Saturday, January 28, 2012

girl_in_field_184_371As an individual we believe we are all granted talents and abilities, unique to each, when we are born.  Discovering or becoming aware of these talents and abilities is our life's purpose and developing these gifts occurs throughout our life's journey.  This is a gift we are given.

As a family and community we believe once we become aware of the gifts we have been granted, we accept full responsibility for the use of our gifts.  We use our gifts unselfishly to the service of others.  This is a Gift each of us has to offer.

When we try to see every moment and every person as an opportunity to learn or to teach, we realize that each moment is purposeful. We strive to see these moments for their true blessings.  This is seeing Gifts in the Moment.

As a company our Mission is to teach the importance of using God’s gifts in our everyday lives.  It is the foundation of everything we do.

girl_with_frog_184_371Through our local chapter of the No Child Left Inside national initiative, we offer outdoor related events to encourage the physical, emotional and spiritual benefits of being in Nature.  This summer, we hope you join us for Fun Runs and Nature Hikes   More>>

 

Workshops.  Gifts in the Moment offers fun, interactive workshops for all types of youth groups such as boy scouts, girl scouts, summer camps, daycare groups, home school families…Topics can be tailored to specific group needs, such as friendship, self-esteem, healthy boundaries, or to meet badge requirements.  If your child is involved in any groups and you would like to see if we might be able to help meet a need, contact us for more information.


We offer gardening opportunities.  This can be a great opportunity for a familty activity and a way to serve the community.  The schoolyard habitats boast Giving Gardens, designed to serve those less fortunate with their produce.  Contact us to find out how you can get involved.

 

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Join us in the summer for the Fun Runs and Nature Hikes.  Give yourself a break and a boost by participating in these outdoor events.  In addition. we offer an opportunity to serve as a mentor to others in many of the programs Gifts in the Moment offers.  Contact us for more information.

We offer gardening opportunities, no matter what shade of green your thumb might be.  The schoolyard habitats boast Giving Gardens, designed to serve those less fortunate with their produce.  Consider donating time or supplies.  Contact us to find out how you can get involved.

Consider becoming a PLT educator.  If you work with kids PreK through 8, this program will enrich the experience you have with them.

Need to refuel, relax and reconnect?  You can recover these connections and experience stress release, better mood management and improved well-being through mental, physical, and spiritual enhancement.  Consider Ecotherapy Working Groups.

pt_workshop_371_184Schoolyard Habitats.  This program enhances classroom curriculum, encourages physical, emotional and spiritual health by moving kids outside.  We help to seek out grants, provide oversight in the implementation and evaluation of the Habitat and conduct clinical research.  More>>

Project Learning Tree (PLT) Training.  PLT is the American Forest Foundation's environmental education program that produces high quality curriculum materials for students in grades PreK-12. PLT provides training and professional development opportunities for teachers, non-formal educators such as summer program leaders, scouting leaders, day care providers and pre-service teachers (teachers in training.) We are trained in providing certification to local educators in PLT, and meet CPDU requirements.  More>>

Workshops and Seminars which target healthy lifestyles and tailored to the specific needs of your school, business or organization.   Ecotherapy can be modified as a workshop or seminar to refresh and energize your organization's management or staff.  Contact us for more information.

News

Andrew Weil's Spontaneous Happiness: Our Nature-Deficit Disorder

You aren’t depressed; our brains just aren’t equipped for 21st-century life. In my experience, the more people have, the less likely they are to be contented. Indeed, there is abundant evidence that depression is a “disease of affluence,” a disorder of modern life in the industrialized world. People who live in poorer countries have a lower risk of depression than those in industrialized nations. In... Read more

What can a green education do for your child?

What can a green education do for your child?

The Five Reasons Parents Should be Demanding a Greener Education for Their Children Environmental education in its many forms — nature lessons, energy awareness, water conservation, recycling, field trips and community service projects — has been popular over many years in the U.S.  But, in 90% of U.S. schools, it has failed to become more than an occasional add-on to a core curriculum. Surveys have found... Read more

What do you remember about outdoor play?

What do you remember about outdoor play?

The Schoolyard Habitat Movement Do young children need experiences in natural environments? From an evolutionary standpoint the answer is probably yes. Our development as a species occurred in natural environments--a wide variety, to be sure--and now, our mostly indoor existence in primarily urban environments is clearly a radical departure from the previous norm. The departure is so recent that most adults in our country still remember... Read more

Community garden enriches lives through outdoor experiences

Community Garden Enriches Lives Through Outdoor Experiences by Leslie Renken  This article appeared in the September 24, 2011 edition of the Peoria Journal StarNeither Kim Keenan nor Denise Urycki likes to garden, but last year the pair started a community garden beside Peoria's Logan Recreation Center because they are passionate about helping kids connect with nature.  "Studies show that when kids are outside, depression and anxiety levels... Read more

Can a playground be too safe?

Can Playgrounds Be Too Safe? When seesaws and tall slides and other perils were disappearing from New York’s playgrounds, Henry Stern drew a line in the sandbox. As the city’s parks commissioner in the 1990s, he issued an edict concerning the 10-foot-high jungle gym near his childhood home in northern Manhattan. I grew up on the monkey bars in Fort Tryon Park, and I never forgot how... Read more

Kids Who Get Out of Class Do Better in Class

Kids Who Get Out of Class Do Better in Class  By Viji Sundaram In the New York City elementary school where Sara Shenkan-Rich used to work a few years ago, students squabbled over petty things, bullied each other, were restless in class and showed high levels of stress.  But at the Sherman Elementary School in San Francisco’s Marina District where she is the principal, kids go... Read more

Denise and Kim

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Illinois
61612
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Richard Louv the Nature Principle

Healthy by Nature

Richard Louv on No Child Left Inside