Sense of Place and the Art of Interpretation
Training for Parks, Museums, Heritage Sites, and Mission-Centered Organizations
Practical, immersive training for creating more meaningful visitor experiences.
Sense of Place and the Art of Interpretation helps interpreters, educators, guides, planners, media specialists, volunteers, and site-based teams translate interpretive goals into visitor experiences that feel meaningful, coherent, and alive.
This training brings a different lens to interpretation, expanding how programs are designed and shaped through connections to place, meaning, and story.
Drawn from more than two decades of experience working with parks, museums, heritage sites, conservation organizations, and National Park Service teams across the country, these practical trainings are creative, rigorous, and renewing.
Participants return to their work with stronger tools, renewed energy, and a clearer sense of purpose.
Accessible for new interpreters and meaningful for seasoned professionals. This approach is practical enough to use immediately and deep enough to continue shaping the work over time.
This training helps you:
Prepare new or seasonal staff with practical tools they can use right away
Refresh and strengthen existing programs
Develop stronger stories, themes, tours, exhibits, or visitor experiences
Work with layered, complex, or non-linear histories more coherently
Expand engagement techniques for different visitors and learning styles
Create a shared language for stronger program design and delivery when done with a team
"We brought Erica in to help us master the art of storytelling and to learn how to share the meaning of these places even more effectively. When we worked with Erica before, it was one of the most meaningful experiences of my career. I was thrilled by seeing the growth in rangers and the inspiration they gleaned."
— National Mall and Memorial Parks, Washington, DC
Tools to Elevate Interpretive Practice
The goal of interpretive programs is to help people connect more deeply with the meanings places, stories, and histories hold. What often proves challenging in practice is how to shape programs that allow meaning to emerge clearly and naturally.
This training is designed to help interpreters do exactly that.
Instead of starting only with, “What information do we want to share?” this training begins with a different question:
How can we help visitors find their connection here?
From that question, participants build practical skills in storytelling, program structure, sequencing, delivery, and engagement. They learn to work with layered stories and multiple perspectives, and make stronger interpretive choices with greater clarity and ease.
As meaning and story come into focus, themes sharpen. Structure strengthens. Visitor experiences become more coherent, more meaningful, and more memorable.
"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."
— Sitka National Historical Park, AK
Sense of Place and the Art of Interpretation is offered in a range of formats, from focused masterclasses to comprehensive multi-day training, depending on your goals, schedule, and level of depth you are interested in.
For team training:
Bring this training to your team
Start an Inquiry →
Request the Training Buyer’s Guide →
For individuals/cohorts:
Sign up to get notified when the next cohort opens →
All formats are available onsite or online.
In-Depth Training
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Core Intensive Training
The best full experience of the method.
This immersive training offers the core arc of the Sense of Place and the Art of Interpretation approach.
Participants learn the foundational lens, see their site or resource through fresh eyes, explore visitor motivations, find meaning in the facts, shape stronger interpretive themes, and begin developing programs that balance content, purpose, engagement, and delivery.
This is the most complete starting point for teams that want a strong overview with hands-on application.
7 hrs
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Implementation Skills Training
For teams or cohorts ready to take their skills to the next level, from seasonal onboarding to advanced practitioners, this training builds on the Core Training tools and practices, and offers time for implementation and development.
Practice and develop techniques
Work with sequencing and layered narratives
Receive feedback and coaching.
14 hours | Includes Core Intensive -
Full Signature Training
The most complete training experience, supporting participants through the full arc of concept development, story, engagement, sequencing, delivery, refinement, and polished implementation.
21 hours ( Includes Core Intensive and Implementation Training)
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Capacity Building & Interpretive Vitality
Rooted Leadership : A place-centered training for renewal, reflection, and grounding. Gain practices to reconnect with yourself, your site, your team, and your purpose. Realign with the deeper meaning of your work and your sense of place.
Other restorative sense of place training includes Sense of Place Immersion and Grounded in Place Pro.
Half-day and full-day retreat formats available
Masterclasses: 2 hr to Half Day Formats
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Gain a Sense of Place Perspective
Seeing Through a Sense of Place Lens : An introductory session that helps participants see familiar places, stories, and resources with fresh eyes. 2 hrs
Experience a Sense of Place: Immersive and restorative. Use a series of 4 key practices to explore how place connection forms from the inside out. 2 hrs
Create a Sense of Place Story: Through a sequence of reflective writing practices using lived experiences, you’ll gain foundational story crafting skills and open a doorway into place connection and meaning making. 2 hrs
Grounded in Place : A fully immersive and skill-building experience using 5 key place-centered practices for renewal, creativity, and professional insight. Flexible Format | 3 hrs to a full-day retreat
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Content & Story Development
From Facts to Meaning: Find the meaningful story within a resource and develop a stronger theme, concept, or program outline. 4 hrs
Learn the Craft of Story:
Hone your skills starting with a personal sense of place story, then apply those same story principles to site-based interpretation. 4 hrs -
Delivery & Engagement
Develop & Deliver a Site Story : Refine a site story and practice delivery skills so participants can share interpretive content with more clarity, confidence, and ease. 4 hrs
Build a Technique Toolkit: Interactive training for experimenting with creative engagement techniques, audience participation strategies, and ways to reach different visitors and learning styles. 3 hrs
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Program Design and Site Narratives
Sense of Place Narrative Sequencing: Training for creating coherent tours, programs, exhibits, or interpretive experiences — especially for layered, complex, or non-linear sites and stories. 4 hrs
Sense of Place Interpretive Foundations: Apply a sense of place lens to your site and program design. Gain an in-depth understanding of the foundational underpinnings for developing sense of place programs, media, and planning. 10 hrs + coaching.
Which format is the right fit? Reach out with a few details about your site, team, or goals, and Erica can help shape a training option that fits your needs.
"I observed my staff applying Erica's approach and feel that the level of programs this year was just outstanding. Even our more 'science-based' interpreters brought in more of the emotional, reflective techniques. Her ideas were especially effective for creating that baseline of connection that leads to meaningful dialogue."
— Cape Cod National Seashore, MA
Participants leave with:
Fresh ways to see familiar resources, stories, and site experiences
Clearer themes, stronger interpretive focus, and more coherent program structure
Practical tools for shaping stories, tours, exhibits, programs, or visitor experiences
More purposeful engagement techniques for different visitors and learning styles
Greater confidence in delivery, facilitation, and interpretive choices
Renewed connection to the purpose, creativity, and vitality of the work
Meet Your Trainer
Erica Wheeler is an interpretive trainer and the founder of Sense of Place Consulting. She is the creator of the Sense of Place and Story Framework.
For over 20 years, she has worked with parks, museums, heritage sites, and communities. Her experience includes training staff at more than 45 National Park Service sites nationwide, helping them design and deliver engaging visitor experiences.
She's also keynoted at events from the National Association for Interpretation to the National State Parks Directors Conference, as well as several Governor's Conferences on Tourism.
Her work helps interpreters create the conditions in which connection, meaning, and care can take root.
Prior Training Sites Include
National Park Service (45+ sites): Yosemite NP · Independence NHP · Hawaiʻi Volcanoes NP · National Mall and Memorial Parks · Acadia NP · Cape Cod NS · Everglades NP · Great Smoky Mountains NP · Mesa Verde NP · Denali NP & Preserve · Hot Springs NP · White Sands NP · Women’s Rights NHP · Gateway NRA · Fort Stanwix NM · Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP · Saint-Gaudens NHP · and many more
Professional Organizations and Museums: National Association for Interpretation (NAI) · American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) · New England Museum Association (NEMA)
State Parks, Historic Sites and Conservation Organizations: State Parks · Historical Societies · Regional Land Trusts and Conservation Groups
What Team Leaders Say
“Erica provided our interpretive staff with a fresh angle on interpretation, new techniques, and the opportunity to stretch and experiment. Our interpreters strengthened and re-imagined their approach to sharing our resources with visitors. This training served as a solid foundation for our seasonal training." — Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP & Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site
“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
What Participants Say
“I've attended numerous sessions throughout my career, and I honestly feel that this was the best, most energetic, true feeling workshop about what we do and love."
— Howard County Parks and Recreation, MD
“Re-energizing for even the most seasoned staff." — Fort Stanwix National Historic Site
“This is a paradigm shift for interpretation and creates a gift to offer visitors.”
— Bandelier National Monument
What if interpretive training did more than build skills?
What if it also strengthened purpose, presence, and creativity in the work itself?
This training supports that kind of growth.
It helps interpreters build stronger skills and a stronger foundation for using them well—so the work becomes clearer, more grounded, and more alive for both practitioners and visitors.
Want to bring a training to your team?
Start an Inquiry→
Want the full training format list?
Request the Training Buyer’s Guide →
Interested as an individual?
Sign up to get notified when the next cohort opens →
