The Forest Path

COYOTE MENTORING

Human children through the ages grew up healthy and resilient from lots of outdoor play that built their body’s strength, sharpened their senses and appreciation of the world. They enjoyed unstructured play with diverse age groups. Kids were nourished by caring adults, positive role models who taught/mentored by storytelling and hands-on tasks.

There is a growing way of outdoor education called Coyote mentoring, which is not just a way of teaching about nature, nor a kind of outdoor recreation, but a way of learning that centers around deep connection modeling. Connection within, with others, with the wild, inspired by how First Nations have raised their young for millennia.

Read more about the research on the Evoloved Nest, that argues for the moral development and wellbeing from Indigenous ways of raising kids.

‘Outdoor play, in particular, offers critical opportunities for learning, development and well-being 
that aren’t generally available through indoor play.
In the time of the COVID-19 pandemic,
the benefits of outdoor play are particularly important’,
says leading play researchers.