Webinar: Practical Approaches to Teaching Outside in Cold Weather

Originally aired: December 2nd, 2020

Presenters: Tamara Harder, Marcia Klein, Tyler Rittinger, and Charlie Conner

Presented in partnership with SaskOutdoors.

Outdoor teaching and learning have taken on a larger role during this present reality of physical distancing. For those of us in northerly latitudes, however, falling temperatures are a source of concern as winter approaches. Join us for this interactive webinar with four Saskatchewan-based teachers, each from a different age group, to ask questions and hear insights about practical approaches to teaching outside in cold weather.

Tamara Harder is a French Immersion Kindergarten teacher in Lumsden, Saskatchewan. She believes in learning through play and hands-on experiences. Tamara enjoys gardening, camping, hiking, and being outdoors as much as possible. She takes her students outside at least once per day to learn, play, and explore. One of her most memorable teaching days was seeing her students splash and play in mud and water puddles up to their knees.

Marcia Klein loves being in the outdoor classroom in all seasons, especially winter. She loves cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and making snow angels. She worked as a nature interpreter with Meewasin, Pike Lake provincial park, and Prince Albert National Park, and coordinated an outdoor ecological centre for middle-years students. Marcia started teaching elementary students the winter she saw Halley’s Comet. She continues to share her passion for outdoor education and joie de vivre with her students and other educators. Marcia currently teaches Grade 4 French immersion with Saskatchewan Rivers Public School Division in Prince Albert. 

Tyler Rittinger has been teaching outside for a number of years. Through current co-teaching of the Ecoquest Experiential Grade 8 program with Saskatoon Public Schools and through a variety of other outdoor experiences, Tyler lives by the Norwegian idea of ‘friluftsliv’: “There is no bad weather, only bad clothes.” He is a year-round cyclist who has found ways to assist students to do the same. This winter, with the help of a local business and a generous grant, Tyler will begin a program called ‘Snow School,’ empowering the EcoQuest students to become instructors of biking and cross-country skiing for other Saskatoon students. When not teaching, Tyler is active outdoors with his wife and two daughters, while hosting a weekly cycling radio show called Switching Gears.

Charlie Conner is a high school teacher on Big Island Lake Cree Nation. He is a member of the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation and his family and band have a long history of “living off the land.” He strives to continue this awesome legacy by incorporating as much land-based learning as possible. He lives in Loon Lake with his family and kennel of racing sled dogs.