Explore our ever growing collection of case studies and recorded presentations that tell the inspiring stories of schools and districts across the country and all the ways they have moved learning outdoors during the pandemic.

The outdoor learning program at each school in your district may look different, based on the priorities and culture of each school. Children can benefit from a wide array of outdoor programming.

Children’s Health

Research and the on-the-ground experiences of schools that have been learning outside are demonstrating the powerful benefits of time in nature to children’s mental and physical health, their academic experience, and their happiness.

Pandemic

During the pandemic, you may want to move learning, meals, and other programs outside because of dramatically reduced virus transmission rates outdoors.

Meals

In many districts, it makes sense to begin by moving meals outdoors to protect children when they are unmasked. Learn more in our chapter on Outdoor Meals, and read this case study about a district that moved meals outside in the spring of 2021.

Special Programs

Art, music, library, garden, and PE teachers are likely to be working with many students throughout the day. Establishing spaces for these special programs outside will offer protection to these vulnerable teachers and reduce the risk of transmission across cohorts. Read about how Boulder Valley schools in Colorado took their special programming outside, even in the snow!

Outdoor Learning

If your goal is to get regular classrooms outside, you may want to focus on helping teachers to develop skills and techniques that will allow them to feel comfortable teaching outdoors. Explore the extensive resources in our chapter on Teaching and Learning Outdoors. Read about how Lake County Schools in Colorado helped their staff to be prepared and comfortable with outdoor learning.

EQUITY

Access to nature and the benefits it offers is often not equitable across communities. In many districts, outdoor learning has been happening at some but not all schools, so in an effort to make the benefits of outdoor learning available to all children, districts opt to create system-wide programs. If funds or capacity for setting up outdoor learning spaces across your district are limited, prioritize allocating resources to the highest need schools.

Children and families who are the most vulnerable and in need of support services are often those who are least likely to have access to technology at home. Establishing robust outdoor learning programs will reduce virus transmission and thus keep these students learning in person and connected to school support systems.

Find out more about long-term inequities in school infrastructure here and about inequity during the pandemic here. Read about how public schools in Austin, Texas are working to make sure all students have equitable access to safe, quality outdoor learning by collaborating with the whole community — from nearby parks, the health department, and local, state, and national nonprofits.

The ENVIRONMENT

As the impacts of climate change increasingly affect schools in many regions of the US, it makes sense to make schoolyards greener, shadier, and more ecologically functional. You can steward the land your district owns to maximize ecological services like mitigating urban heat, managing stormwater responsibly, creating wildlife habitat, and growing food for people. See Why Create Living School Grounds for more ideas and information. 

LONG-TERM Change

Outdoor learning in your district may have been initiated by a few passionate practitioners — teachers or counselors who used the outdoors in ways that inspired colleagues; or perhaps parents or others in the community volunteered on a campus or advocated for outdoor learning; or maybe visionary principals and other district leaders launched pilots.

Perhaps after some period of pandemic-inspired outdoor learning, you have seen the benefits to students and to the environment, and your district is now committed for the long term.

Learn more about how to leverage your COVID-related outdoor learning efforts into long-term greening by viewing this excellent webinar, “Connecting COVID-related Outdoor Learning With Long-Term School Ground Greening Goals” by Green Schoolyards America CEO and founder, Sharon Danks. (Scroll to Meeting #22 on this page.)

We can help you think about the systems and strategies you need to create in order to implement long-term change.