Adult Farm Camp: Cultivating Connection, Community, & Learning
Remember the joy of camp? The curiosity, connection, and freedom to learn by doing?
Join Kelly and Stacy, founders of The Farm and Forest Education Center, along with Rachel Briggs, creator of Dream Through STEAM, for an afternoon designed especially for educators who want to reconnect with nature, community, and the joy of learning.
Experience the farm as a learner as you feed cows and make butter, collect eggs and hold baby chicks, visit the pigs for a scratch, and harvest from the garden. Together, we’ll use what we gather to create a seasonal batch of fire cider while exploring the connections between food, land, and learning.
You’ll leave with hands-on activities and ideas that can be adapted for classrooms, nature programs, homeschool settings, and community learning spaces, with connections to science, literacy, math, and place-based education.
Rachel will guide participants through community-building experiences that explore the interconnectedness of people, land, and history, creating space for reflection, conversation, and renewed inspiration.
Whether you’re a classroom teacher, outdoor educator, homeschool parent, librarian, museum educator, or lifelong learner, Adult Farm Camp offers a chance to slow down, get your hands dirty, spark new ideas, and connect with fellow educators.
Camp is back, and this time it’s for grown-ups!
*2026 RIEEA Workshop Series, based on the theme of this year’s Summit: Education Through Cultivation: Rooting Teaching, Farming, & Healing in Relationship to the Land, will be co-facilitated by Rhode Island community members. They will share how they connect audiences of all ages with the living systems that sustain us.
ABOUT THE FACILITATORS
Kelly McNiff is a certified elementary teacher with over 15 years of classroom experience. Kelly also runs Pat’s Pastured livestock farm with her husband, Pat. During the pandemic, Kelly and her sister Stacy started running outdoor programs and they now are the co-founders of The Farm and Forest Education Center, which they run at the family farm. When she’s not milking her cow or chasing her two young children around, you might find Kelly in the garden, walking in the woods, or enjoying a good book.
Stacy Gale is co-founder and director of The Farm and Forest Education Center and an Education Specialist with the GEMS-Net team at URI. A lifelong educator and lover of the outdoors, she was named RIEEA Teacher of the Year in 2022 and was a PAEMST state finalist in 2024. Her favorite work, though, has been building The Farm and Forest Education Center with her sister and sharing the joy, wonder, and wisdom of farm life with children and families.
Rachel Briggs serves as a STEAM Educator and Consultant. She is a dedicated advocate for families, committed to developing inclusive learning experiences that respect cultural heritage, stimulate curiosity, and empower children, families, and communities. She leverages the rich African tradition of oral storytelling to craft narratives highlighting the contributions of Black individuals in STEAM fields. This approach facilitates project-based STEAM learning that honors the past, educates in the present, and inspires future generations across all ages and backgrounds.