Teachers attending a workshop in Research Triangle Park learned that an effective way to improve student achievement and health is to let kids get their hands dirty.
“Heading Out! Discovering Nature’s Classroom” was held Sept. 23-25 at the First Environments Early Learning Center on the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences campus near Raleigh.
Photos from the workshop can be viewed on the N.C. Office of Environmental Education and Public Affairs Facebook Album.
The workshop supported the use of outdoor classrooms and schoolyard gardens to improve academic achievement and address issues such as childhood obesity that have become more common due to a lack of outdoor exercise. Educators learned strategies to easily incorporate outdoor experiences, gardening, storytelling and art into their curriculum.
First Environments Early Learning Center is an ideal site for educators because it incorporates outdoor learning into the classroom, on the playground and even in food service. The workshop emphasized hands-on learning, and content and activities were aligned with the N.C. Foundations for Early Learning and the N.C. Standard Course of Study for kindergarten through 5th grade courses in science, social studies, language arts, math and healthy living.
“Heading Out!” was coordinated by the N.C. Office of Environmental Education and Public Affairs. It was made possible by the Environmental Education Fund at no cost to participants, thanks to funding from the
Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program.
Preference was given to applicants from the 36-county Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program region in northeastern North Carolina. However, teachers from as far west as Polk County will be in attendance.
For more information about First Environments Early Learning Center, visit
http://www.firstenvironments.org/. For more information about the N.C. Office of Environmental Education and Public Affairs, visit
http://www.eenorthcarolina.org/.
