Experiential Learning - Kindergarten

Experiential Learning encourages us to:

participate in an engaging learning activity,

reflect on the experience,

apply our new learning.

Outdoor Learning falls under the umbrella of Experiential Learning.

A growing body of research suggests that connecting to the natural world contributes to children's mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health and well-being (Louv, 2005). Children's natural curiosity and sense of wonder can be fostered by providing them with many opportunities to learn outdoors.

In the Kindergarten program, learning in the outdoors is included as part of the instructional day, and their educators and parents play an active role, engaging with children in an inquiry stance as they play, explore, and learn together outside the classroom.

The Kindergarten Program, 2016

Winter Scavenger Hunt

Winter is here and there is so much to notice and discover!

This link will provide you with a list of materials to help you prepare for your scavenger hunt, as well as many ideas to assist you in creating an adventure that meets the needs of your young learner. Make sure to scroll through the 5 helpful instructions, as printable pages full of images of winter are available that encourage students to use their five senses 'to find', 'to look for', 'to listen for', 'to smell' and 'to feel'. Below, you will find some ideas of ways to expand your child's learning throughout and following your hunt.

Manipulating and Displaying the Items:

Once you have completed your hunt, discuss ways to display or use the items you have collected together (your child might have a great idea to share). Do you have a little table or shelf at home to display your findings? Allow your child to manipule the items. You might notice that they:

• counts the items (is he/she developing the skill of counting with one-to-one correspondance?)

• sorts the items into groups (How are the items being sorted? What is the sorting rule?)

• creates a pattern (leaf, rock, leaf, rock ABAB)

How might your child illustrate what they find or illustrate the experience of the adventure through drawings or pictures?

Creating Opportunities for Thinking and Communicating:

Spending time outside in nature is a wonderful place to engage in conversation with your child. During and following your adventure, talk about your experience. This will nurture your child's communication skills. Use the Experiential Learning Cycle prompts below for ideas:

Participate - During your hunt you might ask your child: What do you notice? What are you thinking about? How did that make you feel (e.g. when you finally found the chickadee)?

Reflect - After your hunt you might ask: What did you learn about the _____ (e.g. blue jay)? Tell me about the most exciting part of the hunt. Answering questions such as these helps your child to acknowledge and understand their own interests.

Apply - Then ask: What questions do you have now (e.g. about the pine needles on the tree, about the animal tracks on the snow, about the ice formation on the branches)? What you would you like to learn about next (e.g. about where the animals live in winter)?

Encourage your child to 'retell' the experience of the scavenger hunt or your adventure to another family member or friend. This will also help to develop communication skills.