Birds chirped as students learned about nouns at a picnic table in the shade. Classmates searched for frogs and crayfish from the banks of Wyalusing Creek. A math lesson would begin after a snack of crackers and applesauce.
Students in the Wyalusing Area School District won’t be back in school for a month, but at parks in Bradford County, nature has become the classroom.
The Wyalusing Area Education Foundation started the Teachers in the Parks program this year, seeking a way to encourage engagement and reduce summer learning loss — the decline in academic skills that typically occurs during summer vacation. More than 50 students participate.
“The hope is that by doing this ... two days a week for the six weeks, right in the middle of summer, we can help with that learning loss,” said Kaitlyn Galloway, site administrator and a special education teacher. “We don't want it to feel like school. That's why it's in the park. They get to see their teachers that they see at school … for them, it's really cool to see their teachers somewhere else.”
Preventing summer slide
Teachers in the Parks started more than 20 years ago in the Exeter Township School District in Berks County. A member of the Wyalusing foundation knew about the program and wanted to bring it north.
The foundation supports programs within the school district and allocated funds for it with donations received through the state’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program. Teachers in the Parks is offered at no cost to students who will enter kindergarten through fifth grade in the fall. They receive breakfast and a snack and then a lunch to take with them.
“We are hoping next year that the program grows,” said Deana Patson, vice president of the foundation and high school librarian.
Six teachers, four substitute teachers and a school nurse work with the students and receive payment from the foundation. The teachers design math, reading and writing lessons, incorporating nature and allowing time for play.
“It's interesting to see what our teachers are doing with a base curriculum and then just building on it,” Patson said. “We're hoping that this year, being the first year, the teachers that we have are now going to share their experiences, and we'll keep building the program for the future.”
Nature's classroom
Worm. Six-legged insect. Squirrel. Robin. Spiderweb. Dandelion.
Seven-year-old twins Reid and Lucas Fischer went over the items they found on a scavenger hunt. A checkmark for one object eluded them on the morning with vivid blue skies: there was no cloud in sight.
The students and teachers first met at Wyalusing Borough Park for the program’s first few weeks, and are concluding the program at Creekside Park.
Jaxon Porter, 6, who will soon start first grade, lifted rocks near Wyalusing Creek as he searched for frogs and toads.
A group of girls sat at a picnic table, identifying nouns and then completing worksheets about compound words.
Emilee Muench, 8, a rising third grader, picked a sticker as she finished her work.
“We've been learning verbs and nouns,” she said. “I like it … you get to play.”
Teacher Jen Morningstar asked the students whether the words met the definition of a noun: a person, place or thing. The park has become her English classroom.
“It's great just to be out in the sunshine and exploring nature with the kids,” she said. “We're hoping to avoid some of that learning loss. We obviously don't have any technology here, so the kids aren't on iPads or on phones throughout the day, and they're just enjoying each other, enjoying their lessons and exploring nature.”
