. Banner Image by Jerry Dodrill

Learning Laguna Docents

Learning Laguna Docents are trained volunteers who teach the Learning Laguna school program in 3rd grade classrooms throughout the watershed and during student field trips to Laguna preserves. Help the children of our community deepen their enthusiasm, appreciation, and knowledge of the Laguna de Santa Rosa and their home environment!

The Learning Laguna program teaches about the Laguna de Santa Rosa ecosystem with specially designed, hands-on activities. Learn how to lead them and engage children in investigating the natural world with the Laguna as the classroom!

Date: Docents volunteer year-round and especially in the Fall and Spring
Time: Docents teach during school hours (7:30 am – 12:30 pm). Classroom visits are 2 hours (usually in the morning) and field trips to the Laguna are ~4 hours, also in the morning. After training, the time commitment is approximately 20 hours in the spring and 20 hours in the fall (and more hours are welcome!) for two years.
Location: Schools within the Laguna Watershed and Laguna Preserves.
Required Experience & Qualifications: Completion of the docent training course. Next course begins March 2025. Volunteers must pass a background check which allows you to volunteer with children.
Cost: $175 for training materials, docent teaching supplies, program t-shirt, nametag, etc.    Payments can be arranged and partial scholarships are available.

Details

Experts in biology, natural history, and environmental education train Learning Laguna docent volunteers. Training classes include lively presentations, discussions, and hands-on practice with activities both in the classroom and out in the field.

Docent Training begins March 4, 2025. Our eight, consecutive  classes will meet on Tuesdays from 9:30 am – 2:30 pm. Trainees also shadow working docents during classroom visits and field trips during the weeks of March 24-28 and March 31-April 22. See the draft training schedule here.

Orientations take place on:

Trainees receive a binder with reading and reference material that is closely tied with the theme of each class. Plan for approximately 90 minutes of reading each week. The cost for training is $175.00. However, we do not want cost to be a barrier. Please contact us if you would like to discuss payment plans or a sliding scale.

After the training course and completion of a background check, you will begin working with students right away in April and May 2025. Docents are asked to make a two-year, minimum 40 hours per year volunteer commitment to the Laguna Foundation's Learning Laguna program, primarily in the spring and autumn. Because the program is focused around the classroom and school year, it requires that docents be able to volunteer during school hours (7:30 am – 12:30 pm), Tuesday through Friday. Docents choose the days of the week they volunteer.

Additionally, Docents are part of the Laguna Education Team which includes fun opportunities for continuing their own education, and participating in special outings and social events with fellow education programs volunteers.

We invite you to join us for this rich and rewarding experience!

Find out more about the training and the experience of being a docent.

Complete and submit the training application today!

Laguna Docents in the News!
Press Democrat: Laguna docents help connect school kids to nature

Sonoma West Times and News: Laguna docents find satisfaction connecting kids with nature
volunteer handbook

For more information, contact Christine Fontaine, Director of Education
(707) 527-9277 xt. 102 or by email at Christine@LagunaFoundation.org

[ top ]