Outdoor Education: How Nature Becomes the Classroom - Tara Laidlaw

Send Fan Mail by Text!Full transcript and show notes: https://www.sharnafabiano.com/2026/07/29/outdoor-education-how-nature-becomes-the-classroom-tara-laidlaw/ What changes when teachers stop treating nature as the backdrop for learning and begin treating it as an active participant? Place-based educator Tara Laidlaw explores how farms, forests, meadows, and mountains become classrooms that reshape the relationship between teacher, student, and environment. In these settings, knowing when to guide and when to step back becomes an essential teaching skill.Tara Laidlaw has spent nearly 15 years designing educational experiences that connect learners with the places around them. As a program manager, instructional designer, facilitator, and teacher trainer, she specializes in place-based education, helping educators use local landscapes to foster curiosity, observation, and deeper engagement with learning.In this episode, you'll learn:What place-based education looks like in practice.How outdoor learning changes the roles of teachers and students.Why effective educators sometimes learn by observing alongside their students.How natural environments encourage curiosity, adaptability, and shared discovery.What educators can learn by taking cues from the landscape instead of relying solely on lesson plans.Connect with Tara on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/tara-laidlaw/ Support the show*Sharna Fabiano is the author of Lead & Follow: The Dance of Inspired Teamwork and host of the Lead & Follow Podcast. She helps founders, solopreneurs, and new leaders build strong collaborative relationships and successful teams. Get a discounted coach session with Sharna with promo code PODCAST https://www.sharnafabiano.com/coaching/Order the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support