Nature Education
Photo by: Mitch Elness
​Friends of Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge strives to cultivate the next generation of environmental stewards and everyday naturalists.
Video by: Bruce Ellingson
Video by: Bruce Ellingson
​The Friends organization supports a variety of educational experiences for people of all ages.
For instance, through our Nature Education Program, area kids are able to get out of the classroom and into the oak savanna, where they can engage their senses for a truly immersive learning experience. And because of the generosity of our donors, some of the cost associated with this experience is covered!
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EDUCATORS:
Are you interested in bringing your students to the refuge? Visit the refuge website for more info!
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LIFELONG LEARNERS:
The refuge is a place for everyone to learn and grow. For adults on a tight schedule, or those who want to explore at their own pace, the Friends invests in interpretive signage and other key projects like our floating platform, to enhance the self-guided exploration.
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The Refuge Events Calendar provides information for people - of all ages - to learn more about our natural world.
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This was the phrase uttered by a local second-grader during a hands-on nature learning experience with his class at the refuge. While on a discovery hike in the oak savanna, he held a bur oak leaf to his ear as if it were a shell from the ocean and listened to the forest!.
This young man, and hundreds of students like him, visit the refuge each year for standards-based lessons. Many of their teachers have also begun to use their school yards as outdoor classrooms.
“I can hear the forest!”
Photo by: Sherry Winter
Did you know?
Nearly 2,125 students visited the Oak Savanna Learning Center in 2017!
Photo by: Sue Hix