|
Sites to Check out!
The Vermont Wilderness School- Mark Morey and Steve Young the founders of Deep Wilds Wilderness Programs, Luz Elena Morey, specialst in the creative arts, and Brian Robertshaw a former caretaker for the Tracker School, joined hands in the Fall of 1999 to form the Vermont Wilderness School. www.vermontwildernessschool.org
Ethical Culture Society of Westchester- located in White Plains NY, is a community joined together to develop ethical ideals, to celebrate life's joys, offer support during life's crisis, and to work together for the improvement of our world and the future of our children. They have supported Four Feathers Wilderness Programs by generously donating space for our mentoring programs. Visit them on the web to learn more www.ethicalsocietywestchester.org
White Pine Programs- A non-profit educational organization, located in Cape Neddick Maine. It was founded in 1999 by Dan Gardoqui and Matt Wild. They provide exceptional nature-based programs that renew connections to the earth & deepen awareness of place through natur-based learning. www.whitepineprograms.org
Kamana Naturalist Training Program- Blending field ecology with the skills of a native scout, Kamana is an independant study guide to the complete naturalist. www.kamana.org
Sassafras Earth Education- Located on Martha's Vinyard, SEE offers a unique form of Nature-Based Education that re-connects people with the Earth. The programs immerse individuals in the natural world through sensory exploration, and include naturalist skills, tracking, arts & crafts, music, song, meditation and so much more. Find them on the web at www.sassafrasmvy.org
Owl Creek- Located in Bloomington, Indiana offers a variety of programs & skill workshops to people of all ages. The founder, Kevin Glenn has expertly blended stories and wisdom of ancient cultures with modern science to make learning fun again. www.owlcreekprograms.com
Wildman Steve Brill- Learn about edible and medicinal wild vegetables, herbs, greens, fruits, berries, nuts, seeds, and mushrooms with NYC's favorite naturalist, "Wildman" Steve Brill. Find out about his public Wild Food and Ecology tours in local parks, and the work he does with kids. Read excerpts from his books, enjoy his botanical artwork and vegetarian recipes, and find out what happened after he was arrested and handcuffed by undercover NYC park rangers for eating a dandelion in Central Park! www.wildmanstevebrill.com
What Others Have Said About Us...
“My husband and I have the deepest respect for Mr. Trotta and his teaching philosophy. We feel he gave our child back to us. Sam is now a motivated learner and a much more thoughtful and critical analytic thinker—someone well-prepared for the challenges of middle school. Even more important, we believe that Mr. Trotta has set Sam on a lifelong course of loving learning for its own sake, of respecting the earth’s resources, and of valuing the many different intelligences with which we are all gifted. We are confident that his mentoring influences have changed Sam forever, for which we are truly grateful.”
- Betsy Rapoport
Michael Trotta--A "Coyote Teacher" At Ridgeway School
By William Duchon
White Plains Watch
January 9, 2002
May 2001--"When I read 'The Tracker' by Tom Brown Jr., my life was changed. Tom Brown was mentored by Stalking Wolf, an Apache elder who conveyed the concepts of respecting nature, reawakening our senses and survival instincts, and sparking our natural curiosity." So says Michael Trotta, a fifth grade teacher who has been incorporating the Apache art of mentoring into the fabric of his classroom teaching at Ridgeway Elementary School.
The legacy of Apache culture, as well as other Native American values and concepts have been maintained and espoused through an educational program known as the Wilderness Awareness School. Although much of the focus of this program has to do with Naturalist Studies, the encompassing goal of Wilderness Awareness is to instill educators of all types with the gifts of mentoring, as traditionally practiced in Native American cultures. Storytelling, questioning, and situational techniques are important tools for the mentor.
Most important of all, however, is the mentor's ability to communicate his or her passion about whatever the subject-at-hand may be. Trotta beams enthusiastically as he speaks of this: "Textbooks are just a starting point for me. I love to tap into the natural curiosity and joy that my students all possess."
In his third year at Ridgeway, Trotta's approach has yielded phenomenal results. He calls upon his own love of nature and the outdoors and delights in passing this on to the students in his class through what are often unorthodox methods. He explains: "Most of my kids have seen Goldenrod growing by the side of the road and have never given it a second thought. At the beginning of the year, I could have taken a few stems of Goldenrod, thrown it on the classroom floor, and the kids would have just stared." That was before the students knew about goldenrod's secret "power", however. Taking a goldenrod stem between his palms, Trotta vigorously rubs one end of the plant into a piece of wood. Within seconds, there is smoke, and from this...fire. "Now that my kids know that for centuries people have used this plant to build fires, they will never look at a Goldenrod wildflower the same way again." Not that Trotta's intent is to develop a classroom of pyromaniacs! Rather, it's the passion and natural curiosity that Trotta seeks to draw out of his students. "They take it from there," he says.
Trotta's own travels down a path toward an unusual teaching career began in a quite ordinary way. A native of Chappaqua, he attended public schools there, and then went off to SUNY New Paltz as a psychology major. He developed an interest in teaching, and went on to receive a Master's degree in Elementary/Special Education from Manhattanville College. A parallel interest began to manifest itself, as Trotta explored the histories and traditions of Native American cultures. "Reading "The Tracker" by Tom Brown awakened my own passion for renewing my relationship to the Earth," says Trotta. "It's very easy for us living in modern society to become removed from our own spiritual natures. I did not want this to happen to me." Trotta began intensive study of the concepts of "Coyote Teaching"--a mastering of the art of mentoring thorough a close study of nature, heightened sensory awareness, and the practice of wilderness survival techniques.
Adapting these concepts to his own classroom has been a source of joy for both teacher and students. "My students would rather take a hike in the woods around the school than play in the playground," notes Trotta. "They find much more stimulation from the trees, the birds, the rocks, and the natural environment than anything man-made." His students live and breath the survival skills they are acquiring in Trotta's classroom--building "debris" shelters in their backyards, weaving natural cordage in the car on the way home from school, tracking animal prints in the snow, and crafting bow drills on their bedroom floors.
Trotta's fondest hope is that his student's newly discovered appreciation of the environment will be nurtured after they leave his classroom and that it will remain with them long after 5th grade. "The Native Americans had a wonderful tradition" he explains. "Before any decision was made, with regard to setting up a camp, or engaging in a battle, or even cutting down a tree, the question was asked: 'How will this affect sevengenerations to come?' There was a high regard for the consequences of decisions in terms of the effects on the future generations. I want my students to think about this, too. As a society, today we seem to live with only our own generation in mind. One of my goals is to help students live in the moment, 'the now', but always aware of how their decisions will effect generations to come." |
