“Breathing”
Hi There,
First off, yes I have more room at Outside School summer camp! I'd love to see you this summer. All the details are on the website, linked below.
"Breathing"
Recently, I was returning to the clinic after ending my shift of being a roaming medic at an event. There, a child was laying on a cot surrounded by their family and the various medical providers assigned to work in the clinic that day. The child was shaking, stated they were scared, and was obviously hyperventilating. An older sibling added to the anxiety, as did all of us returning from our various assignments, tall and uniformed compared with this child laying down. So, I left as soon as I was released- no more people were needed in that environment.
But, before I left, I shared my pro tip with another provider and I'll share it with you now. If a child is in your care, and you have enough of a trusting relationship, this technique works every time in cases of extreme anxiety, anger, and even tantrums. And, it calms you down, too! It works like this:
-Sit down,
-Have the child sit on your lap,
-Place one arm snugly but not too tight across the child's body, like the shoulder belt part of a seat belt, from over one shoulder to the opposite side's waist,
-Explain that you are going to breathe deeply together until the count of five,
-Hold your other hand up in front of you both,
-Take one deep breath, and hold up one finger,
(Continue through five breaths. The child (and you) will begin to normalize their breathing.)
-At the end of five deep breaths, if you both are more calm, check in with each other about how you feel and talk about the situation.
-At the end of five deep breaths, if you both are not calm enough yet, say that you are going to do the five breaths one more time.
-At the end of the additional five deep breaths, if you both are more calm, check in with each other about how you feel and talk about the situation.
-At the end of the additional five deep breaths, if you both are not calm enough yet, say that you are going to do the five breaths one more time.
-At the end of the additional five deep breaths, if you both are more calm, check in with each other about how you feel and talk about the situation.
(I've never had to go beyond 15 deep breaths in total.)
I hope this works for you sometime if you need it!
On the subject of breathing, we know we use O2 and breathe out CO2. Other animals do the same. Plants do the opposite, using CO2 to produce the O2 we breathe. I started to think about this in a more ecological perspective that I don't think is usually put in this particular perspective, that other things breathe, too. Fires consume O2, too. As do our cars. Any motor, device, production system, or building that's connected to a fuel-burning resource consumes O2, too. And, that all produces the products of combustion, including heat and noise. All-in-all, when we think about our own and our societies' impacts, we can think about the breathing earth and its atmosphere.
Note the thin, blue layer of atmosphere in this photo by Col. Chris Hadfield, who said, "Tonight's Finale: In proportion, our atmosphere is no thicker than the varnish on a globe. Deceptively fragile."
Do you practice meditation and yoga? I've been working on it for some years, and slowly but surely I've noticed a difference in aleviating some of my anxiety- and it comes down to breathing and mindfulness. Have you heard some practitioners mention that we should breathe like babies, because they are calm and breathe from their diaphragm? Diaphragmatic breathing certainly does help calm one down, but the practitioners' logic isn't scientific. Did you know that the reason infants breathe deeply from their diaphragm is simply because their intercostal muscles haven't developed yet, and they cannot take the type of shallow breath that characterizes a stressed-out adult.
And there you go, some thoughts on breathing!
Outside School Enrollment
For kids ages 5 - 18 in beautiful Wildcat Canyon Regional Park- easy to reach off I-80, The Arlington, and San Pablo Dam Road.
-9:00 - 3:00
Enroll by this process:
1) Read through the website then follow the link to,
2) Read the handbook page then follow the link to,
3) Read and follow the steps on the application/tuition page.
There should be sufficient information to answer most of your questions, but please let me know if you get stuck.
Camp:
Summer Camp at Outside School is coming up, and space is available!
-Monday through Friday, $400/week
Summer Camp Week 1: July 7 - 11, 2025
Summer Camp Week 2: July 14 - 18, 2025
Summer Camp Week 3: July 21 - 25, 2025
Summer Camp Week 4: July 28 - August 1, 2025
Be Outside School!
🐻 🌎 🌈 💞
Bandana Bear: Made by Outside School!
These projects were years in the making, and I’m so excited to have them available now! Click on the images or button below to learn more.
Inspiration, Resources, and Nature News
From wherever…
"Stop Doing These 8 Things for Your Kids This School Year"- by the TinyBeans Team on tinybeans
I love it. We're growing adults, people!
"Project Packing"
Teach Outside
Resources for those interested in outdoor education.
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Set and Event Medic Services
Keep you sunny side up!
Heather
Heather Taylor, California Master Teacher, NREMT
Founder/Director/Teacher, Outside School (www.outside.school)
Founder, Teach Outside (www.teachoutside.org)
Creator, Bandana Bear (www.bandanabear.org)
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About Outside School:
Outside School is an alternative, 100% outdoor developmental program for children in kindergarten through twelfth grade. Heather Taylor is permitted to operate in scenic and beautiful Wildcat Canyon Regional Park in Richmond, California. Three days per week, children who are homeschooled, hybrid schooled, or in independent studies join in making discoveries about who they are and how they fit into the world. No two days are alike, and that’s all part of the fun!
About Bandana Bear:
Bandana Bear (they/them) is an American Black Bear (Ursus americanus) who loves having fun and making discoveries outside! Join in as Bandana Bear lives a healthful life exploring the East Bay hills, enjoys beautiful vistas, makes and eats healthy food, helps the environment, practices naturalist skills, and takes in various mindfulness practices.
About Teach Outside:
Teach Outside is an online resource site that includes articles, research, and lesson plans. It's purpose is to enable those who are interested in outdoor education to have access to a wide variety of quality resources to promote and inspire the work of outdoor education.
Feel free to forward to anyone you like!