MENUMENU
  • Board
    • Find a School
    • Contact Us
    • Site Map
  • Students
    • Edsby
    • Office 365
    • Virtual Library
    • LMS
    • Clever
    • Career Cruising
  • Parents
    • Parent Portal
    • Bus Delays/Cancellations
    • School Cash Online

Near North District School Board

MENUMENU
  • Go to homepage
  • Schools
        • Find Your School
        • District Map
        • How do I Register?
        • Contact Us
  • Programs
        • Programs

        • Adult and Alternative Education
        • Adult English as a Second Language
        • e-Learning
        • English as a Second Language
        • Equity and Well-Being / Safe and Accepting Schools
        • Equity and Well-Being
        • Extended French
        • French Immersion
        • Indigenous Education
        • Kindergarten
        • Mathematics for Families
        • Programs (cont.)

        • Mental Health Resources
        • Mental Health Support Services
        • Safe and Accepting Schools
        • Special Education
        • Summer School
        • Specialized Programs

        • Arts Nipissing
        • Dual Credits
        • International Baccalaureate
        • Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program
        • Near North Sports
        • Personal Support Worker (PSW)
        • Custodial Services Program
        • Specialist High Skills Major
        • STEAM Program
  • Parents
        • General Information

        • Diploma Requirements
        • Indigenous Student Self-Identification
        • School Calendar
        • Stay informed
        • Xello Parent
        • Starting at NNDSB

        • Childcare & School-Aged Programs
        • Parent Involvement
        • School Registration
        • Transportation
        • Login

        • Manage My Account
        • Parent Portal
        • School Cash Online
        • Edsby
        • Who should I talk to?
        • P.A. Activities
  • Board
        • Administration

        • Senior Administration
        • Board and Committee Meetings
        • Board Governance
        • Board of Trustees
        • Director’s Annual Report
        • Multi-Year Plan
        • Operations

        • Capital Planning
        • Financial Information
        • Tenders & RFPs
        • Ventilation Report
        • School Renewal Investment Report
        • Staff Portal
        • General Information

        • ​Accessibility
        • Administrative Guidelines
        • Community Use of Schools
        • Concussion Resources
        • Energy Management
        • Safe and Accepting Schools
        • FOI and Transcripts
  • Learning Resources
        • Clever
        • Copyright Decision Tool
        • Edsby
        • eLearning (LMS)
        • Passport to Learning
        • Learn 360
        • Manage my Account
        • Microsoft Teams
        • Ontario Education Resource Bank
        • Office 365 Apps
        • Office 365 Mail
        • TVO Mathify
        • Virtual Library
        • Xello
  • Communications
        • About Communications
        • Social Media at NNDSB
        • Media Contact
        • Media Releases
        • Blog
  • Join Our Team

Outdoor Learning Allows Students to Learn in New Ways

December 4, 2020 By Josh

December 4, 2020

Since the beginning of COVID-19, schools and classrooms have changed, but learning has not. In fact, schools have incorporated more outdoor learning.

Argyle Public School is one of the many schools within Near North District School Board that is learning outdoors. The onset of COVID-19 has brought some positive changes to the Kindergarten (ELKP) classroom and its educators Sonja Cudmore and Robyn Ramsay who are excited to see students embracing the outdoors.Photo of student weaving web with yarn on fence

NNDSB’s philosophy is to offer students a rich learning experience in both the classroom and beyond. Outdoor education brings learning to life with increased opportunities to advance curricular learning in real-world, authentic contexts. NNDSB engages in outdoor education in all seasons, to deliver interdisciplinary outdoor learning opportunities k-12.

“Students are practicing social distancing, so we thought it was appropriate to spend more time learning in our natural classroom,” stated Cudmore, who noted their schoolyard is a beautiful space for an outdoor classroom; surrounded by farmer’s fields, bushes, and a small pond. “We bring the learning outside by going on scavenger hunts, nature walks, outside math and science. Nearly every subject has connections to learning outside.”

Students even had the chance to go on a pumpkin hunt in the playground, decorating their found pumpkins, and ultimately learning about the lifecycle of a pumpkin. The learning doesn’t stop there. In fact, that’s just the beginning. Students have the opportunity to investigate various common spiders and their webs, which they became fascinated with. Using yarn and other materials, students created their own webs on the school fence to learn about the techniques used in web creation.

Playing outside allows students the freedom to move and explore their environment and make investigations about their world. “Our students have really enjoyed observing nature in our schoolyard,” said Cudmore who noted students have noticed an abundance of Woolly Bear Caterpillars and began to ask questions about them. “They wondered why butterflies lay eggs which led to a discussion on the lifecycle of butterflies. We kept track of the number of caterpillars we spotted each week using 10-frames and tallies and then created a pictograph to display the data.”

She added by November, students observed there were fewer caterpillars, but more chrysalises, which began a discussion on why that might be. Since that discussion, teachers read several books to the students, which helped everyone understand the changes they were seeing.

Students look forward to taking their learning outdoors and investigating the world around them,” said Ramsay, “The outdoors provides the perfect environment for students to explore their wonderings about nature.”

Filed Under: Media Releases, News and Announcements, NNDSB Featured

NNDSB Indigenous Education Logo

Biindigen

Mii gwi Anishinabek wewena nkenmaaminak dependajig maa kiing.
"We acknowledge in a good way, the original people of the land here"
We value the cultures, histories and relationships with the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island (North America)

Connect With Us

Near North District School Board
963 Airport Road, P.O. Box 3110, North Bay, ON P1B 8H1
[P] 705-472-8170   [TF] 1-800-278-4922   [F] 705-472-9927
MENUMENU
  • Contact Us
  • Find Your School
  • Parent Portal
  • ​Accessibility Standards

Login with IDP
Copyright © 2025 · Near North District School Board