PENFIELD – There are still remaining spaces available for a free continuing education workshop for early childhood educators called Growing Up WILD, hosted by Parker Dam State Park.
Growing Up WILD is a curriculum developed and written specifically for children, ages 3 – 7 years, that builds on children’s sense of wonder about nature and invites them to explore wildlife and the world around them.
Growing Up WILD provides an early foundation for developing positive impressions about nature and lifelong social and academic skills while also supporting developmentally suitable practice for children to learn at levels that are individually, socially and culturally appropriate.
Workshop participants will receive a copy of the curriculum/activity guide, as well as 4.5 continuing education hours. The full-color, Growing Up WILD guide features 27 field-tested, hands-on, nature-based activities, which include crafts, art projects, music, conservation activities, reading and math connections, and much more.
The guide is correlated to the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Standards and the Head Start Domains. These correlations involve social, emotional, physical, language and cognitive domains to help foster learning and development in all areas. Besides the Growing Up WILD guide, participants will also receive several other resources for the classroom.
The workshop will be facilitated from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012 in the park’s Environmental Education Classroom, annexed to the Park Office. Participants are encouraged to bring a lunch and to be appropriately dressed for several outdoor activities. Pre-registration is required, as only 15 seats will be available. To register, contact the Park Office at (814) 765-0630, or email the park’s Environmental Education Specialist at cahuber@pa.gov.
You can keep up on what is happening at the park by following “Parker Dam State Park” on Facebook; and you can find more information about state park programs and special events by logging on to the PA Bureau of State Parks web site at www.VisitPAParks.com , and clicking on “Events Calendar”.
Access for People with Disabilities
If you need an accommodation to participate in park activities due to a disability, please contact the Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks:
888-PA-PARKS (voice)
717-558-2710 (local or international voice)
888-537-7294 (TTY)
717-558-2711 (local or international TTY)
711 (AT&T Relay Services)