Back To School
As parents around the country purchase new pencils and backpacks, they may be surprised to learn “nature” is one more thing they should put on the back-to-school supply list. According to a new report by National Wildlife Federation, Back to School: Back Outside, time spent outdoors both during school and at home helps children become high-performance learners and score higher on standard tests.
Unfortunately, American children spend only minutes a day playing and learning outdoors which presents a new educational challenge for our country. The report examines the impact of outdoor and environmental education, outdoor time and nature study on student motivation, effectiveness at learning, classroom behavior, focus and standardized test scores. …show more content…
National Wildlife Federation is the U.S. host for this international program which fosters sustainable school operations and curricula. There are currently 125,000 students and 4,000 teachers nationwide participating in the program which involves the entire school community. The program helps schools implement improvements to their school along eight pathways: energy, water, transportation, school grounds, consumption and waste, climate change, global dimensions and outside playtime for students (a Green Hour). The schools enrolled are achieving some especially impressive results with respect to saving energy and water, schoolyard greening and controlling waste on …show more content…
Let your kids walk and encourage other moms in the neighborhood to do the same with their kids. Walking with your children is a great way for adults to get their daily exercise,
· Be an advocate for outdoor time at your children’s school. Suggest this for a topic at a PTA meeting and let your school’s principal know how you feel,
· Volunteer some time to green your child’s school grounds with more trees and natural vegetation,
· Support outdoor learning programs and let school administrators know that such programs are seen as valuable and should be part of your child’s school experience. Speaking up can go a long way to making outdoor education a reality.
Teachers and parents can’t tackle the need for more outdoor time alone. Fortunately, there are several initiatives being discussed in the U.S. Congress and in state legislatures to support more outdoor time and outdoor learning for children. These include the development of stronger statewide plans for environmental literacy and outdoor education and more public funding for park and recreation agencies and public health agencies concerned with getting more outdoor time for
Unfortunately, American children spend only minutes a day playing and learning outdoors which presents a new educational challenge for our country. The report examines the impact of outdoor and environmental education, outdoor time and nature study on student motivation, effectiveness at learning, classroom behavior, focus and standardized test scores. …show more content…
National Wildlife Federation is the U.S. host for this international program which fosters sustainable school operations and curricula. There are currently 125,000 students and 4,000 teachers nationwide participating in the program which involves the entire school community. The program helps schools implement improvements to their school along eight pathways: energy, water, transportation, school grounds, consumption and waste, climate change, global dimensions and outside playtime for students (a Green Hour). The schools enrolled are achieving some especially impressive results with respect to saving energy and water, schoolyard greening and controlling waste on …show more content…
Let your kids walk and encourage other moms in the neighborhood to do the same with their kids. Walking with your children is a great way for adults to get their daily exercise,
· Be an advocate for outdoor time at your children’s school. Suggest this for a topic at a PTA meeting and let your school’s principal know how you feel,
· Volunteer some time to green your child’s school grounds with more trees and natural vegetation,
· Support outdoor learning programs and let school administrators know that such programs are seen as valuable and should be part of your child’s school experience. Speaking up can go a long way to making outdoor education a reality.
Teachers and parents can’t tackle the need for more outdoor time alone. Fortunately, there are several initiatives being discussed in the U.S. Congress and in state legislatures to support more outdoor time and outdoor learning for children. These include the development of stronger statewide plans for environmental literacy and outdoor education and more public funding for park and recreation agencies and public health agencies concerned with getting more outdoor time for