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Providing Hands-On Learning Laboratories
By April Lupardus Waltz, AWF Conservation Programs Specialist and Lynn Garris, ADCNR Conservation Education Specialist
*Reprinted from the Spring 2005 Alabama Wildlife magazine |
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| The Alabama Wildlife Federation and Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources partnered together to create the Alabama Outdoor Classroom program to provide on-site, technical assistance for schools who want to create a sustainable, effective outdoor classroom on their school grounds. An “outdoor classroom” site is essentially an outdoor area on a school’s campus that can be used as a hands-on laboratory where students can learn seemingly abstract concepts in a more concrete manner and utilize multiple-disciplinary skills including reading, writing, math, science, and social studies in a fun and exciting environment. These sites provide a valuable supplement to the familiar “30 chairs and 30 books” of the traditional indoor classroom. |
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Allentown Elementary in Mobile County provides a great example of how a school’s campus can be transformed into a hands-on learning laboratory.
Photo by Marisa Lee-Sasser |
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Outdoor Classrooms are created in a variety of shapes and sizes, and they incorporate numerous combinations of features including raised bed gardens, butterfly gardens, fish ponds, frog ponds, nature trails, bird feeders, and nesting boxes—just to name a few. However, regardless of which features are included, all Outdoor Classrooms created thru the Alabama Outdoor Classroom program provide two essential components:
1) An educational site for interdisciplinary, hands-on learning opportunities, and
2) Habitat for local wildlife (including water, food, cover, and places to raise young).
Through activities conducted in the outdoor classroom, students experience first-hand how to apply their “book” knowledge as they draw connections between what they learn in the “traditional” classroom and their natural surroundings and environment. As students assist with the planning, development and maintenance of the outdoor classroom, they also utilize problem solving skills and learn how to work together as a team. “This type of outdoor classroom and schoolyard habitat promotes the teaching of reading, writing and math skills in an environment that is motivating and conducive to developing higher-level thinking skills, such as planning, problem solving, and applying information,” explained third grade teacher Angie Beech. Starting with a passion for the outdoors and a vision for their campus at Allentown Elementary in Mobile County, Beech and fellow teachers at Allentown have now incorporated their Outdoor Classroom into their daily lesson plans.
Classroom instruction becomes more exciting and meaningful when teachers take their lessons outdoors and help students develop their innate curiosity for the natural world. With some planning and development, a school campus can be transformed into a living, learning laboratory. All subjects can be enhanced through hands-on, experience-based activities in an outdoor classroom setting. More specifically, an outdoor classroom can facilitate learning by:
1) Providing inspiration for writing activities and a calm atmosphere away from distractions for reading,
2) Helping students utilize complex measuring, graphing, mapping and mathematical skills to solve real-world problems,
3) Refining students abilities in scientific observation, data collection, analysis and forming conclusions, and
4) Drawing connections between geography, history, economics and our natural resources.
By providing students with the tools (mathematical and language skills), the knowledge (sciences and social studies), and an understanding of the connectedness (or interdependency) to their environment, learning becomes more meaningful and students begin to understand how these disciplines are related and dependent upon each other. By including habitat for local wildlife in an outdoor classroom, students also have the opportunity to observe wildlife in their natural environment and witness how we are connected to our wildlife and natural resources as well. These experiences continuously enhance their understanding of how “it all fits together” and help students become better stewards of our wildlife and related natural resources.
Regardless of size and location, schoolyards can be transformed into productive extensions of the traditional classroom. The Alabama Outdoor Classroom program has proven to be inspirational for teachers and students alike by providing a new, interactive environment for learning, in addition to providing stimulus and guidance for schools to develop on-site wildlife habitats and opportunities for interdisciplinary, hands-on outdoor learning.
Learn more about the Alabama Outdoor Classroom Program.
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