Outdoor Education Continues in the Cold
2021-01-06
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1Cindy Soule is a teacher in Portland, Maine, an area known to have extremely cold and snowy winters.
2But cold weather is not stopping Soule and her students from continuing with outdoor learning during the coronavirus pandemic.
3Earlier in the school year, students in Soule's fourth-grade class had outdoor lessons on things like pollination and erosion.
4Then, the snow came.
5In face coverings and warm clothes, the students took their school supplies outside in buckets.
6Then, they turned the buckets over, put them down in the snow, took a seat and went to work.
7The lesson that day centered on snow and the formation of snowflakes.
8Schools across the U.S. have pushed for outdoor learning to keep students and teachers safe and stop the spread of COVID-19.
9Infectious disease experts worldwide have noted that the virus spreads less easily outdoors.
10Now, with temperatures dropping in much of the country, some schools have made plans to continue outdoor learning during the winter.
11Anne Stires is an outdoor learning expert in Maine.
12She said the outdoors is "the healthiest, safest place for us to be right now."
13"Anything that we can do to get kids outdoors for longer periods of time is vital," Stires added.
14"This is where we need to be right now."
15In the neighboring state of New Hampshire, fourth- and fifth- grade students are still learning outside at James Faulkner Elementary School in Stoddard.
16The school created an outdoor classroom by clearing some trees and building an area for warmth by fire.
17The students seem to like the outdoor classroom.
18"They're begging me to go out," teacher Amanda Bridges said.
19In the western state of Colorado, elementary school students in the Lake County school district study in usual classrooms for half the week.
20For the other half, they learn outdoors.
21For educators, outdoor learning is yet another period of change.
22Last spring, it was distance learning.
23Then came hybrid, or mixed, learning methods.
24Now, educators are trying to keep their students warm enough to learn outside.
25Back in Portland, Cindy Soule's students answer questions about snowflakes.
26They examine snowflakes with magnifying glasses.
27Mohamednur Ali is one of Soule's students.
28The 9-year-old boy noted some of the differences between hands-on learning outdoors and sitting in a classroom.
29"It's a good thing because you can see the real thing," Ali said.
30"We learn what is around us."
31Portland is home to a growing immigrant population.
32Some of Soule's fourth-grade students come from places like Somalia, Iraq and Angola.
33"We have students with varying language needs," Soule said.
34The power of learning outdoors is that all learners can gain from the experience, the teacher added.
35Outdoor learning may work for rural and suburban schools.
36But it is more difficult for schools in cities, said Daniel Domenech.
37He is the director of the American Association of School Administrators.
38For schools in Portland, the pandemic has marked the first official use of outdoor learning.
39The aim is to keep it going even after the pandemic ends.
40Soule said her students will never forget the pandemic's difficulties.
41But she said she hopes studying in nature will be among their good memories of 2020.
42"They're seeing the outdoors around them and it brings relevancy to what they're studying," Soule said.
43" They will remember that forever."
44I'm Armen Kassabian.
1Cindy Soule is a teacher in Portland, Maine, an area known to have extremely cold and snowy winters. But cold weather is not stopping Soule and her students from continuing with outdoor learning during the coronavirus pandemic. 2Earlier in the school year, students in Soule's fourth-grade class had outdoor lessons on things like pollination and erosion. 3Then, the snow came. 4In face coverings and warm clothes, the students took their school supplies outside in buckets. Then, they turned the buckets over, put them down in the snow, took a seat and went to work. 5The lesson that day centered on snow and the formation of snowflakes. 6Schools across the U.S. have pushed for outdoor learning to keep students and teachers safe and stop the spread of COVID-19. Infectious disease experts worldwide have noted that the virus spreads less easily outdoors. 7Now, with temperatures dropping in much of the country, some schools have made plans to continue outdoor learning during the winter. 8Anne Stires is an outdoor learning expert in Maine. She said the outdoors is "the healthiest, safest place for us to be right now." 9"Anything that we can do to get kids outdoors for longer periods of time is vital," Stires added. "This is where we need to be right now." 10In the neighboring state of New Hampshire, fourth- and fifth- grade students are still learning outside at James Faulkner Elementary School in Stoddard. The school created an outdoor classroom by clearing some trees and building an area for warmth by fire. 11The students seem to like the outdoor classroom. 12"They're begging me to go out," teacher Amanda Bridges said. 13In the western state of Colorado, elementary school students in the Lake County school district study in usual classrooms for half the week. For the other half, they learn outdoors. 14For educators, outdoor learning is yet another period of change. Last spring, it was distance learning. Then came hybrid, or mixed, learning methods. Now, educators are trying to keep their students warm enough to learn outside. 15Back in Portland, Cindy Soule's students answer questions about snowflakes. They examine snowflakes with magnifying glasses. 16Mohamednur Ali is one of Soule's students. The 9-year-old boy noted some of the differences between hands-on learning outdoors and sitting in a classroom. 17"It's a good thing because you can see the real thing," Ali said. "We learn what is around us." 18Portland is home to a growing immigrant population. Some of Soule's fourth-grade students come from places like Somalia, Iraq and Angola. 19"We have students with varying language needs," Soule said. The power of learning outdoors is that all learners can gain from the experience, the teacher added. 20Outdoor learning may work for rural and suburban schools. But it is more difficult for schools in cities, said Daniel Domenech. He is the director of the American Association of School Administrators. 21For schools in Portland, the pandemic has marked the first official use of outdoor learning. The aim is to keep it going even after the pandemic ends. 22Soule said her students will never forget the pandemic's difficulties. But she said she hopes studying in nature will be among their good memories of 2020. 23"They're seeing the outdoors around them and it brings relevancy to what they're studying," Soule said. " They will remember that forever." 24I'm Armen Kassabian. 25David Sharp from Associated Press reported this story. Armen Kassabian adapted it for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 26________________________________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28pollination - n. to move pollen from one flower to another 29erosion - n. the process by which something is worn away 30outdoor - n. done, used, or located outside a building 31begging - v. to ask (someone) in an emotional way for something needed or wanted very much 32buckets - n. an open container with a handle that is used especially to hold and carry water and other liquids 33varying - v. to be different or to become different 34suburban - n. a residential area near to a city 35relevancy - adj. relating to a subject in an appropriate way 36Are schools open or closed in your country presently? Do you agree that schools should stay open if students can study and learn safely outdoors? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page.