The Outdoor Classroom

When you think about children's learning, in what environment do you typically imagine this takes place?  For many, the obvious answer is within the classroom as this is where we are conditioned to believe most learning occurs.  However the opposite is found to be true, according to current studies:



Image from http://www.communityplaythings.com/inspiration/room-inspirations/outdoor-play

"Experience in the field and child development research alike are showing that all children need and benefit from more time outdoors; it is critical for their health, self-concept and future school success. The optimal learning and growing environment for young children is composed of a full integration of indoor and outdoor spaces. The Outdoor Classroom enhances and adds to the limited scope of activities available inside confined classrooms by providing for hands-on experiences, physical activity, social-emotional growth through peer interaction and multifaceted approaches to cognitive development that connect children to nature and maximize their learning outcomes."  This information and more can be found at http://outdoorclassroomproject.org/

Image from http://childrenandnature.ning.com/photo/outdoor-classroom

The Outdoor Classroom's vision is simple: children benefit from spending more time outdoors, especially in natural places. Its goal is equally simple: to increase the quantity, quality, and benefit of outdoor experience for children (http://www.communityplaythings.com/)