DANFORTH, Maine — Last week, East Grand School began the process of developing a woodlot adjacent to the school into an outdoor classroom.
Principal Dawn Matthews spent a Friday afternoon trekking through the snow to get a better sense of how the site might be best utilized to bring all the benefits of a traditional classroom into an outdoor setting.
Retired forester John Ribe guided Mrs. Matthews through the forest, offering advice on how to utilize the property to best serve the students. Also accompanying Mrs. Matthews were Outdoor Education instructor Dave Conley and PE teacher Tammi Matula. The trek, organized by Matthews and Matula, was the culmination of months of preparatory work securing land and funding for the project.
The concept of the outdoor classroom was a joint effort of East Grand School and the Citizens Organization for Rural Education (CORE). CORE was formed to help East Grand School continue to deliver a high-quality educational experience to the children of the Washington County and southern Aroostook County region. After spending time investigating various options, the group concluded that the most effective way to make East Grand stand out was sitting just outside the school’s back doors.
CORE’s plan called for making outdoor education a central part of the school’s culture, beginning with the creation of an outdoor classroom. Together with CORE, Matula set about searching for ways to turn their vision into reality. In the snowy woods behind the school, that vision began to take solid form as Matthews and her companions took a first-hand look at what will eventually be a place of learning.
Funding for the development of the outdoor classroom was made possible through a grant by the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation. The grant provides funds for a legal land survey, the design and layout, and the costs of construction. Much of the labor will be provided on a volunteer basis by members of the East Grand School community.
The vast natural resources of Aroostook and Washington County have always been a vital part of the region’s economy and culture. Timber harvesting, gravel excavation, hunting, fishing, and outdoor tourism are deeply woven into the lives and culture of the area’s residents. The outdoor classroom will enable the school to celebrate the importance of the natural world in the lives of its students.
Teachers will have opportunities to provide their students with direct experience, enabling those students to develop a deeper understanding of the world and their place in it. Curriculum for K-12 will include outdoor activities that will act as a complement to conventional education.
Design work on the classroom is expected to begin in the spring, with construction slated for late spring and summer. If all goes as scheduled, the classroom will be available by the beginning of the 2016-2017 school year.
