AFSA APPROVED PROVIDER:
Nature. Be in it.
Nature. Be in it. has been operating on the island of the palawa/pakana peoples of lutrawita, Tasmania since 2016. We are an advocate for child-led, play based learning outside. We expertly facilitate nature sensory experiences where all can grow. We design and deliver world class programs for all education settings, kids and grown-ups. We open minds and hearts. The founder of the organisation has a dedication to the understanding that our relationship to nature must be revived to restore the planet and our wellbeing.
So, whether it be a nature therapy walk for yourself or packing your child off to our nature holiday program. Take a leap, hold on and get ready for the joy and exhilaration of a new adventure. Join us as we cross the threshold into a world of wonder waiting right at your doorstep.
Nature. Be in it. is a specialist provider of child-led, play based learning in nature. All our programs offer at least 2 hours, and often longer, of immersive engagement and connection with the natural environment. Although we provide this type of supported learning to people of all ages, abilities, cultures and social standing, we have a significant focus on children and young people. Children develop self-regulation and robust social and cognitive skills when allowed to listen to the rhythm of their heart and have a safe space to follow it. Playing outdoors in natural environments provides children with opportunities to use their minds and bodies, freedom and imagination, often without adult intervention. Nature play experiences are a way for children to connect with each other and the earth.
The Nature. Be in it. team co-facilitate with young people in natural settings to play, learn, connect and develop robust and meaningful relationships with the natural world. In ongoing partnership with education providers, we work to support the development of these relationships over months and years, with many of our partner schools now integrating weekly sessions with Nature. Be in it. for their whole student body.
Feedback has indicated that teachers recognise the skills development of their students as they increase their competence and self-guided risk taking through regular experience.
“I have never seen students so engaged in the last 7 years I have been here.” Principal, Williamstown Primary School
At the opening of each nature experience, the Nature. Be in it. team encourage participants to connect with our location through an Acknowledgement of Country and mindfulness practices. In an age-appropriate style, we support connection to place through story, song, cultural awareness, and increasing sensory attention as we tune into the surrounds within and without. The children’s acknowledgement is now a well-known and much-loved poem that is recited from heart by many kids and focuses on recognising age old skills for caring for nature, ourselves and each other.
Nature. Be in it. seeks ongoing guidance and mentorship from palawa people wherever possible and ensure that first nation considerations are at the fore of our work. We develop and maintain strong relationships with partner organisations such as Nita Education and others.
After our acknowledgement and site-specific safety brief, our programs are child-led. Participants will be offered a variety of options at the opening of each day, but then encouraged to roam and explore the infinite opportunities presented by the environment. We never fail to be blown away by the innovations this convergence of nature, freedom and imagination create. At moments throughout the session the group reconvenes briefly to share and eat together and then finally a gathering to close and pay respect to experience and place.
Access to nature is no longer a given in contemporary society. We consider it part of our integral mission to connect people with their natural environment. Through this relationship, increased commitment to environmental care flourishes, regardless of social standing, gender, cultural identity or financial status.
To maximise access, we provide discounts for families from low socio economic or marginalised groups. Our school partnerships are available for all students at the school in the years we are working with.
Nature provides learning opportunities at the pace of the child-led choices. We reinforce the learning occurring by observation and reflection of both success and opportunities for growth through adversity. The rare opportunity for people to play with unfamiliar tools and locations, invariably result in times of hesitation and even fear. We treat this with the deserved care and attention it needs and support self-awareness, resilience and mastery.
Centre to our work is the organisational relationship to place. We leave no trace of our visits other than the discrete careful makings of hands, hearts and minds. Using only nontoxic and natural fibres we encourage participants to recognise and care for the living creatures all around them.
Whether it is nature play aimed at educating our children or nature therapy aimed at creating healthy and happy adults, we create and facilitate unique, high-quality nature experiences for individuals, teams, families, and educational groups, with attention and care to the whole human experience – the physical, the mental and the connection we feel to nature.
