Learning Outdoors

Roughin’ It 101 - The Sault Star - Ontario, CA

Some of Ray Boucher’s most heartening moments as a Grade 8 teacher happen far from the confines of the classroom. Boucher and other Northern Ontario educators are at the leading edge in the rebirth of outdoor education — a trend that’s gathering steam in rural schools, but leaving teachers in more populated school districts buried beneath mountains of paperwork and liability concerns.

“Being outside and active makes students more open to learning,” said Boucher, who recently brought his class of 12 St. Joseph students to the Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board’s outdoor facility at Camp Korah in Sault Ste. Marie for a day of cross-country skiing.

“Besides physical education, there are many curriculum tie-ins for geography, science, history and the arts.”

For Boucher, getting his class outside is as simple as organizing half-day snowshoe treks several times a month on Wawa’s easily accessible hiking trails. Another highlight was spending a day sea kayaking with his class on Wawa Lake.

Boucher said the outdoor education challenges of “permission slips, board policies and liability issues” are easier to deal with given a supportive principal and understanding parents.

“We live in an outdoor community,” said Boucher.

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