about us

it’s a wild story

Hi there!

We are the Tidd family, and we love learning outside! We are lucky to have the lakes and creeks in the Finger Lakes Region of NY to explore!

Rachel is passionate about integrating outdoor experiences and place-based learning into reading, writing, and math instruction. She is the author of the book Wild Learning: Practical Ideas to Bring Teaching Outdoors and the popular Wild Math and Wild Reading curricula series. Rachel’s two children, Finn and Taro, inspired her to experiment with teaching math and then reading outdoors!

Before founding Wild Learning®, Rachel obtained extensive teaching experience as an elementary special education teacher and as a homeschool parent. She is a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in Educational Sustainability, researching how to leverage English language arts instruction to build sustainability literacy. As part of this work, she will pilot a model unit in fourth grade classrooms located in the United States and Canada during the spring of 2025.

Additionally, she earned a Dual Master’s degree in Elementary and Special Education from Bank Street College of Education and a B.S. in Environmental Science & Analysis from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. She holds four New York state teaching certificates in early childhood, elementary, and special education. She is completing a fifth certificate in Literacy K-12. She enjoys walking in nature (alone!), reading good books, making baskets, traveling, and drinking strong coffee. Learn more about us on IG and FB @discoverwildlearning.

We would love to hear from you!

Send an email to [email protected]

Would you like Rachel to give a presentation, keynote, or professional development session at your school or organization? Learn more here.

Photo: Sara Tro www.saratrophoto.com