A text description of the infographic is below.
The infographic is titled “CDLS School Year 2024-2025 by the Numbers.” It features a grid of boxes with the following statistics:
- 3 programs
- 14 classrooms
- 10 field trips*
- 200 children served
- 2 schoolwide camping trips
- 8 conference presentations by staff**
- 2 research studies conducted at CDLS
- 3 college courses taught by staff
- 1 art exhibition of children’s work
- 216 student observers in 9 college courses
- 40 capstone observational studies by dev psych majors
- 3 trees planted
*Field trips included Como Zoo and Conservatory, the Bell Museum, the Eloise Butler Flower Garden, Tamarack Nature Center, Minnehaha Falls Regional Park, and Harriet Alexander Nature Center, plus regular nature walks and weekly visits to Van Cleve Park and its swimming pool!
**Presentations and publications included:
- Ayuko Boomer and Sheila Williams Ridge, “Nature-Inspired Learning: Outdoor Emergent Curriculum for Young Children,” 2025 Minnesota Association for the Education of Young Children (MNAEYC) conference
- TaylorMae Ippolito and Alyssa Wilt, “Kita Lessons for American Preschools,” MNAEYC and German Immersion Education Conference
- Marie Lister, “Preventing The Development of Bias: An Introduction to the Young Hearts, Open Minds Program,” MNAEYC
- Peter Locast, Britney Stark, and Sheila Williams Ridge, “Cultivating Curiosity: Using Pollinator Gardens in Early Education,” 2025 North American Monarch Summit
- Britney Stark, “Nature Play: Benefits for Children and Families,” CDLS parent education program
- Britney Stark and Sheila Williams Ridge, “Let’s Get Cooking: Tools & Recipes for Seasonal Cooking with Young Children,” MNAEYC
- Britney Stark and Sheila Williams Ridge, “Nature-Inspired Learning: Outdoor Emergent Curriculum for Young Children,” 2025 Nature Everywhere Conference
- Sheila Williams Ridge contributed to the documentary In Our Nature. She was also on a team of writers who created Educating for Climate Action and Justice: Guidelines for Excellence, published by the North American Association for Environmental Education. She also contributed to Children’s Healthy Development in a Changing Climate, an on-demand online course from Penn State Better Kid Care.