Christie has education in her blood. Raised in central Pennsylvania by two career elementary teachers, from the start her parents instilled in her the value of life-long learning. Christie went on to graduate with honors from Penn State University with a B.S. in Elementary and Kindergarten Education (K-6th grade) and immediately accepted a full-time teaching position. During her years teaching elementary school she also earned an M.Ed. in Science Education from Lebanon Valley College and later obtained her early childhood education certification (PreK-4th grade).
Her classroom was always a place of curiosity, energy, and positive relationships. She was known for going above and beyond to create authentic learning opportunities for students, and became proficient at writing grants and networking in order to build student and staff capacity for science and environmental education.
After transitioning to staying home full-time with her four children, she realized the incredible power of individualized learning opportunities and especially the power of unstructured experiences in nature. Christie began to envision creating a school that provided something very different than what many children experience. Through that lens, she sought out opportunities to study the positive effects of nature-based education. She embarked on a mission to learn what made the difference and how she could foster strong social, emotional, and problem solving skills along with positive experiences in nature. She, along with her husband Nate, founded Rooted & Free Nature School in 2019. Her desire is to see children ROOTED in nature and FREE to learn!
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