Fresh air, fresh minds: Pandemic takes classroom outdoors | Coronavirus

Where some people see overgrown foliage and empty spaces on the grounds of the Aspen Community Magnet School, Tina Morris sees untapped potential.

There’s the northeast corner of the property with some shade trees where Morris, the headmaster, envisions an outdoor study space. Students could sit in chairs there while teachers use a portable blackboard or whiteboard to guide them, she said.

On the opposite side of the school, just behind the soccer field, there is a row of unkempt trees in the middle of an elm grove, which is a popular meeting place for students. Morris said this is another area the school is looking to turn into a study space.

She wants to use tree stumps and logs near an abandoned building for a campfire.

The intent, said Morris, is not just to offer different places for students to study every now and then – it is to provide an enriching educational experience by using nature as an extension of the classroom.

“It just opens up a whole way of learning that involves kids in ways I’ve never seen before,” said Morris.

With the state emerging from the fog of the coronavirus pandemic that saw schools closed for almost a year, outdoor learning is a vital part for school districts trying to adhere to health and safety guidelines.

Some administrators also see the pandemic as an opportunity to change the way they train students, with outdoor learning playing a role.

Fred Trujillo, superintendent of Española Public Schools, said the district is considering using a portion of the expected $ 5.5 million from the latest round of government stimulus to create outdoor learning spaces at each of its 13 schools.

Amy Biehl Community School principal Felicia Torres said her school will benefit from the outdoor spaces created for each classroom during the school’s construction. She will also encourage teachers to use the school garden as a means of improving lesson plans.

Chris Eide, the temporary chief administrator of the Turquoise Trail Charter School, said his school is currently considering a project with Meow Wolf to make the site more interactive. He said the project would use GPS nodes in certain areas. Administrators and educators can change the information they provide at each location.

“Children could interact with a tree one day and have a different interaction with the tree the next day,” Eide said.

The outdoor classroom concept has also gained importance in legislation. Senator Siah Correa Hemphill, D-Silver City, unveiled Senate Monument 1, which called for a task force to promote the use of outdoor classrooms. The Senate passed Measure 34-2.

These actions were music to Eileen Everett’s ears.

Everett has long been a proponent of outdoor education as the executive director of Environmental Education of New Mexico, a nonprofit that promotes environmental and outdoor learning. She sees classrooms and outdoor study spaces as an integral part of a student’s education.

Everett said it wasn’t a new concept, but it could gain momentum as the effects of the pandemic are challenging school principals to think creatively about ways to bring back all students who want to learn in person.

Outdoor education is more than just taking students outside, she said, adding that there are opportunities for teachers to connect nature with the subjects they teach, be it science, language, math or exercise.

The organization even produced an outdoor learning guide, which the state Department of Public Education said was approved in the fall to help schools with their reopening plans.

“Outdoor learning is interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary,” said Everett. “It’s not just an area of ​​content, any subject area that students need to learn about can use nature.”

She said that students benefit physically, emotionally, and socially from outdoor learning and that it improves their overall educational experience.

Everett referred to a Stanford University report reviewing outdoor education studies over a 20-year period. It was found that 90 percent of students reported improved learning skills, and 86 percent said that outdoor learning had a positive effect on them.

Some schools have even learned how to turn playtime into study time.

Morris said when Aspen built two new playgrounds it included educational components. The preschool age playground used patterns and colors to make learning easier for students, while the older kids playground had concrete cylinders that Morris said could be used to learn volumes and dimensions.

“That’s what the people in front of me who designed these exteriors kept in mind,” said Morris.

According to Everett, outdoor education also means exploring spaces in and around campus. Journey Montessori School instructors took students to nearby arroyos and other open spaces to expand classroom teaching.

“You really appreciated using the environment around you to learn,” said Everett.

Still, there are some challenges with outdoor classrooms, especially for schools that haven’t designed study spaces.

Eide said the weather could make it difficult to maintain tents for teaching, especially given the winds south of Santa Fe at certain times of the year.

“Our geography is such that in the spring the wind comes through here and sends some of our outdoor classrooms to Pecos,” said Eide. “So we have to think about it differently.”

Santa Fe Prep school principal Aaron Schubach said the instructors had internet connectivity issues and lacked tech support when they tried to use tents for a hybrid learning model. The result was that students who studied remotely were excluded from class.

And, said Schubach, when the temperatures were cold in winter, these outdoor classrooms became controversial.

Everett acknowledged that there are some issues related to outdoor classrooms. However, she claimed there was a difference between the concept of outdoor learning and just learning outdoors.

She said those who use outdoor learning are realizing that technology isn’t necessary and that fully reopening schools will alleviate some of the problems.

Ultimately, Everett hopes the coronavirus pandemic will spark more interest in outdoor learning. She said a study the group will publish in April will show that more than half of the state’s students already have access to outdoor learning annually.

The task now is to explore these spaces – and to learn from them.

“We as an organization have really changed over the past few years to really focus on system changes,” said Everett. “What changes are needed in systems, structures and institutions to really think about embedding outdoor learning into an everyday experience for our children?”