Natural world offers learning, engagement resources
Mark Pechenik
South Berwick Reporter
The pandemic brought them outside, but the kids at Great Works School are continuing to investigate the natural world, thanks to a program launched by two educators at the school.
The Woodland and Wonder program run by reading intervention specialists Sara Allis and Wendy Shaw engages all fourth and fifth graders in outdoor learning activities throughout the year.
“During the Covid-19 outbreak, many teachers were taking advantage of opportunities to bring students outside,” said Allis, who secured federal funding and runs the program with Shaw. “They discovered that students were enjoying the chance to learn outdoors.”
For some students, said Shaw, the program, also known as the Outdoor Education Program, is their first introduction to nature, which offers its own unique learning opportunity.
“By going into the woods into an unfamiliar space, these students are pushing their own boundaries. They are learning how to take risks in a safe environment,” she said.
Seeking to expand on the opportunity to learn in and through nature, Shaw and Allis wrote and secured $140,000 in state grants, with original funding from the U.S. Department of Education.
“From the start, we wanted to promote student engagement by increasing their sense of belonging to the school,” Shaw said, “and we wanted to do this by enabling them to experience nature.”
Students meet three times each semester; funding also allows classroom teachers to be trained in team-building and outdoor education.
The first semester was dedicated to science projects and the second semester is focusing on physical fitness.
During the colder weather, students take winter hikes and go on snowshoe outings at local conservation areas, as snowfall allows. They play nature-based games, use the school’s obstacle and low-ropes courses and engage in team-building exercises, like constructing shelters with branches and sticks.
These activities “help students better understand how animals adapt to their environment,” Shaw said.
Boots, gloves and snow pants are available to ensure students are suited up for cold weather, according to Great Works Principal Jerry Burnell.
In a science initiative last fall, fourth and fifth graders planted 14 apple trees behind the school. Although it will take three to four years for the trees to produce their first crop, as part of the project students “learned about the importance of apples to the Maine economy,” said Burnell.
The students who planted the trees will be invited back to Great Works when they are high school seniors to “witness the first apples, so they can see the fruits of their labor,” Shaw said.
In another Woodland and Wonder science project, Great Works students in the fall went to local forests to identify wooly sacs on hemlock pine needle branches, evidence of wooly adelgid, an invasive insect devastating Maine’s hemlock trees. The data were shared with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute.
In a related effort last fall, students collected data identifying damage done to ash trees by the emerald ash borer, evidence they hope to share with environmental organizations in the near future. Students also learned about the cultural and economic impact of ash trees for Wabanaki peoples.
Looking ahead, Shaw and Allis are considering outdoor gardens created and maintained by students.