Outdoor Class
The outdoor classroom provides a valuable
context for students of all studies to investigate their world. Science
students record observations, collect data, make analysis of their experiments,
and
keep records and drawings of the garden in their journals. They study native
plants and animals; they may research native Northern Californian butterflies
and plant the vegetation that feeds them. They may study soil erosion, composting,
and ecology.
Art students may sit quietly in the garden to observe natural processes, and draw or paint the plants and animals they see. Social Studies students may pick an era, such as Colonial America, and investigate what kinds of gardens Colonial people grew. Home Economics classes may learn about the origins of their foods. The outdoor classroom helps students of all curriculum to develop processes for thinking and searching for answers, and communicating, working, and living cooperatively.
Copyright © 2005 Iron Horse Middle School