12 October 2011

Getting Outdoors! Why it's important and why schools should care.


With growing obesity rates, record-breaking summer temperatures and a population of youth increasingly more "wired in" to technologies that keep them indoors, the amount of time students spend outdoors is dramatically lower than it was when I was growing up. Let me start by saying, I'm not that old. I'm only in my 30's and I remember a time when I sat in the classroom and pined for the outdoors. I remember anxiously awaiting 3:00pm so I could rush home and ride my bike or go skateboarding with my friends or play in the creek nearby. The most dreaded punishment was to be grounded! To be confined to my bedroom while I watched my neighborhood friends play outdoors. And it wasn't the lack of video games. I had a video game console in my bedroom. We had the Atari, the Odyssey and the Nintendo. They were just as compelling then as video games are now. So why are kids not getting out to the detriment of their health? Why do modern youth seem less and less interested in the outdoors?

There are a lot of reasons, some of which are easier to tackle than others. But one thing we can do, to start making a difference, is in the schools! Now, more than ever, there is a need to expand the learning opportunities outdoors! To inspire interest in the world outside that 5 inch touchscreen and to demonstrate the value of nature, outdoor recreation, and physical activity we have to provide students with opportunities to learn outdoors that are fun, active and recreational in addition to be educational. No one says learning should be boring...even math can be taught outdoors! Why teach the Pythagorean theory on a power point? Why not teach it outdoors using rope and pegs...at least as an alternative once in a while. Why teach elementary students the phases of plant growth using paper cups in a classroom....why not let them dig holes, build a garden, get dirty?! Why teach your students about the difference between absolute distance and relative distance...why not play games outside to demonstrate the concept? There are many many creative ways to incorporate the outdoors; to encourage students to value the outdoors over being inside. If your a teacher, put yourself in your student's shoes for a moment. 8 hours a day, they sit in orthopedic desks designed to force them to sit up straight, face forward and stay still. When they come into our classrooms, we ask them to be quiet, to listen to us talk, to do their work, and to stay in their seats. Everyday, 8 hours a day! And we wonder why our students act out. Why they get defiant, aggressive, frustrated, and ambivalent. All of us have an opportunity to make a difference and a moral obligation to ensure the health and well-being of the next generation. Let's be good stewards of our world and the students whom we are entrusted to teach and push for more activities outdoors! Get 'em out as often and as much as you can! In my next post, I'll share some lessons plans that get students outdoors...stuff that you'd think might belong in a PE class...but really help students grasp complex and abstract concepts.

My Philosophy of Teaching

My Philosophy of Teaching:

I just finished my masters in Curriculum and Instruction. I have a firm commitment to my continuing education and strong love of teaching. My greatest draw to education is the opportunity to work daily with students, particularly students for whom success has been elusive or who struggle in the academic setting. I strongly believe in preventative behavior management and, as a student teacher, I have turned the success of lower performing students around using differentiated instructional techniques including collaborative learning, project-based learning and service learning. I do not accept the notion that some students fit a profile of failure and should be side-tracked. I am committed to the success of each and every one of my students. I believe no student should be given up on. I love that none of my students are the same and I value their diversity, linguistic, behavioral, cognitive or otherwise. I do not accept the notion that a student's difference is, necessarily, a hindrance towards their learning and hold the onus upon myself to find ways to facilitate learning for all of my students. Finally, I am aware of the importance of collaboration between faculty and staff. Cross-content instruction is not only important for the student's cognition, but is also important for a teacher's professional development. I believe strongly that a teacher's classroom is a place of constant innovation and improvement, and the sharing of ideas between faculty and staff, as well as the close cross-content collaboration of teachers, is important in improving the overall success of teachers, and, by proxy, our students. We are all responsible for the success of every student in the school, not just those who are in our classroom.