Nature-connection mentoring (8 Shields, Young)

1. Introduction

Version followed: the "Coyote mentoring" and 8 Shields approach as published by Jon Young, Ellen Haas and Evan McGown in Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature (2nd edition, OWLLink Media, 2010), and as Wilderness Awareness School (WAS) currently describes its core routines and its eight-shield series (2020). Where a routine or step comes only from a secondary practitioner page, that is stated and marked [uncertain: not verified].

Nature-connection mentoring is not a psychotherapy. It is an outdoor-education and mentoring tradition. WAS sells Coyote's Guide as "a complete manual for the outdoor mentoring approach taught at Wilderness Awareness School", covering principles of nature connection, techniques of Coyote mentoring, and routines and activities [source: WAS store page]. 8 Shields is described as a cultural-mentoring system that grew out of WAS. It maps the processes and mentoring techniques used in one-to-one, family and community mentoring and in traditional education [source: P2P Foundation wiki, drawing on Young's own biography; uncertain: secondary, unverified].

The core idea of change, as its authors frame it: an adult mentor acts more like a coach than a teacher. The mentor finds what the learner is already curious about, ties it to the senses, and answers questions with further questions and tasks. The learner repeats a small set of "core routines", above all a regular sit spot and telling the story of the day to someone who asks good questions. Over time this builds a felt connection to a place, calmer and wider attention, and care for the land and community [source: Oya 2010; nature-mentor.com; WAS "Cultivating Powerful Routines"]. Young's stated lineage runs through Tom Brown Jr., who mentored him as a boy, and, as Brown reports it, through Stalking Wolf, an Apache tracker. Young later also learned from the Akamba elder Ingwe (M. Norman Powell) [source: Oya 2010; P2P Foundation wiki; uncertain: secondary, unverified]. These claims about the method's origins are the authors' own and are reported here as theirs.

What the psychotherapist does with it: borrow single routines as between-session practice where the client wants them; integrate sit-spot and story-and-question work into therapy, including walk-and-talk or outdoor sessions; prepare and debrief a client, or a client's child, who joins an 8 Shields-style programme, camp or Art of Mentoring course; collaborate with or refer to the mentors who run such programmes; and work with what nature connection, lineage and belonging mean in the client's life [synthesis].

Evidence status: no controlled evaluation of Coyote mentoring or the 8 Shields model has been verified [uncertain: not verified]. The general literature on nature connectedness is a separate body of work and should not be read as evidence for this specific model [synthesis].

2. Framework

The model has no clinical phases and no set session count. Its sources describe three interlocking structures. A therapist adapting it should treat them as design tools rather than a protocol [source: WAS 8 Shields series; WAS routines article; synthesis].

A. Core routines (the ongoing practice). These are small, repeated practices done alone or in groups. Different sources group them differently. One practitioner reading of Coyote's Guide sets them in a two-step cycle: first experience (sit spot, tracking, primitive skills, harvesting, bird language, wandering), then reflection (journaling, mapping, field guides, asking questions). Quality practices run through both: sensory awareness, getting into animals' minds, and thanksgiving [source: nature-mentor.com; uncertain: secondary]. The companion Coyote's Pocket Guide to Connecting Kids with Nature is said to describe thirteen core routines and "a serial flow for outings". The WAS page does not list the thirteen [source: WAS Pocket Guides page; uncertain: list not verified].

B. The eight shields / natural learning cycle (the design of a day, programme or project). WAS describes eight directions arranged as a circle, which it also calls the Medicine Wheel. Each has a season, time of day and role [source: WAS 8 Shields series, 2020]:

Direction	WAS theme	What happens there (as WAS describes it)
East	Inspiration	Sunrise and spring. Welcome, orientation to the place, its needs and its hazards; an inspiring story or demonstration. Indicator of awareness: common sense.
South East	Motivation	Rapid growth and vitality; orienting and motivating learners; a child's passions.
South	Commitment and perspiration	Midsummer and midday. Hard physical and mental work, commitments, practice.
South West	Relaxation and internal growth	Rest and reflection while learning deepens.
West	Celebration	Evening and harvest. Story of the day, mentor questioning, weaving stories, celebration. Indicator: service to community.
North West	Reflection	After sunset, by the fire; reflecting on the ancestry and lineage of what was learned.
North	Distillation and integration	Winter; integrating what was learned.
North East	Imagination	The mystery between endings and new beginnings; closes the circle.

The rows other than East and West rest on WAS's own article summaries [uncertain: not verified]. WAS links each shield to an "indicator of awareness"; indicators other than those for East and West are [uncertain: not verified]. UK trainers also teach the model as a planning and mentoring tool for outdoor education, events, teams, meetings, personal development and projects, with feedback loops to track progress and find gaps [source: Muddy Faces event page].

C. The mentoring relationship (the stance across both). Ideally this is a mentor and a learner, held within a wider community with a nature-connected culture. The mentor uses questions, curiosity and the senses rather than lectures [source: Oya 2010]. Adults are taught to build their own "ropes to nature" through the core routines before mentoring children, because connection is "led by example" [source: NAAEE listing of the 8 Shields training].

Format and timing. Programmes run from city parks and backyard gardens to remote wilderness camps [source: NAAEE]. WAS runs adult and youth programmes, and Young's network runs international Art of Mentoring courses [source: nature-mentor.com; WAS]. No source gives session counts or durations for therapy. Routines are meant to be repeated over seasons, and commitments are kept small enough to be achievable and then scaled up [source: WAS routines article].

Moving between phases. Within a day or programme, WAS describes moving on when the needs of the current direction are met. For example, people engage in activities once they feel welcomed and safe, and know where water, toilets and shelter are [source: WAS East]. In a therapy adaptation, move on from "East" work (contracting, safety, inspiration) only when the client can say what they want from outdoor practice and has a safety plan. Move from experience to reflection every session. Revisit the cycle at endings (North and North East) [synthesis].

Training and roles. WAS, 8 Shields and the Art of Mentoring courses offer training. NAAEE lists a three-part online 8 Shields course for parents and teachers [source: NAAEE]. No certifying body, competence standard or insurance requirement for 8 Shields mentors has been verified [uncertain: not verified]. A therapist who also mentors in this tradition holds two roles. The APA Ethics Code Standard 3.05 (Multiple Relationships) applies [source: APA Ethics Code]. Check that professional indemnity covers outdoor work and any programme activities, and keep clinical records and consent separate from programme paperwork [synthesis].

3. Guiding principles

Curiosity is the source. Follow what fascinates the learner rather than forcing a routine. Practically: ask what drew the client's attention this week before you suggest anything [source: WAS routines article].
Routines lose power when they become chores. Practically: if sit-spot practice has become a duty, change its form (play, rest, listening) rather than add pressure [source: WAS routines article].
Make commitments simple, measurable and easy (the "3-foot toss"). Practically: agree a commitment the client is almost certain to keep, and scale it only once a rhythm exists [source: WAS routines article].
Mentor as coach, not teacher. Practically: set up the conditions and coach the client's own routines. Hold back information the client could discover [source: WAS routines article; Oya 2010].
Answer questions with questions and new tasks. Practically: when the client asks "what was that bird?", ask what they noticed about it and how they might find out [source: Oya 2010].
Engage all the senses and the present moment. Practically: anchor any outdoor or recalled experience in sound, smell, touch and peripheral sight before you discuss it [source: Oya 2010; nature-mentor.com].
Experience, then reflect. Practically: pair every outing with a story, journal entry, map or question [source: nature-mentor.com].
Tell the story to someone who will ask deeper questions. Practically: the therapist, or a chosen friend or mentor, is the listener who stretches awareness with one or two questions [source: WAS routines article].
Lead by example. Practically: a therapist offering these routines should practise them personally [source: NAAEE].
Welcome and safety come before engagement. Practically: orient the client to the place, its hazards and their own needs before any exercise [source: WAS East].
Read the group's energy and connect people. Practically: in groups, watch who is engaged and who is on the edge, and build connections between members [source: WAS West].
Connection is held in community. Practically: ask who else in the client's life could share the practice [source: Oya 2010; WAS West].
Quality over time spent outside. Practically: brief, attentive contact counts. Do not judge progress by hours outdoors [source: nature-mentor.com].
Free of religion, ideology and politics, as the Oya article presents it. Practically: offer the routines without imposing the Medicine Wheel or lineage frame. Ask the client how they relate to that imagery [source: Oya 2010; synthesis].
Client autonomy, consent and scope (therapist's addition). Practically: outdoor routines are invitations, never homework the client fails at. Clinical risk work stays inside your competence [synthesis].

4. Intervention inventory

The published routines and mentor techniques come first. Therapist-side procedures follow and are marked [synthesis]. The sources describe the routines in outline, so the step-by-step detail below is a clinical adaptation [synthesis] unless a source is cited for a step. Outdoor safety runs through every routine: weather and a bad-weather plan, terrain and footing, ticks and tick checks, stings, plant allergies (WAS names stinging nettle and bee nests among the hazards to brief), hydration, and access for clients with mobility, sensory or chronic-illness needs [source: WAS East; synthesis]. Programmes' own safety guidance takes precedence. None of these routines involves entering water. If a client's chosen spot is by open water, keep to the bank, and see XV 022 and X 196 for water risks [synthesis].

4.1 Sit spot

Purpose / when: the central routine. The learner returns to one natural place regularly to sit, observe and be present, and comes to know it across times of day, seasons and weather [source: nature-mentor.com; WAS routines article]. Use it for clients who want grounding, a calmer baseline, a sense of place, or a non-demanding outdoor habit. It also suits as behavioural activation when the client values it (see II 040) [synthesis].
Steps: (1) With the client, find a place that is close, easy to reach, safe and reasonably private: a garden, a park bench under a tree, a balcony with plants [synthesis]. (2) Agree a "3-foot toss" commitment, simple and measurable, that the client is sure to keep (see 4.5) [source: WAS routines article]. (3) At the spot, the client settles, lets the senses widen (see 4.6) and notices without an agenda [source: nature-mentor.com]. (4) Afterwards they note one thing that stood out, to bring to the story of the day (4.2). (5) Review in session, and let the form flex with weather and mood: play in rain, lie in the sun listening to birds [source: WAS routines article].
Example language (illustrative): "Is there somewhere near home, even a single tree, you could get to without any effort? Let's make that your spot. The only job there is to notice."
Watch for: turning it into a chore (change its form instead of pushing harder); personal safety in isolated spots, so suggest the client tells someone where they are; dissociation or rumination when sitting alone in silence (keep eyes open, use active sensory anchors, shorten or move the practice); seasonal access problems. Signs it is working: the client brings unprompted observations, reports feeling calmer or more present, wants to go back, and knows the place better [source: nature-mentor.com; synthesis].

4.2 Story of the day

Purpose / when: the reflection half of the cycle. After an outdoor experience, the learner tells the story to someone who shares their curiosity and can ask deeper questions [source: WAS routines article]. Learners share whichever part of the story they feel drawn to tell [source: WAS West]. In therapy, open the session this way when the client has done outdoor practice. It is also a gentle opening with withdrawn clients and adolescents [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Invite the story with an open prompt and let the client choose where to start [source: WAS West]. (2) Listen without correcting or teaching. (3) Ask one or two questions that stretch awareness (4.3) [source: WAS routines article]. (4) Notice when the client came alive and where the blind spots were [source: WAS West]. (5) Help the client pick a listener outside therapy too, and invest in trading stories with them [source: WAS routines article].
Example language (illustrative): "Tell me about your spot this week. Start anywhere: whatever's still with you."
Watch for: performing for the therapist or reporting "what I should have seen"; turning the story into a test. Signs it is working: richer sensory detail over time, more emotional vocabulary, and the client choosing listeners in their own life [synthesis].

4.3 The art of questioning (Coyote questioning)

Purpose / when: the signature mentor technique. The mentor answers with questions and new tasks rather than facts, to draw the learner deeper into their own experience and curiosity [source: Oya 2010; WAS West]. WAS refers to three levels of questioning taught in its Art of Mentoring resource. The levels themselves have not been verified [uncertain: not verified]. WAS's sample questions include "How did that make you feel?" and "What brought you alive?" [source: WAS West].
Steps: (1) Find the edge of the client's curiosity in the story. (2) Ask an open question about what they noticed. (3) Follow with a question about feeling or meaning. (4) Where useful, leave a question or a small task to carry into the next outing, such as "Where do you think it went?" [source: Oya 2010 for questions-and-tasks; sequencing synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "You said the blackbird went quiet. What do you think it knew that you didn't?" / "What brought you alive out there?" (second question from WAS West).
Watch for: questioning that feels like withholding to a client who needs information, structure or reassurance. Anxious, depressed or neurodivergent clients may need direct answers first. Socratic overload can feel like an interrogation. Signs it is working: the client starts asking their own questions and comes back with discoveries [synthesis].

4.4 Curiosity-led practice ("curiosity is the source")

Purpose / when: keeps routines alive by letting fascination draw the learner back outdoors, rather than discipline [source: WAS routines article]. Use it when practice has stalled or feels like homework [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Ask what has stayed in the client's imagination between outings. (2) Let that, not a schedule, decide the next contact with nature. (3) Make going to the spot explicitly the client's choice [source: WAS routines article].
Example language (illustrative): "Forget what you think you should do outside. What's been nagging at your curiosity?"
Watch for: clients with anhedonia may report no curiosity at all. Start with the smallest flicker of interest, and treat curiosity returning as an outcome, not a precondition. Signs it is working: self-initiated outings [synthesis].

4.5 The "3-foot toss": simple, measurable commitment

Purpose / when: set routines that succeed. WAS explains this with a horseshoe metaphor: players standing close keep scoring, while those standing far away keep missing [source: WAS routines article]. Use it whenever you agree between-session practice [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Name the routine. (2) Make it measurable, so the client can tell whether it happened. (3) Make it easy, starting modestly. (4) Scale up only once a comfortable rhythm exists [source: WAS routines article].
Example language (illustrative): "Let's set this so close you can't miss. What would be so easy it's almost silly?"
Watch for: perfectionist clients raising the bar; shame after misses. Signs it is working: consistent, low-effort repetition [synthesis].

4.6 Sensory awareness

Purpose / when: widen attention through listening in all directions, noticing temperature, moisture and scent, softening into peripheral vision, and moving quietly [source: nature-mentor.com]. It anchors the learner in the present [source: Oya 2010]. Use it at the start of the sit spot, in walk-and-talk, or indoors through a window or with recalled scenes [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Pause and settle. (2) Listen in turn to the nearest and furthest sounds, and to sounds behind. (3) Notice air, temperature and smells. (4) Let the eyes soften to take in the edges of the visual field. (5) Name one thing from each sense [steps 1–4 source: nature-mentor.com, sequencing synthesis; step 5 synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Without turning your head, what's the furthest sound you can hear? And something at the very edge of your vision?"
Watch for: hypervigilance in trauma survivors ("scanning for danger" can amplify threat, so frame it as curiosity, keep it brief and keep the eyes open); sensory overload in autistic clients; panic. Signs it is working: slower breathing, softer posture, a richer description [synthesis].

4.7 Wandering

Purpose / when: explore unfamiliar natural areas without a set goal, to make discoveries [source: nature-mentor.com]. Use it for clients who are rigid, over-planned or goal-driven [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Agree a safe boundary and a time to return. (2) Tell someone where you will be. (3) Follow whatever catches the eye. (4) Bring back one discovery for the story of the day [step 3 source: nature-mentor.com; others synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "This time, no destination. Let the path choose, and bring back one surprise."
Watch for: getting lost, poor orientation, unfamiliar terrain, ticks; clients with dementia or dissociative episodes should not wander alone. Signs it is working: playfulness, discovery [synthesis].

4.8 Getting into animals' minds and moving like animals

Purpose / when: imagine how an animal moves and where it would go and why, even moving on all fours, to build empathy and perspective-taking [source: nature-mentor.com]. Use it with children, and with adults who enjoy imaginative play [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Pick an animal the client has seen or tracked. (2) Ask where it would shelter, feed and go if alarmed, and why. (3) Optionally, move as it moves in a safe space [steps 1–2 source: nature-mentor.com; structure synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "If you were the fox that crossed here, where would you be heading right now?"
Watch for: embarrassment, so keep it optional; body-image or mobility concerns; with children, keep it playful. Signs it is working: the client takes another's perspective, laughs, becomes absorbed [synthesis].

4.9 Bird language

Purpose / when: listen to birds and track predators' movements through birds' alarm calls [source: nature-mentor.com]. It deepens attention at the sit spot over time [synthesis].
Steps: (1) At the sit spot, notice the baseline of ordinary birdsong. (2) Notice when it changes or goes quiet. (3) Wonder what caused the change and look for it. (4) Bring it to the story of the day [steps 1–3 paraphrase of the source's description; structure synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "What did the birds sound like when nothing was happening? And when did that change?"
Watch for: clients with threat-detection anxiety may fix on "alarm". Keep the emphasis on curiosity. Hearing impairment: offer visual cues instead. Signs it is working: the client notices patterns in the birdsong [synthesis].

4.10 Tracking and "natural mysteries"

Purpose / when: solve natural mysteries such as tracks and signs through the senses, careful observation and questioning [source: nature-mentor.com]. Use it to build sustained attention, patience and tolerance of not knowing [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Find a sign (a track, a chewed nut, a feather). (2) Observe closely and describe it before interpreting. (3) Generate several hypotheses. (4) Check them against a field guide or a mentor [steps 1–2 source: nature-mentor.com; 3–4 synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Before we decide what made it, what exactly do you see?"
Watch for: frustration at uncertainty, which is useful to work with gently; handling droppings or carcasses (infection risk, so look but do not touch). Signs it is working: the client tolerates ambiguity and observes more carefully [synthesis].

4.11 Journaling, maps and field guides

Purpose / when: the reflection tools: write a detailed account of an experience, sketch a map of the landscape to work out how features relate, look things up in field guides, and ask oneself what one is curious about [source: nature-mentor.com]. Use them between sessions, for clients who process better in writing or drawing, and when a listener is not available [synthesis].
Steps: (1) After the outing, write or draw what happened, with sensory detail. (2) Sketch a map of the spot, including directions. (3) Look up one thing seen. (4) End with a question to carry forward [source: nature-mentor.com; order synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Could you draw me a map of your spot: where the sun comes from, where the birds sit?"
Watch for: perfectionism about art or spelling, so make clear it is not graded. Journals may contain sensitive material, so agree what is shared. Signs it is working: maps and entries grow richer over time [synthesis].

4.12 Thanksgiving (gratitude)

Purpose / when: express gratitude for nature, which focuses attention on the present [source: nature-mentor.com]. Use it as an opening or closing at the spot [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Pause. (2) Name specific things the client is grateful for, here and now. (3) Keep the client's own wording and frame, secular or spiritual [steps 1–2 source: nature-mentor.com; step 3 synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Before we go, is there anything here you'd want to thank, in your own words?"
Watch for: forced positivity with grieving or depressed clients; borrowed ceremonial forms. Let the client choose the form. Signs it is working: authentic appreciation, not compliance [synthesis].

4.13 Harvesting and primitive skills (refer or co-deliver)

Purpose / when: experience routines named in the tradition: harvesting and using natural resources (picking berries to cook, herbalism) and primitive skills such as friction fire-making, as ways to learn natural materials [source: nature-mentor.com]. WAS uses a bow-drill demonstration to inspire learners [source: WAS East]. These are skills to learn from qualified instructors in a programme. A therapist does not teach them without that training [synthesis].
Steps: (1) If a client is drawn to these skills, explore what draws them (mastery, self-reliance, belonging). (2) Refer them to a programme with competent instructors and published safety policies. (3) Use the story of the day afterwards [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "It sounds like making something with your hands outdoors really matters to you. Would you want to learn that properly with a group that teaches it?"
Watch for: foraging misidentification and poisoning, plant and food allergies, fire and tool injuries, local rules on harvesting and fire. Give no foraging or herbal-remedy advice. Clients must not replace prescribed medicines with herbs, and decisions about medicines belong with the prescriber. Signs it is working: competence and pride, with safety respected [synthesis].

4.14 Building the mentor's own "ropes to nature" first

Purpose / when: 8 Shields training has adults practise core routines that build their own sensory awareness and comfort in nature before mentoring others, because connection is "led by example" [source: NAAEE]. Use it before you offer any of these routines clinically [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Keep your own sit spot and story-of-the-day practice for a period before introducing it to clients. (2) Notice your own obstacles, since they predict clients' obstacles. (3) Consider formal training (WAS, 8 Shields online training, Art of Mentoring) [source: NAAEE; nature-mentor.com; steps 1–2 synthesis].
Example language (illustrative, to a supervisor): "I'd like to practise this myself for a season before I offer it, and bring my experience here."
Watch for: enthusiasm overriding clinical judgement; imposing your own meanings on the client's experience. Signs it is working: you can offer the routines lightly and flexibly [synthesis].

4.15 East: welcome, orientation and hazard briefing

Purpose / when: the East begins any day, season or task. The leader welcomes people, shows them where water, toilets, shelter and food storage are, and makes them aware of local hazards (WAS's examples include stinging nettle, bee nests, off-limits areas and large predators where present). People engage better once they feel safe and their needs are met. WAS places the indicator "common sense" here [source: WAS East]. In therapy, use it for the first outdoor session, a new site, or a client starting a programme [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Welcome the client. (2) Walk through the site, its boundaries, toilets and water. (3) Brief its hazards: terrain, weather, ticks, stinging plants, insects, dogs and other walkers. (4) Confirm the client's own needs: medication such as an adrenaline auto-injector or inhaler, mobility, rest stops. (5) Agree a bad-weather plan and how either of you can end the session early [steps 1–3 source: WAS East; 4–5 synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Before anything else: here's where the path gets muddy, there are nettles along that edge, and if the weather turns we head to the shelter. What do you need to feel comfortable here?"
Watch for: skipping this because the place feels familiar; clients who will not disclose needs. Signs it is working: the client is relaxed and makes sensible choices [synthesis].

4.16 Calm-modelling opening (breath, smile, story, question)

Purpose / when: the Oya article describes how Young settles a restless class. He spends a few minutes breathing deeply and smiling at the students, relies on imitation (they copy visible calm, such as an audible breath or a glance at a tree), tells a short personal story and invites a visualised journey, then weaves in questions [source: Oya 2010]. Adapt it for group openings and for agitated clients [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Model a slow breath and an unhurried presence before speaking. (2) Glance out at something living. (3) Tell a brief, true nature moment of your own. (4) Ask an open question that invites the client's own story [source: Oya 2010; adaptation synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "On my way here a heron lifted off the canal right beside me. Has anything out there caught your eye lately?"
Watch for: therapist self-disclosure that pulls focus, so keep it short and in the client's service. With trauma clients, prolonged eye contact or smiling can feel unsafe. Signs it is working: the room settles, and the client offers their own story [synthesis].

4.17 Inspiring with story or demonstration

Purpose / when: the East is fed by inspiration, for example a skill demonstration or a story about a great tracker to motivate learning [source: WAS East]. In therapy, use it when a client is unsure whether nature practice is "for them" [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Find a story or image linked to the client's interests (a bird, a garden, a place from childhood). (2) Share it briefly. (3) Invite curiosity rather than commitment [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "You mentioned your grandmother's garden. What do you remember noticing there?"
Watch for: over-selling; nostalgia that turns into grief, which is welcome material but should be paced. Signs it is working: the client asks a question or suggests a next step [synthesis].

4.18 Designing a session, group or programme with the eight shields

Purpose / when: WAS and UK trainers present the shields as a planning and mentoring tool for a day, programme, meeting or project, with feedback loops to spot gaps [source: Muddy Faces event page; WAS 8 Shields series]. Use it to structure outdoor sessions, groups or a therapy course from beginning to ending [synthesis].
Steps (adapted): (1) East: welcome, orient, contract and inspire (4.15). (2) South East: link the work to what the client cares about. (3) South: the main active work (an outing, a routine, a challenge chosen by the client). (4) South West: rest and quiet integration. (5) West: story of the day and questions (4.2, 4.3). (6) North West: reflect on where this learning comes from in the client's life and lineage (4.20). (7) North: distil one learning to carry. (8) North East: imagine what comes next, and close [direction themes source: WAS 8 Shields series; mapping to therapy synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Let's land the session: if you had to carry one thing from today, what would it be? And what are you curious to try next?"
Watch for: forcing every session through all eight; gaps (for example, no rest phase in an over-driven group, or no closing). Signs it is working: sessions feel complete and endings are held [synthesis].

4.19 West: weaving stories and celebration in groups

Purpose / when: in groups, mentors gather individual stories and weave them together to strengthen connection, watch the group's energy, connect people, and run celebrations and story-sharing gatherings. WAS places the indicator "service to community" here: the wish to play a meaningful role and to discover how one's gifts can contribute [source: WAS West]. Use it in nature-based therapy groups and family sessions [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Invite each member's story in turn, with the option to pass. (2) Ask brief follow-up questions. (3) Name links between stories. (4) Close with an acknowledgement or celebration of the group [steps 1–4 source: WAS West; pass option synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Three of you mentioned the wind today, each in a different way. What do you make of that?"
Watch for: confidentiality within the group; members who are excluded or dominate; pressure to disclose. Signs it is working: members respond to one another and offer help [synthesis].

4.20 North West: reflecting on lineage and where learning comes from

Purpose / when: WAS describes the North West as gathering by the fire after sunset to reflect on the ancestry and lineage of what was learned [source: WAS West; WAS category summary]. In therapy, use it to explore who taught the client to love, or fear, the outdoors, and what family and cultural relationships to land they inherited [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Ask who first showed the client the natural world. (2) Explore what was passed on, and what was lost through migration, urbanisation or displacement. (3) Name what the client wants to carry forward [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Who first taught you to notice things outdoors? What did they give you that you still use?"
Watch for: grief, displacement and colonial history surfacing. Abuse or neglect connected to outdoor settings (for example, being locked out) should be paced and assessed. Signs it is working: a coherent, compassionate account of the client's relationship to land [synthesis].

4.21 Screening and suitability (therapist procedure)

Purpose / when: before you offer outdoor routines or refer to a programme [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Ask what the client hopes for. (2) Review physical health and access: allergies including anaphylaxis, asthma, mobility, heat and cold sensitivity, medications that affect heat tolerance or alertness (ask about them, never adjust them), and pregnancy. Ask the client to check with their physician where relevant. (3) Assess mental-state risks: dissociation, psychosis, current suicidality, trauma linked to woods, darkness or isolation, fears of animals or insects. (4) Ask about personal safety: isolated places, a history of assault outdoors. (5) Agree adaptations such as a window, a garden, a recording or company. (6) Document [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "Some people find being outside alone peaceful; for others it brings up danger. How is it for you?"
Watch for: clients minimising risk to please you. Current high risk means outdoor work waits, with standard risk assessment taking priority. Signs it is working: an agreed, realistic, safe plan [synthesis].

4.22 Contracting confidentiality and boundaries outdoors (therapist procedure)

Purpose / when: before any session held outside or any joint outing [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Agree what to do if you meet someone the client or you know. (2) Agree how to keep the conversation private on paths, and what to do when others are within earshot. (3) Agree a route, length, a weather plan, and how to end the session safely. (4) Clarify touch. None is needed. If help is needed (for example on a stile), ask first; the client can say no at any point; touch is never sexual. (5) Agree travel arrangements (avoid shared car journeys unless policy allows), phone signal, and an emergency contact. (6) Check that insurance covers outdoor work. (7) Record consent [source: APA Ethics Code for multiple relationships, Standard 3.05; remainder synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "If we bump into someone you know, I'll follow your lead. We can just say we're out for a walk."
Watch for: the relationship drifting into friendship or a social walk; a dual role if you also mentor the client in a programme. Signs it is working: the client feels the frame is as safe outdoors as in the room [synthesis].

4.23 Preparing, evaluating and debriefing programme participation, including children and young people (therapist procedure)

Purpose / when: a client, or a client's child, is joining a WAS-style, 8 Shields-informed programme, camp, Art of Mentoring course or Forest School-type group [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Evaluate the programme before you recommend it: its safeguarding policy, staff vetting and ratios, medical and emergency procedures, risk assessments, insurance, how it handles distress, and its cultural sources and how it acknowledges them. (2) Prepare the client: expectations, and how to opt out of activities. (3) For a minor: parental consent and the child's own assent, mandatory reporting duties, and a named safeguarding lead at the programme. (4) With the client's consent, share only the minimum needed information with mentors. (5) Debrief afterwards using the story of the day and questions. (6) Support integration back into daily life [synthesis].
Example language (illustrative, to a parent): "Before we pick a camp, let's look at how they keep children safe, who's in charge of safeguarding, and what happens if your child gets upset."
Watch for: programmes without clear safeguarding; children who are pushed to take part; any disclosure of harm (follow local safeguarding procedures). Signs it is working: the child wants to go back, and parents see transfer to daily life [synthesis].

4.24 Working with meaning, culture and borrowed frameworks (therapist procedure)

Purpose / when: the 8 Shields series uses Medicine Wheel and direction imagery, and Young's account of his lineage includes an Apache tracker and an Akamba elder [source: WAS West; Oya 2010; P2P Foundation wiki]. Clients may find this meaningful, alienating or appropriative [synthesis]. Concern about cultural appropriation is raised here as a general caution about borrowed Indigenous frameworks [synthesis]; whether published critiques address this model specifically is [uncertain: not verified].
Steps: (1) Ask how the client relates to the imagery. (2) Offer the routines in neutral language where preferred. (3) For Indigenous clients, follow their lead and their communities' own teachings rather than this model's versions. (4) Where nature practice carries spiritual meaning or conflict, use the DSM-5-TR Cultural Formulation Interview and its supplementary module on spirituality, religion and moral traditions. Where relevant, name the problem as Religious or Spiritual Problem, Z65.8 [source: ICD-10-CM Z65.8 (Unbound Medicine); DSM-5-TR wording [uncertain: not verified]].
Example language (illustrative): "This approach borrows the idea of directions on a circle. Does that speak to you, or would you rather we keep it plain?"
Watch for: the therapist presenting borrowed ceremony as their own; the client's tradition being overwritten. Signs it is working: the client owns the meaning [synthesis].

4.25 Collaboration with mentors and consultation with parents and schools (therapist procedure)

Purpose / when: the tradition places mentoring within family and community, a "village" of mentors [source: Oya 2010; P2P Foundation wiki]. A therapist may coordinate with a client's nature mentor, or advise parents and teachers who want to use the routines [synthesis].
Steps: (1) Get written consent for any contact. (2) Clarify roles: the mentor teaches nature skills, and the therapist holds clinical care. (3) Agree what will and will not be shared. (4) Suggest parents begin with their own sit spot and story-of-the-day exchanges with the child [step 4 informed by NAAEE "led by example"; remainder synthesis].
Example language (illustrative): "You don't need to know the names of birds. Ask your son what he noticed and what he wonders about, and really listen."
Watch for: mentors drifting into therapeutic territory, or therapists into teaching nature skills; a programme ethos that delays assessment of a child's developmental needs (assess or refer regardless). Signs it is working: clear roles and a child who is supported in both settings [synthesis].

The published sources describe the routines in outline only. Interventions 4.21–4.25 and most step sequences are therapist adaptations [synthesis].

5. Handling problems

The published sources address only the first two problems below (routines becoming chores, and over-ambitious commitments) [source: WAS routines article]. Everything else in this section is [synthesis].

Routine has become a chore or has stopped. Go back to curiosity: ask what has fascinated the client, change the form of the practice (play, rest, listening), and make attending the spot the client's choice again [source: WAS routines article].
Over-ambitious commitments and repeated misses. Shrink the commitment until it cannot fail, and scale up only once a rhythm is established [source: WAS routines article].
"I don't have nature near me" or access barriers. Use a window, a houseplant, a street tree, sky-watching or recorded birdsong. Adapt for wheelchair users and for people with chronic fatigue or sensory differences. Ask about cost and transport [synthesis].
Overwhelm, dissociation or panic outdoors. Stop the exercise. Ground through concrete sensory naming with eyes open, move to a familiar or sheltered spot, and shorten future practice. Reassess trauma triggers such as woods, dusk, being alone or animals. Move the practice indoors if needed [synthesis].
Hypervigilance amplified by "awareness" training. Reframe from scanning for threat to curious noticing. Avoid alarm-call framing at first. Pair the practice with safety cues such as company or daylight [synthesis].
Personal-safety concerns in isolated spots. Choose public or semi-public places, practise in daylight, tell someone where you are, and carry a phone. Take a history of assault seriously and do not push solitude [synthesis].
Resistance to the "Coyote" questioning style. Some clients experience answering-with-questions as evasive. Give direct information first, explain the purpose of questions, and ask permission before using questions to stretch [synthesis].
Discomfort with Medicine Wheel or Indigenous-derived imagery, or concern about appropriation. Acknowledge it, drop the imagery, and keep the plain routines. Do not defend the model's lineage claims. Refer Indigenous clients to their own community resources if they wish [synthesis; see 4.24].
Spiritual experiences or conflict arising from nature practice. Explore the meaning without endorsing or dismissing it. Use the CFI spirituality module, and consider Z65.8 where the problem centres on this. With consent, collaborate with the client's faith leader [synthesis; source for code: ICD-10-CM Z65.8].
Weather, ticks, allergies and injuries. Have a bad-weather plan, do tick checks afterwards, and make sure clients with severe allergies carry their prescribed medication (do not advise on it). Respond to injuries with first aid and emergency services. Follow programme safety guidance where it applies [synthesis; East hazard briefing source: WAS East].
Water. If a spot is near water, keep to the bank. Do not offer immersion or swimming as part of this practice. For cold-water shock, hypothermia and drowning risk, and for routes to RNLI, Outdoor Swimming Society or Swim England guidance, see XV 022 and X 196 [synthesis].
Ruptures outdoors (being seen, intrusive passers-by, weather cutting a session short). Name what happened, repair, and revisit the contract. Offer the option of returning to the room [synthesis].
Dual-role strain (you are also the client's mentor or programme leader). Separate the roles, or step out of one. Consult. Apply APA Ethics Code Standard 3.05 [source: APA Ethics Code].
A child in a programme who is distressed, excluded or reports harm. Safeguarding comes first: follow mandatory-reporting duties and liaise with the programme's safeguarding lead. Never pressure a child to continue. Make sure the child's assent is respected [synthesis].
A programme ethos that delays clinical help (for example, "nature will fix it"). Assess or refer for developmental, mental-health or learning needs regardless of the setting's beliefs [synthesis].
Depression with no curiosity at all. Use behavioural-activation framing (II 040). Make the smallest outdoor contact the goal, without expecting enjoyment at first. Monitor mood, and treat suicidality through standard risk assessment, not nature practice. Crisis resources: 988 (US); Samaritans 116 123 (UK and Ireland) [synthesis].
Eco-anxiety or climate grief stirred by connection. Validate it. Consider groups as their organisers describe them (e.g. Climate Psychology Alliance, Good Grief Network) [uncertain: not verified].

Sources

Web sources:

Books cited:

Young, J., Haas, E., & McGown, E. (2010). Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature (2nd ed.). Shelton, WA: OWLLink Media. (Bibliographic details from the library record. A first release in autumn 2008 is reported by the P2P Foundation wiki [uncertain: secondary, unverified].)
Coyote's Pocket Guide to Connecting Kids with Nature (Haas, Young, McGown and Bakewell, as listed by WAS; ZieBee Media; year [uncertain]).

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