LIVING EARTH SCHOOL
Our Approach
We teach through curiosity, relationship, and the living world — guided by ancient traditions and the land itself.
Our Philosophy
At LES, we teach a holistic balance of skills and experiences that help people understand their place in the natural world, their role in community, and their passions for life.
We believe learning should feel alive — full of curiosity, discovery, and meaningful challenge. We strive to nurture each person’s innate gifts, creativity, and sense of purpose.
We aim to grow and support human beings who are engaged, resilient, compassionate, and connected — and who care deeply about the natural world.
Our work is rooted in
RELATIONSHIP over instruction
INQUIRY over answers
EXPERIENCE over information
CURIOSITY over performance
Our Approach to Mentoring
We practice a nature-based mentoring tradition often known as coyote mentoring – a timeless approach that awakens awareness, stretches edges, and inspires self-driven learning.
In ancient times, coyote mentoring happened as a sort of “invisible” school. Elders would ask questions, tell stories, send the youth out on a mission to fulfill a community need, and build on experiences so that the children had a deep understanding of their place and their role in the community. It was done in a way that children gained a deep breath of knowledge, but never really knew that they were learning while it happened.
That is our goal at Living Earth School, we want the experience to feel like a wild, unplanned adventure, that is full of passion and discovery.
A coyote mentor guides gently: asking questions, telling stories, offering challenges, and inviting exploration. Instead of giving answers, mentors open doorways and let the land do the deeper teaching.
In time, mentoring uncovers a way of learning that feels natural, joyful, and intrinsically motivating — the way humans have learned for thousands of years.
This Approach
Builds confidence and independence
Invites wonder and sensory awareness
- Encourages problem-solving and creativity
Strengthens emotional resilience
Helps each person discover their unique gifts
Our Lineage & Teachers
Living Earth School stands on the shoulders of many teachers, mentors, and traditions that have shaped how we learn, teach, and build community.
The skills we share — from naturalist awareness to coyote mentoring — come from lineages far older than our organization, rooted in ancestral traditions practiced around the world.
The Indigenous peoples whose lands we learn from
The Monacan Indian Nation and other Indigenous ancestors tended, lived with, and learned from the Blue Ridge Mountains long before us. Their relationships with this land are ancient, ongoing, and deeply respected. We do not claim their traditions as our own, but we acknowledge the enduring wisdom and stewardship that inform our work.
The nature connection and coyote mentoring lineage
Our approach has been shaped by a modern lineage of naturalists, trackers, elders, educators, and mentors who carried forward traditions of experiential, question-based, land-rooted learning. Teachers and influences who helped inform our path include (Click any name to read more):
A renowned tracker and wilderness teacher whose writings and teachings helped reawaken widespread interest in awareness, survival skills, and deep nature observation. His emphasis on sensory immersion and living with the land has influenced many instructors across North America.
A South African elder who carried forward traditional mentoring wisdom from the Akamba and other African communities. Ingwe was a guide, storyteller, and lifelong advocate for youth, community, and wilderness rites of passage. His teachings on living in balance continue to inspire the heart of our work.
Leaders and culture-bearers of the Mohawk Nation at Akwesasne, whose teachings emphasized peace, gratitude, and the responsibility of being in right relationship with the Earth and each other. Their sharing of the Thanksgiving Address (Words Before All Else) has influenced countless individuals and organizations, including the broader nature connection movement. Their reminders to begin with gratitude and to see ourselves as part of a wider circle of life continue to guide our community ethos.
Lakota elder whose teachings in tracking, awareness, and spiritual connection have deeply influenced the modern nature-connection movement. His teachings remind us that nature is not separate from us – it is family – and that learning begins with humility, respect, and relationship.
A student of both Ingwe and Tom Brown Jr., Jon Young helped articulate a modern framework for cultural mentoring, bird language, core routines, and nature-based community building. His work has shaped many programs, including those that informed the early roots of the Living Earth School.
The broader community of mentors, naturalists, culture-builders, and wilderness instructors who have shared their skills, stories, and experiences with us over decades.
The land as our primary teacher
Above all, the natural world itself – the plants, animals, waters, birds, winds, and seasons of the Blue Ridge – is our oldest mentor. The rhythms, challenges, gifts, and mysteries of this place continually teach us how to listen, adapt, tend, and belong.
Our community of mentors and students
Every mentor who has guided here, and every student who has walked these woods, has added to our story. We believe knowledge is carried through community, and each person contributes to the lineage we continue to steward.
A Living Lineage
Our lineage is not static. It is carried forward through relationships with teachers, with community, and with the land itself. We commit to learning with humility, teaching with integrity, and honoring the many sources of wisdom that make the Living Earth School possible.
Our Classroom Is the Living Earth
Located just outside Charlottesville, our programs take place in forests, fields, the Blue Ridge Mountains, and within the Chesapeake Bay, James River, and Rockfish River watersheds — one of the most ecologically rich regions in North America.
Central Virginia is alive with diversity:
Bobcat, bear, coyote, fox, deer, owls, and countless birds
Abundant edible and medicinal plants
One of the highest concentrations of amphibian species in the world
Flowing creeks, sandstone outcrops, and forest hollows perfect for exploration
Here, students follow animal trails, taste wild plants, listen to bird language, build shelters, craft tools, and let curiosity guide them deeper into relationship with the land.
Our Curriculum & Core Routines
Skills & Subjects
Our curriculum grows naturally from the land and the seasons. Students learn through hands-on experiences that weave together:
Wildlife tracking
Edible and medicinal plant knowledge
Naturalist awareness
Wilderness survival and bushcraft skills
Fire-making
The language of birds
Sensory-based awareness
Nature journaling and storytelling
Core Routines
We use core routines, which are consistent practices, to help students of all ages deepen their connection to nature:
Sit spot
Story of the day
Wilderness survival and bushcraft skills
- Mapping and wandering
Animal form awareness
Questions and reflections
Seasonal observations
Community sharing and gratitude
These routines cultivate self-sufficiency, attentiveness, awe, and a sense of belonging.
The work you do is incredible. It is not just a fun week for our son, but an important part of shaping who he is…
Caroline P.
