GRAND
RAPIDS, Mich., April 18,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- National Environmental Education
Week begins Friday and one National Heritage Academies' (NHA)
school is embracing the outdoors, making it a priority to learn
outside.
South Canton Scholars has emphasized learning with nature
instead of about it. The school's Outdoor Education Program has
guided scholars to academic excellence and promoted interest in
nature. After two years of implementation, both scholars and
educators alike are feeling the impact of taking the classroom
outside.
Principal Dana Gurganus said the
program has been a great way to get scholars outside and noted
numerous positive factors about the South Canton Outdoor Education
Program.
"I think that the program is important, and I think with all the
technology and things that have happened after COVID, students and
kids no longer play outside like they used to," Gurganus said.
"Providing kids with an opportunity to get outside, it's just good
growth and development. It's also good for your mental health, and
post-COVID, it was a great opportunity for kids to have an outlet
to get out in nature."
While the South Canton Outdoor Education Program is an
overwhelming success for Gurganus and her leadership team, scholars
also bought in to the unique learning experience.
"Our kids love to go outside," Gurganus said. "It's always their
favorite thing to do. They cannot wait to get outside. It doesn't
matter what the weather is, our kids will go outside."
Nature has been the best visual aid for learning, rain or shine.
Scholars have learned about leaves changing colors, camouflaging,
pollination, water systems, and much more with their outdoor
classroom providing real-life examples. Other projects have
included launching pumpkins and hatching baby ducks.
The program isn't just a part of the school, it is embedded with
lesson plans. One of the goals Gurganus hoped for when implementing
outdoor education was for each class to go outside for 15 minutes
per day. Scholars and teachers use the school's back property
filled with an active waterway, the Lower River Rouge, and outdoor
desks have been installed, as well.
The thirst for environmental learning was so strong that the
school began offering a new class this year: environmental
engineering. Library Technology Specialist Laura Hurn teaches the extraordinary elective,
and she says she has seen students engage with the material at a
high level.
"When outdoor education happens, it flips the roles of students
and teachers," Hurn said. "Students are wanting to ask a lot of
questions and really drive the conversation. It's a lot less of me
talking and a lot more of them observing, talking, and analyzing to
come up with these questions and answers on their own."
With students in the driver's seat of their own education, it's
no wonder South Canton has
outperformed the local district for eight of the last 10 years.
The new environmental engineering class has inspired scholars to
work toward careers in the natural environment industry, and that
ambition started with lessons that are as simple as sampling
water.
"I explain to them that doing some of the things in these
lessons relates to actual jobs," Hurn said. "To them, they think
they're playing and don't understand there is engineering behind
it. There's math and science behind it. When they realize they
could do this for the rest of their life, they're super
excited."
National Heritage Academies (NHA) is a network of 101
tuition-free, public charter schools across nine states, serving
more than 68,000 students in kindergarten through 12th
grade. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.
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SOURCE National Heritage Academies