Education Outdoors

We believe our educational environment should foster and support the holistic wellbeing of our school community. It is well-known that spending time in nature is linked to cognitive, physical, and psychological benefits, and so, as often as possible, Valley School students are outside soaking up sunshine, splashing in Linn Run, and breathing fresh air!

In fact, our 400-acre woodland campus is an extension of our classrooms. Children at Valley School are fortunate to spend a lot of time learning, working, and playing outside. Not only do they receive several outdoor recesses each day—even during winter months—they also spend class and extracurricular time immersed in nature:

• Lower School Super Scientists study ecosystems in the Magic Forest. 
• Kindergarteners practice spatial awareness with exercises on the playground.
• 1st-graders investigate their senses in our outdoor classrooms.
• 2nd-grade authors compose stories inspired by the forest. 
• 3rd-grade artists sketch stream-side.
• 4th-graders calculate the ages of trees in our forest by using Pi. 
• Upper School athletes sprint the trails through our woods to practice on four gorgeous playing fields.
• 5th-graders spend weeks learning about and building shelters for their Settlement Project. 
• 6th-grade students monitor stream health through biodiversity studies of Linn Run.
• 7th-grade spends a week on Wallops Island, VA learning about coastal ecology.
• 8th graders camp in Caledonia State Park during their trip to the battlefields of Gettysburg.

Through everyday activities and extra-special projects, Valley School aims to help children connect with our natural world. It’s not just a matter of benefitting our current students; we’ve got our future generations in mind, too. When children grow up spending time in nature, they are more apt to respect the planet and become environmentally conscious citizens who are passionate about caring for the earth.