NLI-ECHO (Early Childhood Health Outdoors) Training Workshop
NLI conducted a 3-day training workshop in early April with the Grow Outdoors SC (South Carolina) ECHO (Early Childhood Health Outdoors) design team – a unit within the National Wildlife Federation (NWF). The workshop was framed by NLI’s evidence-based, best practice approach to early childhood outdoor play and learning spatial design and application of related assessment tools. Workshop participants were informed by visits to mature, local sites that demonstrated best practices on the ground, hosted by providers passionate about outdoor play and learning.
The three-day reunion deepened a longstanding partnership between NLI and ECHO-NWF and became a significant opportunity to welcome new members to the combined Grow Outdoors SC team. Working together, NLI and ECHO are part of a statewide initiative called to promote outdoor environments and related education Activities among children in South Carolina to foster Engagement with nature from an early age. By working together, NLI and ECHO are leveraging their combined expertise and resources to make a meaningful impact on childhood health and well-being.
During the visit, discussions went beyond training, delving into strategies for effective implementation and ways to maximize reach and impact. The four site tours (A Kind Garden, A Safe Place, The Raleigh School, and Johnson Pond Learning Center) helped by showcasing successful designs in action.
Moving forward, NLI and ECHO are poised to continue collaborating, building on the foundation of mutual respect and shared goals. Through ongoing communication and cooperation, the aim is to ensure that Grow Outdoors SC becomes a resounding success, as the source of enriching the lives of countless children and nurturing a generation of environmentally conscious citizens across the state.
Research Professor, Nilda Cosco, PhD, NLI Director of Programs, discussing how children interact with diverse environments across the age groups of early childhood.
Professor Moore, Emeritus/founding Director of NLI, discussing NLI’s best practice approach to design of early childhood outdoor play and learning environments.
Nature Play & Learning Demonstration Site Visits
The Raleigh School
Elizabeth Gilliland, Preschool Director, greets the team and describes the school’s play-based philosophy of education focused on nurturing children’s natural inclination to wonder, explore, and discover.
Elizabeth demonstrates a boot rack constructed to fulfill the required cooperative parental engagement.
Elizabeth (off camera), leads a tour of adjacent woodland, along trails built by parents, bordering a stream, and describes the school’s management philosophy of balancing risks with developmental benefits over time.
A Safe Place
Kim Shaw, owner of A Safe Place Child Enrichment Center (wearing a cap and apron), greets the NLI-ECHO team and shares a brief history of the center, including many years of collaboration with NLI.
Abe Shaw, A Safe Place garden manager, discusses the design and management of the center production garden located adjacent to the center’s licensed area.
Preschoolers joyfully engage in soap-bubble play, entertaining the group.
A Kind Garden
Alberta “Allie” Forney, owner of a Kind Garden, explains how to engage children and teachers with the outdoor environment designed and managed to motivate play and learning and to maximize time outdoors.
Exploring the many unique experiences offered to children by a Kind Garden.
Group members discuss their observations and thoughts with Allie.
Johnson Pond Learning Center
Kimmie Champitto, Johnson Pond Learning Center (JPLC) Director, welcomes the group and explains how the nature-based play and learning environment, serving in infants through school age, was created with NLI’s long-term assistance.
NLI and ECHO designers discuss their observations while exploring the diverse spaces of JPLC.
Kimmie explains the benefits of the raised timber structure in terms of the different types of social and physical activities it affords.