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Outdoor Learning in the Lower School (The Glen, Winter 2024)
In accordance with Bayview Glen’s mission: Whole Child, Whole Life, Whole World, our Outdoor Education programme aims at providing students with outdoor learning opportunities that cater to their specific interests; making learning meaningful and contributing to students’ overall understanding and appreciation for the natural environment and its resources.
The five elements of the Outdoor Education programme are as follows: Outdoor Pursuits, Leadership and Teamwork, Environmental Sustainability, Healthy Living and Nutrition, and Safety. Students partake in various activities throughout the year that develop their skills, knowledge and confidence to lead lifelong healthy, active and environmentally conscious lives. Some notable activities include creek study, shelter building, snowshoeing and orienteering.
To further develop their skills and knowledge, students in Grades 3 and 4 were provided with an experiential learning opportunity at Norval Outdoor School this past December. Students participated in various team-building activities, made cross-curricular connections to their units of inquiry, all while spending quality time in the great outdoors. This programme also ties nicely to our skiing and skating programmes where our Grades 3-5 students partake in full-day private ski lessons for four consecutive weeks, and our JK-2 students take the ice for seven weeks learning the fundamental skills of skating. These serve as great opportunities for our youngest students to develop their movement competencies and acquire new physical skills, with the aim of building independence, self-esteem and physical literacy.
