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Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature
Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature has been hailed by Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods , as "good medicine for nature-deficit disorder." The first edition quickly became the essential guidebook for mentors, parents, teachers, camp directors, and others wanting fun and exciting ways to connect children (and adults!) with nature.
Now, the completely revised and updated Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature , 2nd Edition has been released. Written by Jon Young, Ellen Haas, and Evan McGown, Coyote's Guide 2nd Edition is an even more valuable resource for reconnecting people to the natural world.
Based on feedback from nature mentors and educators around the world, the second edition is not only more comprehensive it s grown from 408 to 548 pages but it s much easier to use, with beautiful full color photographs, a comprehensive index, and color codes that link the principles and activities for easier navigation.
Coyote mentoring is a method of learning that has been refined over thousands of years, based on instilling the need-to-know. Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature, 2nd Edition reveals this approach and what happens to student and teacher during the mentoring process. Strategies like questioning, storytelling, tracking, mapping, and practicing survival skills will inspire student curiosity and encourage self-sufficiency. Background information will help parents, teachers and others feel more confident in introducing children to new ways of experiencing and learning about the natural world.
As naturalist Jon Young writes in the Introduction, "Experience has taught me that Coyote Mentoring, working on so many levels, is by far the most effective learning and healing journey I have yet to encounter. I have seen people fully connect to the birds of their landscape, discovering hawks, foxes, and owls with the help of birds and other animals."
Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature, 2nd Edition will change the way you walk in the woods, whether by yourself or with your children.
Now, the completely revised and updated Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature , 2nd Edition has been released. Written by Jon Young, Ellen Haas, and Evan McGown, Coyote's Guide 2nd Edition is an even more valuable resource for reconnecting people to the natural world.
Based on feedback from nature mentors and educators around the world, the second edition is not only more comprehensive it s grown from 408 to 548 pages but it s much easier to use, with beautiful full color photographs, a comprehensive index, and color codes that link the principles and activities for easier navigation.
Coyote mentoring is a method of learning that has been refined over thousands of years, based on instilling the need-to-know. Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature, 2nd Edition reveals this approach and what happens to student and teacher during the mentoring process. Strategies like questioning, storytelling, tracking, mapping, and practicing survival skills will inspire student curiosity and encourage self-sufficiency. Background information will help parents, teachers and others feel more confident in introducing children to new ways of experiencing and learning about the natural world.
As naturalist Jon Young writes in the Introduction, "Experience has taught me that Coyote Mentoring, working on so many levels, is by far the most effective learning and healing journey I have yet to encounter. I have seen people fully connect to the birds of their landscape, discovering hawks, foxes, and owls with the help of birds and other animals."
Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature, 2nd Edition will change the way you walk in the woods, whether by yourself or with your children.
592 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
90 people are currently reading
1131 people want to read
About the author
Jon Young
21 books66 followersJon Young is on the leading edge of animal tracking and understanding bird language. He has been exploring animal communication for 35 years and was mentored by the famous tracker Tom Brown Jr. as well as a tribal elder in Africa. Jon developed the 8 Shields Cultural Mentoring System, a model that has influenced more than 100 nature programs in communities in the U.S., Canada, and Europe and is also creator of the Shikari Method for data collection, which is used by the USFWS. Jon has given over 1,000 public presentations and has mentored numerous students of his own. Married, with six children, Jon lives in Santa Cruz, California.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 15, 2012
A great book that's essentially a must-read for anyone working in outdoor education/nature connection, especially for those who will be working primarily with kids.
I'm currently an apprentice at a school in the Tracker–Wilderness Awareness School lineage. Really only being a few years into my own personal journey of nature connection, it sometimes feels kind of strange to be helping/mentoring kids along in theirs. Sometimes I feel ... unqualified. Reading through Coyote's Guide, however, was a pretty good confidence booster. There was a good mix of I don't know enough and I know so much! going though my head as I read.
Importantly, though, Coyote's Guide did a lot to help me understand a lot of the teaching and mentoring methods I was already learning, and it really helped me get a good grasp on the 8 Shields/Natural Cycle model. That's very important because we work with it a lot—almost everything we do relates to the natural cycle.
The first section, the mentor's guide (or whatever it's called), took me a pretty long time to get through. There is a lot of information to absorb/process, so it will take time. The second section, the activities guide, can be read through much faster, especially if you're already familiar with some of them.
This is a book you will probably find yourself taking notes from; there is so much good information in here.
Again, a must-read.
I'm currently an apprentice at a school in the Tracker–Wilderness Awareness School lineage. Really only being a few years into my own personal journey of nature connection, it sometimes feels kind of strange to be helping/mentoring kids along in theirs. Sometimes I feel ... unqualified. Reading through Coyote's Guide, however, was a pretty good confidence booster. There was a good mix of I don't know enough and I know so much! going though my head as I read.
Importantly, though, Coyote's Guide did a lot to help me understand a lot of the teaching and mentoring methods I was already learning, and it really helped me get a good grasp on the 8 Shields/Natural Cycle model. That's very important because we work with it a lot—almost everything we do relates to the natural cycle.
The first section, the mentor's guide (or whatever it's called), took me a pretty long time to get through. There is a lot of information to absorb/process, so it will take time. The second section, the activities guide, can be read through much faster, especially if you're already familiar with some of them.
This is a book you will probably find yourself taking notes from; there is so much good information in here.
Again, a must-read.
August 5, 2017
I can't say enough about this book: it is life-changing! It totally changed my outlook on how I "teach" outdoors. I have a degree in elementary education with an emphasis in science and math education and have years of experience teaching both in schools and through a nature center. This book should be a fundamental support and guide for all schools, naturalists and families! Comprehensive, thorough, wise and beautifully written and organized. The beginning of the book provides background information. The rest supplies well-designed activities that facilitate how to guide a group to make connections to the natural world. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy to own for myself. It will be put to good use.
February 8, 2018
What I read of this book was really motivational and inspiring. I love that we have a growing movement to keep kids connected with the world in which they live, and these writers provide wonderful insight to how we can facilitate that. However, since I stopped working with children last year, I haven't found the motivation to continue reading. This text contains valuable information as well as stories and ideas, and maybe one day I will pick it back up. For now, I'm keeping it on the shelf.
January 15, 2025
What a wonderful resource!
For anyone interested in a deeper dive in environmental education, youth mentoring, or developing a deeper connection with nature and your community, I highly recommend this book.
I loved Jon Young's book about bird language, "What the Robin Knows," and partially credit it for my growing passion for birding and remembering how vital time in nature is for my own personal mental health and well-being.
The Coyote's Guide provides some of the theory on nature connection and mentoring and an exploration of a core set of skills that help kids (and you) make a deeper connection. Following the beautiful theory eloquently shared by Evan McGown, the trio of authors provide a whole series of outdoor (and indoor) activities that engage youth. The core skills range from plant and tree identification and learning bird language to tracking and getting lost in the woods to storytelling and a deeper dive into ecology and nature-aligned cultures.
It really is a treasure, especially for anyone that is or dreams of being an outdoor educator or is looking for new, screen free ways to connect with kids.
For anyone interested in a deeper dive in environmental education, youth mentoring, or developing a deeper connection with nature and your community, I highly recommend this book.
I loved Jon Young's book about bird language, "What the Robin Knows," and partially credit it for my growing passion for birding and remembering how vital time in nature is for my own personal mental health and well-being.
The Coyote's Guide provides some of the theory on nature connection and mentoring and an exploration of a core set of skills that help kids (and you) make a deeper connection. Following the beautiful theory eloquently shared by Evan McGown, the trio of authors provide a whole series of outdoor (and indoor) activities that engage youth. The core skills range from plant and tree identification and learning bird language to tracking and getting lost in the woods to storytelling and a deeper dive into ecology and nature-aligned cultures.
It really is a treasure, especially for anyone that is or dreams of being an outdoor educator or is looking for new, screen free ways to connect with kids.
November 25, 2021
I read (properly read, as in every word and thinking about them) maybe seventy pages of this before I couldn't stand it anymore. Then I skimmed the rest, and took a few notes.
There are some useful ideas in here, but for me the text is terribly bloated and repetitive... like a textbook in that way, which I suppose would bother me less if I'd clocked that I was buying a textbook and not a book to read.
There are a lot of margin quotes of wisdom (?), which seemed very interesting until I realized that most of these are the writers quoting themselves.
Also, I feel the need to mention that this book probably crosses the line into cultural appropriation. There is a whole lot of indigenous culture dropping in a vague "ancestors," "Great Spirit" etc kind of way, but the book absolutely is not an indigenous product. Natives who inspired the writers are mentioned a few times, but I frequently wondered whether any those mentors benefitted from the financials on this organization's very popular series of products.
It's a blurry line, and I do sometimes struggle to mark exactly where a work goes from bridging differences to exploiting someone who cannot get published themselves, especially without details on compensation that I don't have. This one gives me some very uncomfortable feelings on that issue, and it is not a book I would buy today.
1 star for the photography & book-as-an-object aesthetics like layout & paper quality, 1 star for some interesting activities I can do with a small group of kids. But it was a real slog.
There are some useful ideas in here, but for me the text is terribly bloated and repetitive... like a textbook in that way, which I suppose would bother me less if I'd clocked that I was buying a textbook and not a book to read.
There are a lot of margin quotes of wisdom (?), which seemed very interesting until I realized that most of these are the writers quoting themselves.
Also, I feel the need to mention that this book probably crosses the line into cultural appropriation. There is a whole lot of indigenous culture dropping in a vague "ancestors," "Great Spirit" etc kind of way, but the book absolutely is not an indigenous product. Natives who inspired the writers are mentioned a few times, but I frequently wondered whether any those mentors benefitted from the financials on this organization's very popular series of products.
It's a blurry line, and I do sometimes struggle to mark exactly where a work goes from bridging differences to exploiting someone who cannot get published themselves, especially without details on compensation that I don't have. This one gives me some very uncomfortable feelings on that issue, and it is not a book I would buy today.
1 star for the photography & book-as-an-object aesthetics like layout & paper quality, 1 star for some interesting activities I can do with a small group of kids. But it was a real slog.
August 19, 2021
It's not that the information in this book is bad, there are many time-tested techniques and practices to build nature awareness and connection here. But they are so buried in florid language, garbage, pseudo-indigeonous assumptions and appropriative nonsense that it makes every single page a chore to get through. A long-time nature mentor and teacher required to read this for a new position, I need a solid environmental education palette cleaner after every contact.
Want to read
March 5, 2011I'm seeping through the pages of this book, absorbing the wisdom and intention of experienced naturalists. It's reading about work, but it doesn't feel like reading about work, because it's every bit as enriching to my own encounters with the natural world and way of looking at things as it is to my lesson plans and interactions with kids.
April 28, 2013
Truly awesome book.
How to help kids and adults alike discover their real power and humanity through Nature connection, fun exercises, and powerful Native American perspectives and wisdom.
Highly recommended for all human beings.
A complete anti-dote to our failing educational system. Seriously.
How to help kids and adults alike discover their real power and humanity through Nature connection, fun exercises, and powerful Native American perspectives and wisdom.
Highly recommended for all human beings.
A complete anti-dote to our failing educational system. Seriously.
March 11, 2022
The beginning of the book was helpful but too wordy, in my opinion. I would have given it 3 stars. The middle of the book was worth about 2 stars. So many words and not what I was interested in focusing on. The second half of the book where the activities were was worth 5 stars. So many great and fun ideas to get the skills of nature in a creative and playful way. My only struggle is not having enough people available for the games when I’m working with just my kids. So, the average is about 3 1/3 stars for the book. I would’ve loved it if I had read the intro and skipped to the activities. But, I hate to think I could miss something important 🤷🏻♀️
October 23, 2018
A breath of fresh air. Not only does Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature build on the philosophy Louv's Last Child in the Woods but it also helps guide us with activities to implement the philosophy. Following the Coyote isn't something we should fear. It is the way to awakening us to a world that we have lost sight of. I recommend this book to everyone.
Want to read
November 8, 2021Recommended in Let Them Be Eaten By Bears: A Fearless Guide to Taking Our Kids Into the Great Outdoors as "inspiration to go outside, to be counterculture".
January 17, 2025
Changed the way I interact with nature. Changed the way I teach (not just environmental education). Changed the way I live. Easy to digest. References some really great works if you are interested in further exploration of a certain topic/idea. Love this book.
August 13, 2017
Evolutionary Book
January 18, 2018
This book has changed my life. We use it every week for our homeschool nature group. The principals are so empowering and really work. It is the by far the best education book I have ever read.
April 1, 2021
I read parts of this for my class; I’m sure I’ll use it for ideas when I start teaching.
July 28, 2016
I love this book. Pick it up all the time for new inspiration. I've used it with scouts to guide urban kids toward a connection with nature. Used the games and wisdom to enliven a camping trip or paddle with moments of presence and meaning. It truly has the vibe of the life's work of someone passionate about reconnecting adults and child to the wild. Never unbearable or preachy or intimidating in its tone, but playful and coaxing. It makes burying oneself in the wild of the world feel very possible- and necessary.
August 7, 2015
I love the ideas in this book. It's not one of those books you want to read cover to cover. Each time I pick it up to read for a few minutes or get some ideas, I am inspired to take the kids outside and explore. We have cultivated one lovely habit for which the book is worth at least looking at, perhaps not owning, which is the idea of a "sit spot". My children have their sit spots where they like to go to for calm and centering and I think this is an invaluable tool for me too!
July 22, 2017
This is meant to be a bible for people who want to introduce children to nature in a specific way and though I appreciate much of it--the general tone and premise is too precious even though that is exactly what the writers intend. I much prefer Rachel Carson's "The Sense is Wonder" which is far more direct and less pretentious.
I guess it would be a good compendium for anyone who is a complete stranger to nature writings, but I am not that audience.
I guess it would be a good compendium for anyone who is a complete stranger to nature writings, but I am not that audience.
June 15, 2017
This book is meant to be encyclopedic in that you read bits and pieces rather than front to back. It's been by my bed for months now and I'm going to return it to my friend and buy my own copy for future inspirations.
Currently reading
August 10, 2010A modified version of one of the activities in this book rescued the second half of a 3.5 mile hike with our 5 year olds!
considering
September 22, 2011rec'd by adam s.
December 21, 2011
Amazing book on how to discover nature no matter what type of environment (suburb, urban, rural) you live in. Must read for parents and parents to be.
April 9, 2015
It is a good book for explaining and giving teaching advice, however it is extremely repetitive.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews