Hi there!
My name is Rachel and my family and I live in the Finger Lakes Region of New York. We love to swim in the lakes, walk through the forest, and marvel at the many waterfalls in our area!
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, were her original inspiration in 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 currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in Educational Sustainability and Literacy. Her research focuses on using critical literacy as a pathway to build sustainability literacy skills, such as understanding the world is interconnected/interdependent (systems thinking) in elementary language arts. She developed a framework and model unit that was used as an instructional intervention in seven, fourth and fifth grade classrooms across 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 (both grade levels). She is completing a fifth certificate in Literacy K-12 (Summer 2025). She enjoys walking in nature (alone!), reading good books, making baskets, traveling, and drinking strong coffee.
Learn more about Rachel and Wild Learning on IG and FB @discoverwildlearning.
Contact us if you are interested in partnering with us for training, events, consulting, research, and collaborations!
Send an email to support@discoverwildlearning.com
Would you like Rachel to give a presentation, keynote, or professional development session at your school or organization?
Photo: Sara Tro www.saratrophoto.com
Wild Learning® LLC | Privacy Policy | Copyright 2024 | To contact us or for permission to use images please email: support@discoverwildlearning.com
I acknowledge that the land where I live (Ithaca, NY), work, and gain inspiration from exists within the unceded territory of the Gayogo̱hó:nǫʼ (Cayuga Nation), which is part of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. I acknowledge their stewardship of this place throughout the centuries and today.
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