A Six-Week Online Live Training Through NAI

Sense of Place &
the Art of Interpretation

The National Association for Interpretation is hosting a 6-week online training with Erica this fall! Learn more below.

Sense of Place and the Art of Interpretation 6-Week Online Training
Registration closes September 7th. (Limited to 20)
Begins Tuesday, September 9, 2025, 2:00 to 5:00 pm ET Recordings of live sessions available.
Get 18 CEU Credits and Certification of Completion.

More Course Info:

If you’re looking for an inspirational way to face today’s interpretive challenges, this 18-hour course will help you use sense of place narratives and innovative techniques to transform your programs. You’ll gain practical tools and creative ideas to share diverse perspectives, tackle complex content, and create ready-to-deliver experiences that engage audiences and leave lasting, meaningful connections.

This course is designed to strengthen essential foundations—clarity, organization, and thematic focus—while expanding your skills to design programs that are memorable, balanced, and deeply engaging, weaving together content development, technique application, and a fresh perspective into your work.

Learning Outcomes
Through a dynamic mix of discussions, hands-on practice, and peer collaboration, you will:

  • Design a ready-to-deliver interpretive program that meets professional standards

  • Apply proven strategies to balance content, flow, and audience engagement.

  • Develop a personalized toolkit of practical techniques you can use immediately on the job.

  • Strengthen your ability to connect people to place in ways that inspire meaning, belonging, and stewardship.

Who is this for? 

This course is designed both as a stand-alone foundation for new interpreters and as a professional development boost for experienced practitioners, providing a fresh perspective that complements and elevates prior training. By the end, you’ll leave not only with refined skills but also with new tools, confidence, and a renewed sense of purpose in your interpretive work.

Course Content:
See modules below.

Instructor Information

Erica Wheeler is a nationally recognized interpretive trainer, keynote speaker, award-winning singer-songwriter, and the owner of Sense of Place Consulting. She has delivered her signature interpretive training for more than a decade at parks, heritage sites, museums, and mission-driven organizations across the country. Erica was a keynote at the 2007 National Association for Interpretation Annual Conference and the winner of the 2008 NAI award for “Best Interpretive Media.” Learn more on her About page.

Week One

Sense of Place Interpretation
& Rethinking Foundations

Create a thematic “pocket outline” that
you can use to create meaningful programs anytime.

  • See the layers of time, story, and perspective places hold.

  • Gain skills to help visitors find their sense of place connections.

  • Rethink interpretive foundations from a fresh perspective.

Week Two

Master the Art of
Sense of Place Storytelling

Learn the “Touchstone Story” process and craft a sense of place story that helps you build foundational storytelling skills.

  • Craft and deliver stories that resonate.

  • Strengthen and articulate your own sense of place.

  • Learn a narrative structure to increase resonance and impact.

Week Three

Build an Inclusive
Technique Toolkit

Create a technique toolkit you can use
to enrich any program.

  • Build a toolkit of creative, inclusive techniques that feel authentic to provide.

  • Invite deeper engagement, reflection, and participation.

  • Gain techniques to create of sense of connection for all kinds of learners.

Week Four

Narratives, Sequencing,
and the Power of Place

Sequence a program filled with opportunities to connect visitors with the layers of time and story through diverse perspectives.

  • Gain skills to sequence narratives that reveal the layers of meaning and story places hold.

  • Integrate contextual stories into programs to increase relevance and understanding.

Week Five

Design and Deliver
Well-Balanced Experience.

Outline and polish a well-balanced program from a template you can use to create program ideas anytime.

  • Create a cohesive, flexible program design that balances content and experience.

  • Map facts, stories and experiences into a sequence that truly connects people and place.

Week Six

Develop an Effective
Program Arc

Develop a pocket-sized toolkit of go-to techniques with five flexible tools to use anytime.

  • Create a ready-to-go “pocketknife” program that contains flexible tools.

  • Learn a program structure that is nimble enough to engage visitors for any length of time, in any setting.

“I used to DREAD the outline process. I would be stuck in the muck for days. Erica has given me the boots I need for this terrain! I will definitely use the tools/techniques and am inspired to create great visitor experiences. Thank you for the gift of this outstanding training.”

Sitka NHP, AK

What if interpretive training did more than build skills— but also restored your sense of purpose, presence, and creativity?

This practical and creative approach to interpretation is designed for interpreters, educators, guides, and leaders at all levels—whether you’re just starting or decades into your career.

Sense of Place and the Art of Interpretation training combines proven techniques and skill-building practices. It offers a learning environment that sparks creative solutions, inspires innovation, and provides time to deeply connect with why this work matters.

Erica’s framework has been polished and honed through years of in-the-field experience working with sites across the country, from Hawaii Volcanoes NP to Independence Hall.

Walk away with
 clear, practical methods to engage visitors meaningfully, confidence in your voice, and flexibility in delivery, and leave recharged from a chance to reflect, reconnect, and grow in your practice.

Meet Your Trainer

Erica Wheeler is an interpretive trainer, visitor experience specialist, and founder of Sense of Place Consulting.

Her background in natural history, conservation, writing, and the performing arts all come together in her training, which has been honed through years of in-the-field experience working with parks, heritage sites, museums, and other organizations across the country. Her expertise includes providing training for the staff at over 45 National Park Service sites since 2013.

Erica’s programs help interpreters bring more presence and purpose into their work. Her training offers tools and practices to elevate skills, avoid burnout, and stay aligned with what matters most.

“With everyone, from our permanent to seasonal rangers, I noticed changes right away. After the training, they had adjusted the structure of their program and had a clearer theme. They seemed to have found their focus and grew from there.”

Women’s Rights NHP, NY

FAQ’s :

  • How Is the Training Structured?
    We meet live online for 3 hours once a week for 6 weeks, with 2 extra hours of optional open office time. You’ll have recordings, handouts, and optional weekly practices that fit into your work without adding stress. This means you’re learning, applying, and refining as you go.

  • Q: I’m more of a practical, linear thinker. This sounds very creative—will it be for me?
    Absolutely. My training blends hard skills (clear structure, proven communication techniques) with soft skills (storytelling, emotional connection). Even small creative tweaks—like using relatable, everyday language—can make your facts more engaging and memorable. Many factual, linear communicators find these tools amplify their impact without losing accuracy.

  • Yes—whether you’re brand-new to interpretation or a seasoned pro. Beginners will gain a solid foundation without jargon or overwhelm. Experienced interpreters often say this training re-energizes their work, sharpens their storytelling, and helps them connect with audiences in fresh ways.

  • Many trainings focus on standardized formulas, templates or one specific technique. This program offers foundations from a fresh perspective and focuses on building place-relationships. It blends hard skills (crafting powerful narratives, structuring programs, audience engagement) with soft skills (presence, empathy, creative thinking) so you can connect with people on a deeper level and inspire lasting impact.

  • 
Yes. The Sense of Place approach is grounded in the idea that places hold layers of stories, not just a one-sided narrative, and that everyone can find something relatable in another’s experience. You’ll learn how to approach complex stories with empathy, clarity, and courage, while staying grounded in your own voice, while and sharing values of your site mission.

  • If you connect people to place, story, or meaning—in museums, cultural sites, tourism, education, community programs, or public lands—these skills will help you design more engaging, inclusive, and memorable experiences.

Walk Away With:

・A polished, adaptable outline for a program or talk
・A personalized toolkit of techniques you can apply immediately
・Felxible program arc you can adjust for different audiences and settings
・Renewed clarity and focus for your interpretive work
・Confidence in crafting and delivering programs that matter
・A sustainable sense of joy about the work you do, even during challenging times.

Find, share, and evoke stories of place and belonging,
inside yourself and others,waiting to be remembered, revealed.