Sixth graders love Outdoor School

Renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright once said, “Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.”

Sisters Middle School students got the chance to spend a school week testing Wright’s philosophy in the natural beauty of the Cascades at the annual sixth grade outdoor school held May 1-4 at the Methodist Church Camp near Suttle Lake.

Outdoor School is directed by sixth grade teachers Carol Packard, Mike Cox, Wes Estvold and Karla Barton and educational specialist Brad Tisdel. They were assisted this year by members of educational groups Wolf Tree, based in Sisters and Coyote Tracks, which operates out of Alfalfa.

A total of 17 high school students served as camp counselors as well.

“It’s a great chance for the kids to get out and do experiential learning,” said Mike Cox. “We center much of the learning on the outdoors obviously, so we had classes related to ecology, water systems and even practical things like outdoor survival.”

Even though the wilderness is in our backyard, many kids have not spent much concentrated time outdoors, according to Cox.

“For a lot of kids the week is the first time they have been out in the woods doing the kinds of discoveries and activities that long-time Central Oregonians take for granted,” he said.

Some students may not even realize how much learning they are doing because the activities are so engaging it just seems like a lot of fun, according to Packard.

McKenzie Legg found that being out on Suttle Lake in a kayak was much to her liking.

“I enjoyed the feeling of being out on the water on my own,” she said. “Plus, in a canoe it can be hard to communicate with your partner.”

She also really liked the campfire time where the high school counselors taught a lot of songs and helped produce skits and other acts.

Spencer Seal liked all the time he got to be with his buddies out in the fresh air.

“I really liked the boating and other recreational activities,” he said. “The teachers and counselors were really fun and understanding.”

While it sounds like a lot of fun up at the lake, there are clear academic goals during the week, according to principal Lora Nordquist.

“Outdoor School exemplifies experiential education, so the kids are learning important science concepts by participating in a wide array of activities,” she said.

There are other benefits to the class spending four days and three nights living together as well. “The students are grouped together in ways that allow them to get to know one another in new ways and they come back from the week with a much closer bond as a class,” she said.

Packard says that Outdoor School stands out as one of the most memorable times of the middle school experience. “When we advertise at the high school for counselors we get dozens of kids who want to be part of Outdoor School because they remember how much they loved it back when they were sixth graders.”