1. The Outdoor Classroom

2. Instructor Aaron Czechowski Assistant Scoutmaster Boy Scout Troop 751
Sammamish (Alpine)
Formerly:
Webelos Den Leader, Cub Scout Pack 586 (Sammamish, WA)
Den Leader, Cub Scout Pack 178 (Derwood, MD)

3. 5/28/2018
Come forth into the light of things, let nature be your teacher
- William Wordsworth

4. Why Learn Outdoors? Simplify: remove modern conveniences/distractions
Exercise: talk while you walk
Acclimate to weather: rain or shine, hot or cold
Be prepared: weather, first aid, ten essentials
LNT: bring plastic bags and collect trash along the way
Appreciation for nature: plant and animal identification
Spirituality: be reverent in nature’s cathedral
Nature will bear the closest inspection. She invites us to lay our eye level with her smallest leaf, and take an insect view of its plain.
-- Henry David Thoreau

5. Outdoor Code As an American I will do my best to
Be clean in my outdoor manners
I will treat the outdoors as a heritage.
I will take care of it for myself and others.
I will keep my trash and garbage out of lakes, streams, fields, woods, and roadways.
Be careful with fire
I will prevent wildfire.
I will build my fires only where they are appropriate.
When I have finished using a fire, I will make sure it is cold out.
I will leave a clean fire ring, or remove all evidence of my fire.
Be considerate in the outdoors
I will treat public and private property with respect.
I will use low-impact methods of hiking and camping.
Be conservation minded
I will learn how to practice good conservation of soil, waters, forests, minerals, grasslands, wildlife, and energy.
I will urge others to do the same.

6. Outdoor Ethics Awards Formerly known as Leave No Trace (LNT) awards
Awareness and Action Awards
All four programs
Cub Scout and Scouter
Boy Scout and Scouter
Varsity Scout and Scouter
Venturer and Scouter
See Scouting.org for more information

7. Cub Scouts Outdoor Activity Award Hold den meetings outside!
Earn patch once
Pins at each rank
Hold den meetings outside!
Local park
Den leader’s backyard
Some pack events can be outdoors
Many monthly pack meetings
Arrow of Light crossover ceremony
Raingutter Regatta and Space Derby

8. Boy Scout Advancement
Ranks with requirements that can be done outside:
Scout (most)
Tenderfoot (all)
2nd Class (most)
1st Class (most)
Merit Badges!

9. Boy Scout Events to Hold Outside
Scoutmaster Conference
Board of Review
Court of Honor
Patrol Leader Council
Scoutmaster Meetings
Committee Meetings?

10. Know Your Limits Not for all events Not for all occasions
Blue and Gold Banquet
Programming merit badge
Not for all occasions
Know your audience
Be weather conscious: take Planning and Preparing for Hazardous Weather online training

11. References / Additional Reading
Outdoor Education (Wikipedia)
What is Outdoor Learning? (Institute for Outdoor Learning)
What does research say? (English Outdoor Council)
Cultivating Outdoor Classrooms (The Outdoor Classroom Project)
Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder (ISBN-10: X)
The Nature Principle: Reconnecting with Life in a Virtual Age (ISBN-10: X)