danced to the music emanating from a
vibrant village culture.
In 1983, I began to work with Coyote Mentoring in an intentional way.
Since then, I have had the opportunity to work with children in many set-
tings. I was a park naturalist bringing nature into classrooms, and bringing
classes into nature. I was able to work with live animals in the classroom, to
explore artifacts from the old native cultures in the lands where I worked, to
bring young people out on canoeing adventures in beautiful settings, and to
lead exploratory journeys into the landscape.

Epilogue: Coyote in Context | 489

C M This was not always a setting suitable or respectful of Coyote
A person practicing the art and
science of Coyote Mentoring. Mentoring—though I always tried, the settings were not always
suitable for Coyote Mentoring. Having been mentored my entire
life on the coyote path; conventional educational situations did
not work well for me. My instincts as a Coyote Mentor are like
artifacts, tracks left on my soul from my experience in a series
of traditional cultures that supported my journey of nature
C M connection. Over the years, I have come to see that nature con-
Conscious facilitation of the
expansion of people’s awareness
nection is always strongest where the culture supports Coyote
through all major and minor Mentoring consciously or, more often, unconsciously.
senses into deeper relationships Soon after founding my first Coyote Mentoring experi-
with the world around and
within them for all aspects of ment with young people, I was joined by an amazing elder
their environment—this includes named Ingwe, who had grown up among the Akamba tribe
family, community, and nature.
Like coyote, the process of
of East Africa. As a child, he was immersed in an authentic
Coyote Mentoring works from experience with two key elements working in powerful bal-
the edge and beyond the edge of ance: Coyote Mentoring and the regenerative mentoring cul-
perception.
ture of the native tradition. Ingwe quickly wove strands of his
culture around my little network of sprouting nature kids. He
began to call them his grandchildren and identified himself
as the Grandfather. He called me their older brother; parents
C M who spent time with us, he called their aunts and uncles. He
This refers to the effects on
people’s learning by cultural wove in the magic of the storyteller. He crafted an initiation
elements. Whereas mentoring journey, rites of passage, and important moments of honoring
can be a conscious choice by an
individual facilitating another’s
and village celebration. All of this was done in the context of
learning journey, Cultural a modern, suburban setting. Our backdrop was homes, back
Mentoring often facilitates yards, fire circles on farm lands, and parks for wandering and
learning as a side effect or
unintended consequence of camping.
experiences gained while exposed Something remarkable began to emerge that I had not
to the surface area of a cultural
element. Cultural Mentoring is noticed before. As the effect of nature connection, Coyote
also referred to as “the invisible Mentoring, and the seeds of a healthier culture formed, chil-
school.” dren and adults both began to thrive in this new environ-
ment. They developed inner quietness, a calm presence, a lust
for adventure, deep curiosity and that twinkle in the eye that
says so much. There was much laughter, there was hope, there
were tears of joy and sorrow—and all these feelings were freely
expressed. There was health, humor, vitality and love. There
were stories of adventures, of addictions dropped, of unhealthy
habits willingly left behind, of courage to overcome obstacles,

490 |
restored hope, joy and love—and in so many, many stories the W R
We use the word “regenerative”
expressed conviction of lives, marriages, and families saved. frequently in our work as Cultural
It then became clear to me: without the cultural pieces Mentors. It is a core mission for
the positive aspects of our work
that Ingwe invisibly weaved together, the power of Coyote to be regenerative—which means
Mentoring diminished. Outside the context of the woven cul- to be ‘marked by regeneration’
ture, I often felt I was walking through mud. Here I saw many or ‘tending to regenerate.’ In
turn, regenerating is, according
sad faces, many gray and sullen complexions. They looked tired to definition ‘to give fresh life or
and worn. I would bring out a wild corn snake, and see repul- vigor to.’ Regeneration is most
definitely a core aspect of our
sion in their eyes, and only a few faces showing mild interest. vision, mission, values, and goals
I couldn’t engage them, and I wondered if I was even speaking as Coyote Mentors.
their language. Gradually it became clear to me that although
Culture consciously or
Coyote Mentoring holds great power, culture deeply impacts unconsciously informs education,
any learning journey. shapes learning experience,
brain patterning, and therefore
Culture is inevitable. It happens, one way or another. It beliefs, values, and behaviors.
is continuously woven around our hearts and minds, culture Many aspects of culture are
is like a vast invisible web that shapes our dreams, our ambi- ‘regenerative’ for the positive—or,
for the negative. People tend
tions, and ultimately our lives. It is the vessel in which our to subconsciously model many
thoughts, perceptions, and emotions are formed through the aspects of their culture. Violence,
for instance, can beget violence
subtle, recurrent influences of our everyday experience. in the next generation unless
Cultures grow out of our relationship with the land and the cycle is facilitated in a new
all its beings, including humans. It is how we grow our food direction.

and build our houses. It is our corporate slogans. It is the Fundamentally, culture influences
stories we tell about our personal journeys through the the level to which people connect
to nature. Nature connection is
landscape of our lives. Because each one of us decides how the core experience that result
to nurture those relationships, and how we wish to conduct in restoring or renewing, thus
our journey, we are all participating in the daily creation of regenerating one’s natural living
instincts. Regenerative culture is a
culture—together we weave through each other’s lives and culture that regenerates itself.
shape the world in which we live.
At some point in history, western culture’s journey radi-
cally altered man’s relationship to nature and to himself. With
time, nature became the resource on which mighty nations
were built through the invention of corporations, the devel-
opment of science and the application of increasingly pow-
erful technologies. After centuries of warfare, our nation
states eventually found ways to further their mutual interests
through global treaties and organizations. The unique culture
that has emerged out of this historical period is the culture
in which children around the world are now coming of age, a

Epilogue: Coyote in Context | 491

R L, world described as “the global village.”
P D 
C M Richard Louv points out in his introduction to Coyote’s
Guide that many children today are truly suffering from nature
As a Coyote Mentor, it is
important to anticipate shifts
separation. Many species supporting this global village are suf-
in people’s values. When people fering too, as are the environments that support them. There is
experience a concentrated amount a growing body of evidence that suggests the culture we are all
of Coyote Mentoring, they will
reach a point of nature connection creating day by day is increasingly incapable of satisfying the
where their awareness grows spiritual needs and desires of our children; the environment
to include the impact of their
personal lives on all others. A
we shape is increasingly unable to tend to their physical and
values-shift occurs, and people emotional needs. We can see it in their faces. We can see it in
with fresh, new awareness begin the way they carry themselves. We notice it in the health of
to seek strategies of living that
match their ethics. One such their bodies. We may hear it when we listen to their concerns
match is that of Permaculture and fears.
design where “The only ethical
decision is to take responsibility
As a Coyote Mentor you now have the power to help our
for our own existence and that of children heal by guiding them to healthier, lasting relation-
our children” (Mollison, 1990). ships with their natural surroundings. Through this deepen-
Working with a core set of
design principles, individuals can ing connection to place, in time, a child will develop a pro-
design environments that reduce found sense of empathy for all the beings in the neighborhood.
negative impact or even enhance
ecosystems. Regenerative living
If guided in the right way, a strong desire will eventually arise
means to work integrally with the in the child to tend to the needs of nature. As the child’s rela-
natural world, thus improving the tionship to the land changes, this becomes the seed of a new
ability for the land, the water, the
air, the wildlife, the food systems, culture beginning to form.
the economy, and the culture to Coyote Mentoring is to the child what water is to the
support life in a positive way.
seed. To thrive, the young sprout also requires the support
of a nurturing environment, good soil, the right combination
of elements. This is culture. Just as we have a choice to take
the dried, cracked earth and treat it with mulch, water, fer-
tilization and time, we can chose to take the dried, cracked
elements of our culture and influence them with what we call
cultural mentoring.
If you use coyote mentoring tools in the absence of a healthy
culture, it is the equivalent of watering a seed and dropping the
sprout on pavement. You might get lucky. The sprout might
blow on a breeze onto a soil capable of sustaining it a while.
But ask any farmer, and they’ll tell you it’s better to prepare
the soil, and anticipate the needs of the growing seedling as it
matures to a productive part of the ecosystem.
Cultural Mentoring does just that. A circle of mentors

492 |
forms a cultural basket to hold all the necessary elements to R
C D
nurture the village. Together they engender healthy children An important partner of
through Coyote Mentoring, and they create a healthy, vibrant Coyote Mentoring, the process
of Regenerative Community
culture that repeats for generations, gaining power over time, Design recognizes the impact
revitalizing both humans and their ecosystems. This is a of both Coyote and Cultural
Regenerative Mentoring Village. Mentoring and intentionally
designs community interaction
In this regenerative village, a team of diverse mentors ana- and cultural elements to provide
lyze the equally diverse needs of those they’re mentoring. They surface area in a patterned and
predictable way. This results in
understand that a child will have one set of needs, whereas the creation of a Regenerative
the parents have another. And they take into account the Mentoring Village. The Eight
many elements that make up a regenerative mentoring village. Shields Cultural Mentoring
system provides the engineering
Every village contains dynamic variables, including econom- blueprint for this process.
ics, ethnicity, environment, history, geography, and more. This
process of intentionally creating an evolving and earth-based
culture is called Regenerative Community Design.
We encourage all of you who undertake the Coyote
Mentoring journey to deepen your understanding of the cul-
ture that surrounds you and your children. We encourage you R
M V
to consider how you might shape that culture, so you cultivate This is a designed and facilitated
not only the hearts and minds of our children, but the very soil context for Coyote Mentoring
in which they grow. Only through this comprehensive under- to occur. Like a village, there
are needs, set roles, processes,
taking, can we bring our children into their own full power. commitments, spaces, and social
When we apply the cultural mentoring tools with all eight calendars. Not needing a specific
locus or centralized property, a
aspects of this Coyote’s Guide, then we have what I call: “Eight Regenerative Mentoring Village
Shields Dancing”—a role for all ages, all skills, all people. is spread out over a region and its
The stories from our own communities speak for them- scope and overall size is usually
determined by relatively easy
selves. After a recent winter storm passed one of these com- access due to local transportation
munities, I received a story from Alan, a mentor-in-training influences.
enrolled in one of our holistic cultural and Coyote Mentoring
programs. His story illustrates what I’m getting at, and with
his permission I share it here:
The barn was crammed with people who had come from all
around the coastal hills of California. There were people of all ages,
from all walks of life. I saw entire families, groups of friends, people
arriving alone or in the company of newcomers. They had come from
all directions to gather here—from isolated homes in the surround-
ing grasslands, from the diversity of San Francisco, from the expand-
ing core of Silicon Valley, and from wild streets of Santa Cruz.

Epilogue: Coyote in Context | 493

E S D News of this month’s community dance had spread through
A community development goal
for the organic evolution of a emails and list servers and from there through word of mouth
Regenerative Mentoring Village that moved like a mist through the rolling prairies, through the fir
based on the Eight Shields
Cultural Mentoring blue-print—a
woodlands, along cool creek beds lined with redwood forests and
checklist and inventory for things on to the dusty streets of the big cities. People hadn’t come this far
to be considered in developing a to be chilled by the damp air wafting through the floorboards. They
supportive community around
Coyote and Cultural Mentoring. didn’t come to admire the rows of corn decorating the rafters. And
Eight Shields Dancing can also if they just wanted a good night out, they could have chosen from a
be a short-to-mid-range program
goal where all systems within
dozen other places that weren’t located right on the coast highway,
Coyote’s Guide—for all ages with the erratic roar of traffic rattling through the barn walls.
and experience or interest—may Yet these people keep coming back to this place every month.
run at roughly the same time, in
roughly the same place. Where else can I walk into a room where everyone is smiling so
much their faces hurt. Every set of eyes you make contact with are
welcoming and bright. There are children running around every-
where. Kids are playing tag in a free-range subculture. The parents
don’t care where their children are, because they know they are safe,
even in such close proximity to the highway. People are in their power
here. They move with confidence and certainty. Their bodies are
E S
C M
happy. An energy is moving, looking for release. The musicians over
A set of cultural facilitation on the west side of the barn are churning out classic American fiddle
principles and concepts tunes. Adults with flushed faces thread through the raised arms of
arranged in a pattern based on
eight categories or “shields.” the smallest of the children. The music is barely audible through the
Coyote’s Guide takes these eight pounding of hundreds of feet stomping across the barn floor, the caller
shields into consideration in
the design of the book and its
laughs with the sound system inadequate to its task.
Coyote Mentoring elements. Earlier that afternoon, I had been out tracking deer with a
This blueprint is a checklist group of people from my learning group. Our task was to draw
and inventory for things to
be considered in developing a the stories of the deer from the land in any way we could, and to
supportive community around remember pictures and feelings, images, tracks and sign and smells
Coyote and Cultural Mentoring.
that would touch the oldest part of our brains. We had all wan-
dered off in different directions. Some trotted along the road, some
grazed next to the marsh, and others relaxed in a deer bed for a
nap in the sun. I was a doe gently moving along the meandering
deer run, eyes softly focused, relaxed and alert. I sensed the breeze,
the scent of parched grass and a need to find comfort in the shade
of the willow thicket.
A couple of hours later the twelve of us all met in a meadow,
forming a circle in this sheltered bowl, laying in the grass and reliv-
ing our day. We had all sensed that the robins had been singing

494 |
when the deer had come through, leaving fresh tracks throughout When a community gathers to
celebrate a sacred passage from
the area. There had been not a hint of predator on the wind, no childhood to adulthood, that
humans around to disturb them. Life had been good for the deer young adult’s focus changes to
accept and explore maturity. Only
on the day they made their trails. This was our artistic impression a clean separation with childhood
of the day, revealed to us through consensus, a certainty that we all will cause a young woman or man
knew to be true through experience, using our body as our sensors. to fully embrace their adulthood.
As a society, we have fallen short
There was no logic to our impressions, and we took comfort in the of our developmental potential.
full acceptance of what was. Before the paradigm will shift,
young people standing on the
At some point a light went off in my head. Jon had told us edge of adulthood must be given
he would draw the story of the day out of us in a way we hadn’t the opportunity to reach for the
experienced before. He now struck a chord on his guitar and we all promise of their genetic heritage.
That promise is unlocked with the
raised our hand when the chord matched our feeling. We whistled. Rites of Passage ceremony where
We laughed and joked. We hummed little phrases of music and parents release their child and
the community welcomes a new
gradually they melded into a dance tune. member into adulthood.
Back in the barn, the musicians from the meadow had been train-
ing the rest of the barn dance band, like messengers bringing the story Gail Burkett, “An Imperative”
Author of Gifts From the Elders:
of the day to the fire and dancing to honor the deer and their gift to Girl’s Path to Womanhood
the people. The song hit the groove running. We knew in our body
that we were playing it right. The dancers were swept up. The caller
fell into a trance of sorts and forgot to end the dance. He turned to us
and asked, “How would you feel about playing this a little longer?”
We nodded eagerly. The caller jumped out on the dance floor and Throughout history, a young
led the dancers into a stomping line dance out of the barn into the man also learns at a deep
emotional level his inseparable
glow of the full moon. We danced out the back and returned through relationship with nature as well
the side, everyone’s faces were glowing. We ended the dance tightly as his responsibility to fiercely
forty-five minutes after the first note, with four stopping strokes of the protect it. This is precisely what
hunting does for young men. If
fiddle bow. All of us cheered. We knew that the deer nation had been the future of hunting is in doubt,
honored as powerfully as we could have hoped for. so is the future of the earth and its
creatures, which is why we must
Driving home late at night, we barely missed a deer that leapt recover hunting as a universal rite
in front of our car. The driver of another car said that they kept of passage.
having a powerful feeling he would see a deer on the way home. We
Randall L. Eaton,
all had a feeling something was going on with the deer, as if these From Boys to Men of Heart
animals were called to our presence by our song. In the morning
the local farmer sent word he had a deer that needed to be taken.
Everyone was amazed at the synchronicities. We all knew what
needed to be done.
It took six of us all day working with stone knives to transform
that deer into a hide ready to tan, into sinew ready for bowstring and

Epilogue: Coyote in Context | 495

cordage, into meat for the freezer and a rack of smoking jerky. It took us three days
to brain-tan the skin into velvety nap smelling of smoke and earth. Several months
later, we received a message that some Apache women down in Texas needed natu-
rally tanned hides for a coming of age ceremony for a young Apache woman there.
Might we donate our hide?
It didn’t take much for us to say yes. It was a natural opportunity for reci-
procity. The lineage of tracking and awareness skills we had been learning for
the last year had been passed to us from Jon Young, passed to Jon from Tom
Brown, Jr., and passed to Tom by Grandfather, an Apache scout. Something
had come full circle and the gift was received with gratitude for the richness of
the story that it held.”
My friend Alan shared this story of a few encounters in his journey
through a Coyote Mentoring program for adults. He may not have realized
the extent to which the collaborators of our coastal hillside region had gone
to weave a cultural basket that stirred everyone’s heart in a dance that went
far beyond the barn, deep into the land. This is how it feels to be a part
of a thriving village environment where everybody is a Coyote Mentor, and
where there is a cultural fabric in place. This is the invisible school, hidden
in plain view. This school is an intentional culture that can be facilitated by
cultural mentors. In the past decades, we have wrapped a bundle contain-
ing many of the maps and the tools used by indigenous people to generate
a healthy culture that is ideally suited for Coyote Mentoring and healthy,
happy children.
We do this because we believe in the urgent necessity of embracing every-
thing we’ve learned up to this moment. Together we can form a vision of a
diverse, abundant, and lasting web of cultures where many generations can
thrive and grow to their greatest potential. Here coyote can again work the
edges of the fields and meadows of our awareness. And the soil, once hard-pan
and cracked, will become a soft, rich loam so coyote can leave a trail where our
children may freely follow.

496 |
 W  B  
S D

Your journey as a mentor to

facilitate nature connection in
children and adults alike is just
beginning. As your powers grow,
you will begin to discover a need
to foster a village culture that
holds, protects, and integrates
the accumulated understanding
of what it means to be a human in
deep connection with nature.

Cultural mentoring forms a bridge

so we can live fully in the modern
experience while dancing to the
land’s ancient heart beat that lies
within each of us. The work of
the cultural mentor in creating
Regenerative Mentoring Villages
is the subject of our next book.
You can follow progress on that
work, and other developments
in cultural mentoring, at http://
www.8shields.org.

Epilogue: Coyote in Context | 497

COYOTE’S GUIDE AFFILIATES

If you are ready to get Coyote Mentoring started in your O.T.S. strives to enhance your outdoor experience by
area find some one nearby to help you from this list of increasing awareness and deepening appreciation of
Affiliates. place, through nature-based learning such as tracking,
nature observation, wilderness survival, primitive skills,
For recommendations or consulting please contact 8 and sensory awareness activities.
Shields/Owlink Media or Wilderness Awareness School.

California
USA 8 Shields / Owlink Media
(831) 466-9887
[email protected] 8Shields.org
Arizona
Based in Northern California, we offer worldwide train-
Wildlore ing and support in best practices of cultural and Coyote
Andrew Ford, Managing Director Mentoring applications and theory. Our services support
6336 N Oracle Suite 326 PMB #117, Tucson, AZ 85704 individuals and communities by offering positive social
[email protected] www.WildLore.com “technologies” that help connect people with each other
and the earth. We consult with diverse groups in matters
WildLore is an organization dedicated to the preserva- ranging from children’s program development to corpo-
tion of rapidly vanishing traditions of indigenous peoples rate culture enhancement and beyond.
worldwide. Our mission is to uncover the ‘golden threads’
that cross cultural barriers and geographical boundaries. Baden High School Therapeutic Day School
Matt Allen, Education Specialist (Special Education;
Mild to Moderate Disabilities)
Arkansas 825 Southwood Drive, South San Francisco, CA 95080
(650) 877-8795
Ozark Tracker Society [email protected]
Carl Keller, President
108 North Stonebridge, Fayetteville, AR 72701 Baden Therapeutic Day School is an intensive day
(479) 841-8132 treatment program in which San Mateo County Mental
[email protected] www.ozarktrackers.org Health and the South San Francisco Unified School

Affiliates | 499
District collaborate to serve at risk high school aged students DG Educational Services follows the core routines of Coyote
with emotional disturbance. We approach all academic Mentoring and the resources of Devil’s Gulch Ranch, a pro-
subjects through the lens of nature awareness. duction ranch, and surrounding creeks, forests and meadows
to provide programs that re-connect participants to their
Bay Area Tracking Club food, to nature and to the basic skills.
Brian Knittel, Tod Haddow and John Montgomery-Brown,
Tracking Guides/Organizers Earthroots Field School
Gazos Beach, off CA Hwy 1, 1/2 mile south of Gazos Creek Jodi Levine, Director
Rd (just north of Ano Neuvo) PO Box 504
[email protected] Trabuco Canyon, CA 92678
www.groups.yahoo.com/group/BayAreaTracking/ (949) 400-3340
www.earthrootsfieldschool.org
The Bay Area Tracking Club meets to explore the natural
world through tracking. Advanced trackers get lessons in Earthroots Field School cultivates a sense of care and con-
mentoring. This free experience is designed to foster under- nection with the natural world through hands-on, outdoor
standing and appreciation of nature through tracking, and classes focusing on Wilderness Awareness, Ecological
sense of place in the natural world that surrounds us. Gardening, Natural Building, Natural Crafts and Whole
Food Cooking.
Central Coast Village Center and Outside Now!
Donna Helete, Executive Director Earth Skills
1640 Pippin Lane, San Luis Obispo, CA 93405 Jim Lowery, Owner
(805) 541-9900 1113 Cougar Court, Frazier Park, CA 93225
[email protected] www.theccvc.org (661) 245-0318
[email protected] www.earthskills.com
The Central Coast Village Center and Outside Now exists
to nurture an individual’s innate love for life and the natural Since 1987, Earth Skills has offered beginning and advanced
world. We are a multi-generational learning community. All classes in tracking, survival, nature awareness and traditional
of our programs are based on the Art of Mentoring model. skills allowing students to discover and maintain a respectful
and dynamic relationship with nature. Our program includes
Coyote Regional Outdoor School an Earth Philosophy series and vision quest. Trainings for
David Wilson, Owner-Director groups and interpretive skills for science teachers/parents are
4255 Lobos Avenue, Atascadero, CA 93422 available.
(805) 466-4550
[email protected] Exploring a Sense of Place
www.CoyoteRoadSchool.com Karen Harwell, Executive Director
1023 Corporation Way, Palo Alto, CA 94303
Primitive Skills for youth and adults on the Central Coast of (650) 939-9300 ext. 15
California in San Luis Obispo County. Coyote Road teaches [email protected]
lifelong skills in nature awareness and outdoor living providing www.exploringsenseofplace.org
experiences that create a positive and lasting connection with
the Earth. Exploring a Sense of Place is a program designed to provide
the means by which people anywhere on Earth can reconnect
Devil’s Gulch Educational Services with the natural world where they live assisted by our guide-
Brian King, Education Director book, workshops and local courses. The series of explorations
PO Box 557, Nicasio, CA 94946 foster familiarity with the local geology, weather and climate,
(415) 662-1099 wildlife and indigenous people.
www.dges.org

500 |
OutsideIn – Adventuring with Aaron Jessup At the Regenerative Design Institute we teach people how to
Aaron Jessup, Owner create and maintain healthy and abundant livelihoods that
1786 Filbert Street, San Francisco, CA 94123 enhance fertility and biodiversity on the planet. In collabora-
(415) 828-0775 tion with Jon Young, we offer the Regenerative Design and
[email protected] www.isantrips.com Nature Awareness (RDNA) Program, an advanced training
in permaculture, nature awareness, community leadership,
OutsideIn – Adventuring with Aaron Jessup, which offers the 8-shields mentoring model.
wilderness expeditions in the northern Sierras, is dedicated
to the marriage of nature immersion and awareness develop- Riekes Center for Human Enhancement - Creative Arts
ment. Using practices such as meditation, chi gong, yoga, Aidan Young, Director
dance and wilderness skills development. Experience a deep 3455 Edison Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025
and meaningful connection to the natural world while real- (650) 364-2509
izing you are part of a greater web of existence. [email protected] www.riekes.org

Quail Springs Learning Oasis Riekes Center Creative Arts mentors youth (ages 6-21) in
Warren Brush and Cynthia Harvan, Co-Founders the Bay Area through 1-on-1 lessons and group programs in
PO Box 417, New Cuyama, CA 93254 music, hip-hop, fine art, photography and film-making. We
(805) 886-7239 help students define and accomplish their goals, regardless of
[email protected] www.quailsprings.org their ability to pay. In turn it is each student’s responsibility
to create an environment where everyone feels welcome.
Quail Springs is a land-based learning oasis and farm that
experientially involves youth and adults in learning about Riekes Center for Human Enhancement - Nature Aware-
land stewardship, cultural regeneration, and the discovery ness Department
and expression of the inherent and natural gifts of people Ken Clarkson, Nature Awareness Director
and communities. We host other kindred organizations and 3455 Edison Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025
groups at our 450 acre farm in the mountains of Southern (650) 364-2509
California. [email protected] www.riekes.org

Redwood Empire Pack 55 Cub Scouts The Riekes Center provides mentorship in the Bay Area for
David Forthoffer, Den Leader/Pack Chairman students of all ages, through Creative Arts, Athletic Fitness,
1633 Trinity Street, Eureka, CA 95501 and Nature Awareness. The Nature Awareness Department
(707) 441-1598 teaches tracking, survival skills, awareness training, bird lan-
[email protected] www.forthoffer.org guage, wildlife mapping and monitoring, and permaculture
techniques through workshops, in-school and after-school
Cub Scout Pack 55 of the BSA Redwood Empire Council programs, expeditions, summer camps, and homeschool
meets in Eureka, California, and mentors boys in leadership programs.
skills, team skills, nature awareness, and other character
building activities, using techniques such taught by Jon Riekes Center for Human Enhancement Student Services
Young. Lex Ebbink-Alemania, Student Services Manager
3455 Edison Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025
Regenerative Design Institute (650) 364-2509
Rachel Berry, Program Manager [email protected] www.riekes.org
PO Box 923, Bolinas, CA 94924
(415) 868-9681 The Riekes Center Student Services is a leadership training
[email protected] program for teenage volunteers in the Bay Area. Using a
www.regenerativedesign.org peer-mentoring model throughout the three departments of
Athletic Fitness, Creative Arts and Nature Awareness, stu-

Affiliates | 501
dents learn responsibility, honest communication and how to Tender Tracks Tales and Trails: Outdoor Preschool and
make others feel welcome. Summer Adventure Camps
Wendolyn Bird, Director/Facilitator
RDNA - Regenerative Design and Nature Awareness 680 Channing Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301
Ned Conwell, Instructor (650) 324.9355
PO Box 923, Bolinas, CA 94924 [email protected] www.tendertracks.com
(415) 868-9681
[email protected] Tender Tracks includes an Outdoor Preschool, Summer Ad-
www.regenerativedesign.org venture camps, Storytelling, Workshops and Consultations.
We offer opportunity for children and adults to connect with
The Regenerative Design and Nature Awareness Program their own unique nature via the reflection and support from
(RDNA) weaves together the teachings of permaculture de- the natural world. We create, stimulate and activate opportu-
sign, art of mentoring, peacemaking and the power of holistic nity for a healthy relationship to All of Life via songs, stories,
tracking, the RDNA program helps participants further and nature awareness activities.
regenerative practices in their lives.
The Center for Mental and Emotional Development
Shikari Tracking Guild Donna Morgan, MFT
Josh Lane 4608 Calavo Drive, La Mesa, CA 91941
[email protected] www.shikari.org (619) 588-9165
[email protected]
An international development project dedicated to fostering www.paulhatherley.com
the skills, art, and science of tracking. The Guild collabo-
rates with many organizations to provide wildlife inventory The Center for Mental and Emotional Development is a San
services and trainings. Learning opportunities include Diego based school, with ongoing workshops, groups, and
apprenticeships, workshops, and personal mentoring to help individual training. Our purpose is to provide the internal
you prepare for a professional or volunteer tracking career in training of our mind and emotions by acquiring layer upon layer
your local community. of awareness, attitudes and skills necessary to understand, care
about and nurture ourselves, life and other people.
Standing Tree Nature School
Tod Haddow, Director Ventana Wildlife Society
109 Handley St Alena Porte, Education Coordinator
Santa Cruz, CA 95060 19045 Portola Drive, Suite F-1, Salinas, CA 93908
(831) 423-8426 (831) 455-9514
[email protected] [email protected] www.ventanaws.org
www.standingtreenatureschool.org
Since 1992, Ventana Wildlife Society strives to help youth
Standing Tree Nature School is a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit based make connections with their natural world. Year round
in Santa Cruz, CA. Our mission statement is to inspire programs provide opportunity for youth to learn about their
children and adults to care for the earth and its inhabitants local environment and increase their knowledge of the natu-
by helping them create meaningful relationships with the ral world. Our goal is to inspire participants to continue their
natural world, their communities, and each other. We offer relationship with nature in a meaningful way and incorporate
summer camps, classes, and long term mentoring programs this awareness into their daily lives.
in nature studies and traditional earth skills.

502 |
Wilderness Youth Project Laughing Coyote Project
Dan Fontaine, Executive Director Gelsey Malferrari and Neal Ritter, Co-founder/Instructor
5386 Hollister Avenue, Suite D, Santa Barbara, CA 93111 Boulder, CO
(805) 964-8096 (303) 325-5824
[email protected] www.wyp.org [email protected]
www.laughingcoyoteproject.org
Wilderness Youth Project (WYP) of Santa Barbara
embraces the innovative, nature-based curriculum and The Laughing Coyote Project is running six-week long
mentoring programs presented in Coyote’s Guide. Our sessions at Windrose Farm in Colorado. Sessions are built
programs emphasize the traditions of childhood: child- around our three streams learning: Practical Knowledge,
centered exploration, skill and self-esteem development and a Naturalist Awareness, and Nature-based Arts. We work
deep connection with the natural world. WYP invests in the with home-schooling students and run after-school pro-
health of children by mentoring them to be peaceful, respect- grams, offering children a unique experience of the Earth.
ful and confident citizens of our world.
North American Institute of Medical Herbalism
Paul Bergner
Colorado PO Box 20512, Boulder, CO 80308
(720) 406-8609
Aztlán Storytelling Through Song & Dance [email protected] www.naimh.com
Tomás Eaglebear Shash, Program Coordinator
PO Box 304, Gardner, CO 81040 The North American Institute of Medical Herbalism trains
(719) 746-2400 medical herbalist and clinical nutritionists. Some of the core
[email protected] routines are integrated into our program, and we also mentor
students who are interested more deeply in the routines. Our
Tomás Eaglebear Shash,and his family, perform Native faculty will also mentor at no charge individuals who are not
Apache and Aztec songs, dances and stories for school enrolled but who are passionate about nature.
groups and community gatherings. Tomás also instructs on
topics regarding Native American cultures and practices.
He is a founding member of Aztlán community, est. 1992 Connecticut
in Gardner, CO. This self-supporting community with a
traditional governing body provides ongoing support to local Two Coyotes Wilderness School
prison populations as well as doing work in Mexico, Guate- 1230 Johnson Road
mala and El Salvador with the indigenous peoples. Woodbridge, CT 06525
(203) 843-3112
Her Feet on the Earth [email protected] www.twocoyotes.org
Lorene Wapotich, Director
2456 S. Beaver Creek Road, Black Hawk, CO 80422
(303) 642-0562
Georgia
[email protected]
Institute for Wild Intelligence
www.HerFeetOnTheEarth.org
Evan McGown, Founder and Executive Director
PO Box 1441, Athens, GA 30683
Her Feet on the Earth mentors girls and women in develop-
www.wildintelligence.org, [email protected]
ing stronger relationships with nature, their authentic selves,
and a community of female mentors and role models. With
Nature Connection and Arts-Based Empowerment come
an emphasis on rites of passage, long-term mentoring, and
together in programs for youth and adults that connect with
instructor training, we teach ancient daily livings skills in the
the wild outside and the wild creative within. Training lead-
Rocky Mountains and the New England forest.
ers and facilitators of healthy, vibrant community.

Affiliates | 503
Roots Farm Twin Eagles Wilderness School
Nate Olive, Program Director Tim Corcoran & Jeannine Tidwell, Co-Directors/Co-Founders
46 Beaver Trail, Winterville, GA 30683 433 Cedar Springs, Sandpoint, ID 83864
[email protected] www.rootsfarm.org (208) 265-3685
[email protected] www.twineagles.org
Located outside of Athens, this organic farm and CSA is
centered around the mission of connection: to food, to com- Twin Eagles Wilderness School is a family based nature
munity, to nature, and to self. It is host to multiple nature- awareness school centered in Sandpoint, Idaho and serves
based education programs, including Wild Skills Classes the greater Inland Northwest via year-long children’s
(survival, tracking, awareness, plants, etc., for all ages), and programs, summer camps, adult workshops, our instructor
Ninja Scout Adventures (youth programs combining scout training apprenticeship and more. We touch the hearts of
awareness with martial-arts). Author and teacher Evan over 100 people annually with the essence of nature, and
McGown is an advisor and periodic instructor. hold true to the values of passion based learning, com-
munity, family, self-discovery, long term mentoring and a
strong spiritual center.
Hawaii
Wilderness Mentoring Project Indiana
Matthew Kirk
PO Box 223425, Princeville, HI 96722 Owl Creek Programs
(808) 346-1019 Kevin Glenn, Director
[email protected] PO Box 7351, Bloomington, IN 47407
www.wildernessmentoring.com (812) 361-3471
[email protected]
The Wilderness Mentoring Project is the vision of Matthew www.owlcreekprograms.com
Kirk, a graduate of the Wilderness Awareness Schools
(WAS) Residential Program. Matthew has worked for WAS Located in the rolling, hardwood-forested hills region of
youth programs, adult national programs and many other southern Indiana, Owl Creek Programs provides youth
organizations committed to environmental education since camps, family camps, natural mentoring programs, leader-
2000. He is currently teaching workshops on Tropical Sur- ship and teacher training and teen rites of passage programs.
vival, introductory natural history, and individual mentoring Through tracking, nature awareness, and survival skills we
sessions. mentor people of all ages towards a closer connection with
nature and stewardship.

Idaho
Maine
Inner PathWorks
Randy Russell, Co-Director Maine Primitive Skills School
79 Treeline Drive, Sagle, ID 83860 Mike Douglas, Director
(208) 255-2290 716 Church Hill Road, Augusta, ME 04330
[email protected], www.innerpathworks.com (207) 623-7298
[email protected] www.primitiveskills.com
Inner PathWorks is a one to five month training for young
adults to Elders for discovering one’s soul self. We use nature The Maine Primitive Skills School builds community
connection, native awareness, art, creativity, story-telling, through mentoring youth and adults in ancestral skills,
dream-work, spirituality and more to create an environment primitive technologies, nature education, survival skills, and
which nurtures soul awakening and life vision discovery. condolences. Empowering individuals through the eight di-

504 |
rections model and the invisible school to become grounded, [email protected]
centered mentors in their own communities. www.LetsGoBeyondTheWalls.org

White Pine Programs Beyond The Walls provides nature awareness programs in
Dan Gardoqui, Co-Founder/Director Washington DC and Maryland to the children, families
330 Mountain Road, Cape Neddick, ME 03902 and staff of the Metro Montessori Schools. We reach people
(207) 361-1911 through our school time Outdoor Explorations, weekend
[email protected] Outdoor Expeditions, staff training retreats and summer-
www.WhitePinePrograms.org time programs at Camp Shady Grove. Collaborating with
other organizations, including the Wilderness Awareness
Nestled along the New England seacoast between Portland School, we sponsor programs to generate interest in our
& Boston, White Pine Programs provides nature-based National & local parks & reserves.
learning opportunities for all ages, year-round. Each year, we
renew connections to nature and deepen awareness of place Landscape and Nature Discoveries, Inc. (LAND)
with our programs. Founded in 1999, our offerings include: Amy Seely, Executive Director
half-day family programs, summer camps, adult wildlife 21014 Big Woods Road, Dickerson, MD 20842
tracking expeditions, local naturalist workshops, and more. (301) 972-7266
[email protected] www.landandnature.org

Maryland Landscape and Nature Discoveries, Inc. provides outdoor

educational experiences for children while encouraging them
Ancestral Knowledge to appreciate conserve and respect their natural environment
Bill Kaczor, CEO-Director of Programs while cultivating connections with the community. Work-
PO BOX 295 Mount Rainier, MD 20712 ing mainly in Montgomery County, Maryland within the
(301) 277-1276 Agricultural Reserve. Community service, volunteers and
[email protected] relationships with our schools are all important aspects of
www.ancestralknowledge.org our programs.

Ancestral Knowledge serves the communities of MD, VA,

and D.C. Metro area. We offer programs for youth, adults, Massachusetts
groups, and schools. Our nature-based programs include
primitive skills workshops, mentoring programs, family Clare Walker Leslie
programs, and summer camps. We also customize programs 76 Garfield Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
to fit your group or schools interests. Our summer camps (617) 547-9128
operate on a private 1400-acre wilderness preserve that [email protected] www.clarewalkerleslie.com
borders the Appalachian Trail and Shenandoah River conve-
niently located 1.5 hours from D.C. Our goal is to open the A nationally recognized wildlife artist, naturalist, educator,
mind, body, and spirit of our participants to the wonderful and author of seven books, Clare conducts workshops and
world that we live in. We accomplish this through hands-on classes at colleges, schools, and nature centers.
experiential learning for all. Ancestral Knowledge is a 501(c)
(3) not for profit organization. EarthWork Programs
Frank Grindrod, Program Director
Beyond The Walls & Camp Shady Grove PO Box 961 Williamsburg, MA 01096
Amy Beam, Outdoor Education Specialist/Camp Owner/ (413) 522-0338
Operator [email protected]
7 Redland Road, Derwood, MD 20855 www.earthworkprograms.com
(301) 977-3733

Affiliates | 505
Earthwork Programs, ten years running, based in the ting folks outside for hands-on learning adventures. Located
Northeast, is a leader in providing opportunities for youth just minutes from Glacier National Park in the beautiful
and adults in developing and honing skills in nature aware- Flathead Valley of Montana.
ness, wilderness living, and bushcraft. We offer customized
internships, community building, tracking expeditions, Missoula Wildlife Tracking Club
home-school programs, camps, Nurtured Heart Approach™ Elliott W.R. Parsons, Wildlife Biology Program
workshops, and educator trainings using Art of Mentoring Montana Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit,
principles. UM Natural Sciences Bldg., Room 205, Missoula MT 59812
(406) 243-4356
[email protected]
Michigan
Our mission is to learn to appreciate and understand the
Two Tracking Adventures wildlife of Montana through tracking, natural history stud-
Paul Raphael ies, mentoring, and practicing the core routines of awareness.
8160 NW Bayshore Drive, Northport, MI 49670 All are welcome.
(231) 342-8502
Paradise Adventure Circle
An authentic Native approach to tracking and nature Daniel M. Kirchhof
awareness. PO Box 1703, Emigrant, MT 59027
(406) 223-6156
[email protected]
Minnesota
Based 30 miles north of Yellowstone National Park, a volunteer
Naturalist street-corner naturalist/coyote-mentor, I serve youth & adults.
Theodore Rick, Naturalist Leading neighborhood nature rambles, camp-fire games &
8076 County Road 6, Maple Plain, MN 55359 gatherings, wild-country expeditions, a wilderness P.E. class
(763) 479-2566 and a Kamana study group. We are a growing informal Nature
[email protected] Awareness/Adventure Club who enjoy exploring our amazing
landscape and renewing our Native-Eyes together.
Expanding awareness through the core routines of: animal
forms, story of the day, mapping, sit spot and fire starting Wild Rockies Field Institute
plus other awareness exercises. PO Box 7071, Missoula, MT 59807
Yucatan Cultural Ecology, Mexico
Kim M. Wilkinson, Lead Instructor
Montana (406) 549-4336
[email protected], [email protected]
Ravenwood Outdoor Learning Center www.wrfi.net
Brett & Laura Holmquist, Co-Director / Co-Founder
PO Box 2084, Bigfork, MT 59911 The Wild Rockies Field Institute offers academically
(406) 837-7279 rigorous, field-based courses that help to develop engaged
[email protected] www.ravenwoodolc.org informed citizens and strong leaders capable of address-
ing our society’s complex social and environmental issues.
Ravenwood is an outdoor learning center whose mission is to Yucatan Cultural Ecology is one of nine accredited courses
connect people with nature, community, and self through a offered by WRFI throughout North America. In this course,
wide range of age-appropriate programs. Engaging kids from 10 students live in a Mayan village, exploring the cultural
toddlers to teens and providing learning opportunities for ecology of the present-day Yucatec Maya with its dramatic
parents, teachers, and elders, Ravenwood specializes in get- two thousand-year history.

506 |
New Jersey New York
Children of the Earth Foundation Dan Jerke
Rick Berry, West Coast Program Director 3 Sprague Place
Simon Harrison, East Coast Program Director Albany, NY 12203
PO Box 607, Waretown, NJ 08758 (607) 342-5241
(609) 971-1799
[email protected] www.cotef.org Earth Arts
Dale Bryner
The Children of the Earth Foundation, founded by Tom 689 Coddington Road, Ithaca, NY 14850
Brown, Jr. in 1999 is based out of the Pine Barrens of NJ and (607) 272-6486
operates programs around the country. We provide programs [email protected]
for families, youth and teens from around the world in wil-
derness survival, tracking and nature awareness in week-long Earth Arts programs combine creative arts with knowledge
and workshop formats. of place and awareness of wilderness. On-site, regional,
and collaborative mentoring programs develop self-esteem,
Red Tail Primitive Skills personal expression, respect for others and the earth. Year-
Ralph Turtle Panaro round school programs, summer camps, workshops, and
25 Fortescue Road, Newport, NJ 08345 rite-of-passage programs inspire all of us to become more
(856)447-0242 native to the place in which we live.
redtailprimitiveskills.com
Four Feathers Wilderness Programs
Red Tail Primitive Skills teaches students of any age to Lynn & Michael Trotta, Founders
become familiar with using Mother Nature to survive in any 20 Dogwood Road, Mt.Kisco, NY 10549
situation and to rely on skills for survival such as: building (914) 438-3330
shelters, finding food, and staying warm. These courses teach [email protected]
the individual to make primitive tools and weapons as well as www.fourfeatherswildernessprograms.com
survival skills you can use anywhere. Our classes are taught
with hands-on knowledge by using our natural resources. Four Feathers Wilderness Programs are conducted in
Westchester County, just 30 minutes north of the heart of
Two Wolves Buckskin NYC. Through our on-going mentoring programs, sum-
Kfir Mendel mer camping expeditions, school presentations, cultural
(609) 661-2747 mentoring workshops, and our parent study groups, we are
[email protected], www.twowolves.org dedicated to bringing people to life through wilderness living
and nature awareness education.
Two Wolves - Traditional Brain Tanned Buckskins, Custom
bags, Clothing, etc. Also offering hands-on workshops and Primitive Pursuits
mentoring. Tim Drake, Program Director
10% of our profits are always donated to support non-profit Cornell Cooperative Extension, 615 Willow Avenue, Ithaca,
organizations dedicated to passing on ancient wisdom. NY 14850
(607) 272-2292 ext 261
[email protected]
www.primitivepursuits.net

Affiliates | 507
Primitive Pursuits engages a variety of community resources in Zam’s Quest Classroom Curriculum
Tompkins County, NY to provide nature awareness education Keith Marshall, Program Director
to an all inclusive spectrum of youth, adults and families. Our 3153 Lafayette Avenue, Bronx NY 10465
goal is to make lasting relationships with nature available to ev- (800) 670-0245
eryone. We also host an annual primitive skills celebration that [email protected] www.zamsquest.com
brings together folks from throughout the Finger Lakes Region.
Zam’s Quest Classroom Curriculum develops and promotes
Red Fox Friends environmental, nature and wildlife conservation curriculum
David Brownstein for the classroom of our schools. Zam’s mission is to develop
47 Butterville Road, New Paltz, NY 12561 a national and international community of students and
(845) 256-9830 teachers empowered to create effective solutions around
[email protected] environmental issues.

Red Fox Friends is a coming together of young people, adults

and families dedicated to fostering the culture of community North Carolina
within the experience and appreciation of nature. We employ
naturalist training and survival skills, edge experiences, Earth School
storytelling, song, and fun to fulfill the yearning of all people Richard Cleveland, Founder/Director
for the authentic experience of being fully alive. PO Box 777, Tryon, NC 28782
(828) 395-1758
The Learning Vine [email protected] www.LoveTheEarth.com
Linda Voith
c/o Gleason Hill Farm, 7326Gleason Hill Road, Belfast, NY Through the practice of learning traditional living skills and
14711 exercises that heighten nature awareness, students honor
(585) 365-2090 the wisdom of indigenous peoples whose rich history we all
[email protected] share, and discover the beauty of the wilderness within us
www.equalvision.org/blog/LearningVine all. These powerful experiences show us how the lessons of
nature can be incorporated into everyday life protecting our
The Learning Vine is a small home-school group that meets environment for generations to come.
weekly in Allegany County, NY. We are passionate about
experiencing the natural world and use the Kamana Natural-
ist Training program as part of our core curriculum. Ohio
Wen Barn & Gardens Coyote Trails School of Nature Adventure Club
Jeff Davis & Hillary Thing, Stewards Sandy Willmore, Advisor
156 Upper Whitfield Road, Accord, NY 12404 New Albany Middle School, 6600 East New-Albany Road
(845) 679-9441 New Albany, OH 43054
[email protected], jeffdavis@centertopage. (614) 413-8500
com www.wenbarn.com [email protected]
www.curriculum.new-albany.k12.oh.us/swillmore/Adven-
Wen Barn & Gardens is an old homestead nestled between tureClub.htm
the Catskill and Shawangunk Mountain regions of New
York State where studies of the heart, art, and earth con- The after school Adventure Club is designed to promote stu-
verge. We seek to further deepen people’s connection to the dent learning and personal growth through various activities
natural world through the experiential study of the ancient taking place in nature. We begin the year with a three-day
practices of herbalism, the creative arts, yoga, taoist philoso- camp out rediscovering our connection to nature. We take
phy, and permaculture. field trips, hear guest speakers and participate in service

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projects. With members in middle school and expansion into Oregon
high school, our only goal is to have fun while helping other
schools start their clubs! Cascadia Wild
Al Thieme, Founder
Eco-Awareness Club, LLC 3945 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR 97214
Jason Imbrogno, Owner/Instructor (503) 235-9533
8354 Nuthatch Way, Columbus, OH 43235 [email protected] www.cascadiawild.org
(614) 785-1306
[email protected] Cascadia Wild! was the first organization in the Portland
area to implement long-term naturalist training in the public
Eco-Awareness Club mentors small groups of children in schools based on AOM and Core Routines. Our programs
central Ohio to help reconnect with the earth via the arts include a snow-tracking project for forest carnivores, which
of survival, tracking, bird language and awareness. The club allows low-income youth and adults to learn about tracking
offers after-school programs and summer camps. and nature awareness while providing critical data for wild-
life management.
Midwest Native Skills Institute
Tom Laskowski Coyote Trails School of Nature
PO Box 31764, Cleveland, Ohio 44131 Joe Kreuzman, Director
(888)886-5592 (toll free) PO Box 7375, Bend, OR 97708
[email protected] www.SurvivalSchool.com (541) 617-0439
[email protected] www.coyotetrails.org
Established in 1997, Midwest Native Skills offers “non-
military” day, weekend and full week classes/workshops in A public non-profit school educating youth, teens and fami-
Wilderness Survival, Awareness, Self-Reliance, Homestead- lies ages 7-70+ to the benefits of wilderness through tracking,
ing and “Lost Art” Skills with class sizes limited to approx.12 awareness, story telling, primitive skills, nature study, music,
students. Physical fitness is NOT required to attend our dance and art. We also facilitate training seminars for educa-
classes since our focus is on the knowledge and skills needed tors and provide programs tailored for children with special
to be successful. Private “one-on-one” and Specialty Group needs and adjudicated teens. Join us on our 1600 acre semi-
Classes are also available. remote wilderness camp at Earth Teach Forest Park.

New Albany School Dancing Hawk Native Lifeways

Mandy McNamara, 8th Grade Science Teacher Kiliii Yu
6600 East New-Albany Road, New Albany, OH 43054 Manzanita, OR and Portland, OR
(614) 413-8500 (503) 984-8675
[email protected] [email protected] www.dancinghawk.com
www.curriculum.new-albany.k12.oh.us/swillmore
Focused and intensive programs and apprenticeships in
We strongly believe in the importance of using sit spots as an primitive skills, native ways of living and seeing the world.
educational tool for learning. With the Kamana One Pro- Our specialty is on the Pacific Northwest coastal region,
gram and Coyote’s Guide as main sources, we are creating a expeditioning by skin-on-frame kayak while hunting, fish-
year-long program that encourages students to visit sit spots ing and gathering. There is strong emphasis on community
year round encouraging environmental stewardship and in- working hard together to live off the land and thanking our
creasing awareness and observation skills of each individual land for our place in it. We take great pride in actually living
in their own community. We are interested in helping other the way we espouse.
teachers and schools do the same.

Affiliates | 509
Dancing Sol Nature University mentors adult volunteer naturalists.
896 Sundance Street Graduates guide over 10,000 children and adults annually
Eugene, OR 97405 in Metro’s parks and natural areas during school field trips
(541)595-WHEE and summer programs. These occur in old growth forests,
www.DancingSol.com wild and scenic rivers, wetlands and oak woodlands of the
Portland region.
Nestled in the south hills of Eugene, Oregon, Dancing Sol
assists children in discovering their unique gifts, helps them The College of Mythic Cartography
begin to understand who they are as individuals and as Willem Larsen, Caretaker
members of a community, and mentors them in experiencing 4850 NE 9th Avenue, Portland, OR 97211
themselves as part of nature. [email protected]
www.mythic-cartography.org
Learning the Language of Spirit through Nature
Terry Kem The College of Mythic Cartography holds community
PO Box 25183, Portland, OR 97298 space where storytellers, mentors, martial-artists, trackers,
(503) 296-6733 primitivists, rewilders, and elders come together to share
[email protected] www.deerdance.org and revitalize spoken traditions and connections to the land
and family. The College runs and supports programs in the
Deerdance mentors participants on a journey into nature greater Portland area.
where they explore and gain a complete experience of con-
necting with the earth. Through celebration, honoring and TrackersTEAMS Immersion
learning the language of the heart, Terry Kem’s students Tony Deis, Associate
become aware participants in this great dance. 1424 SE 76th Avenue, Portland, OR 97215
(503) 453-3038
Lifesong Wilderness Adventures [email protected] www.trackersteams.com
Mark Wienert Jr., Founder/Director
73569 Hwy 101, North Bend, OR 97459 TrackersTEAMS Immersion offers full time youth and
Oregon & California adult level programs in the Pacific Northwest. We facilitate
(530) 859-0539 real-world projects in team leadership, tracking, outdoor
[email protected] www.lifesongadventures.com guide instruction, sustainable entrepreneurship, health and
wellness, the arts, DIY and permaculture.
We connect everyday people to nature’s wild places. To
restore our connection we use the natural blending of plant, Trackers International
animal, rock and water by using time honored, ancient skills Nicole Apelian, Company Director/Lead Adventurer
adapted for a modern time. Releasing you from the captivity 5621 NE Rodney Avenue, Portland, OR 97211
of daily life, we encourage your creativity, awareness, dreams (503) 367-6296
and passion putting your mind and body in balanced motion [email protected]
with the wilderness. www.trackersinternational.com

Nature University, Metro Regional Parks Trackers International is a one of kind world tour-company
and Greenspaces for youth, adults and families. Our small groups of 12 or
Deb Scrivens, Sustainability Center less spend more time in the places that count. Our guides
600 NE Grand Avenue, Portland, OR 97232 have lived in those places, often studying with native elders,
(503) 797-1852 researchers and local people to develop a true sense of place
[email protected] www.metro-region.org and connection to the land.

510 |
TrackersNW Victor Wooten’s Bass/Nature Camp
Tony Deis, Company Director Victor Wooten
1424 SE 76th Avenue, Portland, OR 97215 PO Box 210703
(503) 453-3038 Nashville, TN 37221
[email protected] www.trackersnw.com www.victorwooten.com

TrackersNW offers experiences for adults and youth in out- You’ll never look at survival and nature awareness the same
door education, collaborative social technologies, and health again. Victor Wooten’s renowned music and nature camps,
and wellness. With programs such as live action role playing and all of the related educational programming are based on
intensives, traditional wildcrafting classes, and SHIFT: Lo- a solid foundation of excellent mentoring. Follow the links
cal Animal Forms & Martial Arts, we reshape the nature of on the website to Vixcamps for up to date information and
camps and workshops to bring the village back to life. programs, and be sure to check out the on-line learning op-
portunities.

Pennsylvania
Vermont
Down to Earth
Stan and Sandy Perambo EarthWalk Vermont
3345 Seisholtzville Road, Barto, PA 19504 Angella Gibbons, Founder & Director
(215) 679-7454 PO Box 21, Plainfield, VT 05667
[email protected] (802) 454-8500
[email protected]
This is a very small program run by husband and wife on 30 www.earthwalkvermont.org
acres of privately-owned woodland. One day a week during
the summer months we meet with children, ages 7-15 with A non-profit Community Education program, EarthWalk
the intent of fostering appreciation for and harmonious living Vermont’s mission is to cultivate a caring community of men-
with nature and each other. tors and earth-caretakers through the EarthWalk Village
School, Summer Camps, EarthWalk/Twinfield program,
EarthGirls, and monthly community days. We gather
Tennessee together to share direct learning experiences in nature,
cultivating ancient practices of awareness, a deep knowledge
Big Oak Wilderness School Inc. of place, and peaceful relationships.
Lisa & G. T. Sanford III, Instructors
7616 Nolensville Road, Nolensville, TN 37135 Institute for Natural Learning
(615) 776-2147 Mark Morey, Founder
[email protected] PO Box 2485, Brattleboro, VT 05301
[email protected] (802) 254-5800
www.bigoakschool.com [email protected]
www.IFNaturalLearning.com
Located in the rolling pastures and oak-hickory forests of
middle Tennessee, Big Oak Wilderness School provides an The Institute for Natural Learning projects include: Re-
informal setting where the student of primitive skills can claiming Elders, Rites of Passage for Boys, Men’s initiations,
advance their knowledge and understanding of the many Vision Quests, Nature Leadership Trainings and more.
skills that once were a way of life for the Indian tribes that Founder, Mark Morey has dedicated his life to reclaiming the
occupied the area. power of reconnecting with the land, rebuilding community
and training young adults and children to reach full potential
in the expression of who they are meant to be.

Affiliates | 511
Makin’ Tracks: Nature-Based Programs Virginia
for Preschoolers
Kate White NATS- Nature, Awareness, and Trackin’ Stuff
PO Box 82, Putney, VT 05346 Michael J. Stacy Blackwell
(802) 254-8080 623 Sadler Mtn. Road, Pearisburg, VA 24134
[email protected] www.dummerstonart.com (540) 921-2820
[email protected]
Makin’ Tracks & Dummerston Healing Arts integrates
nature awareness with healing arts and offers a curriculum NATS has taught nature skills to college students at Virginia
that runs from the prenatal period through age 5 that Tech. More recently, we have become less programmatic
supports concentric rings of relationship as a foundation and more community based developing natural intelligence
of health: self, mother, baby, family, community and the to awake and support love and knowledge of nature in local
Earth. kids. NATS is actively involved in building community
through peacemaking and caretaking.
Roots School - Reclaiming Our Origins
through Traditional Skills The Living Earth School
Brad Salon, Founder/Director Kate & Hub Knott (Directors)
PO Box 932, Montpelier, VT 05601 540-456-7339
(800) 456-1253 101 Rocky Bottom Ln. Afton, VA 22920
[email protected] www.rootsvt.com 540-456-7339
www.livingearthva.com [email protected]
In the spring of 2007 Root School began its mission of
educating people of all ages and backgrounds in traditional “Connect with Nature and journey into the heart.”
survival skills, tracking and awareness, and indigenous
philosophy. We are located in central Vermont, but travel to Founded in 2002, LES is located in central Virginia, nestled
different colleges, museums, and schools throughout New up against the Blue Ridge Mountains. Our focus is to build
England as well as teaching workshops throughout the year healthy connections with the earth, oneself and community
at our location in Vermont. with Coyote Mentoring at our core. Our programs use earth
skills, natural history, song, dance and humor to increase
Vermont Wilderness School awareness, deepen connections, and guide personal growth.
Becca Martenson, Chair/Board of Directors
PO Box 2585, Brattleboro, VT 05303 Wild Tribe Adventure Party
(802) 257-8570 Niki Rowland, Owner Wild Child Face & Body Art
[email protected] 1504 Wagon Trail Road, Monroe, VA 24574
www.vermontwildernessschool.org (434) 238-8358, (434) 384-1933
[email protected]
VWS has been creating opportunities for long-term mentor- www.wildchildpartyart.com
ing in nature awareness since 1999. We offer the Art of
Mentoring workshop every year in October and a variety of The ancient art of masking and body decoration has the al-
programs for children and adults. most magical effect of shifting people to an enhanced state of
awareness. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia,
we provide face painting and body art services for public and
private events. We also offer a Wild Tribe Adventure party
for older kids and adults that bonds participants into a tribe,
exposing them to traditional skills that they can practice
together.

512 |
Washington Earthways Nature Education
Cody Beebe, Sole Proprietor
Alderleaf Wilderness College PO Box 1977, Maple Falls, WA 98266
Jason Knight, Director (360) 599-1393
18715 299th Ave SE, Monroe, WA 98272 [email protected] www.earthwaysnature.org
(206) 369-8458
[email protected] Earthways Nature Education strengthens Earth stewardship
www.WildernessCollege.com and community by educating people in and about the natural
world. Cody Beebe, Co-founder and lead mentor has been
Alderleaf Wilderness College offers innovative wilderness mentoring children and adults in naturalist awareness and wil-
survival, tracking, and nature programs in the beautiful derness skills since 1996. In his spare time you can usually find
Pacific Northwest. Our courses, workshops, and expeditions him working on various restoration and permaculture projects.
provide students with valuable nature skills for environmen-
tal conservation, education, and sustainable living. Our core Forest Halls
program, the Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program, is Jane Valencia, Director
a one year course that prepares students to work as natural- PO Box 2928, Vashon, WA 98070
ists, wilderness educators, and sustainability consultants. (206) 577-4774 x816
[email protected] www.foresthalls.org
Cascadia Training & Mediation
Alan Seid, Director of Training Rooted in the lively ecology of moment, gathering, and place,
PO Box 2329, Maple Falls, WA 98266 Forest Halls is a cultural mentoring project offering bardic
(360) 599-2134 performance, celebration, village wisdom, healing artistry,
[email protected] www.cascadiatraining.com and nature-based learning adventures of belonging to indi-
viduals, small groups, and community in the San Francisco
World-class instruction in leading edge sustainable living, Bay Area, on Vashon Island, WA, in Wallowa, OR, and
personal empowerment, and organizational effectiveness elsewhere.
tools, processes, and methodologies. Alan Seid has spent
many years in the sustainability field, and teaches several Islandwood
tools and methodologies. He has a commitment to improving Mark Jordahl
human systems and contributing to the healthy integration 4450 Blakely Avenue NE, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110
of human and natural systems. (206) 855-4312
[email protected] www.islandwood.org
Dancing Coyote Camp
Gayle Holeton, Director IslandWood is committed to providing exceptional learning
3133 Sahalee Drive W., Sammamish, WA 98074 experiences that inspire lifelong environmental and com-
(425) 868-0407 munity stewardship, and serves over 10,000 youth and adults
[email protected] each year at its sustainably designed campus. The core pro-
www.dancingcoyotecamp.com gram areas include residential 4-day environmental educa-
tion experiences for 4th–6th graders, a graduate program in
Dancing Coyote Camp acknowledges the innate human af- Education for Environment and Community, and corporate
finity for Nature and aims to nourish this connection by cre- leadership trainings.
ating meaningful outdoor experiences for children ages 7-14
years. We believe that a physical and emotional connection LearningHerbs.com
to nature at an early age promotes principles of interdepen- John and Kimberly Gallagher, Owners
dence, personal responsibility, self-sufficiency, and inspires PO Box 1174, Carnation, WA 98014
good decision making for the stewardship of the planet. [email protected]
www.LearningHerbs.com www.herbmentor.com

Affiliates | 513
LearningHerbs.com is a website that makes learning about Rite of Passage Journeys
edible and medicinal plants fun and simple. Kits, courses, Darcy Ottey, Executive Director
free information and even a board game, all designed with 22401 39th Ave SE, Bothell, WA 98021
coyote mentoring principles. John was design editor for the (425) 485-7396
Kamana Naturalist Training Program, and has worked with [email protected]
Wilderness Awareness School since 1991. www.riteofpassagejourneys.org

Pathfinder Outdoor School Founded in 1968, Rite of Passage Journeys mentors youth,
Nate Summers, Director adults, and families through significant life transitions.
4407 Regal Street, Carnation, WA 98014 Based in the Pacific Northwest, we serve ages 8-80 through
(425) 691-7317 wilderness-based programs that foster personal reflection,
[email protected] community engagement, earth stewardship, and connection
with the sacred, and train individuals and organizations in
Pathfinder Outdoor School is a group of highly trained how to implement rites of passage in their own communities.
instructors brought together to teach people in the outdoors
and help them reach their highest potential through deep Seven Stars Children’s Summer Camps
understanding of nature and its arts. We emphasize work Liz Sinclair, Steve Bruce and Nattie Bruce, Earth mentors
with small groups or one-on-one mentoring through out the PO Box 1204, Tum Tum, WA 99034
Puget Sound area of the Pacific Northwest. (509) 258-4364
[email protected]
Project NatureConnect: educating, counseling and heal-
ing with nature Our family has been blessed with such awesome guides,
Dr. Michael J. Cohen, Director mentors and teachers that we are each involved now with
PO Box 1605, Friday Harbor, WA 98250 the summer camps to share experiences we’ve gleaned. Our
(360) 378-6313 mission is to guide children to Ancient new directions. Our
[email protected] www.ecopsych.com main goal is to facilitate gratitude adjustments that will serve
our students in a lifetime of journeying.
Project NatureConnect offers online nature-connected de-
grees, courses and career education training programs, aim- The Center for Environmental & Natural Skills Education
ing to increase personal, social and environmental well-being. (CENSE) Student Activities Office
Learn and teach how to beneficially interlace our human CENSE, Student Activities: CAB 320,
psyche with the grace balance and restorative powers of natu- The Evergreen State College,
ral systems within and around us. Add the sunlight beauty Olympia, WA 98505
and spirit of the natural world to your life and community. (360) 867-6220
[email protected]
Quietheart Wilderness School www.academic.evergreen.edu/groups/cense
Allan Hawkeye Sande, Founder/Director
23632 Hwy 99, Ste. F, PMB 221, Edmonds, WA 98026 CENSE is an experientially-based student group dedicated
(425) 478-3494 with providing the Evergreen State College community with
[email protected] www.quietheart.org opportunities to explore and learn about the natural world
via hands-on experience. In addition to other occasional
Founded in 1997, Quietheart Wilderness School serves the programs, we provide weekly workshops in the Evergreen
communities of King and Snohomish County. Students 7 to Nature Reserve covering subjects such as: bird language,
17 years old are taught skills of nature awareness through re- ethno botany, tracking, and sensory expansion.
spect and knowledge for mother earth. Programs are offered
year round in the hopes of connecting children with the earth
and thereby creating stewards for our earth.

514 |
The Coyote’s Path Wilderness School deep relationship between the natural world, self, and com-
Chris Kenworthy, Director munity, integrated with the heritage and local culture of its
PO Box 806, Okanogan, WA 98840 location on Vashon Island in Washington.
(509) 322-8541
[email protected] www.Coyotespath.org The Wilderness Bridge
Julie Plachta, Founder
Since 1993 The Coyote’s Path has offered classes & instruc- PO Box 897, Chimacum, WA 98325
tion for individuals, groups, and apprenticeship programs. (360) 774-6831 [email protected]
We teach basic survival skills including winter survival,
edible & medicinal plants, animal tracking, scout training, The Wilderness Bridge is committed to strengthening
nature skills & lore. Whatever level of skill or interest our our sense of community and place by encouraging inter-
land will provide you with limitless opportunities to deepen generational/cross-cultural sharing of knowledge on the
your connection with the natural world. lush Olympic Peninsula of Washington State. This is a new
organization and we are excited to see what develops as we
The Mystery Bay Heritage School work to connect people to the natural world and each other.
Scott Brinton, Director
PO Box 285, Nordland, WA 98358 Wilderness Awareness School
[email protected] Warren Moon, Executive Director
PO Box 219, PMB 137, Duvall, WA 98019
The school utilizes knowledge from the diverse Olympic (425) 788-1301
Peninsula community to blend a combination of nature [email protected]
awareness, sustainable design, and rural folk skills providing www.wildernessawareness.org
a variety of mentoring opportunities for all ages.
Wilderness Awareness School mentors naturalists, trackers,
The Nature Mapping Program outdoor educators, and leaders through school-year pro-
Karen Dvornich, National Director grams, summer camps, wilderness expeditions, and intensive
University of Washington, Box 355020, Seattle, WA 98195- workshops. Our programs foster understanding and appre-
5020 ciation of nature, community, and self. We offer support and
(206) 616-2031 [email protected] training to users of Coyote’s Guide.
www.depts.washington.edu/natmap

The NatureMapping Program asks the public to help Wisconsin

scientists map nature by reporting wildlife sightings to a
statewide database that is used for land planning, assessing Boy Scout Troop 385, Marshfield Wisconsin
range maps, and learning where wildlife move from month to Sam Voight, Assistant Scoutmaster
month. Learning Centers provide progressive levels of train- 1201 East 18th Street, Marshfield, WI 54449
ing and opportunities to move from reporting wildlife to field (715) 384-4293 [email protected]
research projects with local scientists.
Boy Scout Troop 385 mentors boys in the ways of leadership,
The Vashon Wilderness Program outdoor skills, citizenship, and service, through monthly na-
Jessa Zimmerman, Administrator ture based activities and camping during a yearlong program
PO Box 712, Vashon, WA 98070-0712 culminating in a week long summer camp, a wilderness high
(206) 919-7190 adventure trip and a biennial international exchange with a
[email protected] coed troop in Germany. Scouts learn awareness, tracking,
bird language, outdoor skills, animal and plant identification,
The Vashon Wilderness Program offers nature immersion and storytelling, while interacting within a family/commu-
mentoring experiences for youth and adults that cultivate a nity based structure.

Affiliates | 515
When In Nature - Wilderness Awareness Connection Camp Encounter
Sam Voight Dale Kiselyk, Director of Camp Encounter
Marshfield, WI RR1 Site 21 Box 4, Gunn, Alberta, T0E 1A0 Canada
715 384-4293 (780) 967-2548
www.WhenInNature.com [email protected] www.campencounter.com

Connecting Children of all ages and Earth Mentors, through Camp Encounter is a year-round camp located 1 hour North-
living natural adventures and exploring mysteries, regenerat- west of Edmonton and situated on 100 acres of beautiful
ing the Circle of Life and passing down the knowledge of the lakeshore and forest terrain. Rich in history, adventure, and
8 Shields for generations to come. education we offer year round programs including; a residential
summer camp, school programs, and weekend facility rentals.

Virgin Islands, USA NATURE ALIVE Outdoor Education &

Survival Training
Virgin Islands Sustainable Farm Institute Dale Kiselyk, Owner/Instructor
Nate Olive, Program Director 5906-56st, Barrhead, Alberta, T7N 1C8 Canada
PO Box 1007, Frederiksted, US VI, 00841 (780) 674-6145
(678) 999-2143 [email protected] www.naturealive.ca
[email protected], [email protected] www.visfi.org
NATURE ALIVE is committed to providing year round,
Located on a 200 acre farm in the Caribbean, VISFI is a expert, engaging, interactive outdoor education programs,
working educational farm enterprise that integrates sustain- field trips, and expeditions to schools, youth camps, clubs,
ability, education, and community, offering experiential and outdoor groups of all ages. NATURE ALIVE also
instruction in Agroecology, Permaculture, Bush Skills and provides professional, practical, hands on survival training
related fields. Students include school-children, farmers, courses to corporate industry and general recreational users
residential apprentices from around the world, and Master’s throughout Albert.
and Ph.D. candidates. Author and teacher Evan McGown is
a friend, advisor, and periodic visiting instructor.

BRITISH COLUMBIA
CANADA Earth Track Education
David Krieger and Tashmyra Crowe, Mentors
Alberta Cowichan Bay, Vancouver Island, BC, Canada
(250) 538-8513
Into the Wilderness [email protected], [email protected]
Doug and Judy Kramer www.earthtrackeducation.com
9516–190th Street NW, Edmonton, Alberta, T0E 1A0
Canada At Earth Track Education our mission is to connect kids and
(780) 642-3311 help them understand their cultures and their relationships
[email protected] www.intothewilderness.ca with the natural world. We offer a list of programs including,
Wolf Valley Homeschooling Program on Saltspring Island,
Into the Wilderness works on a small scale with kids, fami- Earth Track Thailand/Canada Youth Exchange Program,
lies and individuals providing experiences in rites of passage, ESL Outdoor Coyote Mentoring Camps for Thai Urban and
tracking, wilderness living and mentoring. We pass along the Rural Youth and Foreign Exchange Students, Summer Wil-
timeless skills of the teacher, healer, protector and provider. derness Survival Quest along the Cowichan and Koksilah
rivers on Vancouver Island.

516 |
Earthwise Ventures: Environmental Education, Ontario
Communications and Consulting
Patricia Spencer, Owner/ Operator Divine Transformations - Spiritual Psychotherapy &
Box 10135, 108 Mile Ranch, BC V0K 2Z0 Canada Spiritual Direction
(250) 791-1901 Dieter Staudinger, Founder
[email protected] www.earthwiseventures.net 21 Sleepy Hollow Crt, Dundas, Ontario, L9H 1H4, Canada
(905) 923-8175
Nature Journeys, offered by Earthwise Ventures, is an [email protected]
experiential program that introduces youth to the many www.divinetransformations.ca
wonders and mysteries of the natural world. Employing a
mentoring approach to teaching, children are guided into the Divine Transformations combines Spiritual Psychotherapy
world of nature through the use of inspiration, games, stories and the Principles of the Art of Mentoring to assist both
and questioning techniques. Enhancing students’ sensory adults and children in transforming challenges into oppor-
awareness of nature, developing their observation skills and tunities for Personal Growth and True Healing. Its Vision is
creating a solid knowledge base about their local natural to foster greater intimacy and knowledge about oneself and
community are key program elements. the natural world, recognizing the interconnectedness of all
things within the Circle of Life - and our purpose within it.
Natural Journeys Society This unique therapeutic approach helps clients find lasting
Wes Gietz, President Peace and Meaning in their life.
471B Anderton Road, Comox, BC, V9M 1Y9 Canada
(250) 339-3197 Earth Mentorship Programs
[email protected] www.naturaljourneys.ca Chris Gilmour, Founder/Mentor/Wilderness Guide
Southern and Central Ontario, Canada
Natural Journeys Society offers mentoring for awareness in [email protected]
nature and personal development, including ongoing pro- www.earthmentorship.com
grams as well as shorter intensive workshops and events, in
the mountains, forests, rivers, and ocean shores of Vancouver I have been guiding wilderness trips and teaching Ancient
Island on Canada’s west coast. Programs are offered for Wilderness Living Skills workshops for the past few years
adults, children, youth, and family groups. and use an 8 shield medicine wheel approach to mentoring.
Courses focus on personal connection with nature and primi-
WildSpirit - Rediscover the Connection tive living skills as techniques to develop deeper awareness
Bruce Carron and learn about ecology. The sit spot and creative exploration
2960 Rachel Road, Courtenay, BC V9N 9L4 Canada of our senses and nature are foundations for all programs.
(250) 338-8431
[email protected] www.members.shaw.ca/wildspirit Earth Tracks—Outdoor Adventures
and Nature Education
WildSpirit is dedicated to restoring people’s connection Alexis Burnett - Founder/Mentor and Wilderness Guide
to wildness through Nature-based mentoring. We offer Southern and Central Ontario, Canada
programs for kids, youth and adults and are located in the (519) 217- 4921
beautiful Comox Valley on Vancouver Island. [email protected] www.earthtracks.ca

We strive to blend ancient and modern wisdom through our

teaching style and view nature as the ultimate teacher. Our
classes and trips are small and very focused, providing qual-
ity education and practical field experience. “Earth Tracks
strives to foster a deep connection to the earth, encourage
self-awareness and develop a sense of place in today’s world.”

Affiliates | 517
EUROPE Abenteuer Wildnis-Nature/Community Mentoring
Hans Muellegger
Jainzen 83, 4820 Bad Ischl, Austria
Tel. +43 (0) 6132-22885
Kamana Europe
[email protected] www.wildnis.at
Anneke Treep, Instructor
[email protected] www.kamana.eu
Mentoring naturalists & trackers, our school began 17
years ago with school projects, summer camps, wilderness
Kamana Europe provides Kamana instruction for Euro-
expeditions, wilderness trainings, intensive tracking and
pean students who prefer a local instructor and/or students
workshops with young children. Programs are designed to
who prefer to write their journals in (for example) German
foster understanding and appreciation of nature, community
or Dutch. Since 2006, these options are available through
and self. Each year we train 3 to 5 naturalist interns, who live
Kamana Europe.
in our Wilderness camp for 2 years.

Ueberlebensschule Tirol
AUSTRIA Thomas Patzleiner
Oberstrass 209, 6416 Obsteig, Austria
Tel. +43 (0) 5264-20113
Natur Agentur
[email protected]
Juergen Gerzabek
www.ueberlebensschule-tirol.at
Genottealle 8, 9500 Villach, Austria
Tel: +43-660 3154041
Ueberlebensschule-Tirol the survival school of Tirol/
[email protected] www.naturagentur.at
Austria is a private organization. Our goal lies in gathering
knowledge of our ancestors and passing this knowledge along
Training through Tom Brown, Jr. (Tracking Wilderness
to people. Each course you attend will raise awareness and
Awareness Survival), Malcolm Ringwalt (Earth-Heart-
include basics of Art of Mentoring. You will be guided to
Visioncenter) and Meridith Little (School of Lost Borders).
experience your inner voice, your intuition and will be given
We offer vision quests in Friaul/Northern Italy. Within
the opportunity to track your heart.
Natur Agentur Jurgen Gerzabek combines 17 years of teach-
ing with all aspects of nature.

Natur-und Wildnisschule der Alpen

Ron & Geli Bachmann-Hoenlinger
GERMANY
Tafelweg 9, 6094 Grinzens, Austria
Abenteuer Natur
Tel. +43 (0) 5234-67770
Andrea Traeger
[email protected] www.wildniszentrum.at
[email protected] http://abenteuer-natur.org/
The Natur- und Wildnisschule der Alpen mentors natural-
Allgäu Scout Natur & Wildnisschule
ists, outdoor educators and interpreters, hunters, thera-
Stefan Koch
pists, globetrotters, adventurers and all people interested
87527 Sonthofen, Germany
in nature and outdoor activities. Our classes take place in
Tel. +49 (0) 172 76 298 79
the Austrian Alps region of Tirol. Programs cover survival,
[email protected]
tracking, and mentoring philosophy. We offer day, weekend
www.Wildnisschule-Allgaeu.de; winter program:
or weeklong intensive workshops, wilderness camps,
www.IgluScout.de
wilderness journeys, and year long training as a nature and
wilderness instructor.

518 |
Allgäu Scout nature and wilderness school is located in Corvus Natur- und Wildnisschule
the southern part of Germany, in the northern edge of the Rainer Besser, Patrick Schank, Alex Meffert,
Alps. We offer various programs in summer and winter for Christian Schorpp, Christina Meffert
children, youth, adults, school classes and families. Every Postfach 1304, 88003 Friedrichshafen, Germany
program has the intention to bring people back to their Tel. +49 (0) 700-2678 8762
center and to connect them deeper with the natural world. [email protected] www.corvus-bodensee.de
We pass along many tools and skills to integrate the natural
knowledge and connections into daily life. Corvus teaches wilderness skills, awareness, earth philoso-
phy and cultural mentoring. We encourage people of all ages
Arven, Schule für Heilpflanzenkunde to learn more about nature and themselves. Our programs
und Wildniswissen include kids’ camps, classes for adults, vision quests, train-
Susanne Fischer-Rizzi, Traditional Healer and Author ings for educators—ranging from 1 day workshops to long
Postfach 24; 87477 Sulzberg, Germany term mentoring experiences. Corvus is based in the South of
Tel. +49 (0) 8376-1777 Germany, near Lake Constance.
[email protected] www.susanne-fischer-rizzi.de
JAGWINA-Jagd-und Wildnisschule
ARVEN - School for Medicinal Plant Lore and Wilderness Tim Taeger
Knowledge offers three year long trainings, tutorials, work- Dorfstraße 58, 16230 Breydin / OT Trampe, Germany
shops and wilderness journeys. Susanne Fischer-Rizzi, the Tel. +49 (0) 33451-55053
school’s founder has been instructing medicinal plant lore for [email protected] www.jagwina.de
the past 30 years. She is inspired to reawaken mankind’s con-
nection to nature – for us to rediscover its healing potential, The hunting and wilderness school JAGWINA offers work-
its beauty and how very precious it is. She is a Naturopathic shops which strengthen the connection between people and
practitioner who connects her knowledge of plants with the nature for school children, adults and families. Our hunter
old European healing traditions. awareness and safety training aimed at successfully receiving
the German hunting license integrates knowledge of wilder-
Connected ness and principles of the sacred hunt. We are located 50 km
Dr. Marc Kalkuhl north of Berlin.
Grotenbacher Str. 27a, 51643 Gummersbach, Germany
Tel. +49 (0) 2261-302023 Kinder der Erde e.V.
[email protected] Dr. Barbara Deubzer
www.connected-community.de Siedlerstraße 5, 86911 Diessen am Ammersee, Germany
Tel. +49 (0) 8807-928637
Connected are a group of enthusiastic people who have [email protected]
committed themselves to the vision of returning to the wild. www.kinder-der-erde.de and www.wildnishort.de
Evolved from a tracking club in 1999 our diverse programs
include wilderness skills, perception, tracking, earth philoso- Verein Kinder der Erde e.V. organizes nationwide after
phy, scout, community and more. In wilderness children’s school programs and wilderness learning centers helping
camps, workshops and long term intensive studies we prac- children and teenagers strengthen the connection with
tice lost skills and rediscover self, nature and pure life’s joy. nature and themselves. Additionally we offer summer camps
We are located east of Cologne in a beautiful forested area and continuing education programs and workshops in the ar-
with thousands of creeks and hills. eas of wilderness knowledge and teacher training. Our vision
is to encourage multi generational communities based on a
deep connection to nature and to peacemaking principles.

Affiliates | 519
Natur-und Wildnisleben Alter Postweg 1b, 32689 Kalletal, Germany
Hartmut Rieck Tel. +49 (0) 5264-657590
Brunnenreuther Weg 21, D-85051 Ingolstadt, Germany [email protected] www.natural-skills.de
Tel. +49 (0) 160-1080579
[email protected] www.natur-und-wildnisleben.de Natural Skills is a free, autonomous and noncommercial
forum where like-minded people interested in nature and
Natur- und Wildnisleben was founded 2006 in Ingolstadt, wilderness skills meet to exchange thoughts and ideas and
Germany. We offer very unique and individually developed get to know each other. We also offer mentoring opportuni-
environmental education-, mentoring programms and wil- ties. Aimed at all German speaking regions and recommend-
derness camps for all ages and groups, mostly in the Jura hills ed by the German Wilderness Schools. Subject areas are:
of the Naturpark Altmühltal. We want to help to reconnect awareness, independent projects, tracking, primitive crafts,
to nature and to the personal treasures for individual growth. scout and philosophy.

Natur-und Wildnisschule Ralph Müller ONGWEHONWE Nature and Wilderness School

Ralph Müller Karlheinz Holl, Wilderness Trainer
Wennenkamp, 31737 Rinteln, Germany Lögesmühle 2, 61194 Niddatal-Kaichen, Germany
Tel. +49 (0) 5754-926714 Tel. +49 (0) 6187-900718
[email protected] [email protected] www.ongwehonwe.org
www.Natur-Wildnis-Schule.de
We teach people between the ages of 8 to 99 the practical
The nature and wilderness school Ralph Müller is located in skills needed for a balanced life with our mother earth, based
the Weserbergland, close to Rinteln in northern Germany. on the knowledge possessed by indigenous people. Our phi-
We teach the old knowledge of the indigenous people of losophy is to treat the earth and all of its children with care
respectful living in and with nature in workshops and wilder- and respect. Our mission is to commit ourselves to preserve
ness expeditions, nature mentoring and advanced nature the earth, its unique beauty, as well as to restore the natural
training. Our programs connect old and modern knowledge environment of the world.
to foster a deep connection to our earth and to ourselves.
Uwe Belz
Natur-und Wildnisschule Teutoburger Wald Wildnisschule
Dr. Gero Wever Wilhelmstr. 33a
Mödsiek 42; 33790 Halle, Germany 53902 Bad Münstereifel, Germany
Tel. +49 (0) 5201-735270 Tel. +49(0)2253-545568
[email protected] [email protected] www.uwebelz.de
www.natur-wildnisschule.de
Waldkindergarten-Wentorf
The nature and wilderness school Teutoburger Wald sup- Wieland Woesler
ports people of all ages on their path to deeper awareness and Golfstrasse 7b, 21465 Wentorf, Germany
a stronger connection to nature, community and self. We Tel. +49 (0) 40-7028869
offer 1-10 day camps, intensive workshops, vision quests and [email protected]
wilderness expeditions. Long-term programs include a multi www.waldkindergarten-wentorf.de
month wilderness residential program, a 9 month accredited
wilderness educator’s program, and a 2-4 year wilderness Waldkindergarten-Wentorf is a non-profit organization located
mentor training. 20 km east of Hamburg, Germany. Our team shares outdoor
learning experiences with a group of 16 children between the
Natural Skills–Unkommerzielles Wildnisforum (Hans- ages of 3 and 6. Throughout all seasons we spend 4 hours a day,
Juergen Niebuhr) 5 days a week in our forest. Our children experience individual
Andrea Träger learning, community and a lot of pure nature.

520 |
Wildnis-leben The wilderness camp of Uwe Belz is located close to the
Patrik Schneidewind Eifel National park. Our motto is living and learning with
Kronmühlstr.6, 83623 Dietramszell, Germany nature. We offer Wildnispädagogik teaching wilderness and
Tel. +49 (0) 8171-910756 a diverse array of workshops for adults and families.
[email protected]
Wildnisschule Wildeshausen im Verein für ganzheitliches
The nature and wilderness school Wildnis-leben, located at Lernen/Zentrum PrinzHöfte
the foot of the alps close to Munich, is dedicated to conserv- Myriam Kentrup, Judith Wilhelm, Jörg Pospiech
ing and passing along old wisdom and to help people along Zur Großen Höhe 4, 27243 Horstedt/Harpstedt, Germany
their path of a deeper connection to nature. Century old Tel. +49 (0) 4244-966224
skills and crafts of survival and living are passed along as well [email protected] or
as visions of peaceful and appreciative being among humans [email protected]
and all living creatures on this earth. www.wildnisschule.de

Wildnis-Wege Our wilderness school located in northern Germany has

Wald- und Wildnispädagogik been in existence for 10 years. Our hearts desire is to deepen
Anna Köhler our close contact to nature – our intrinsic home. Programs
Tel. 49 (0)-160-96843299 span wilderness camps, school excursions, coyote teaching,
[email protected] www.wildnis-wege.de and hikes with horses, wild vegetable and healing herbs,
wilderness life, wilderness educator programs Natur- und
Wildnisschule Allgäu Wildnispädagogik and much more.
Am Schleifenbach 8b
87549 Kranzegg Germany Wildnisschule Wildniswissen
Tel. +49 (0) 8327 932 731 Wolfgang Peham
Mobile +49 (0) 172 76 298 79 Freihorstfeld 2, 30559 Hannover, Germany
[email protected] Tel. +49 (0) 511- 5199680
www.wildnisschule-allgaeu.de [email protected] www.wildniswissen.de

Wildnisschule Chiemgau - Elementar Erfahrungen We offer a variety of programs throughout Germany and
Dirk Schröder Austria, 28 day wilderness living in the Carpathian Moun-
Postfach 1131, D-83201 Prien, Germany tains as well as wilderness experiences in Canada and Africa.
Tel. +49 170 2956253 Graduates of our multi year Wilderness Education Program
www.wildnisschule-chiemgau.de are admitted at Gaia University to do their Bachelor or
Masters. We also offer a Waldkindergarten based on Art of
The wilderness school Chiemgau is situated at the bottom of Mentoring to share with the littlest of people.
the Bavarian Alps. Its intent is to support people of all ages to
find the contact to nature and therefore to their own abilities, Wildnisschulen Bayern
qualities and treasures. Participants experience that aware- Network of Schools please check website for current contact
ness and ceremony are woven one into the other and build the [email protected]
base for living in harmony with oneself and the environment. www.wildnisschulen-bayern.de

Wildnisschule Uwe Belz Wildnispädagogik The Bavarian wilderness schools have created a network called
Uwe Belz, founder Wildnissschulen Bayern. We are connected by the vision of re-
Escher Str., 53949 Dahlem, Germany connecting people with nature and creation. For this we share
Tel. +49 (0) 2447-913628 the skills and wisdom of Stalking Wolf as it is passed along by
[email protected] www.uwebelz.de Tom Brown Jr. in his Tracker School as well as of Jon Young,
founder of the Wilderness Awareness School.

Affiliates | 521
Wildwechsel Naturschule
Katharina Fichtner
SWEDEN
Naturfreundestraße 4
Svenska Vildmarksskolan (The Swedish Wilderness
83734 Hausham, Germany
School)
Tel. +49 (0) 8026 - 929 65 80
Miki Dedijer
[email protected]
Orreviks Gård 310, 45196 Uddevalla, Sweden
www.Wildwechsel-Naturschule.de
Tel. +46 (0)708-159259
[email protected] www.vildmarksskolan.se
Wildwechsel nature school located in the Bavarian foothills
of the Alps hosts events on earth survival skills, sustainable
Svenska Vildmarksskolan nurtures a regional community
living and social pedagogy. Amongst others we offer team
using earth-based values, supporting personal growth and
training in nature, school class programs, further education
self-esteem by teaching wilderness survival, nature aware-
for teachers and nature camps. We are a family establishment
ness, tracking, and outdoor environmental education to
and our goal is to support people in finding their home in
youth of all ages.
nature and within themselves.

Wolfsgruppen
Wieland Woesler
Golfstrasse 7b, 21465 Wentorf, Germany
SWITZERLAND
Tel. +49 (0)40-7028869
Naturschule Woniya
[email protected] www.wolfsgruppen.de
Simon Hasler
Quadergasse 5, 7204 Untervaz, Switzerland
The Wolfsgruppen program is held 20 km east of Hamburg,
Tel. +41 (0)81 630 06 18
Germany. We mentor school age children in weekly nature
[email protected]
groups and camps year round. We help young people see
www.naturschule-woniya.ch
their own abilities and the beauty of nature.
The Naturschule Woniya (Nature School Woniya) runs tipi-
camps during the summer holidays and offers classes for
adults as well as programs for schools.
IRELAND The goal of Naturschule Woniya is helping people reconnect
to nature and themselves.
Institute for Permaculture and Nature Awareness
Aebhric and Anna O’Kelly
Gurteen
Cahersiveen
County Kerry
THE NETHERLANDS
Republic of Ireland
Skills Weekend
Tel. +353 (0)66-948-1944
Anneke Treep & Roel Meijer
www.ipna.ie
Enschede or Veendam, The Netherlands
[email protected] or [email protected]

Privately organized gatherings aimed at people with at least

some experience who are willing to attend regularly. An
opportunity to practice, share and learn. Participants come
from a variety of backgrounds, ranging from experimental
archaeology to bush craft to spiritual training, etc.

522 |
SOUTH AFRICA
AnimalSpirit
Anna Breytenbach, Founder
P O Box 1204, Stanford, 7210, South Africa
Tel. +27 (0)72 111 4052
[email protected] www.animalspirit.org

AnimalSpirit, based in South Africa, helps people maxi-

mize relationships with non-human animals and restore a
deep relationship with all of life – through the practice of
interspecies communication. Hundreds of people attend
workshops and wildlife experiences annually, with the aim
of enhancing communication, balance, empathy, compassion
and understanding among all beings.

Affiliates | 523
SUGGESTED READING

Guides to Nature Education

Acorn Naturalist Resources for the Trail and Classroom. Tustin, CA: Acorn Naturalists.
(www.acornnaturalists.com)
Berry, Thomas. The Dream of the Earth. San Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books, 1988.
Boal, Augusto. Games for Actors and Non-Actors. London, England: Routledge, 1992.
Bringing the World Alive: A Bibliography of Nature Stories for Children. Great Barrington,
MA: The Orion Society.
Burkett, Gail. Gifts from the Elders, Girls’ Path to Womanhood. NY: Universe, Inc. 2004.
Caduto, Michael J. and Joseph Bruchac. Keepers of the Animals: Native American Stories and
Environmental Activities for Children. Golden, CO: Fulcrum Publishing, 1991; Keepers of
the Night, Native American Stories and Nocturnal Activities for Children, 1994.
Cohen, M. J. Reconnecting with Nature: Finding wellness through restoring your bond with the
Earth. Lakeville, MN: 2007; Connecting with Nature: Creating Moments That Let Earth
Teach, A Field Guide. Eugene, OR: World Peace University, 1989. (www.ecopsych.com)
Cornell, Joseph Bharat. Sharing Nature with Children, 20th Anniversary Edition; Sharing
Nature with Children, Volume 2. Nevada City, CA: Dawn Publications.
(www.sharingnature.com)
Gallagher, John. Wildcraft! An Herbal Adventure Game. Board Game. Carnation, WA:
www.LearningHerbs.com, 2006. (www.LearningHerbs.com)
Gardner, Howard. Intelligence Reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century. New
York, NY: Basic Books, 1999.
Kohl, Judith and Herbert. Illustrated by Roger Bayless. The View from the Oak. The Private
Worlds of Other Creatures. San Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books, 1977.

Suggested Reading | 525

Lachecki, Marina, Joseph F. Passineau, Ann Linnea, and Paul Treuer. Teaching Kids to Love the
Earth. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 1991.
Liu, Eric. Guiding Lights – How to Mentor and Find Life’s Purpose. New York, NY: Ballantine
Books, 2006.
Louv, Richard, Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder.
Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1990. Also see Childhood’s Future, and Web of Life,
Weaving the Values that Sustain Us. (www.cnaturenet.org)
Moore, Robin C., and Herb H. Wong. Natural Learning, Creating Environments for
Rediscovering Nature’s Way of Teaching. Berkeley, CA: MIG Communications, 1997.
Nabham, Gary Paul, and Stephen Trimble. The Geography of Childhood, Why Children Need
Wild Places. Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 1994.
Orion Society’s publications. An environmental education organization working for a profound
change in our ways of living in the natural world. Their publications expand our understand-
ing of our relationship with nature. Nature Literacy Series includes, Stories in the Land: A
Place-Based Environmental Education Anthology with an introduction by John Elder; Into
the Field: A Guide to Locally Focused Teaching by Clare Walker Leslie, John Tallmadge, &
Tom Wessels, with an introduction by Ann Zwinger; Place-Based Education: Connecting
Classrooms & Communities, 2nd Edition with Index, by David Sobel. (www.orionsociety.org)
Orr, David W. Earth in Mind, On Education, Environment, and the Human Prospect.
Washington DC: Island Press, 1994.
Project Wild: K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide, A Wildlife-Focused Conservation
Education Program for K-12 Educators and Their Students. A Program of the Council for
Environmental Education. Outstanding classroom activities, available through training work-
shops. (www.ProjectWild.org)
Project Wet: Water Education for Teachers. (www.ProjectWet.org)
Repoley, Robert and Barbara English. Kamana for Kids, The Young Naturalist, Book One:
Hazards, Book Two: Awareness. (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Runyon, Linda. Shiloh, NJ: WildFoods, 1997. Wild Cards: Wild Food Identification Card
Game. Educational Cards.
Sobel, David. Beyond Ecophobia: Reclaiming the Heart in Nature Education. Great Barrington,
MA: The Orion Society, Nature Literacy Series, 1996. Also see Place-based Education:
Connecting Classrooms & Communities, and Children’s Special Places: Exploring the Role of
Forts, Dens, and Bushhouses in Middle Childhood.
Spolin, Viola. Improvisation for the Theater. Evanston, Ill., Northwestern University Press, 1963.
Van Matre, Steve. Earth Education – A New Beginning. Greenville, WV: The Institute for
Earth Education, 1990.
Walker Leslie, Clare and Charles E. Roth. Keeping a Nature Journal. North Adams, MA:
Storey Publishing, 2000.
Young, Jon. Kamana Naturalist Training Program, Kamana One: Exploring Natural Mystery;
Kamana Two: Path of the Naturalist; Kamana Three; Kamana Four. Shelton, WA: OWLink
Media, 1996. (www.WildernessAwareness.org)

526 |
Field Guides
Most of these titles are available through www.WildernessAwareness.org.
We encourage you to explore your own regional resources.
Bodie, Edmund D. Venomous Animals (Golden Guide). NY: Golden Press, 1991.
Brockman, Frank and Rebecca Merrilees. Trees of North America, a Golden Guide. NY:
Golden Press, 2001.
Burroughs, William J., Crowder, Bob, Robertson, Ted, Vallier-Talbot, Ealeanor, Whitaker,
Richard. The Nature Company Guides–Weather. Sydney, Australia: Weldon Own Pty
Limited, 1996.
Ehrlich, Paul R., David Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye. The Birder’s Handbook: A Field Guide to
the Natural History of North American Birds: Including All Species That Regularly Breed
North of Mexico. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1988.
Elbroch, Mark. Animal Skulls: A Guide to North American Species. Mechanicsburg, PA:
Stackpole Books, 2006; Bird Tracks and Sign: A Guide to North American Species, with
Elanor Marks, 2001; Mammal Tracks and Sign: A Guide to North American Species, 2003.
Elias, Thomas and Peter Dykeman. Edible Wild Plants: A North American Field Guide. NY:
Sterling Pub. Co., 1990.
Elpel, Thomas J. Botany in a Day: Herbal Field Guide to Plant Families. Pony, MT: HOPS
Press, 2000.
Fichter, George S. Golden Guide to Fresh and Salt-Water Fishing. NY: Golden Press, 1987.
Forrest, Louise Richardson. Field Guide to Tracking Animals in Snow. Mechanicsburg, PA:
Stackpole Books, 1988.
Foster, Steven and James A. Duke. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants and Herbs (Peterson
Guide). Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1999.
Foster, Steven, and Roger Caras. A Field Guide to Venomous Animals & Poisonous Plants,
North America, North of Mexico (Peterson Guide). Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1994.
Harrison, Hal and Roger Tory Peterson. Peterson Field Guide to Birds’ Nests (Eastern and
Western). Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1988.
Kays, Roland W. and Don E. Wilson. Mammals of North America. Princeton, NJ: Princeton
University Press, 2002.
Kircher, John C., Roger Tory Peterson and Gordon Morrison. Peterson Field Guide to Eastern
Forest. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1988 and Peterson Filed Guide to the Ecology of
Western Forest, 1993.
Lehr, Paul, et al. Golden Guide to Weather: Air Masses, Clouds, Rainfall, Storms, Weather
Maps, Climate. NY: Golden Press, 1987.
Levi, Herbert and Lorna. Golden Guide to Spiders and Their Kin. NY: Golden Press, 1981.
Meuninck, Jim. Basic Essentials: Edible Wild Plants & Useful Herbs. Old Saybrook, CN:
Globe Pequot Press, 1999.

Suggested Reading | 527

Murie,Olaus J. and Mark Elbroch. A Field Guide to Animal Tracks. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin, 2005.
Newcomb, Lawrence. Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide. Boston, MA: Little, Brown, 1977.
Peterson, Lee Allen and Roger Tory Peterson. A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants of Eastern
and Central North America. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1978 and A Field Guide to
Edible Wild Plants, 1977.
Petrides, George and Olivia. Peterson Field Guide to Western Trees. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin,1998.
Pojar, Jim and Andy MacKinnon. Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast: Washington, Oregon,
British Columbia & Alaska. Edmonton, AB, Canada: Lone Pine Pub., 2004.
Pyle, Robert Michael. National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Butterflies.
NY: Knopf, Distributed by Random House, 1995. The Thunder Tree. CO: Houghton
Mifflin, 1993.
Reid, Fiona A. A Field Guide to Mammals of North America, North of Mexico. Boston, MA:
Houghton Mifflin, 2006.
Reid, George K. and Herbert S. Zim. Golden Guide to Pond Life. NY: Golden Press, 1987.
Ridpath, Ian and Tirion, Will. The Monthly Sky Guide. Cambridge, England: University of
Cambridge, 1996.
Sibley, David. Field Guide to the Bird of Eastern North America and Field Guide to the Bird of
Western North America. London, U.K.: Christopher Helm, 2003; Sibley’s Birding Basics.
New York, NY: Alfred A Knpof, 2002.
Thayer, Samuel. The Forager’s Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing
Edible Wild Plants. Ogema, WI: Forager’s Harvest, 2006.
Tilford, Gregory. Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West. Missoula, MT, Mountain Press
Publishing Co., 1997. From Earth to Herbalist: An Earth Conscious Guide to Medicinal
Plants. Missoula, MT: Mountain Press Publishing Company, 1998.
Zim, Howard and Hobart Smith. Golden Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians. NY: Golden
Press, 2001.
Zim, Howard and Lester Ingle. Golden Guide to Seashores. NY: Golden Press, 1991.
Zim, Howard and Robert Baker. Golden Guide to Stars. NY: Golden Press, 2001.

Guide Books
Anderson, M. Kat. Tending the Wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of
California’s Natural Resources. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2005.
Beard, Daniel Carter. The American Boy’s Handy Book: What to Do and How to Do It.
Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications, 2003; The Field and Forest Handy Book: New Ideas for
Out of Doors. Boston, MA: D.R. Godine, 2000.
Beard, Linda and Beard, Adelia, B. The American Girl’s Handy Book: Making the Most of
Outdoor Fun. Lanham, MD: Derrydale Press, 2002.

528 |
Belitz, Charlene and Lundstrom, Meg. The Power of Flow: Practical ways to transform your life
with meaningful coincidence. New York, NY: Three Rivers Press, 1998.
Brill, Steve. Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild (and Not So
Wild) Places. NY: HarperCollins, 1994.
Brown, Tom, Jr., with Judy Brown. Tom Brown’s Field Guide to Nature and Survival for
Children. Illus Heather Bolyn and Trip Becker. NY: Berkley Books, 1989. Also see Tom
Brown’s Field Guides to Wilderness Survival, Nature Observation and Tracking, City and
Suburban Survival, Living with the Earth, Wild and Edible and Medicinal Plants, The
Forgotten Wilderness.
Couplan Ph.D., Francois and James Duke. The Encyclopedia of Edible Plants of North
America. New Canaan, CT: Keats Publishers, 1998.
Elbroch, Mark and Mike Pewtherer. Wilderness Survival. Camden, ME: Ragged Mountain
Press/McGraw-Hill, 2006.
Elpel, Thomas J. Participating in Nature: Thomas Elpel’s Field Guide to Primitive Living Skills.
Pony, MT: HOPS Press, 2002.
Gatty, Harold. Finding Your Way without Map or Compass. Mineola, NY: Dover
Publications, 1999.
Halfpenny, James. Field Guide to Mammal Tracking in North America. Boulder, CO: Johnson
Books, 1986; Winter: An Ecological Handbook. Boulder, CO: Johnson Books, 1989.
Hamm, Jim. Bowyer’s Bible. New York, NY: Lyons and Burford, 1993.
Heath, Robin. Sun, Moon, Earth.. Wales, Wooden Books, 1999.
Hemenway, Toby. Gaia’s Garden: A Guide to Home-scale Permaculture. Los Alomos, NM:
Chelsea Green, 2001.
Herrero, Stephen. Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance. New York, NY: Nick Lyons
Books, 1985.
Hickman, Mae, Maxine Guy and Stephen Levine. Care of the Wild Feathered and Furred:
Treating and Feeding Injured Birds and Animals. Santa Cruz, CA: Unity Press, 1978.
Hughes, K. Wind and Wolf, Linda Daughters of the Moon, Sisters of the Sun–Young Women
&Mentors on the Transition to Womanhood. Gabriola Island, BC, New Society Publishers, 1997.
Jacke, Dave and Eric Toensmeier. Edible Forest Gardens. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea
Green, 2005.
Kroodsma, Donald. The Singing Life of Birds: The Art and Science of Listening to Bird Song.
Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 2007.
Klein, Hilary Dole and Adrian M. Wenner. Tiny Game Hunting: Environmentally Healthy
Ways to Trap and Kill the Pests in Your House and Garden. NY: Bantam Books, 1991.
Law, Ben. The Woodland Way: A Permaculture Approach to Sustainable Woodlot
Management. Hampshire, U.K.: Hyden House, 2001.
Liebenberg, Louis. The Art of Tracking: The Origin of Science. Claremont, South Africa: David
Phillip Publishers, 1990.

Suggested Reading | 529

Martin, Alfred G. Hand Taming Wild Birds at the Feeder. Chambersburg, PA: Alan C. Hood
& Company, 1991.
Mollison, Bill and Reny Mia Sley. Permaculture: A Designer’s Manual. Tasmania, Australia:
Tagari Publications, 1997.
Moore, Robert L. and Max J. Havlick Jr. The Archetype of Initiation. Philadelphia, PA: Xlibris
Corporation, 2001.
Plotkin, Bill. Nature and the Human Soul, Cultivating Wholeness and Community in a
Fragmented World. Novato, CA: New World Library, 2008.
Ray, Paul H., Ph.D., Anderson, Sherry R., Ph.D., The Cultural Creatives: How 50 Million
People Are Changing the World,
NY: Harmony Books, October, 2000.
Rezendes, Paul. Tracking & the Art of Seeing: How to Read Animal Tracks and Sign. New
York, NY: Harper Collins, 1999.
Ridpath, Ian. Star Tales. New York, NY: Universe Books, 1988.
Schacter-Shalomi, Zalman and Miller, Ronald. From Aging to Saging: A Profound New Vision
for Growing Older, New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc, 1995
Smith, C. Lavett. Fish Watching: An Outdoor Guide to Freshwater Fishes. Ithaca, NY:
Comstock, 1994.
Stokes, Donald and Lillian. Stokes Field Guide to Animal Tracking and Behavior. USA: Little,
Brown and Company, 1987. Stokes Guide to Observing Insect Guides. USA: Little, Brown
and Company, 1984. Stokes Guide to Bird Behavior Volume 1. USA: Little, Brown and
Company, 1983.
Tilton, Buck. Backcountry First Aid and Extended Care. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press, 2007.
Wescott, Dave. Primitive Technology: A Book of Earth Skills–From the Society of Primitive
Technology. Salt Lake City, UT: Gibbs Smith Publisher, 1999.
Wiggington, Elliott. The Foxfire Books: Hog Dressing; Log Cabin Building; Mountain Crafts
and Foods; Planting by the Signs; Snake Lore, Hunting Tales, Faith Healing; Moonshining;
and Other Affairs of Plain Living. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1972.
Young, Jon and Tiffany Morgan. Animal Tracking Basics. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole
Books, 2007.

Natural History and Science

Abram, David. The Spell of the Sensuous: Preception and Language in a More-than Human
World. New York, NY: Pantheon Books, Random House, Inc., 1996.
Asimov, Isaac. Beginnings: The Story of Origins–of Mankind, Life, the Earth, the Universe.
NY: Walker and Company, 1987.
Balick, Micheal and Paul Alan Cox. Plants, People and Culture: the Science of Ethnobotany.
NY: Scientific American Library, 1996.

530 |
Benyus, Janine M. Illustrated by Juan Carlos Barberis. The Secret Language and Remarkable
Behavior of Animals. New York, NY: Black Dog and Leventhal Publishers, Inc., 1998.
Carson, Rachel. Silent Spring. New York, NY: A Crest Book with Houghton Mifflin Company,
1962. Also see The Sense of Wonder.
Chesanow, Jeanne R. Honeysuckle Sipping: The Plant Lore of Childhood. Camden, ME : Down
East Books, 1987.
Corbettt, Jim. Jungle Lore. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1953.
Cronon, William. Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists and the Ecology of New England.
New York, NY: Hill & Wang, 1983.
Day, Gordon M. In Search of New England’s Native Past: Selected Essays. Amherst, MA:
University of Massachusetts Press, 1998.
Deitrich, William. Natural Grace, the Charm, Wonder, & Lessons of Pacific Northwest
Animals and Plants. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press.
Deur, Douglas and Nancy J. Turner. Keeping it Living: Traditions of Plant Use and Cultivation on
the Northwest Coast of North America. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 2006.
Duensing, Edward. Talking to Fireflies, Shrinking the Moon: Nature Activities for All Ages.
New York, NY: Plume, 1990.
Etling, Kathy. Cougar attacks: Encounters of the Worst Kind. Guilford, CT: The Lyons Press, 2004.
Gallagher, Winnifred. The Power of Place: How our surroundings shape our thoughts, emo-
tions and actions. New York, NY: Harper-Collins, 1993.
Goodall, Jane. My Life with the Chimpanzees. New York, NY: Pocket Books, 1996.
Gore, Al. Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit. New York, NY: Rodale, 2006;
An Inconvenient Truth: The Crisis of Global Warming. NY: Viking, 2007.
Gibbons, Euell. Stalking the Good Life, My Love Affair with Nature. NY: David McKay
Company, Inc. 1971.
Giller, Paul S., and Bjorn Malmqvist. The Biology of Streams and Rivers. New York, NY:
Oxford University Press, 1998.
Goodenough, Ursula. The Sacred Depths of Nature. New York, NY: Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 1998.
Gould, Stephen Jay. Dinosaur in a Haystack: Reflections on Natural History. New York, NY:
Harmony Books, 1995; The Panda’s Thumb: More Reflections on Natural History. New
York, NY: Norton, 1980.
Heinrich, Bernd. Bumblebee Economics. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1979; Mind
of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds. New York, NY: Cliff Street
Books, 1999; The Trees in My Forest. New York, NY: Cliff Street Books, 1997; Winter World:
The Ingenuity of Animal Survival. New York, NY: Ecco, 2003.
Jensen, Derrick. A Language Older Than Words. New York, NY: Context Books, 2000.
Kruckeberg, Arthur R. The Natural History of Puget Sound Country. Seattle, WA:
University of Washington Press, 1991.

Suggested Reading | 531

Kyselka, Will. An Ocean in Mind, Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press, 1987.
Lieber, Arnold L., M.D.. How the Moon Affects You. Mamaroneck, NY: Hastings House, 1996.
Logan, William Bryand. Dirt: The Ecstatic Skin of the Earth. NY: Riverhead Books, 1995.
Luoma, Jon R. The Hidden Forest: The Biography of an Ecosystem. New York, NY: Henry
Holt, 1999.
Margolin, Malcom. The Ohlone Way: Indian Life in the San Francisco – Monterey Bay Area.
Berkely, CA: Heyday Books, 1981.
Marchand, Peter J. Autumn: A Season of Change and Life in the Cold: An Introduction to
Winter Ecology. Hanover, NH: University Press of New England, 1996.
Martin, Alexander C., Herbert S. Zim and Arnold L. Nelson. American Wildlife & Plants: A
Guide to Wildlife Food Habits. NY: Dover, 1951.
Matthiessen, Peter. Wildlife in America. NY: Vicking, 1959.
McLuhan, Touch the Earth, A Self-Portrait of Indian Existence. New York, NY: Simon and
Shuster, a Touchstone Book, 1971.
McGarr, Paul and Stephen Rose, eds. The Richness of Life: The Essential Stephen Jay Gould.
New York, NY: 2007.
McPhee, John. Basin and Range. New York, NY: The Noonday Press, Farrar, Straus and
Giroux, 1980. Also see The Control of Nature, Coming into the Country, The Pine Barrens,
and A Sense of Where You Are.
Minnis, Paul and Wayne Elisens. Biodiversity and Native America. University of Oklahoma, 2000.
Moore, Robert, L., and Max J. Havlick. The Archetype of Initiation: Sacred Space, Ritual
Process, and Personal Transformation. Philadelphia, PA: Xlibris Corporation 2001.
Nabham, Gary Paul. Cultures of Habitat: on nature, culture, and story. Washington, DC:
Counterpoint, 1997.
Nash, Roderick Frazier. The Rights of Nature, A History of Environmental Ethics. Madison,
WI: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1989.
Peattie, Donald Culross. A Natural History of North American Trees. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin, 2007.
Perlin, Joh. A Forest Journey: The Role of Wood in the Development of Civilization. Boston,
MA: Harvard University Press. 1991.
Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 2006. Also see The
Botany of Desire.
Ponting, Clive. A Green History of the World: The Environment and the Collapse of Great
Civilizations. New York, NY: St. Martin’s Press, 1992.
Pyle, Robert Michael. Wintergreen: listening to the Land’s Heart. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin, 1996.
Rue III, Leonard Lee. Way of the Whitetail. Stillwater, MN: Voyageur Press, 2005. Also
see The World of the White-tailed Deer. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, 1962. Sacred Tree,
Reflections on Native American Spirituality. Produced collaboratively by Judie Bopp, Michael

532 |
 Bopp, Lee Brown, and Phil Lane. Illustrated by Patricia Lucas. Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada:
Four Worlds Development Press, 1984.
Seton, Earnest Thompson. Animal Tracks and Hunter Signs. Also see Wild Animals I Have
Known. Cutchogue, NY: Buccaneer Books, 1926.
Shipman, Wanda and Marna Grove. Animal Architects: How Animals Weave, Tunnel and
Build Their Remarkable Homes. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole, 1994.
Standage, Tom. A History of the World in 6 Glasses. NY: Walker & Company, 2005.
Thomas, Lewis. Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher. New York, NY: Viking Press, 1974.
Also see The Lives of a Cell and The Medusa and the Snail: More Notes of a Biology Watcher.
Tudge, Colin. The Tree: A Natural History of What Trees Are, How They Live, and Why They
Matter. NY: Crown Publishers, 2006.
Turner, Nancy J. Keeping it Living: Traditions of Plant Use and Cultivation of the Northwest
Coast of North America. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 2005.
Walters, Mark Jerome. Courtship in the Animal Kingdom. NY: Anchor, 1989.
Watts, May Theilgaard. Reading the Landscape of America. Rochester, NY: Nature Study
Guild, 1999.
Wessels, Tom. Reading the Forested Landscape: A Natural History of New England.
Woodstock, VT: Countryman Press, 1999.
Williams, Hill. The Restless Northwest, a Geological Story. Pullman, WA: Washington State
University Press, 2002.
Wilson, E.O. ed. and Frances M. Peter, assoc. ed. Biophilia. Boston, MA: Harvard, 1984.
Naturalist. Washington, DC: Island Press, 2006.
Young, Karen Romano. Small Worlds, Maps and Mapmaking. New York, NY: Scholastic
Nonfiction, 2002.

Nature Writing – Literary Stories, for kids of all ages.

Abbey, Edward. Desert Solitaire. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press, 1988. (The
Southwestern desert, with an attitude!)
Barrett, Andrea. The Voyage of the Narwhal. New York, NY: W. H. Norton & Company, 1998.
(Early navigation in the arctic ice.)
Baylor, Byrd. The Other Way to Listen. New York, NY: Scribner, 1978; Your Own Best Secret
Place. New York, NY: Scribner, 1979; Coyote Cry. New York, NY: Lothrop, Lee, and
Shepard, 1972. (Wonderful illustrated books for children.)
Berry, Wendell, edited by Norman Wirzba. The Art of the Commonplace: Agrarian Essays
of Wendell Berry. Washington, DC: Counterpoint, 2002; Meeting the Expectations
of the Land: Essays in Sustainable Agriculture and Stewardship. San Francisco, CA:
Northpoint Press, 1984; The Unsettling of America: Culture & Agriculture. San
Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books, 1996. (A wise, quietly spiritual proponent of connec-
tion to place and sustainable living.)

Suggested Reading | 533

Bonello, Kurt L. When Pappy Goes Hunting. Bonello Studios, 1995. (A sensitive portrayal of
deer hunting for children’s understanding.)
Brown Jr., Tom. The Tracker: The True Story of Tom Brown Jr. as told to William Jon Watkins.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1978. Also see The Search, The Vision, The Quest, The
Journey, and Grandfather, New York, NY: Berkley Books. (Seminal books by Jon Young’s
mentor.)
Carter, Forrest. The Education of Little Tree. Albuquerque, NM: University of New Mexico
Press, 1976. (Youth. A wonderful picture of growing up in the hills of Kentucky.)
Dillard, Annie. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. New York, NY: Harper & Rowe, 1974. (Dense and
quirky observations from Virginia. Also see An American Childhood.)
Duncan, David Jame. The River Why. Toronto, NY: Bantam Books, 1984. Also see River Teeth,
God Laughs and Plays. (Hilarious story of fishing and vision quest.)
Egan, Timothy. Good Rain: Across Time and Terrain in the Pacific Northwest. New York, NY:
Vintage, 1991. (Compelling narrative natural history of the Pacific Northwest.)
Ehrlich, Gretel. The Solace of Open Spaces. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1985. (Personal
observations in the American West.)
Eiseley, Loren. The Immense Journey. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1946. Also see The
Unexpected Universe. (An imaginative naturalist explores evolutionary history.)
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. Nature. Boston, MA: James Monroe and Co, 1936. (American tran-
scendentalist who found God in nature. Henry David Thoreau’s mentor. See his essays in
collected works.)
Fuller, Alexandra. Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight, An African Childhood. New York, NY:
Random House Trade paperbacks, 2001. (Chaotic childhood midst the heat and smells of
Southern Africa.)
George, Jean Craighead. Julie of the Wolves. Boston, MA: G. K. Hall, 1973; My Side of the
Mountain. New York, NY: Puffin Books, 1998. (For youth, strong stories of wilderness survival.)
Gilbert, Elizabeth, The Last American Man. NY: Viking, 2002. (The story of Eustace Conway
who lives and teaches off the land in Appalachia.)
Gould, Stephen Jay, Oliver Stacks and Stephen Rose. The Richness of Life: The Essential
Stephen Jay Gould. NY: Vintage, 2007.
Hardy, Thomas. The Return of the Native. New York, NY: New American Library, 1959. (A
classic story of the power of nature, set in the desolate heath of England.)
Hunter, Paul. Breaking Ground. Eugene, OR: Silverfish Review Press, 2004. (Muscular poetry
about farming life in Ohio.)
Kingsolver, Barbara. Prodigal Summer. NY: Harper Collins Publishers, 2000. (Also nature-
based works: Poisonwood Bible; Homeland and Other Stories; Small Wonder; Essays;
Animal, Vegetable; Miracle: a Year of Food Life.)
Kipling, Rudyard. The Jungle Books. New York, NY: Barnes and Noble Classics, 1894. (A
magnificent read for all ages. Beyond Disney’s Mowgli. Richly charactered storytelling set in
Africa and India.)

534 |
Krutch, Joseph Wood. The Desert Years. Tucson, AZ: The University of Arizona Press, 1951.
(Stories from the Arizona desert. Also see The Voice of the Desert and Grand Canyon: Today
and all its Yesterdays.)
Le Guin, Ursula. Buffalo Gals and other Animal Presences. Santa Barbara, CA: Capra Press,
1987. (Brilliant animal fiction and fantasy, centered on Coyote.)
Leopold, Aldo. A Sand County Almanac. NY: Oxford University Press, 1949. Also see his
many essays. (A compelling declaration of “the conservation ethic.”)
London, Jack. The Call of the Wild and Other Stories. New York, NY: Oxford University Press,
1990. (Great tales of the Yukon, one from the point of view of the dog. For youth and adults.)
Lopez, Barry. Arctic Dreams: Imagination and Desire in a Northern Landscape. NY: Bantam
Books, 1989. Crow and Weasel, illustrated by Tom Pohrt, San Francisco, CA: North Point
Press, 1990. Patriotism and the American Land. Great Barrington, MA: The Orion Society,
2002. Also see Giving Birth to Thunder; Sleeping with His Daughter; Coyote Builds North
America; Of Wolves and Men; Winter Count; Desert Notes; River Notes; and Home
Ground. (Myth, politics, and landscape from the Arctic southward.)
Lueders, Edward. Writing Natural History, Dialogues with Authors. Salt Lake City, UT:
University of Utah Press, 1989. (Makes a strong argument for writing about nature. Includes
a terrific essay by E. O. Wilson.)
Lynch, Jim. The Highest Tide, a novel. New York, NY: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2005. (For youth
and adults. An endearing coming of age story about a boy who pays attention to tidal life.)
Maxwell, Gavin. Ring of Bright Water. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1987. (Youth and
Adults. Otters and country life in Scotland.)
Momaday, N. Scott. House Made of Dawn. New York, NY: Harper and Row, 1968; The Way
to Rainy Mountain. NY: Harper & Row, 1968. (Evocative writing, Kiowa heritage.)
Mowat, Farley. Never Cry Wolf. Boston, MA: Black Bay Books, 2001. (Youth and Adult, funny,
wise stories of living among wolves.)
Muir, John. Essential Muir: A Selection of John Muir’s Best Writings. Berkeley, CA: Heyday
Books, 2006. Also see Travels in Alaska, My First Summer in the Sierra, The Yosemite, The
Wilderness World of John Muir. (Pioneering adventures in the West.)
Murie, Margaret E. Two in the Far North. Seattle, WA: Alaska Northwest Books, 1997.
(Growing up in untamed Alaska, accompanying Olaus Murrie’s discoveries.)
Norton Book of Nature Writing, The. Edited by Robert Fince and John Elder. New York, NY:
W. W. Norton & Company, 1990. (An outstanding chronological collection of prose essays
that define the nature writing genre–full of scientific observation, personal narrative, awe and
reverence, and literary value.)
Nelson, Richard K. The Island Within. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1989. Also see Heat
and Blood: living with Deer in America; Make Prayers to the Raven: a Koyukon View of the
Northern Forest; Shadow of the Hunter: Stories of Eskimo Life. (Anthropology among the
Northern Koyukon.)
Oliver, Mary. New and Selected Poems. Boston, MA: Beacon Press, 1992. (Nature poetry, full
of stunning imagery and personal response.)

Suggested Reading | 535

Olson, Sigurd. Open Horizons. NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1956 & 1969. Also see The Singing
Wilderness; Runes of the North; Wilderness Days; Reflections from the North Country;
Of Time and Place. (Beautiful story of growing into love and conservation of the Boundary
Waters Wilderness.)
Powell, John Wesley. The Diary of John Wesley Powell: Conquering the Grand Canyon.
(Amazing journaling while discovering the Grand Canyon, 1834-1902.)
Powell, M. Norman. Echoes of Kenya & Other Short Poems. Shelton, WA: OWLink Media,
2002; Ingwe. Shelton, WA: OWLink Media, 2001. (Stories from our Grandfather, Ingwe.)
Pyle, Robert Michael. Wintergreen, Rambles in a Ravaged Land. Seattle, WA: Sasquatch
Books, 2001; The Thunder Tree: Lessons from an Urban Wildland. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin, 1992; Chasing Monarchs: A Migration with the Butterflies of Passage. (Delightful
writing on butterflies & boyhood, Colorado and Washington.)
Raymo, Chet. Natural Prayers. Saint Paul, MN: Hungry Mind Press, 1999. (Majestic personal
musings on astronomy.)
Sachs, Maryam. The Moon. New York, NY: Abbeville Press, 1998. (Covers all aspects of the
moon, from the mythical and magical to the scientific.)
Schachter-Shalomi, Zalman and Ronald S. Miller, From Aging to Saging: A Profound New
Vision for Growing Older, New York, NY: Warner Books, Inc, 1995. (Creating a world-wide
network of “Spiritual Eldering.”)
Silko, Leslie Marmon. Ceremony. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1986. (Pueblo landscape and
myth, New Mexico.)
Standing Bear, Luther. My Indian Boyhood. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1988;
Land of the Spotted Eagle, 2006. (Stories from his Sioux heritage.)
Stegner, Wallace. Angle of Repose. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1971. (One of many richly
developed novels of life in the American West.)
Stokes, John, ed. Thanksgiving Address: Greetings to the Natural World. Onchiota, NY: Six
Nations Indian Museum, 1993. (A little book containing the powerful Mohawk Thanksgiving
Address.)
Swamp, Jake. Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message. New York, NY: Lee
& Low Books, 1995. (An illustrated children’s version of the Thanksgiving Address.)
Steinbeck, John. The Log from the Sea of Cortez. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1995. (The
Great American novelist writes with a profound sense of place. Also see The Grapes of
Wrath, East of Eden.)
Thoreau, Henry David. Walden; or, Life in the Woods. NY: Dover Publications, 1995.
(A classic, full of keen awareness and “adolescent bravado.”)
Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose. NY: Penguin, 2005.(A strong
message for building a better world.)
Van der Post, Laurens, The Lost World of the Kalahari. New York, NY: Morrow, 1988;
Testament to the Bushmen. 1984. (An artistic and political voice for the soul and culture of
the Kalahari Bushmen.)

536 |
Wallace, David Rains. The Klamath Knot. San Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books, 1983.
(Brilliant, captivating writing evolution’s story in Klamath, Oregon.)
Williams, Terry Tempest. Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place. New York, NY:
Pantheon/Random House, 1991. (A naturalist and activist’s touching account of the effects of
the flooding Great Salt Lake.)
Words from the Land, Encounters with Natural History Writing. Trimble, Stephen (Ed.).
Salt lake City, UT: Peregrine Smith Books, 1989. (Selected writing with biographical
introductions.)
Zwinger, Ann. The Nearsignted Naturalist. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press, 1998.
(A tour of ordinary and astonishing natural places.)
Zwinger, Susan. The Last Wild Edge: One Woman’s Journey from the Arctic Circle to the
Olympic Rain Forest. Boulder, CO: Johnson Books, 1999.

Multimedia Resources
Advanced Bird Language: Reading the Concentric Rings of Nature. Audio CD Series. Jon
Young. Shelton, WA: OWLink Media, 2005. (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Art of Mentoring and Coyote Teaching, The. Audio CD. Jon Young with Ellen Haas. Shelton,
WA: OWLink Media, 1995. (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Bay Area Mycological Society’s Webpage of Mushroom Poisoning Stories. www.bayareamush-
rooms.org/poisonings/index.html
Birding by Ear: Eastern and Central Region. Audio CD Series. Richard K. Walton, Robert W.
Walton and John Sill. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 2002.
Birds, Birds, Birds! An Indoor Bird watching Field Trip. DVD Bird and Bird Song Guide. John
Feith. Madison, WI: Calculo, 2005.
Branches of Mentoring. Audio CD. Michael Meade.
Connecting with Nature by Michael J. Cohen. Charley Scutt, 2007. DVD. Project Nature
Connect. (www.ecopsych.com)
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Macaulay Library (Free Bird Sounds Archive)
(www.animalbehaviorarchive.org)
David Fischer’s Webpage on America’s Poisonous Mushrooms.
(americanmushrooms.com/toxicms.htm)
Folklore and Legends of the Akamba. Audio CD. M. Norman Powell. Shelton, WA: OWLink
Media, 2003. (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Into the Forest, Nature’s Food Chain Game. Card Game. Oakland, CA: Ampersand Press.
John Gallagher’s herbalist training website: http://www.herbmentor.com
Learning the Language of Birds. Audio Cassette. Jon Young. (www.owlinkmedia.com)
Life of Birds. DVD. David Attenborough. London, UK: BBC Warner, 2002.
Life of Mammals. DVD. Dir. David Attenborough. London, UK: BBC Warner, 2003.

Suggested Reading | 537

More Birding by Ear: Eastern and Central Region. Audio CD Series. Richard K. Walton and
Robert W. Walton. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 2002.
North American Mycological Society’s Mushroom Poisoning Case Registry and Volunteer
Emergency Mushroom ID: www.sph.umich.edu/~kwcee/mpcr/
Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series. DVD. David Attenborough. London, UK: BBC, 2006.
Poison Control Centers: www.1-800-222-1222.info/poisonhelp.asp or call 1-800-222-1222
Primitive Skills and Wilderness Survival. DVD Series. Tom Elpel. (www.Hollowtop.com)
Reclaiming Our Natural Connection. Audio. Jon Young. Owlink Media, 2008.
(8shields.org/products)
Sharing the Joy of Nature. Video. Joseph Cornell. Nevada City, CA: Sharing Nature
Foundation (www.sharingnature.com/BooksandResources.html)
Seeing Through Native Eyes: Understanding the Language of Nature. CD Series. Jon Young.
Shelton, WA: OWLink Media, 2005. (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Seeing Through the Eyes of the Ancestors. Audio. Jon Young. (8shields.org/products)
Seeing Through the Eyes of the Children. Audio. Jon Young . (8shields.org/products)
The Great Dance. DVD or VHS. (www.sense-africa.com)
The Moon in the Well. Book and Audio CD. Erica Helm Meade.
The Spirit of the Leopard. Audio CD. M. Norman Powell. Red Bank, NJ: Redhawk
Productions,1995. (www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Thayer Birding Software (by Region). (www.thayerbirding.com)
Tracking: Mastering the Basics. DVD. James Halfpenny. Gardiner, MT:
www.TrackNature.com, 2004.
Tracking Pack One. Audio CD. Jon Young. Shelton, WA: OWLink Media 1998.
(www.WildernessAwareness.org)
Western Birding by Ear. Audio. Richard K. Walton, Robert W. Walton and Roger Tory
Peterson. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
“Wilderness First Responder (WFR)” course from one of the following:
Solo - www.soloschools.com/index.html
Wilderness Medical Associates - www.wildmed.com/
Wilderness Medical Institute - www.nols.edu/wmi/

538 |
INDEX

(Page numbers in italics indicate front matter. Page Awe and Reverence. See under Indicators
numbers in bold indicate a sidebar or illustration.) of Awareness
Bagua/Baqua (Chinese), 197, 198
Academic Learning Requirements (Washington Bio-blitz, 164, 476
State), 130, 169, 257, 258, 266, 275 Birth, 173
See also Indicators of Awareness as part of the Natural Cycle, 202
Adaptation, 208, 238 Birds (as Shield in The Book of Nature), 183
and 50-50 principle, 237 activities featuring, 185
Adolescence, 204 and ancestors, 183
as part of the Natural Cycle, 204 and Core Routines, 185, 188, 192
Adulthood, 206 and listening (quiet mind), 184
transition to, as part of the Natural Cycle, 204 and nature connection, 184
young, as part of the Natural Cycle, 205 and secrets, 183
Aliveness and Agility. See under Indicators of and survival, 183
Awareness as messengers, 183, 192
Animal Tracking Basics (Young), 145 identification of, 185, 187
Animals language of, 183, 184, 186, 187, 188
as teachers, 52, 348 list of, 185-186
Ancestors, 29, 60, 67, 86, 167, 173, 183, 243 mentoring with, 184-185
Animal Forms. See under Core Routines resources, 192-193
Art of Mentoring, The, xxxii, 28, 198, 208 “The Five Voices of the Birds”, 185, 189-190, 338
and Coyote Mentoring, 3, 37, 282 Book of Nature, The, 18, 71, 125, 193, 197, 230
and adaptation and improvisation, 237, 238 and Child Passions, 125
and Coyote Teaching, xxii, xxiv, 16 and Core Routines, 125, 284
See also Coyote Mentoring and invisible school, 15
Assessment criteria. See Indicators of Awareness and nature connection, 194, 283, 284

Index | 539
 and relationship, 128, 283 Common Sense. See under Indicators of Awareness
definition of, 283 Cooperative learning groups,
Eight (8) Shields of, 127, 193 and edge(s), 251
explanation of, 125-126, 128 description of, 251
organization of, 128-129 flow of, 253-254
Brain Patterning in traditional cultures, 252
and Core Routines, 23, 45 three types of, 252-253
definition of, 22 clans, 252
explanation of, 23 guilds, 253
Brain Patterning Cycle, 24 societies, 252
Brain Patterning Theory Core Routines (of Nature Connection), 21, 32
and nature connection, 25 and activities, 291
and Thanksgiving, 74 and Brain Patterning Cycle, 23, 26, 29
Brain patterns, 25, 45, 67, 69, 98, 108, 128, 181 and Child Passions, 79, 83, 86
Brown, Tom, Jr., xxx, 24, 37, 48, 72, 277 and games, 80-81, 86-87
and Brown, Debbie, xxxii and invisible school, 15
The Tracker, 145 and nature awareness, 26
Care and Tending. See under Indicators of and storytelling, 113
Awareness and also tending Animal Forms (as Core Routine)
Celebration activities featuring, 148, 310-313, 386, 388,
of learning journey, 242 391, 394, 397, 399, 401, 470
Ceremony, 173 and imitation, 50
opening and closing, 210, 213-214 explanation of, 50-53
Child Passions, 17, 18, 79, 90, 114 See also Senses
and Core Routines, 79, 83, 84 definition of (the 13), 22, 35, 283, 291
and Flow Learning, 210 Expanding Our Senses (as Core Routine), 64
and invisible school, 15 activities featuring, 300-305, 368, 371, 373,
and mentors, 79 376, 378, 380, 386, 391, 482
definition of, 79-80, 283 explanation of, 44-47
games (as Child Passion), 80-81 See also Senses
hiding (as Child Passion), 84 explanation of (the 13), 36
make-believe (as Child Passion), 87 Exploring Field Guides (as Core Routine)
music-making (as Child Passion), 119 activities featuring, 322-325, 476
questioning (as Child Passion), 44, 94 explanation of, 61-63
and answering, 99-100 Journaling (as Core Routine)
and curiosity, 94, 95 activities featuring, 325-330
storytelling (as Child Passion), 105, 114 explanation of, 63-66
Childhood, 6 nature journal and, 64
and curiosity, 85 Listening for Bird Language (as Core Routine)
and Nature Connection, 7 activities featuring, 336-342
as part of the Natural Cycle, 203 explanation of, 71-73
Cohen, Michael J., 47 Mapping (as Core Routine), 64
Reconnecting with Nature, 47 activities featuring, 318-321, 450

540 |
 explanation of, 58-61 description of, 8
Mind’s Eye Imagining (as Core Routine), 53 Coyote Mentor(s)
activities featuring, 334-336, 483 and Art of Questioning, the, 95-96
and Story of the Day, 70, 212 and using the Activities Guide, 286-287
explanation of, 69-71 and Book of Nature, The, 128
Questioning and Tracking (as Core Routine), 62, 64 and brain patterning, 23
activities featuring, 142, 145, 306-310, 406, and Flow Learning, 209-210, 245
409, 412, 416, 420, 425, 432 and mentoring style, xxviii, 103
explanation of, 47-49 and natural gifts, 31, 66, 140, 165
Sit Spot (as Core Routine), 41, 44, 62, 64 and organization, 215
activities featuring, 39, 87, 147, 292-296, 472 and play, 14, 81-83
and sunrise and sunset, 38 and Sit Spot, 38
explanation of, 36-40 and storytelling, 43-44
Story of the Day (as Core Routine), 41, 64, 105 and teaching team, 246
activities featuring, 296-300, 449, 481, 486 and the learning journey, 240, 241, 242, 243, 244
explanation of, 41-44, and the Natural Cycle, 201, 208-209, 245
Survival Living (as Core Routine) as guide, 11, 14, 197, 238, 492
activities featuring, 330-333, 454-456, 461, 465 as Trickster, 14
explanation of, 67-69 definition of, 238, 496
Thanksgiving (as Core Routine) in cooperative learning groups, 251
activities featuring, 342-345 Thanksgiving for, 245
and healing, 75 Coyote Mentoring, xxiv, 496
explanation of, 73-76 and ancestors, xxvii
using the, 27 and Book of Nature, The, 284
Wandering (as Core Routine), 62 and Child Passions, 84, 197, 284
activities featuring, 314-317, 446, 448 and Core Routines, 284, 285
explanation of, 53-57 and curriculum, 129-130
Cornell, Joseph, xxvi, 83, 209, 212 and edge(s), 11, 282, 283
and Flow Learning, 209, 212 and guiding, 12, 286
Sharing the Joy of Nature with Children, xxvi, 83, and hazards, 131-134
209, 212 and healing, xxix
Coyote, 3-6, 21, 27, 92, 95, 100, 108, 171, 286, and Indicators of Awareness, 284
287, 496 and knowledge of place, 258
and Core Routines, 27 and nature connection, xxxiii, 10, 258, 490
and nature connection, xxviii, 13, 54 and Natural Cycle, 201, 209, 284
and Nature-Deficit Disorder, 8 and sensory awareness, 258
and edge(s), xxiii, 10-14, 126, 237, 496 and tracking, 226
and improvisation, 237 definition of, xxvii, xxviii, 13
and sensory awareness, 27 elements of, xxxi
and storytelling, 108 goals of, 282
as shape-shifter, 116 history of, 489-491
as Trickster/Transformer, xxviii, 9-10, 108, 261 lineage of, 282
as guide, xxvi, 10-14, 18-19, 234 three styles of, 102-103

Index | 541
 workshops on, 28 mentoring with, 158-160
Cultural creative, 244 resources, 165-166
Cultural education, 236-237 Ecology, 160
Cultural mentoring, xxxii, 16-17, 490 and connection, 164-165
and Coyote Mentoring, 490, 491 mentoring with, 164
and “Eight Shields Dancing”, 493, 494, 497 Edge(s), 84, 85, 91
Curiosity, 42 and Child Passions, 79
and childhood, 83 and Coyote Mentoring, xxvii, 68, 80, 201, 237
and field guides, 62, 63 and improvisation, 237
and Indicators of Awareness, 266 and questioning, 95, 96
and wandering, 56 and storytelling, 43, 86, 107
and learning process, 56 Eight Directions, The, 198
and learning culture, 347 and Profile of the Learning Journey, 240-244
and Questioning (as Child Passion), 92 Flow Learning and, 234
Death, 173 qualities of 199
and hazards, 131 See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions)
and Indicators of Awareness, 271 Elderhood, 206
and animals, 390 transition to, as part of the Natural Cycle, 206
and survival, 455 Elders, 87, 166, 204, 205, 279
as part of the Natural Cycle, 207 and Core Routines, 36
Didactic instruction, 99, 100, 102, 108 and mentoring, 215
and storytelling, 99 and sacred story, 172
as mentoring style, 102, 103 and the learning journey, 243
East, 60 and teaching team, 247
activities featuring, 218, 220, 228, 229, 230 field guides as, 61
and Flow Learning Cycle, 210 Expanding Our Senses. See under Core Routines
and Indicators of Awareness, 262-264 Exploring Field Guides. See under Core Routines
as part of Profiling the Learning Journey, 240 50-50 Principle (Fifty-fifty Principle), The, 53, 54
as part of the Natural Cycle, 202 and adaptation, 237, 238
See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions) and Flow Learning, 208, 232
See also Natural Cycle of Learning and improvisation, 237, 238
See also Eight Directions, The explanation of, 234
Ecological Design, 174 in practice, 234-237
Ecological Indicators (as Shield in The Book Fire, 180
of Nature) building, 466
activities featuring, 160, 164 safety, 181-182
and connection, 158, 159, 161, 164 tending, 180
and Core Routines, 160 Flow Learning, 208
and endangered species, 164 and Child Passions, 210
and human ecology, 165 and Natural Cycle of Learning, 209-210, 234
and indicator species, 161 definition and explanation of, 209
explanation of, 157-158 orientation and, 209
larders & lacks, 159, 161-163 Flow Learning Cycle, 211

542 |
Four Directions, 198, 356 The Odyssey, 238
orienting to, 60, 198 Imagination, 64
See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions) and journaling, 70
Free play, xxii and storytelling, 113
Gallagher, John, 92 Improvisation
Games, 83, 85 and Coyote, 237
See also under Child Passions and 50-50 principle, the, 237
Gardner, Howard, 28, 258, 266 and edge(s), 237
Frames of Mind, 28 and Flow Learning, 208
and naturalist intelligence, 28, 258, 266 Inquisitive Focus. See under Indicators of
Gift Principle/Concept, 270 Awareness
definition of, 31 Indicators of Awareness, 18, 259
Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Nation), 344 Aliveness and Agility, 264-265
and original instructions, 35 and Child Passions, 264
Strawberry Festival, 170 and Core Routines, 265
Hazards (as Shield in The Book of Nature), and Book of Nature, The, 261, 279
131-135 and Core Routines, 261, 279
activities featuring, 132 and Natural Cycle, 261
and awareness, 133 as learning goals, 260, 261, 262
and common sense, 131, 262-264 as symptoms of health, 262
and connections, 131 Awe and Reverence, 271-274
and Core Routines, 132 and ancestors, 271
and plants, 152, 154 and elders, 271, 273
list of, 132-133 and heritage species, 273
mentoring with, 132 and nature-based cultures, 273
resources, 135-136 and place in community, 272
Heritage Species (as Shield in The Book of Caring and Tending, 267-269
Nature), 167 and Core Routines, 268
activities featuring, 168 the natural world, 267, 268
ancestors and, 167 to nourish and heal, 268, 269
and Core Routines, 168 See also Tending
and elders, 168, 172 Common Sense, 262-264
and gardening, 174 and hazards, 262-264
and nature connection, 167 definition of, 33, 284
and story, 172, 173 explanation of (as assessment criteria), 258
ceremony and, 173 in human development, 257
definition of, 167 Inquisitive Focus, 265-267
list of, 169-172 and Core Routines, 267
mentoring with, 168 and curiosity, 265
permaculture and, 167, 174 and naturalist intelligence, 266
resources, 174-175 and scientific thinking, 266
tending, 168, 174 Quiet Mind, 276-278
Homer, 238 and Core Routines, 277

Index | 543
 and listening, 277 Lakota, 10
and nature connection, 276 Learning community, 226
and sneaking, 277 and learning culture, 347
in nature, 277 Listening for Bird Language. See under Core
peacefulness of, 276, 277, 278 Routines
Self-Sufficiency, 274-276 Louv, Richard, xxi, xxxii, 7, 8, 26, 173, 261, 492
and adaptation, 274 Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from
and elders, 274, 276 Nature-Deficit Disorder, xxi, 7
and improvisation, 276 Make-Believe. See under Child Passions
and nature connection, 276 Mammals (as Shield in The Book of Nature), 141
and survival skills, 274-275 activities featuring, 143
and wisdom, 274 and Core Routines, 142, 143, 147-148
Service to Community, 269-271 and tracking, 146
and Core Routines, 269 explanation of, 141-143
and ecology, 270, 271 list of, 143-145
and relationship, 269, 270, 271 mentoring with, 143
learning, from nature, 269 relationship with, 142, 146
Indigenous resources, 148-149
cultural mentoring, xxxi, 15 Mapping. See under Core Routines
language, 126 MacFarland, Casey, 83-84
Indigenous (traditional) cultures, 67 Meaningful relationship(s)
and Animal Forms (imitation), 51-52 and Book of Nature, The, 18, 130, 283
and songlines, 60 and nature connection, 30, 126
and Thanksgiving, 74 with animals, 51
Information, 99, 100, 108 with nature, 67
Ingwe. See Powell, M. Norman with plants, 155, 431
Instruction, 99, 101 with trees, 153
rule of repetition, 101 Mentor, 238
Invisible School, 16-17, 60, 496 story of, in The Odyssey, 238
definition of, xxiii, 15 Mentor(s). See Coyote Mentor(s)
and nature connection, 16 Mentoring. See Coyote Mentoring
Journaling. See under Core Routines Mind’s Eye Imagining. See under Core Routines
Kamana Naturalist Training Program, xxxii, 43 Mind Patterning. See Brain Patterning
and Core Routines, 39, 66, 69, 92 Mohawk, 192
and tracking, 216 and birds, 192
Kid Culture Thanksgiving, 76
and mentors, 90 Moon, Warren, 19, 31, 83-84, 235-237
explanation of, 90 and Wilderness Awareness School, 3
Knowledge of Place, 29, 41, 68, 79, 110 Motivating Species (as Shield in The Book of
ancestral, 167 Nature), 136
and Coyote, 15 activities featuring, 138
and indigenous culture, 15, 28-29 and Core Routines, 137
and search images, 27 explanation of, 136

544 |
 how to catch, 140 world traditions and, 200
identifying, 139-140 meanings in the, 200
list of, 138-139 Natural Cycle of Learning, 18
mentoring with, 137 and Coyote Mentoring, 237
resources, 140-141 and exploration team, 480
Music-Making, 119 and Flow Learning, 209-210, 214
and community, 117 and the learning journey, 200
and Trickster/Transformer, 118 and teaching team, 245
See also under Child Passions and tracking club model, 218
Nature, 25-26, 126, 193 as organizer, 209
and health, 26 definition of the, 284
and permaculture, 167 orienting to the, 208, 284
and Thanksgiving, 73 Natural history, 108, 112
as teacher, 28, 201 and mentors, 224
curriculum, 130 journals, 226
education, 258, 260 writers (list), 112
relationship with, 67, 126, 266, 491 Natural world
wandering in, 53 childhood, lack of, 6
Nature Awareness, xxix, 24 and Coyote Teaching, 27, 61
and Core Routines, 26, 74 Naturalist, 197
definition of, xxiv and teaching team, 246
Nature Connection, xxi, xxvi, 13, 17, 27, 79, Naturalist intelligence, xxiv, 28, 69, 258
238, 281 Native
and Child Passions, 87 definition of, 13
and relationship, 32, 126 orientation, 198
and trees, 178 storytelling, 114
benefits of, 261 Navigating, 60
Core Routines of, 17, 27 activities featuring, 448-450
definition of, 30-31 and mentors, 238
healing through, 261 through story, 60
Nature-Deficit Disorder, xxi, xxiii, 44, 137, 261 See also Orientation
and childhood, 6 North, 57
NatureMapping Program (University of activities featuring, 225, 226, 227, 228, 229, 231
Washington), 232 and Flow Learning Cycle, 213
Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions), 18 and Indicators of Awareness, 274-276
and seasons, 202-207 and integration, 206, 213
and stages of life, 202-207 as part of Profiling the Learning
and time of day, 202-207 Journey, 243-244
as organizer, 201, 209 as part of the Natural Cycle, 206
as guide, 201 See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions)
definition of, 284 See also Natural Cycle of Learning
explanation of, 202-207 See also Eight Directions, The
orienting to, 197, 200, 208, 284 Northeast

Index | 545
 activities featuring, 218, 220, 225, 227, 228, 229, Plants (as Shield in The Book of Nature)
230, 231, 232, 233 activities featuring, 151, 432, 436, 439
and elders, 207 and Core Routines, 151
and Flow Learning Cycle, 210, 213-215 and relationship, 149, 150
and Indicators of Awareness, 276-278 as medicine/food, 149, 150
as part of Profiling the Learning Journey, 240, 244 as teachers, 348
as part of the Natural Cycle, 207 gathering, 156
as transition, 207, 227 identification of, 154-155, 156
See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions) language of, 155
See also Natural Cycle of Learning list of edible/medicinal, 151-152
See also Eight Directions, The mentoring with, 151
Northwest resources, 157
activities featuring, 225, 226, 228, 229, 231 Powell, M. Norman (Ingwe), xxxi, 263, 269, 272
and Flow Learning Cycle, 213 and Akamba tribe, xxxi, 282, 490
and Indicators of Awareness, 271-274 and Coyote Mentoring, 490
and transition to elderhood, 206 and Wilderness Awareness School, 32
as part of Profiling the Learning Journey, 243 Profiling the Learning Journey, 209, 238
as part of the Natural Cycle, 205-206 and mentors, 239
as reflection, 206, 213 and orientation, 239
See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions) and the Eight Directions, 240-245
See also Natural Cycle of Learning and the Natural Cycle of Learning, 238
See also Eight Directions, The and shadow, 239
Ojibway, 21 Program Management, 254
Orientation orientation for, 254
and Flow Learning, 208, 210-215 and the Natural Cycle of Learning, 254-255
and journaling, 64 Questioning, 142
and mapping, 58 and answering, 99
native, 198 and storytelling, 44
to Four Directions (compass), 60 Art of, The, 94-95, 98, 99, 212, 216, 217
to the Natural Cycle, 197 and mentors, 94-95, 98, 99
to seasons, 198 and mentoring style, 102, 103
to sun and stars, 57 and tracking, 142, 214, 217
See also Navigating Socratic method of, 96
Original instructions, 35-36, 80 three levels of, 96-98, 99
Outdoors, 7, 38 Questioning and Answering. See under
and childhood, 8, Child Passions
and Core Routines, 36, 40 Questioning and Tracking. See under
time spent, 31, 83 Core Routines
Permaculture, 167, 168, 174, 271, 273 Raphael, Paul (Odawa Peacemaker), 267, 281
definition of, 167 Regenerative Community Design, 167, 492
Physical education Riekes, Gary, 32
and Animal Forms, 52 Riekes Center for Human Enhancement, 32
Pierce, Joseph Chilton, 22-23 Rite of Passage, 214

546 |
 and elders, 215 activities featuring, 444
three parts of, 214 and Mapping, 60
Role modeling, 130, 177, 210 South, 60, 203
and mentors, 88, 91-92 activities featuring, 219, 221, 222, 228, 229, 230
imitating and, 91 and adolescence, 204
and stories, 88, 111, 116 and Flow Learning Cycle, 212
Sealth, Chief, 12 and Indicators of Awareness, 265-267
Search images, 24, 27, 29, 108, 266 as part of Profiling the Learning Journey, 241
Seasons, 110, 168 as part of the Natural Cycle, 203-204
and Nature Names, 350 See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions)
and orientation, 198 See also Natural Cycle of Learning
and the Natural Cycle of the Eight See also Eight Directions, The
Directions, 202-207 Southeast, 203
“Seeing through Native Eyes”, 27, 28, 45, 49, activities featuring, 219, 221, 228, 229, 230, 232
111, 202-203 and childhood, 203
Self-Sufficiency. See under Indicators of Awareness and Flow Learning Cycle, 210
Senses and Indicators of Awareness, 264-265
animal, 302-304 as part of Profiling the Learning Journey, 240
body radar, 447 as part of the Natural Cycle, 203
See also under Core Routines, Expanding Our See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions)
Senses See also Natural Cycle of Learning
Sensory Awareness, 27, 28, 41, 79, 184 See also Eight Directions, The
activities featuring, 367, 369, 371, 373, Southwest, 204
376, 379, 382 activities featuring, 222, 228, 229, 231, 233
and Coyote Mentoring, xxviii, 45, 100 and Flow Learning Cycle, 212
and questioning, 97 and Indicators of Awareness, 267-269
Shifting and transition to adulthood, 204
and storytelling, 106, 114 as part of Profiling the Learning Journey, 241-242
direction (adaptation), 208, 234 as part of the Natural Cycle, 204
habits, 98 See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions)
perspectives, 98 See also Natural Cycle of Learning
routines, 21, 32, See also Core Routines See also Eight Directions, The
shape-, 52, 92 Stalking Wolf, 67
Shikari Tracking Guild, 217 Story/stories, 172
Shikari Tracker Training Program, 217 and learning, 109
Sit Spot. See under Core Routines and mapping, 60
Song(s), 119 and nature connection, 106
and transitions, 119 and oral tradition, 106, 109
and learning, 120 importance of, 6, 493
folk/traditional, 120 of animals, 111
where to find, 120 role models in, 108
Song Circle, 212 traditional/folk, 111, 172-173
Songline(s), 100, 173 Story of the Day. See under Core Routines

Index | 547
Storytelling, 106 and Natural Cycle of Learning, 218, 221-222
and edge(s), 43, 107, 115 as learning community, 227
and humor, 113, 115-116 model of teaching, 215, 217-227
and imagination, 113 stations based on Natural Cycle, 218, 221
and Mind’s Eye Imagining, 70, 113 Trees (as Shield in The Book of Nature)
as Child Passion, 105, 114, 115 activities featuring, 177, 458, 460, 463
explanation of, 113 and Core Routines, 177
guide to, 110-112 and crafts, 180
importance of, 41, 114 and fire, 177, 180-181
inspiring with, 107-108 and nature connection, 176
three levels of, 106-107 and shelter, 179
Survival Living. See under Core Routines and survival, 176, 177
Swamp, Jake (Mohawk Elder), 31, 32, 76, 285, 344 and tools, 176, 177
Giving Thanks, a Native American Good Morning identifying, 177, 179
Message, 76 importance of, 176
Teachers list of, 177-178
and Flow Learning, 209-210 mentoring with, 177
animals as, 52, 348 relationship with, 179
children as, 89 resources, 182-183
Teaching team(s), 246-248 Trickster/Transformer, 9, 10
and edge(s), 246 and mentoring style, 102-103
and Natural Cycle of Learning, 245, 246, 248, 250 and music-making, 118
development of, 248 See also Coyote
process of teaching with, 249-251 Understanding Bird Language. See Listening
reason for, 245-246 for Bird Language
recruiting for, 246-247 Walking Bull, Gilbert (Lakota), 16, 87, 277, 282
role of elders in, 247 Wandering. See under Core Routines
role of mentors in, 246 West, 60
Tending, 168, 174 activities featuring, 223, 226, 228, 229, 231
fire, 180 and Flow Learning Cycle, 212-213
See also under Indicators of Awareness, and Indicators of Awareness, 269-271
Caring and Tending and mapping, 60, 212
Thanksgiving. See under Core Routines and young adulthood, 205
Tracking, 47, 216, 217, 227 as part of Profiling the Learning Journey, 242
as scientific inquiry, 48-50 and celebration, 205, 212
and mammals, 145 as part of the Natural Cycle, 205
and relationship, 147 See also Natural Cycle (of the Eight Directions)
resources, 148-149 See also Natural Cycle of Learning
See also under Core Routines, Questioning and See also Eight Directions, The
Tracking Wilderness Awareness School, xxi, xxiv
Tracking Club, 217, 227 and Coyote Mentoring, xxiv
and Art of Questioning, The, 216, 217, 221, 222 and storytelling, 111
and Core Routines, 221

548 |
NOTES
NOTES
NOTES
NOTES
NOTES
8 Shields Institute
www.8shields.org

The 8 Shields Institute is an organization led by Jon Young.

Since founding Wilderness Awareness School in 1983, Jon
Young has inspired many programs and individuals to utilize
the skills of Coyote Mentoring around the globe.

The 8 Shields Institute works with a collaborative network of affiliates and partners to
gather and disseminate skills of Coyote
Mentoring and provide best practices in all of
their trainings and programs.

The 8 Shields Institute trains groups and

individuals around the world to utilize Coyote's
Guide to create communities based on deep
nature connection.

Please contact us if you would like to become

an affiliate of Coyote Mentoring or find an photo: Andreas Ochsmann

affiliate in your region or are seeking personal mentoring in nature connection.

OWLink Media
www.owlinkmedia.com
OWLink Media offers products that support positive
connections with nature, community, and self, including
original books and audio from Jon Young.

For those inspired by Coyote's Guide who are looking

for more resources to support the nature connection
journey, we have a number of great products,
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and the many audio products that feature Jon
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Order online at www.owlinkmedia.com.

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