Fourth-grade students in Becky Hallowell’s class at Wiscasset Elementary School sit on a log on the bank of the Sheepscot River, journaling in nature as the autumn leaves fall. Becky Hallowell photo

Entering 2025, the Maine Environmental Education Association (MEEA) announced its next Outdoor Learning Program mini-grant recipients, continuing to bring local students closer to nature through climate education and Wabanaki studies.  

This year, 149 educators across 16 counties received $156,057 for experiential, nature-based projects. 

“Over 100 teachers who received the funding were first-time applicants,” said Anna Sommo, director of school and community partnerships at MEEA. “We’re excited that the program is reaching more teachers. That indicates increasing interest in Maine schools strengthening outdoor learning, environmental education and Wabanaki studies.”

Weaving Wabanaki studies into public school curriculum

Committed to advancing Indigenous knowledge, MEEA teamed up with Brianne Lolar, Panawahpskek (Penobscot) citizen and Maine Department of Education Wabanaki Studies specialist, and her daughter Kaya Lolar to provide professional development training to educators. 

David Geravais, a fourth-grade student at Wiscasset Elementary School, peers through binoculars provided by last year’s MEAA grant. Becky Hallowell photo

The latest mini-grant cycle will support projects that invite Wabanaki guest speakers to engage with students and teach about the cultural significance of basket making, ash tree protection and traditional hunting, fishing and gathering practices.

Some efforts are underway nearby. 

Cumberland’s Greely High School received funding to purchase Wabanaki studies books, including: “Natural Curiosity: The Importance of Indigenous Perspectives in Children’s Environmental Inquiry” by Doug Anderson, Julie Comay and Lorraine Chiarotto; “The ABCs of Ecology: An Educator’s Guide to Learning Outside the Milkweed Lands” by The Ecology School; and “Iwígara: American Indian Ethnobotanical Traditions and Science” by Enrique Salmon. 

Others, such as at the Fiddlehead School of Arts and Sciences in Gray, are happening farther away. 

Anne Stires, who works at Fiddlehead, attended MEAA’s Wabanaki studies workshop last spring. 

“The workshop was a gift we have all needed for a very long time,” Stires said. “The schools I work with are extremely grateful for the vast amount of information as they integrate and teach the Wabanaki studies curriculum. The work that went into developing the huge body of resources was incredibly helpful.”

View the list here to learn more about each recipient’s 2025 Wabanaki studies project.

One of Becky Hallowell’s fourth-grade students at Wiscasset Elementary School bends down to closely examine animal tracks found in the snow. Becky Hallowell photo

Nature-based, experiential learning 

Since the grant program’s launch in 2020, MEEA has allocated $787,271 for outdoor learning in public schools statewide, reaching over 108,000 students.

Each award provides up to $1,500 and encourages teachers to create experiences that promote students’ social and emotional growth while connecting them to the local environment.

“Lincoln County received $8,664 for eight projects at seven different schools,” Sommo said. “Projects include field trips to Herring Gut Coastal Center, foul weather gear, picnic tables and a mud kitchen. We are honored to support these teachers doing great work and bringing learning outside.” 

Whether teachers are responding to concerns that early education has become overly academic or because exploring the outdoors seems more engaging than sitting at a desk, outdoor initiatives are gaining popularity.

They prompt children to engage all their senses — listening with closed eyes to the wind and the rain discovered during moments of silence.

A sea star nestled in Port Clyde shoreline vegetation at the Herring Gut Coastal Science Center on July 26, 2022. Becky Hallowell photo

Lincoln County mini-grant recipients

Here are four Lincoln County projects that will encourage students to enjoy the open sky and towering trees for the rest of the year.

Becky Hallowell, a fourth-grade teacher at Wiscasset Elementary School, received $750 to expand the Outdoor Wonderful Learning Space (OWLS) foul weather gear library to include waterproof notebooks and rain jackets. 

As the 2025 Maine Teacher of the Year, Hallowell’s platform emphasizes “demystifying nature-based play.” 

“This gear will join a collection of rainboots — provided by a previous MEAA grant — waterproof gloves and rain pants,” Hallowell said. “Too often, nature journals get blurred by raindrops, frustrating students’ effort to act as naturalists. Now, they can stay comfortable and engaged, collecting data or writing poetry regardless of the weather.”

Over at Wiscasset Middle High School, special education teacher Molly Carlson was awarded $1,000 to purchase supplies for winter learning expeditions that allow students access to icy trails along the Sheepscot River. 

Fourth-grade students in Becky Hallowell’s class at Wiscasset Elementary School work together to identify animal tracks in the snow at the Hidden Valley Nature Center in Jefferson, which they visit monthly. Becky Hallowell photo

Carlson and her colleague Alyson Graham lead the school outing club. They explained that the MEAA grant will also fund new micro-spike footwear and hiking poles for students with mobility challenges.

“We will use the gear for an upcoming learning activity this spring,” Carlson said. “Each year, biology classes study vernal pools to monitor the life forms they support. We expect frog and salamander egg masses in late March/April. The gear arrived over winter break, so all the students can safely partake in the project.”

Boothbay Region Elementary School (BRES) pre-K teacher Jessica Murray received $1,000 for the playground’s $1,500 mud kitchen addition.

“Our goal in primary settings is to engage students in outdoor, creative play,” said BRES Principal Shawna Kurr. “As research shows, it’s important for kids to be in nature and have free time to explore with others. Our [current] playground is heavy in metal equipment. While students can engage in games, it often leads to more independent, parallel play. We hope this mud kitchen will encourage interactive play instead.” 

Lastly, Anna Meyers, a Medomack Alternative Program (MAP) teacher at Medomack Valley High School (MVHS) was given the full $1,500 to split between the MAP Program in Waldoboro and the Herring Gut Coastal Science Center in Port Clyde. 

MAP currently serves 30 students at risk of not graduating high school. Part of its annual curriculum includes spring visits to the Herring Gut Coastal Science Center. 

“MVHS communities border the Medomack River and Muscongus Bay,” Meyers said. “Many MAP students come from farming and fishing families. Clamming and lobstering, in particular, are important to the economy but also ecologically vulnerable. Learning about marine organisms and climate change is part of our effort to encourage students to consider conservation and environmental stewardship careers as they reach adulthood.” 

While touring the Herring Gut Coastal Science Center, MAP students explore the intertidal zone and interact with the touch tank. 

“Students go tide pooling, searching under rocks and combing through seaweed to find crabs, urchins and snails,” Meyers said. “At the touch tank, they learn about adaptations that make each phylum unique — from arthropods to mollusks. By learning about marine invertebrates and the stresses they face, students dive into deep questions about our ocean and the people (and careers) that depend on it.” 

To learn more

A list of all the mini-grant recipients by county is available on the MEAA website. 

“We wish we could fully fund every request, but teachers are doing incredible things even with the limited amount of funding we can distribute,” Sommo said. “We are always in need of more funding support for this program because there continue to be more teachers in Maine excited to grow their outdoor learning initiatives.”

Visit meeassociation.org/minigrants-for-outdoor-learning to learn more about the Mini-Grants for Outdoor Learning Program or to apply for future cycles. If interested in donating to support the grant-making program, contact Sommo at anna@meeassociation.org or donate at meeassociation.org.