Our Purposeful Connection to the Natural World
Beginning in the 2020-21 school year, outdoor education is a special in kindergarten through 4th grade and we have expanded the middle school outdoor education curriculum to include 8th grade. Through fiber art projects, visits with the animals, team-building activities, photography projects, and creative writing, the middle school curriculum is designed to connect the students to their campus and to each other. “Not only do we use our 62-acre campus as a dynamic, living laboratory to provide creative opportunities for environmental education, but we also use it as a healing place, which has been especially important during this pandemic,” continued Scheer. Both Bertsch and Scheer agree that our outdoor space and animals have provided comfort and distraction during stressful times. Outdoor education gives the students what they have been missing during Covid – a chance to walk around outside with their peers, talk about their lives, experience nature, and unwind together. “Being outside with one another provides some semblance of normalcy even though it might not seem normal to those outside of our school community,” said Bertsch. “And because our campus is an expansive yet safe place, it also gives our students the chance to safely take risks. It’s not just playing, it’s everything.”
K
aki Scheer, director of outdoor education, and Lee Ann Bertsch, kindergarten teacher and Environmental Council chair, sat down to talk about how we make the natural world an essential part of the campus learning experience, how – because of our campus – we not only survived but thrived during the pandemic, and unveil one of the biggest things they learned this year.
All divisions, grades, and classrooms use the campus – from organized classroom activities like tagging monarch butterflies as part of the Monarch Watch program to playful opportunities, like sledding on Mt. Country Day in the winter months. Rain, snow, or shine, someone passing by campus any time of day will see students outside engaging with the world around them.
“All of our teachers have been dedicated to incorporating the campus into the students’ learning experience well before the Covid-19 pandemic hit or even before it was part of our strategic plan,” said Scheer. “This commitment is deeply rooted in our history and culture. While many other schools have gone inside, we’re still using the outside as our classroom.” Lower School students created artwork to celebrate Earth Day. 20 | CONNECTIONS
Bertsch recently took her students outside where they reenacted the “Three Billy Goats Gruff” story in the woods. The kids walked across the bridge like goats and acted like trolls under the bridge, bringing the book to life. The kindergarten class also partakes in Farm Fridays, in which they eat snacks and hang out at the 7125 House. We added chickens last year, and new this year to our farm family is Lola the bunny and the mini ponies. “One of the biggest things we learned this year is that we don’t need a playset,” joked Bertsch. “The kids are happy interacting with the animals, playing in the fields, exploring the woods, and running through the native flowers pollinator gardens. As a safety protocol during Covid, we do not allow multiple classrooms on the same playground in the primary level this year, and we’ve been fortunate that we have more than enough space for students to be outdoors.”
