Children in Permaculture (CiP) Training courses
The Children in Permaculture trainers are currently offering three types of course:
1) Introduction to Engaging Children in Permaculture two day course, more info below
2) Home Educators' Children in Permaculture course
3) Practitioners Course. Delving deeper: 5 days for those who have completed the introduction.
3) A train the trainer course. For people keen to lead children in permaculture courses.
Our trainers are also available to lead courses specifically adapted to your group and locale, please contact us (selecting Children: Lusi from the drop-down menu) for more info.
Background:
“The future of our planet depends on a change of consciousness, in which the people and the resources of the natural world are no longer taken for granted and exploited without considering long term impacts. Supporting children from early childhood to develop a sensitive, compassionate and cooperative relationship with each other and the natural world is a crucial step in generating this new consciousness” (p1, Alderslowe, Amus, Deshaies 2018).
This two day training course is the product of the three year European ‘Children in Permaculture’ project in which best practice has been shared across the continent from Finland to Italy, Scotland to Romania. In this process many resources have been created and shared including surveying existing resources, writing case studies, creating films, and writing a book ‘Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share in Education: The Children in Permaculture Manual’.
1) Introduction to Engaging Children in Permaculture: Two Day Course
In this weekend permaculture course for parents, grandparents, teachers and others to engage children in all aspects of permaculture. We will:
- learn how to spend times with children which are child-centred and/or child-led
- find out how permaculture ethics and principles can be applied to education, in how we speak, the activities we engage in and in the spaces we design.
- discover some great benefits of outdoor learning, including relevant research, and learn how to create session plans which engage the whole child: eyes, heart, hands and head, through active participation in a session learning about soil.
- look at different garden designs both in school and home gardens and get involved in practical activity.
- learn about the different activities that we can do with children and, more importantly, think about how the way we approach the child can enable us to think of infinite possible activities.
- be involved in sessions both outdoors and indoors.
Who is this course for?
People working with children aged 3-12 years, such as school, nursery and kindergarten teachers, as well as those working in non-formal settings such as after-school or out-of-school club leaders (e.g. scout leaders), parents (whether natural, foster, adoptive or grandparents) and others who are aware of the importance of their role in children’s education.
Testimonial from school teacher, Miss G. “That was the best CPD course I have ever done!”
Aims
The aims are for participants to:
* Be inspired and empowered to take children outdoors for experiential learning.
* Find positive solutions to their interests and challenges working outdoors with children.
* Learn about a holistic, creative approach which involves children in the whole process as a partner in their learning.
* Envisage how the ethics of Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share can be integrated into an educational setting.
* See, hear and experience examples of good practice and inspirational stories.
* Meet other like-minded people.
* Find out how permaculture can help them in their work with children.
Costs
Course fees are on a sliding scale depending on your income. See the booking form for the course you are inquiring about.
Trainers
Each course will have at least one of the following trainers:
Lusi is an international permaculture practitioner, teacher and diploma tutor, with students and apprentices around Europe. She has led the Permaculture Design Course in Glasgow annually since 2010, as well as various others, is an author of the book 'Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share in Education: The Children in Permaculture Manual', a Forest School leader, a children's educator, Human Ecologist (MSc) and Permaculture practitioner and coordinates the Children in Permaculture project. Lusi has been engaging children in permaculture for 12 years in many places including an outdoor playgroup, a Children’s Garden, after-school groups, and in many nurseries and schools. Lusi cooks, forages, gardens, plays with her kids, surveys badgers, cycles a lot, walks more, organises numerous events, and loves our abundant and beautiful earth. She has a fun, informative, participatory teaching style with lots of diversity.
Nim Robins is the lead designer and founder of a school based permaculture design company 'Organic Playgrounds'. She has an educational background in both Ecological science and teaching, and worked as a primary school teacher for several years before deciding to specialise in outdoor learning. Nim is especially passionate about exploring new ways to design habitats specifically for children to inspire their imagination and connection to nature, and teaches regularly in forest schools, home education groups and after school clubs. Nim holds a Diploma and teacher training certificate in Permaculture design and is a trained Forest School leader.
Rakesh is an experienced permaculture teacher and low impact living designer from the UK, specialising in community resilience, permaculture, creating food forests and low maintenance food growing systems. Rakesh has been designing and teaching permaculture to individuals and communities since 2009, and has taught over 200 permaculture, forest gardening, eco village design and related courses. His design portfolio ranges from a forest garden on part of a 30-hectare ecovillage in Croatia that he co-owned through to many urban community food growing gardens, private farms and back gardens as well as designing collaborative businesses, urban water retention systems and even computer software and documentation systems. Along with Permaculture Rakesh focuses on the human skills of communication and planning so necessary for successful communities. He is one of the co-founders of the Children in Permaculture project which was launched at the international permaculture convergence in 2015. So be prepared to go off on inspirational tangents occasionally.
Please contact us if you would like to host this course at your venue (select 'Children' from the drop-down menu).