Welcome to Spring! We are excited to offer the spring series of our online herb classes. Details and registration are below.
We have adjusted our class offerings in response to the pandemic and all of our in-person classes are being postponed. We are waiting until it is safe for us to gather in person before we start to schedule. Stay tuned for those details.
Signing up for our newsletter or following us on Instagram or Facebook are all good ways to stay up to date with our class offerings.
We hope you can join us! Online for now and in-person in the future.

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Have any questions about our courses? Feel free to call or email.
530.468.4342 or info@BlueOtterSchool.com
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Practitioner Skills – ONLINE CLASS
Access decades of clinical experience. This series will foster practitioner skills including;
boundaries, holding space and your client, the interview, formulation and working with clients
remotely. A recording will be available for four days after each class.Dates: March 23 & 30, 2021 (Tuesdays)
Hours: 5-7pm, PST
Instructor: Sarah Holmes
Cost: $95-60*
Are you interested in going farther? You have a couple of options. Sign up for one of the two
small groups we are offering this spring; more info below. Or, sign up for an individual
mentoring session with Karyn or Sarah. Email us directly if you are interested in a mentoring
session. Karyn@BlueOtterSchool.com or Sarah@BlueOtterSchool.com -
Practitioner Skills: Small Group A – ONLINE CLASS
Join Sarah Holmes online for a small group experience focused on practitioner skills. We will expand upon the topics covered in Practitioner Skills. Classes consist of a combination of lecture, group discussion, exercises and questions. Each group is limited to 20 people.
Dates: Tuesdays, April 13, 20, 27, May 4, 2021
Hours: 6-8 pm, PST
Instructor: Sarah Holmes
Cost: $180-120*
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Practitioner Skills: Small Group B – ONLINE CLASS
Join Sarah Holmes online for a small group experience focused on practitioner skills. We will expand upon the topics covered in Practitioner Skills. Classes consist of a combination of lecture, group discussion, exercises and questions. Each group is limited to 20 people.
Dates: Wednesdays, April 28, May 5, 12, 19, 2021
Hours: 2-4 pm, PST
Instructor: Sarah Holmes
Cost: $180-120*
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All About Immunity – ONLINE CLASS
This class is an exploration of our immune system and the herbs to support it; with a focus on colds and flues. We will cover how the immune system works including its energetics, what strengthens it and how to time and use the herbs in support of the immune and respiratory systems. A recording will be available for four days after each class.
Dates: Thursdays, March 25, April 1, 2021
Hours: 5-7 pm, PST
Instructor: Sarah Holmes
Cost: $95-60*
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Grounded Presence – ONLINE CLASS
This class covers the importance of being grounded and present and how the two are related. During times of stress and transition staying in grounded presence allows us to access our deepest, wisest self and stay centered. We will also explore the plants and practices that support this state of being. A recording will be available for four days after class.
Dates: Thursday, April 15, 2021
Hours: 5-7 pm, PST
Instructor: Sarah Holmes
Cost: $50-30*
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Working Through Trauma – ONLINE CLASS
In this class we will explore how trauma impacts a person physically, emotionally and spiritually. What are the many forms of trauma? What are some short and long term issues? How do we identify and unwind these patterns? How do we get the root of the pattern? Treatment approaches and herbs for addressing these issues will be covered. A recording will be available for four days after class.
Dates: Thursdays, April 22, 29, 2021
Hours: 3-5 pm, PST
Instructor: Karyn Sanders
Cost: $95-60*
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Tending Plants in the Wild – ONLINE CLASS
Join Karyn Sanders for an evening exploring the important topic of tending plants in the wild. Karyn has been tending to plants since she was a child and will share her perspective and the various ways to work with and understand the plants. A recording will be available for four days after class.
Dates: Tuesday, May 20, 2021
Hours: 3-5 pm, PST
Instructor: Karyn Sanders
Cost: $50-30*
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Getting to Know You: Tools for Deepening Your Relationship with Plants – ONLINE CLASS
Do you desire a greater level of connection to plants? Have you wanted to develop a relationship with a new plant? This class will combine instruction, guided exercises and homework to support your work in deepening your relationship to the plant world. This is an interactive class and you will get more out of it if you are able to attend live. A recording will be available for four days after each class.
Dates: Tuesdays, May 11, 18, 25, 2021
Hours: 5-6:30 pm, PST
Instructor: Sarah Holmes
Cost: $115-75*
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Stella’s Nap Lessons
Join Stella for a ten week series to support your sleep. Stella, our cat, has for years been an important part of our staff here at Blue Otter. Karyn and Sarah tend to take a break from teaching during the winter so Stella volunteered to teach at this time since people are in need of support during winter as well. Her ten part series on napping will cover many aspects of setting yourself up for good sleep. Each lesson will include information on an herbal ally and some homework.
Dates: Saturdays, January 9 – March 13
Location: Instagram and Facebook posts
Instructor: Stella
Cost: FREE!
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Energetic Herbalism Intensive – Part One
Dates:
September 21-25, 2020Spend a week immersed in the energy of the plants. In this class we will explore energetic herbalism from a Native American perspective. We will look at working with the energies of plants for yourself and in your work with other people. Class time will be a combination of lecture, discussion, meditations and energy exercises.
Postponed until 2022. New dates TBA.
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Energetic Herbalism Intensive – Part Two
November 16-20, 2020We will spend another week together reviewing, expanding and deepening our work from Part One. Open to anyone who has attended Part One.
Postponed until 2022. New dates TBA.
Mentoring Sessions
Get individualized attention with your questions. One hour sessions are available with Karyn Sanders or Sarah Holmes to ask about what is coming up for you in your herbal practice. The intention of these sessions is to provide a mentoring space for practice questions as they come up for you. Call or email for scheduling and pricing. By appointment only. 530.468.4342 or Karyn@BlueOtterSchool.com or Sarah@BlueOtterSchool.com.
“Studying with Karyn and Sarah was hands-down one of the most special, most energizing, and most challenging experiences of my life. I completed the full-time program in 2015 and I constantly draw on the wealth of knowledge I gained during that time. Offerings such as materia medica, medicine-making, and gardening are invaluable and unique to this program. Karyn and Sarah are accessible, generous, and energetic instructors who are deeply committed to their students and to the practice of truly holistic energetic herbalism.” Gina Badger, Graduate of the full-time program, 2015
“Blue Otter is a dream come true- it’s incredible to have the opportunity to be completely immersed in plant medicine through this full time program. The teachers are exceptional, supporting you to learn an extensive understanding of plant medicine and physiology, and a deep understanding of how to work with clients. The herb garden is an incredible resource where you can actually spend time with the plants you learn about, getting an opportunity to learn how to care for them as well. As a student, this class is a safe container to also do work on yourself, so you can become a strong practitioner. I can’t thank these two wonderful folks enough for the incredible support and encouragement they have provided through this program- Karyn and Sarah truly hold this medicine as sacred, and I recommend their school to anyone who is ready to do this work in a deep way. ”
Elokin Orton-Cheung, founder of Shooting Star Botanicals