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158: Empowering Young Minds: BOPN's Free, Public Outdoor Preschool at Franklin Park Zoo
In this episode, we delve into the innovative world of outdoor education at the Franklin Park Zoo in Boston, where the Boston Outdoor Preschool Network (BOPN) has established a unique learning environment. Join educators Ava and Alexandra as they share their experiences and insights into this inspiring program that combines nature and education to foster young minds.
Topics Covered:
The distinctive setting of the Franklin Park Zoo as an outdoor classroom and its benefits for early childhood education.
Ava's passion for merging environmental education with early childhood development.
Alexandra's dedication to creative storytelling and education in communities of color.
The impact of BOPN's free, public outdoor preschool on young learners and the community.
The significance of nurturing creative relationships with local land and history for sustainable futures.
Personal interests and contributions of Ava and Alexandra beyond the classroom.
MEET ALEXANDRA:
Alex Chapman began working with Boston Outdoor Preschool last September with their Boston Pre-K program at the zoo. They are passionate about creative storytelling and education in communities of color. After graduating from New York University where they studied Anthropology and Public Health alongside minors in Indigenous Studies and Public Policy, Alex spent a year with the National Park Service in Savannah, GA working on youth education and community engagement projects. Beyond teaching, they volunteer with 826 Boston and serve as the archival producer on the upcoming documentary, AfroArgentina. Alex believes creative relationships with local land and history are essential for sustainable futures and it is ever more important to develop those early with young children.
MEET AVA:
Ava Bradley is a teacher with Boston Outdoor Preschool Network, working at the Franklin Park Zoo location during the spring of 2025 and now at the Arboretum location for summer 2025. Ava has a background in both outdoor/environmental education and early childhood, and was very excited to combine these passions by working at BOPN! She is also an undergraduate student at Brown University concentrating in Education Studies and Linguistics, with a focus on community-based educational praxis and sociolinguistic diversity. In her free time, you can find Ava reading, knitting, cooking lots of vegetables, practicing yoga, rock climbing, and spending lots of time with living things, including her cat Garbanzo Bean.
CONTACT BOSTON OUTDOOR PRESCHOOL NETWORK (BOPN):
Website - https://www.bopn.org/
Phone number is (774) 500-4008
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
- WEBSITE: www.outdoor-classrooms.com
- EMAIL: Victoria@outdoor-classrooms.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/outdoor_classrooms/
- Facebook: Facebook.com/OutdoorClassrooms1
OUTDOOR CLASSROOM RESOURCES: