A five-year U.S. Department of Education Technology Innovation Challenge Grant, the NatureShift! Linking Learning to Life project was awarded in 1997 to the partnership of Dakota Science Center and the Grand Forks Public Schools (North Dakota). It was designed with partners from the Sahnish Cultural Society and the University of North Dakota to take technology and hands-on learning to an information-isolated highway of communities, including public schools, tribal schools, parks, museums and libraries. It soon became a true test of mettle for learners, educators, community volunteers, and instructional designers alike. This paper discusses lessons learned from the project's first three years of training educators in the application of the NatureShift Exploration Model, a teaching and learning strategy that borrows heavily from informal education, formal education, and instructional technology. The model establishes a standard for teaching and learning with technology derived from constructivist, inquiry-based educational theory and practice. As a professional development and learning tool, the model proved as difficult to teach as the new technologies it used. It soon proved its value, however, once trainers stopped teaching it and began using it to teach. Likewise, the findings of the project have shown that teaching new technology works more effectively when educators are not taught the technology but rather are given opportunities to use it to do what they do best--teach. (Author/MES)