Alabama
Outdoor
Classroom
Program
The Alabama Wildlife Federation and Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural
Resources created the Alabama Outdoor Classroom Program in 1999, patterning the
program after the National Wildlife Federation’s Schoolyard Habitats ® program.
After piloting the program for five years, we certified our first official Outdoor Classroom
schools in 2004. Three years later, we extended our partnership to include the Alabama
Cooperative Extension System, and we began to advertise the program statewide.
In 2011, we now have over 250 schools using the program in 55 counties in Alabama.
A Partnership between
Alabama Outdoor
Classroom Program
provides technical advice and assistance
to educators, administrators, students
and community members who wish to
create an effective, sustainable outdoor
classroom and wildlife habitat on their
school grounds.
As we piloted the AOC program, we found that schools had difficulties with sustaining
their outdoor classroom programs due to faculty turnover, loss of leadership and
enthusiasm, and a lack of activities to use in their outdoor classroom sites.
To help schools with their outdoor classrooms, we developed a step-by-step Outdoor
Classroom Planning Guide along with planning materials to help planning
committees. We also host educator and volunteer workshops to help provide
activity ideas, learning station ideas, wildlife habitat advice, and technical guidance
for schools enrolled in the AOC Program.
Why create an Outdoor Classroom
at your school?
 To
extend the classroom beyond the
traditional 4 walls, 25 desks, and
25 books…
An Outdoor Classroom site can provide valuable first-hand, real world experiences to
supplement the familiar text books used in a traditional indoor classroom.
 To
provide hands-on activities while
utilizing multiple-disciplinary skills…
Studies have shown that students enjoy learning
more and retain information longer with hands-on
activities, and all subjects can be taught in an outdoor
classroom including math, science, history, reading,
writing, and the arts.
More specifically, an outdoor classroom can facilitate
learning by:
1) Helping students utilize complex measuring,
graphing, mapping and mathematical skills to solve
real-world problems,
2) Refining students abilities in scientific observation,
data collection, analysis and forming conclusions,
3) Drawing connections between geography, history,
economics and our natural resources, and
4) By providing inspiration for writing and art activities
and a peaceful atmosphere for reading.
During a time when children spend
more and more time indoors in front of
computers, video games, and the
television, children have become more
removed from the outdoors, physical
activity, and nature.
 And
to help
students gain a
greater appreciation
for Alabama’s rich
biodiversity and
natural heritage…
Richard Louv, author of Last Child in
the Woods, explains how many
children are suffering from naturedeficit disorder, which is leading to
higher incidence of attention-deficit
disorder and childhood obesity.
We hope to combat this trend by taking
students outdoors for fun, hands-on
activities that triggers their natural
curiosity and helps children develop a
passion for the outdoors, wildlife, and
our natural resources.
…in a FUN and EXCITING environment!
Students get excited about learning when activities are conducted in an outdoor
classroom., and many times they don’t even realize how much they are learning
because they are having so much fun!
In addition, students who are labeled with ADD, ADHD or emotional problems often
become engaged in activities and participate more in an outdoor classroom setting.
Nearly all students view the outdoor classroom activities as a reward for their good
behavior.
What is an Outdoor Classroom?
Falkville Elementary in
Morgan County
Outdoor Classrooms are created in a variety of shapes and sizes (often depending
on how much space a school has around their campus), and they incorporate
numerous combinations of components and learning stations (depending on what
objectives the faculty plans to teach using the outdoor classroom as a tool).
Outdoor Classrooms can
include amphitheaters or
pavilions as one element
in a larger plan...
Falkville
Elementary in
Morgan County
Some people think of an “outdoor classroom“ as an
outdoor amphitheater or outdoor pavilion…
An outdoor amphitheater can provide a seating
area where teachers can discuss topics and
activities with their students.
Fairhope Intermediate in
Baldwin County
A pavilion can provide shade in warmer months,
shelter in inclement weather, potential storage
space for gardening supplies and activity materials,
and an area to conduct outdoor activities that may
require tables and benches.
However, the Alabama Outdoor Classroom Program encompasses much more,
including learning stations and wildlife habitats where students can observe nature
first-hand, collect date, and gain a greater appreciation for their environment.
Outdoor Classrooms can also include…
Board Walks and Nature Trails…
Priceville Elementary
in Morgan County
Sumiton Elementary
in Walker County
Other optional components in an outdoor classroom
site are boardwalks and nature trails. These paths
can lead students and teachers from one learning
station to another without the students accidentally
damaging habitats or learning stations.
Outdoor Classrooms can include learning
stations in forest communities…
Bluff Park
Elementary in
Jefferson County
John E Bryan
Elementary in
Blount County
Some schools have natural forest communities within a 3-5 minutes walk of their indoor
classrooms, where they can incorporate nature trails with learning stations such as:
• Plant Identification and Description Signs where students can practice their match
skills by measuring the size of the plants to determine if they are “fully grown;”
• Log Decomposition Station where students can study decomposers such as bugs
under a fallen log and moss or lichen on top of the log; and
• A “History Stump” where students can count the rings of a tree to determine the
tree’s age, and they can correlate the various rings to moments in history (such as
when 9/11 occurred in 2001).
Aquatic studies areas like a pond or
bog garden…
Aquatic studies areas such as fish ponds,
frog ponds, and bog gardens are great
learning stations to include in an outdoor
classroom.
In addition to providing a much-needed
water source for local wildlife, they also
provide a variety of hands-on activities for
students of all ages including:
Allentown Elementary in Mobile County
• Calculating water quality including the
water’s pH and dissolved oxygen levels,
• Computing volume of an irregular
shape such as the volume of water in
their pond,
• Distinguishing differences between
solids and liquids, and
Locust Fork High in Blount County
• Writing essays and creating drawings
inspired by the aquatic habitats.
Raised bed gardens such as vegetable &
herb gardens or theme gardens…
Gardens are fun, creative projects to include
in any Outdoor Classroom. Some schools
will allow one teacher or one specific class to
“adopt” a raised bed garden for a semester
so that they can use themed gardens to
teach specific Course of Study objectives.
Example themed gardens include:
• Sensory Garden: with mint &/or
rosemary (to smell), lamb’s ear &/or ferns
(to touch), rosemary &/or thyme (to taste),
bleeding hearts &/or clovers (to see), and
windchimes (to hear);
• George Washington Carver Garden:
growing peanuts or sweet potatoes; and
• Cereal Bowl Garden: corn for corn
flakes, oats for oatmeal, rice, wheat, rye,
and others.
Hemphill
Elementary in
Jefferson County
West Morgan
Elementary in
Morgan County
Song Bird and Butterfly Habitats…
An Outdoor Classroom is also a Schoolyard
Habitat – we want to attract wildlife to your
outdoor classroom by providing food, water,
cover and places to raise young.
Song bird sanctuaries and butterfly gardens are
easy-to-build learning stations:
• Song Bird Habitat – A combination of
evergreen trees/bushes, berry-producing
bushes/trees, bird feeders, a bird bath, and
nesting boxes meets the needs of your local
song birds.
• Butterfly Garden – All you need are host
plants for the caterpillars and nectar plants for
the butterflies. You can add some puddling
stations and basking rocks to spoil your
butterflies.
Endeavor
Elementary
in Madison
County
South Shades Crest Elementary
in Jefferson County
Toad abodes, turtle habitats, and more!
Cleveland High in Blount County
Falkville Elementary in Morgan County
You can develop other “habitat areas” as learning stations:
• Toad Habitat - Provide mud for them to burrow in, a couple of overturned terracotta
pots for shelter, a small bowl of water, and some plants that will attract bugs for them
to eat and shade them from the sun.
• Turtle Habitats - Aquatic turtles need a small pond (at least 100 CF) with rocks to
bask on, and fish and aquatic plants to eat and hide in. Terrestrial turtles like an
Eastern box turtle needs a large bowl of clean water (at least 1 ft long, 8 in wide, 1 in
deep) to drink and defecate in; plants, worms, and insects to eat; plants and leaf litter
for shade; and some turned-over, partially-buried, large terracotta pots; for shelter.
You can also convert unlikely
courtyards and drainage areas…
University Place
Elementary in
Madison County BEFORE
You can also convert unlikely
courtyards or drainage areas into an
Outdoor Classroom.
This drainage area at University
Place Elementary in Madison County
was an eye-sore and source of
flooding at the school.
The space is ~ 18 feet wide and ~ 80 feet long.
But with some community support and some creativity… (see the next slide)
…into productive Outdoor Classrooms!
University Place Elementary -- AFTER
It’s now a productive Outdoor Classroom that the teachers and students both enjoy!
The sidewalk leads to a fish pond and a frog pond. There are a variety of flowers and
trees planted along the pathway. Students assist with the plantings and with watering
the gardens. They also help care for the bird & squirrel feeding stations and the fish
pond. The students have also learned to identify various forms of flora and fauna, use
mathematical skills for measuring and graphing, and developed problem solving skills
involving mapping and reading activities. Their Outdoor Classroom also provides
inspiration for process writing activities.
What are the Benefits of
participating in this program?
Free Outdoor Classroom
Planning Guides for your
planning committee

Free technical and
organizational assistance
through all phases of
development, certification,
and use of your outdoor
classroom site

Additional Benefits…

Free tree seedlings donated
by the Alabama Forestry
Commission

Free volunteer service hours
from trained Master
Gardener volunteers through
the Alabama Cooperative
Extension System

Free in-service teacher
training workshop(s)
Additional Benefits…

Outdoor Classroom Days
Free technical and organizational assistance from
Alabama Outdoor Classroom Partners to help
schools design and build their learning stations…
Before (at 7:30 am)
Cleveland High
in Blount County
After
(at 2:30 pm)
Including…
 Bogs
 Butterfly
Gardens
 Raised Bed
Gardens
 Sensory
Gardens
 Song Bird
Habitats
 And More…
…IN JUST ONE DAY!!!
Cleveland High in Blount County
…with the assistance of parents, Master
Gardeners, and other school volunteers!
Additional Benefits…

Alabama Outdoor
Classroom Certification
including a personalized
certificate recognizing your
school as an official Alabama
Outdoor Classroom and an
Alabama Outdoor Classroom
sign to post on your school
grounds

An Outdoor Classroom
Activity Kit
Additional Benefits…
 Discovering
Alabama DVDs
including nearly 70
copies of APTV’s show
that explores Alabama’s
biodiversity and natural
heritage.
 NWF’s Schoolyard
Habitats Certification
Alabama Outdoor Classroom
Program Partners…

Alabama Wildlife Federation

Alabama Department of Conservation & Natural
Resources

Alabama Cooperative Extension System

Alabama Power Foundation

National Wildlife Federation

Vought Water Gardens in Decatur, AL

Discovering Alabama & Project Community

Alabama Forestry Commission

Wallace State College’s Hopper Nursery
Finally…for more information…
Visit the Alabama Wildlife Federation’s website at
www.alabamawildlife.org.
You can find information on:
•Conservation Ed Grants •Frequently Asked Questions
•Teacher Workshops
•Informative Articles
•Hands-on Activities
•Planning Materials
•Conservation Education News
And Contact…

April Waltz, AWF, 256/882-9322,
aprilwaltz@knology.net

Doyle Keasal, AWF/ACES, 334/844-6398,
keasade@auburn.edu
We are happy to assist you and your
outdoor classroom planning committee
with the development of your school’s
outdoor classroom!
Please Support the Alabama Wildlife Federation!
Become an AWF Member &/or
Buy an AWF Tag at your local Probate Office…
Thank you for your support!