Sense of Place Training
for Educators
Professional Development Seminars and Retreats
Recharge your Curriculum— and Yourself
Erica Wheeler offers seminars and training that help educators rediscover story, meaning, and their own sense of place, and apply what they gain to craft richer learning experiences for their students. This grounded, experiential approach helps educators reflect, recharge, and craft meaningful lessons they can carry back into their classrooms.
She has worked with organizations, communities, and individuals for decades to help people find and share stories of place and belonging. Using her Sense of Place Story Framework, she supports educators and students to build personal connections to places and translate those connections into learning.
Erica also brings extensive experience training interpreters in parks, museums, and historic sites, along with a background in creative mentoring and the performing arts. This blend of experience allows her to craft professional development programs that are practical, creative, and deeply engaging.
Suitable for educators across subjects, grade levels, and locations, including:
K–12 teachers
Graduate students in education programs
Environmental, literature, and history educators
Museum and park educators
Independent and informal educators
How This Training Unfolds
Erica’s educator trainings follow an experiential sequence. Participants begin by reconnecting with their own stories and sense of place, then explore how those experiences shape meaning, curiosity, and learning.
From there, the focus shifts toward translation—developing lesson ideas, activities, or units that carry those insights into the classroom.
Participants leave with fresh perspective and practical tools for designing learning experiences that feel relevant, memorable, and vital.
“Place-based educator and author David Orr often writes that the ecological crisis is not a technical crisis, but a spiritual crisis. Erica helps bridge the space between head and heart—encouraging learners to reconnect with place not just as a resource, but as a pathway for understanding life and meaning.” — Torrey McMillan, Center for Sustainability, Hathaway Brown School, Shaker Heights, OH
Bring Your Curriculum to Life Through Applied Learning
As a result of this training, educators are equipped to craft inspired lessons aligned with learning standards that resonate for both themselves and their students.
✔︎ Storytelling & Narrative-Based Teaching
Weave personal, historical, and community stories into lesson plans to make learning more relatable and memorable.
✔︎ Creative Expression as a Learning Tool
Use story, music, art, and creative writing to deepen understanding and connection.
✔︎ 21st-Century Skills Through Sense of Place Learning
Help students think critically, collaborate meaningfully, and engage creatively with history, culture, and nature.
✔︎ Inquiry-Based Learning Strategies
Encourage students to ask questions, investigate, and form their own conclusions through meaningful exploration.
✔︎ Building Confidence, Belonging, and Well-Being
Support students in finding their voice, exploring personal connections to place and history, and cultivating a sense of belonging.
Seminar Example:
Approaching Walden
Since 2006, Erica has frequently led a core teaching segment of Approaching Walden, a professional development program for educators at Walden Pond.
She invites participants to experience Thoreau not as a distant literary figure, but as an entry point into personal connection, reflection, and meaning. Her seminar begins where meaningful learning often starts: with lived experience and personal connection to place.
1. Beginning with Personal Connection
The session opens with guided reflective writing, inviting educators to reconnect with their own place experiences.
2. Experiencing Walden Today
Participants engage with their surroundings through sensory experience and story, modeling how place itself becomes a teacher.
3. Translating Experience into Teaching Practice
Educators explore a sequence of reflective activities they can bring to the classroom, including Finding the Thoreau in You—Erica’s worksheet for exploring personal place connections through Thoreau’s writing and themes.
4. Sharing Ideas and Program Design
Educators consider which approaches will inform their own curriculum design and classroom practice, and craft a meaningful lesson unit based on sense of place ideas sparked by the training.
“Extremely relevant, easily adaptable, and usable.”
Approaching Walden Participant
Interested in Hosting This Training?
Erica has offered seminars, workshops, and professional learning experiences for educators working in schools, parks, museums, and community settings across the country. .
Whether you’re looking to recharge your educators, spark new curriculum ideas, or offer a meaningful integrative experience, these trainings provide practical tools along with fresh energy for the work ahead.
Formats range from short seminars to half-day or full-day sessions, depending on your goals and schedule
Prior Training and Conferences
Approaching Walden, Walden Woods Project
Antioch Graduate School
Georgia Environmental Educators Conference
Massachusetts Environmental Education Society
New England Environmental Education Alliance
Teacher–Ranger–Teacher (National Park Service)
Teton Science School and Journeys School