We are emerging from a year that presented new learning challenges and opportunities. While learning did not cease to take place, it shifted to new topics and new locations. Looking ahead, the value of learning outdoors and true outdoor learning will continue to hold...
Natural Pod™ LIVE Episode Six is available to watch! If you are in any way connected to educational architecture, design or planning, this episode with Kate Mraw, Design Director at LPA Design Studios (LPA), is an absolute must watch! Kate shares so much insight...
This week, a project that I know well and is close to my heart won an Education Facility Design Award. Presented by the AIA (The American Institute of Architects) and its Committee, the benefactor is LPA Design Studios for the creation of the Environmental Nature...
COVID-19 has directly impacted students through widespread school closures, loss of learning, and widening disparities. It has also had consequential indirect impacts on students. A troubling rise in child neglect (Thomas et al., 2020), stress related to food...
As 2020 comes to a close the Natural Pod team have been reflecting on all this year has unexpectedly brought, including the successes and triumphs of educators and students over the last 12 months. To inspire you to stay in a place of creativity going forward into...
With a new year comes new and re-energized conversations about the direction of education. Due to the unexpected additional challenges that developed because of covid, these conversations are encompassing even more facets than usual and a heightened sense of...
Over the last few months we've been asking educators and administrators what they need in place to create a safe, physically distanced learning space that also provides an engaging environment that their students are inspired by and want to be in. These...
As schools assess how to return to school safely and navigate guidelines, helpful resources are being offered that address possible solutions for the three re-entry models of Full Return, Alternating Return, and the Flexible Return. Fielding International...
Photo shows from left to right: Aliki Gladwin, interior designer for the project; Candice Harper and Carol Choi from Union Gospel Mission, responsible for setting up the new center; Sharon Gregson, child care consultant and provincial spokesperson for the...
Almost every aspect of life has changed over the last few months, and education has really been turned on its head. There are many ways to approach how we navigate these times, but the one myself and many others are advocating for, is to look for the...
The definition of the Expeditionary Learning (EL) philosophy is ‘Learning by Doing’ and it places a strong focus on student personal responsibility.
The 2020 celebration of the International Day of Education on 24 January - a day proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly - will position education and the learning it enables as humanity’s greatest renewable resource and reaffirm the role of...
As an educator it’s highly probable that one of your top wishes is to have your students meaningfully engaged in their learning. It’s probably the reason you went into teaching, to experience that sense of fulfillment that comes from witnessing a child’s mental and...
Natural Pod's CEO Bridgitte Alomes is one of four speakers presenting together as a panel at SXSW EDU in March, so we thought it would be great to go one step further than introduce each of them, and give you a real insight into why they are such education heros and...
Have you seen any of the ‘Broken’ documentaries on Netflix? They’re very well produced and make for compelling watching - whether you’re an educator or not. Each of the four episodes take a hard look at the darker side and real cost of consumer habits, and we’re aware...
Our very own CEO, Bridgitte Alomes, had the pleasure of being invited on Dr. Robert Dillon’s podcast, ‘Help Me Understand’, where he ‘interviews a range of fans, learners, and experts surrounding their passions – inviting a discussion about ideas and...
With the new decade now here, the Natural Pod team is in both a reflective and forward thinking mindset. One of our recent recurring conversations has been how incredible the commitment from the world’s youth has been in standing up and using their voice...
As this year comes to a close the Natural Pod team has been reflecting on the triumphs of the last 12 months and wanted to share with you the collaborative successes of educators and students in creating their learning environments. Here is a round up of...
We had a very special and unique opportunity to collaborate with this group of mixed grades 6 and 7 students at York House School in Vancouver, Canada, to help and support them in creating their dream learning space. The school is expanding and they will be moving...
Here is a round up of our best stories from this past year as chosen by our community of educators. These are the stories that inspired, informed or educated. We hope they offer you the same value as you transition from 2019 into the new year and new...