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About
An educator and writer whose work invites us to root learning in place, community, and wonder. His approach centers on the idea that children need time to love the world before being asked to save it.
David Sobel has spent decades exploring how children connect to nature—not through abstract information, but through direct experience, story, and play. He’s best known for championing place-based education, a way of teaching that draws on the local environment, culture, and relationships as the foundation for learning. Whether it’s mapping a neighborhood, exploring a nearby forest, or collecting community stories, his work shows how education can become rooted in what’s real and immediate.
He introduced the term ecophobia to describe the anxiety children may feel when they’re exposed too early to overwhelming environmental crises. His guidance is clear: begin with delight. Let children build their own relationship with nature through joy, discovery, and belonging before introducing the call to protect it.
His work has inspired many educators and parents to follow children into wild play, to value their map-making, and to listen to the stories they tell about their surroundings. His teachings have shaped my own approach—especially in the ways I invite children to explore freely, to notice patterns in their landscapes, and to trust that their love of place is itself a kind of knowledge.
Why It Matters
His vision reminds us that real learning is rooted in real places. When children feel a sense of belonging—to the land, to a neighborhood, to the stories around them—they become more grounded, more connected, and more capable of caring for others and for the earth. For educators and families, his work offers both philosophical clarity and practical tools to create learning experiences that are joyful, relevant, and deeply alive.
References & Further Reading
- Place-Based Education: Connecting Classrooms and Communities by David Sobel
- Childhood and Nature: Design Principles for Educators
- Beyond Ecophobia: Reclaiming the Heart in Nature Education
- David Sobel at Antioch University
- Promise of Place – Tools and resources for place-based education
Articles and Resources on This Site
The hike had been long. The children were hot, a little tired, and more than a little restless. No one asked for a story—but something in the air asked for a shift. So I waded into the creek, sat down on a smooth rock, and opened the book.
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