5 Ways to Get Students Outside

R O B E R T P E T E R S

Give them a head start on homework

If it fits into your class schedule, plan to give them some time to start their

homework during class. Students will focus because they know they’re

working ahead and will have less to do that night and they’ll also be

accomplishing something for the class. You can also head outside to let

students start a worksheet they’re supposed to finish in class or to quickly

review work from the day before. If students will be sitting and working on

something anyway, you might as well let them do it outside.

Offer free reading time

While this activity depends on the type of class you

have, students will almost always have something they

need to read, whether it’s a novel, play, article, or

research. Take your class outside while they read. If

you’re reading together as a class, that is another

great opportunity to move outside, so students can sit

in a circle and read through their assignment together.

Create a writing prompt

Craft a writing prompt students can complete outside.

Have them composes a poem about nature or write what

they observe as they sit outside and listen. Encourage

everyone to spend a few moments silently listening to

everything around them; you’re helping them with their

observational skills as well. If they’d spend time in class

writing, it’ll be easy to let them do this task while outside.

Make it class specific

You can take any one of these ideas and

tweak it to best fit your class. You can also

do certain activities depending on what

subject you’re teaching. If students are

learning about ecology, teach them local

plants and animals, then head outside and

see if you can find any. For a literature class,

spend time reading famous literature about

nature, then let students try to write their

own from inspiration while being outside.

Play a game

If you can schedule free time into your class schedule,

try this idea! It’s important to stay focused on class work

and accomplish what needs to be done, but sometimes

students just need a break. Figure out a fun, easy activity

that allows students to spend time outside, interact with

one another, and also move around. Once you go back

inside, your students will be much more focused on

learning after working off excess energy.

For more, go to: RobertPetersEducator.com