Get Outside!

The recent issue of ASCD Edge has an article "It's Time to Learn Outside," excerpts from Will Sterrett's Insights into Action: Successful School Leaders Share What Works.

The piece makes arguments for the benefits of getting outside the classroom and combatting "Nature-Deficit Disorder." This term comes from Richard Louv, who argues "growing gap between human beings and nature, with implications for health and well-being" (Last Child in the Woods, 2008. p. 26).

It also contains a helpful list of "Action Items." My favorite is this: "Get Outdoors, Anytime, for Any Reason- You don't have to have a specific nature-based unit in place to benefit from the outdoors. The bottom line is, students benefit individually and the classroom climate benefits as a whole from time spent in nature."

Point: getting outside helps learning and teaching.

Check it out here.