August 2007 - Volume 68, Issue 8
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Connecting Kids with Nature continued...
“I really thought about how mice need to get away from predators, and how the tall grasses and flowers helped them to hide,” she said.
At Truman’s Backyard, students learn an extra set of three Rs. They learn responsibility, respect and reconnection. They learn responsibility by taking care of the outdoor classroom and planning for its development.
Students gain respect for nature as teachers instill in them the notion that a visit to the outdoor classroom is a visit to the home of the plants and animals that live there.
Reconnection with nature is the natural result of the kids learning about Missouri’s habitat and wildlife.
School Principal John Edgar said, “With countless hours spent learning and working in the outdoor classroom, students have ownership. This ownership fosters pride, and learning reaches a higher level.”
Outdoor classrooms can have a profound impact on the lives of children. They develop appreciation for the natural world around them, they build character, and they help turn our youngest citizens into responsible stewards of our natural resources.
About This Article
Author
CAROL MAHAN is the conservation education consultant for Truman Elementary in Rolla and other schools in the northern Ozarks region. A former teacher from Illinois, Carol appreciates the wealth and diversity of natural resources in Missouri. She spends her free time running, hiking and reading.
CHRIS SCHMIDGALL is an educator and outdoor classroom coordinator at Truman Elementary in Rolla. Her passion for hands-on learning in the outdoors led her to establish an outdoor classroom center and an active after-school environmental club. She and her husband, Gary, enjoy kayaking the beautiful rivers of Missouri.
Photographer
Photographer DAVID STONNER, shown working on aerial photographs of the Mingo Basin in southeast Missouri, joined the Department of Conservation in May 2007. He lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Angela, and one year-old daughter, Maggie. David enjoys weekends sailing on Stockton Lake and angling for fish anywhere he can cast a dry fly.
