It is our opinion that American children spend too much time indoors focused on electronics, and far too little time interacting with the natural world outdoors. We knew that we wanted to bring meaningful outdoor learning experiences to our students, but were unsure of how best to accomplish that goal. This fellowship has answered that call.
We went to the UK to discover how we could establish a forest school program and create a suitable setting at our home school. Instead, what we came to realize is that this philosophy is less about the physical setting, and much more about an educational approach and mindset. While engaged in learning experiences during our training, we were allowed to return to what we know to be best practices in education. The forest school model is really what good teaching is all about. This experience allowed us to reset our priorities and return to what we know is right in teaching and learning. Our students will reap the rewards of that shift in thinking and our improved teaching practices. We are so honored to be able to lead them on that journey.
[Read more about the Forest School Philosophy here.]
Having witnessed the joyful learning that takes place in a forest school setting, we are eager to share this experience with as many other students, teachers, administrators and community members as we can here in America. Since returning to school this September, we have already begun to engage our students in outdoor learning activities. Our children have collected and studied insects, explored the woods and meadows surrounding our school building, and participated in plant and tree identification challenges. We will be working toward establishing separate habitat areas for butterflies, frogs and birds.
We have enlisted the help of a local boy scout troop for help with clearing brush and establishing a gathering area as well as trails through the forest. In addition, we are reaching out to local gardeners, outdoor enthusiasts and parents whom we will recruit as volunteers to help support our forest school lessons. It is our hope that we will create enough enthusiasm about our program to draw in interest from educators throughout the region, allowing us to encourage other area school districts to follow our example. We have already reached out to one neighboring district that is committed to launching an outdoor education program and have met with administrators there to share our learning and resources with them.
We now feel empowered to make significant improvements in the educational experiences our students will participate in. We can enhance student learning in new and exciting ways. As educators, we are more enthusiastic about teaching now than ever before. We have a sound academic plan that will allow us to make learning fun again. Our students will engage in rich academic experiences while at the same time discovering a great deal about themselves and the world around them. Students will now have opportunities to learn about the natural world, and begin to appreciate interdependence on other people and living things, in ways that typical indoor classrooms cannot provide. Likewise, we will be able to spread a renewed love of learning not just to our students, but to other teachers as well.
Darlene Martino and Jill Johnson teach at Freewill Elementary School in upstate New York.
