Episode #43: 4 Benefits of Outdoor Learning

The Whole Mama - A Podcast with Jenna Gibbons

Are your kids down to just 20 minutes or so of recess at school each day? Do they come home and immediately run to that video game or tablet? How often are they actually outside per week?

Technology has drawn us more and more inside in front of a screen rather than outside in the fresh air. I think we have forgotten all of the amazing benefits that the natural world can provide to our mental, physical, and intellectual well-being.
As research continues to show the benefits of outdoor learning, educators and administrators must really look at what the data is saying about learning outside.

Outdoor learning offers a space of discovery, exploration, problem-solving, and more. It specifically offers:

1. Health Benefits

2. Real-World Connections

3. Improvement in Mental Health

4. Concentration and Engagement

What can you do?

1. Plan and manage a small garden together

2. Encourage kids to draw/write/reflect about experience outside

3. Use outdoor time as a time to talk and teach

4. Build vocabulary about what you see outside

5. Attach experiences to texts
6. Go on a hike together
RESOURCES:
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/02/15/u-s-students-internationally-math-science/

https://www.parentingscience.com/outdoor-learning.html

https://www.schooloutfitters.com/article/6-unique-benefits-of-outdoor-learning

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