In May of 2020, the National COVID-19 Outdoor Learning Initiative was launched to empower schools to move learning outside. The pandemic revealed the true depth of the digital divide and illuminated the trauma of social isolation. Fears of learning loss exacerbated by systemic social and economic inequities began playing out across the country and the globe. The voices advocating for outdoor learning grew louder. A grand experiment was afoot. While distance learning became the norm for many, some schools took a different approach and began moving learning outdoors.  In this session we will discuss the WHY of outdoor learning with professor of education Dr. Helene Harte and landscape architecture professor Claire Latané. We will discuss the HOW of outdoor learning with outdoor science educator Heather Molloy and international education architect Prakash Nair.  You will leave with the information necessary to activate or expand outdoor learning at your school.

Session Video Recording
Slide Deck
Interactive Notes Document