Nuggets from 2016 (Part 2)
This is the second post in our series reviewing blog posts from the past year.
Cultivate the Resiliency in Every Child
By Dexter Lane
- Children in outdoor classrooms have many opportunities to test themselves across varying environments. They may test themselves in activities (such as jumping off rocks) at increasingly challenging levels of difficulty.
- Through the offerings of many activity areas, the outdoor classroom encourages development of resiliency during play alone, with peers, and with adults.
- Nature + natural materials + freedom of self-directed play and exploration + caring adults = physical/intellectual/ spiritual growth; and resiliency.
Water Conservation in Your Nature Explore Classroom
By Heather Fox
- Find a dual purpose for any water usage—for example, cool down children with sprinkler that’s also watering the grass.
- Think about water quality—if roof runoff water is not safe, fill water barrel from tap or hose.
- Look for natural water—dance in the rain, shape snow.
How Do Children Learn in Nature Explore Classrooms? Let us Count the Ways…
By Sara Gilliam
Research is increasingly documenting the role of play in children’s development, and the benefits of getting children outdoors.
- Social Skills—during group play and explorations children learn to work in harmony and cooperation with peers.
- Math Knowledge—the well-stocked outdoor classroom has many things to count, sort and classify.
- Science Learning—connecting with seasons and cycles, close observations of plants and animals, tending gardens teach science basics.
Outdoor Classrooms: Grounding Children in Reality
By Dexter Lane
- Since this article was written, simple attachments to standard mobile phones allow virtual reality experiences, beginning at just a few dollars for the equipment.
- Augmented Reality (AR) blends the real and virtual worlds. It is already being used in educational products.
- Virtual objects in AR can be manipulated in engaging ways, but these objects lack the three-dimensionality, textural and other sensory qualities of natural materials.
- Children who engage all their senses in exploring natural materials might be better able to appreciate the potentials and limitations of virtual reality experiences.
Connecting all the Pieces in a Nature Explore Classroom
By Diann Gano, Owner/Director of Under the Gingko Tree
This beautiful essay deserves a direct quote.
“This fall, we will find ourselves without two of our favorite little friends as they leave us for kindergarten. Always bittersweet. Always sad, but always exciting. They leave with letter recognition that came without worksheets or flashcards. They can find a letter in nature daily, be it in the form of a tree, a twig, a rock, or a water print on the ground. They will leave with the social skills of spending hours and hours outdoors discovering and problem solving with their friends. They leave with hours of risk taking adventures that will find them full of ideas and confidence to take on new risks in kindergarten. They leave us full of imagination and creativity and critical thinking skills. They leave us with kindness towards others and the earth.”
Thanks, Diann!
Garden of Wonder: How Gardening and Greenhouse Activities Facilitate Learning
By Sara Gilliam
Researchers explored preschool and kindergarten student’s learning when engaged in gardening and greenhouse activities in a Nature Explore Classroom. Some observations:
- Children gardening at an early age develop a sense of wonder about the world, and understand their role in caring for the environment.
- Through experience and teacher support children learn to take risks, develop self-confidence and process their emotions, gaining mastery over fears.
- Experiences such as gardening provide a holistic approach to teaching and learning.
A 140 Pound Pot-Bellied Pig Walks Into a Preschool, and…
AND
Four Guinea Pigs; a Sugar Glider, Parakeet, Tarantula, Blue-Tongued Skink, Dwarf Hamster; and Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches
By Dexter Lane
Two posts about the irrepressible Karen Lucy, and her educational, spiritual and unusual outdoor classroom at the Jewish Congregation Shaare Emeth, in St. Louis, Missouri. A few teasers…
- Millie, a pot-bellied pig, and her friend Lucy (ditto), visit the children in the outdoor “kitah,” (Hebrew for classroom).
- The children in the school, and adults in the congregation practice “Mindful Teaching,” in which intentionality and purpose are the foundations of teaching and learning.
- Animals at the school’s “Exploration Center” include those in the title above.
- At the time of writing, a shy hedgehog was being carefully socialized in Karen’s office, in preparation for future residency in the Exploration Center.
Follow Nature. Let Them Figure It Out.
By Dexter Lane
Observations on young children’s learning, based on cutting-edge research, with ideas you can use in your Nature Explore Classroom.
- Young children strategize to find ways to do what they see us do that interests them.
- This strategizing on their part involves problem-solving skills.
- If you want a child to develop problem-solving skills that will develop throughout their lives, let them imitate what you do that interests them, but don’t teach it.
- Their self-directed explorations in the Nature Explore Classroom develops these kinds of problem-solving skills as they “play.”
Takeaways from the 2016 Leadership Institute
By Dexter Lane
The Leadership Institute is an annual gathering of educators, administrators, advocates and others, bound by the common interest of exposing children to nature. Sponsored by the Nature Explore program and the Outdoor Classroom Project, it is held each July at Lied Lodge, in Nebraska City, Nebraska.
Here’s one of the takeaways; a list of the major organizations and systems that have embraced the Nature Explore Classroom concept as a standard.
- The U.S. Forest Service
- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
- The Los Angeles Unified School District Preschools
- Workforce Solutions of Central Texas
- National Association for the Education of Young Children, State of Indiana
- Georgia Parks
The real takeaway? You are in great company!
Why Grass Rules
By Jim Wike
Jim is the beloved leader of the Nature Explore Classroom design team. His enthusiasm for his excellent work is only equaled by his expertise. Here are some basics for those of you with grass lawns (in your outdoor classroom or at home).
- Intensive use will occur in the outdoor classroom, so select a variety that will promote vigorous growth with few additional resources.
- Allow taller mowing heights of 2 to 3 inches, so you don’t remove any more than 1/3 of the height at any one mowing.
- Most grasses will be fine with between ½ and 1 inch of rain per week. Make up with irrigation or watering for amounts that don’t occur naturally.
Nature + Play = Math Learning
By Sara Gilliam
Sara shares stories of activities in Nature Explore Classrooms, showing how numerous math concepts are being learned simultaneously in each activity. The learning includes:
- Children developing key math concepts as they interact with the environment, each other, teachers and materials.
- Natural and living materials unique to Nature Explore Classrooms contributing to children’s math learning.
- Daily opportunities outdoors in nature-filled spaces providing opportunities for children to use their whole bodies to physically experience the math concepts.
Dragonflies, Alligators and Bears—Oh My!
By Dexter Lane
Britt Moore, after growing up in Chicago’s South Side, finds himself in a Florida swamp, surrounded by dragonflies, snakes and alligators, all of which (at first) scared him. Fear transformed into fascination which fueled a career in Soil Physics.
- Direct, hands-on experience with natural materials and animals has the power to transform and inspire—even during adulthood.
- Trust in the judgment of a nature-loving mentor helps the process.
- A career dedication to nature and public service just might grow from what you do with children outdoors. You never know…
