There are some skills to be developed, some knowledge to be gained, and some attitudes to be encouraged which can best be accomplished outdoors.
Your sixth grade student will soon be participating, with his/her classmates and teacher, in Pendleton's Outdoor School Program. Using the outdoors for learning is not a new idea. Some of the earliest attempts at teaching relied almost entirely on activities which took place outside the confines of the classroom. The first program in Oregon, which took elementary students to an outdoor location for an extended period, began nearly fifty years ago. Pendleton is fortunate to continue this tradition.
Outdoor Education Goals
- Give the opportunity for young adults to develop leadership potential through direct contact with sixth grade students.
- Develop positive attitude exchange between teacher and students.
- Provide the opportunity for the non-academic student to participate in activities which place them on an equal basis with the more academically oriented student.
- Give the opportunity for all students to apply the academic skills gained in the classroom to the real-life situations found in the natural environment.
- Give the opportunity for students to bring activities and knowledge gained in the outdoor setting back to the classroom to generalize about similar situations studied.
- Provide activities that will enable the sixth grade student to see the interrelationships of man with natural and man-made environments and the interrelationship of our natural resources.
- Bring students from different classrooms together to work and live cooperatively for an extended period in an outdoor setting.
- Provide a way for teachers to utilize methods and opportunities which are not available in the classroom.
- Give teachers an opportunity to share their skills, techniques, and materials with one another.
The $45.00 fee for Outdoor School covers the cost of meals. In the case that this fee causes a hardship, scholarships are available. For information, please contact your child's teacher. Please carefully complete all information asked for on the attached forms and return to your child's teacher in a timely manner. No child may attend Outdoor School without the following, required paperwork in place:
If you have any questions or concerns feel free to contact your child's teacher, principal, or the directors of Outdoor School.
Pendleton Outdoor School Staff
ODS - Rules (PDF)