Inspiring Growth

Closing Notes | Environmental Educator of the Year Award | New Council Members | Workshop Handouts and Resources | Conference Home Page

Closing Ceremony

Words of Wisdom from "AEOE Elder," Stephen "Hoppy" Hopkins:

(Savannah Boiano took notes during the closing ceremony and wanted to share Hoppy's generous words of wisdom.)

Within your job, live by these three words:  Passion, Involvement, and Enthusiasm.

Pieces of advice from an "old guy":  

  1. Read your contract
  2. Work collectively
  3. Know when to say "No"
  4. As the monkeys do, never let go of the last branch until you have a firm hold on the next one.
  5. Believe in yourself.  Invest in yourself.
  6. Vote
  7. Know what to do when you get lucky.  (This got lots of laughs.)
  8. Play
  9. Take care of your health
  10. Get your credential

Savvy says, "Some might remember that Hoppy has for years been trying to give a seminar on worker's rights and unionizing.  He finally gave up.  Or, at least I thought so.  But no, he finally got to deliver his seminar to a captive audience!  I teased him about this during his delivery."

Some of Hoppy's other bits of advice can be found here:

 

 Hoppy Sharing Words of Advice from an old fart
I guess when you've earned the white hair and retirement after devoting your career to outdoor environmental education, you get to sit down while you share your words of wisdom! (It helps if you brought your own chair, too - ha!) Here Hoppy delivers his advice while Heather Acuna of Sierra Outdoor School, among others, listens with rapt attention!

 

Environmental Educator of the Year: Lisa Murphy!

Lisa Murphy with Savannah and Dan

Savannah Brown and Dan Webster presenting Lisa (center) with the Northern California Environmental Educator of the Year Award!
(Watch for more details soon - in the meanwhile, read Lisa's bio as past Northern Chair here)

 

New Northern Council Members

The Northern Council welcomed several new members at the Fall Conference!

New Northern Council Members are: Co-Chairs Elect James Choe (center of photo below, in the yellow shirt) and Jeanine "Jumping Mouse" Delano (lower left of council photo, wearing hat); Kim Taylor, pictured below right with Pete; and Members-at-Large Courtney "Turtle" Laurell, Alena Porte, and Alex Meizlish.

Northern Council 2006 Kim Taylor will replace Pete Devine as Northern Secretary

The Northern Council at the 2006 Fall Northern Conference
Top Row: "Turtle," Member at Large, "Kestrel." Outings and Adventures, Pete, Secretary, James, Co-Chair-elect, Hoppy, member at large, Hilary, Co-Chair, Lisa, Past Chair and Northern Environmental Educator of the Year, 2006!
Front Row: Jeanine, Co-Chair-elect, Dan, Newsletter Editor, Savvy, member-at-large, Traci, Co-Chair, Alena, member-at-large

Kim Taylor will be taking over as Northern Secretary for Pete Devine after the January Council meeting at the BAEER Fair, January 27th, in San Rafael.
New Council Members-at-Large Alena, Alex and Turtle
Welcome to all of the wonderful volunteer council members! It is sure to be a great year and another great Spring Conference you all will be helping with, April 27-29, 2007 at Sierra Outdoor School in Sonora! See you all there!
New Members-at-Large Alena Porte, Alex Meizlish, and Courtney "Turtle" Laurell  

 

Workshop Handouts and Resources from the Conference

(In alphabetical order)

Biology Basics: Beyond the Plant & Animal Kingdoms, Traci Fesko, Sierra Outdoor School
What exactly makes something a plant or animal? And if it's not a plant or animal, then what is it? In this workshop we'll examine the lesser known kingdoms of fungi, protista and monera. You'll gain an overall understanding of the variety of life forms found on this planet. So, when kids keep asking you, "What's this? What's that?" you'll have a better understanding to guide them in their discovery. This workshop will be a mixture of lecture and discussion. There will be visuals of organisms that cannot be seen without a microscope or cannot be found in the area.

 

Mother Earth is Rockin', Heather Acuna & Shelley (Shasta) Tennyson, Sierra Outdoor School
Geology science standards will come to life through a variety of easily taught hands-on activities, stories, and songs.  Learn how to creatively teach your students the earth science standards including plate tectonics, topography, erosion, and the rock cycle.  Geology will be transformed from a dry subject to an exciting experience for all. Participants will gain several very specific activities, songs, and stories that will help them teach geology to elementary age students. All activities will be accompanied with a handout to help them use it in their teaching. We also will go over the geology science standards briefly.

Mysteries of the Night: Quartz Sparking, Eye Tricks, Galaxies, Stars, the Moon, and Black Holes, Aaron J. Clegg, Foothill Horizons Outdoor School
Participants will gain a range of fun activities to use on a night hike, and will learn the amazing science behind them. There will be a brief lecture about stars, galaxies, black holes, and other large phenomena, followed by an open question session about astronomy and astrophysics. If time allows and if there is interest, I will teach moon phases and eclipses in a hands-on way, and I will give resources and instructions about viewing space stations and other artificial satellites during a night hike.

 

Overcoming Astrono-phobia: Teach about Constellations beyond Orion's Belt, Hilary Hobbs, Sierra Outdoor School
Does the thought of teaching about Constellations and Galaxies make you want to crawl into a Black Hole? Want to identify and tell stories about constellations on your night hike, but don’t know how? Participants will add to (or begin) their bag of tricks for teaching about the night sky. Learn the basics of navigating the sky using star maps and celestial landmarks. You’ll come away with an arsenal of new ideas for using creative writing, drawing, and story telling to foster historical and cultural connections to the stars.

 

If you presented a workshop with hand-outs, send them to the webmaster for posting at !

Outdoor Educators studying biology
Overcoming Astrono-phobia Workshop Participants studying hard

 

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AEOE | Association for Environmental & Outdoor Education in California * updated 11/9/06 9:06 AM *