Why One School Is Turning To Outdoor Classrooms Amid Coronavirus

WARRENVILLE, IL — As schools are working to find ways to foster a healthy learning environment amid the coronavirus crisis, The Waldorf School of DuPage is looking even further than outside the box by building outdoor classrooms.

Faculty Chair and grades teacher Brenna McLachlan told Patch the school is constructing nine outdoor classroom spaces that will be used in addition to regular classrooms to give students a chance to learn in the great outdoors. “When we found out about all of the mandates from [the Illinois Department of Public Health], we said, 'Well, what are we going to do?' We didn’t want kids to have to wear masks all day," McLachlan said.

“When there’s a lot of stress and chaos in the world we find that it’s really helpful to be out in nature," McLachlan added.

The outdoor classrooms will be equipped with desks that will be placed 6 feet apart from one another to allow for social distancing when the kids are outside, McLachlan said. Parents will be coming out to help build the desks and beautify the property for the upcoming school year.

“We have this beautiful outdoor space at our school, and we are out there a lot anyway,” McLachlan said, adding that The Waldorf School of DuPage students are outside a lot during the day throughout the year for gardening, sledding and other learning and recreational activities.

The outdoor spaces will include shelters for snacks and places for story time, McLachlan added. When students aren't in the outdoor classroom, they will be learning inside with their masks on.

Before deciding on the outdoor classrooms, McLachlan and other representatives from the school surveyed and met with parents to get their feedback. McLachlan said there was overwhelming support for the idea of outdoor classrooms. The support has been ongoing, and The Waldorf School of DuPage plans to turn some outdoor classrooms into permanent spaces for use even after the pandemic subsides.

McLachlan said the outdoor spaces will be used for woodworking, pottery, "messy science experiments" and other activities.

In winter, the outdoor spaces will be equipped with heaters to allow for outdoor learning year-round and to allow kids to be outside "as much as possible," McLachlan said.

Students at The Waldorf School of DuPage typically stay with the same teacher until eighth grade. Thus, relying on an outdoor classroom also gives them a chance to be around the teachers and students they already know, she said.

“Kids can be fully back to school with their teachers, which is how they learn best," McLachlan said.

McLachlan added that the school has received a number of inquiries since announcing the initiative. She hopes that "people who want to have their child in school but don’t want them to be indoors all day will find us and join our school.”

Click the link to learn more about The Waldorf School of DuPage.