My response to the NSTAblog.com post: Experience being outdoors in nature? How much do we need?
http://nstacommunities.org/blog/2010/09/25/experience-being-outdoors-in-nature-how-much-do-we-need/comment-page-1/#comment-882
As a child, I have the most vivid memories of nature. I was constantly paddling around in the pond across the street catching frogs, salamanders and just having a good time getting dirty. I remember my science teachers always taking us for nature walks in a nature trail behind the school and my fourth grade teacher who took us to explore tide pools at a popular beach in our town. Why is it that this is what I remember most about my Elementary experiences? I believe it is because I was engaged in doing something I truly cared about, caught my interest, and allowed me to investigate my surroundings.
Young children are more in tuned to their environment and their surroundings than we think they are. They are natural inquirers who are always trying to find out more about their world. This week I have been working on the elementary divisional standards and curriculum trying to keep it more inquiry based and real science. I find that most units that teachers are teaching are 85% surrounding Living Things and their Environment. Why is this I wonder? Is it because this is easier to find things to teach about or is it easier for us to connect to because of our own childhood experiences? We have our work cut out for us as we try to bring in more of the physical and Earth sciences into our PreK-Grade 5 curriculum in order to better prepare students for Middle School.
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