Outdoor Exploration

Our students love to be outdoors! And so do we. Following are some of the observations we have made as we explore our outdoor environment together through the seasons.

The Great

Outdoors:

What can we do outside?

-play hide and seek

-jump off the rocks

-climb on the logs

-play on the dirt hill

-look at the trees

When this question was first posed to the students, their answers were very typical given their observations of the environmental surroundings. Beginning the first week of school, we visited the “neighbourhood forest” which consists of the treed area in the middle of the schoolyard. Having been corralled in the Kindergarten area the first few days of the school year, the “oohs and aahs” of the children was wonderful to see as they ran happily to explore this new territory open to them.

Teacher observations focused around how the dispositions and behaviours of the students changed as they freely played outside. Rather than the crying and hesitation noted inside the classroom as the kids began to get their bearings, there was excitement and laughter as they called to their fellow classmates to come and see some new discovery. Right then and there, we decided this extended time outside was a must-do of our day. After lunch as the older students went inside for the afternoon, we lined up, took attendance and headed to the forest.

About three weeks into our program, we were enjoying the warm fall weather we were experiencing and decided to take our activity-centre time outside also. Thankfully, we had a number of resources available to us that we could set up a mock classroom environment, outdoors. The students loved it! There was a paint easel, a dollhouse (made a treehouse once placed near the stumps), some huge appliance boxes, big and small blocks and cars and trucks. Also, we brought out musical instruments so the kids could sing, play and create their bands at whatever volume they wished (and we didn't get headaches!).

We continue to have extended outdoor playtime because we see the value of kids experiencing nature. We have gone on discovery walks to make nature bracelets, imaginary safari adventures to find wild animals and visit African villages, tried the art of weaving with rope and chain-link fencing and created new games amid trees, rocks and logs. These activities have provided times of great learning and we know the Great Outdoors will be an integral part of the children's education this year.

Now when you ask the students, “What can we do outside?” their answers are much more far-reaching than at the beginning of the school year.

-be in a marching band

-get exercise

-play “Lava Monster”

-pretend to go camping

-write letters (in the dirt) to the big kids

-play school

-find bugs, leaves, acorns and berries

-walk on the moon

-play Shadow Tag