Our open-air school wasn’t organized for the first time. We prepared for open-air school very consciously.
We attended conferences related to open-air
school. We invited teachers who have been doing open-air schools for a long time to talk about their experiences and help us to begin and to encourage
us that our ideas are good. Two colleagues (Horváth Antal and Orosz László) fulfilled a course of 42 hours which helped with organizing and realizing
open-air schools. Our colleagues and the school library bought topic related books.
After the claim for open-air school had evolved in the staff we formulated this and we wrote it into our pedagogic programme. Then we decided that for
an open-air school the curriculum of the 6th class is the most appropriate so we would accomplish it with this grade. We also decided about the place:
Gyula-Városerdő. It is a very good place because it is not too far but it has a totally different landscape than ours.
Our open-air school in 2006 was based on the experiences of the previous years, a realized organizational process and programme. First we surveyed the
number of children interested in it with the help of a questionnaire given to their parents. After we knew the number of them we wrote a competition to
Békés County Public Education Foundation. We had to face with a 10 % inflation comparing to prices of the year 2005. Our competition won so we booked
the accommodation and food at Dalerd ZRt. Gyula-Városerdõ information centre. The next task was in spring 2006 correcting the numbers of students and
getting parental permissions and declarations of taking on expenses based on the redefined budget. We informed the children and their parents two weeks
before the beginning of the open-air school. Those who could not come to the appointment were sent a description of the most important tasks. We prepared
everything so that in case of sunny or rainy weather there would be equipments to carry out the programme. We bought the book „Birds in Hungary” that is
important and necessary in the cognition of the birds. It was given to each student and we also gave books and publications as prizes at the end of the
open-air school.
The aim of open-air school:
- Environmental Education: Learning about nature may be achieved in nature. The aim of our open-air school was to let students learn about the living nature, while we were endeavouring to form children's environmentally aware behaviour. We achieved that students learn new things with less and less teacher’s help. Their studies based on their experiences in reality, their observations and measurements.
- Related to certain subjects:
Hungarian literature: poems about forests and birds
Art: lines (edge of leaves, lines from tree trunk to the branches), surfaces and structures cortex – leaf vein – graining), shapes and scales (flowers – leaves –mushrooms)
Biology and Geography: how to use a map, biomes of different Hungarian landscapes (wood, water, shores), to protect nature
Hygiene: nutrition, moving and personal hygiene
PE: orienteering, race in it, sport games
Music: folk-songs about nature, folk customs in spring
Mathematics: determining the age of a tree, measuring its height - Other fields: We reached that students cooperate in a task and respect other’s views, their community behaviour develop. Let them pay attention to each other, solve their problems together, we expand their communicational culture in a playful form (folk customs, games) in their free time activities in the evening and at the campfire. We formed a correct and healthy daily routine. We accomplished their healthy nutrition, washing, motion and sport in their daily schedule.
Tasks, programmes:
We organised modules around the project of the forest’s inner and outer contacts, which were discussed before the beginning of the camp paying attention to children’s proposals and considering weather. Children worked in a group of ten in the modules.
In our free time we sang and played near the campfire. On Wednesday there was orienteering and on Thursday we organised a competition „Who is the most skilful?”
Methods used in the open-air school:
- Methods of examining the place in several points of view:
Groups of ten worked together in the modules. Their observations and examinations based on given aspects. They did simple experiments and induction and collected data alone. - Methods of helping children with learning disability and behaviour problems; and methods of problem solving and conflict management skills.
Competitions in groups of 2-3: distributing task, discussion and help etc. These are sport games, singing at campfire and playing together. - Using project method:
Modules are organized around the project of the forest’s inner and outer contacts.