Take the Classroom Outside at Least Once a Week
Posted in: Active Living, Blogs
A recent study has found that by taking the classroom outside and learning outdoors for just one lesson per week improved students well being, ability to learn and pro social behavior. That’s just one lesson per week for huge benefits! To read the entire report “Nature Nurtures Children” click here.
The study found:
- 90% of children felt they learned something new about the natural world
- 79% felt that their experience could help their school work
- After their activities 84% of children felt that they were capable of doing new things when they tried
- 79% of children reported feeling more confident in themselves
- 81% agreed that they had better relationships with their teachers
- 79% reported better relationships with their class-mates
So what can you do to take your student’s outside for one lesson a week? Some easy ideas:
- Identify plants and trees (for local information see the Grasslands Naturalists and the wildflowers of Medicine Hat)
- Reflecting on the important role human’s play in nature
- Considering the needs of wildlife habits
Here are some other great websites to find outdoor lesson plans:
- David Suzuki Foundation (scroll to the bottom for the resources for teachers)
- Forests Ontario
- Outdoor Classroom Day
- Evergreen Canada
- Lesser Slave Lake Bird Observatory
For Alberta specific resources see Alberta Education’s listing of environmental resources.
Desirea Agar is a Health Promotion Facilitator at Medicine Hat Community Health Services and can be reached at desirea.agar@ahs.ca
Tags: Health, Healthy school, learning, mental health, outdoor classroom, teaching