Salem Schools Examine Outdoor Options For Learning

SALEM, MA — As Salem Public Schools target early November for the return to in-person learning, school officials are looking into ways to make some of in-person learning outside of the classroom.

In what Superintendent of Schools Stephen Zrike called a "parent-led, citywide collaboration" the district has committed up to $80,000 to provide "safe, beautiful and functional outdoor learning spaces for students and staff in the Salem Public School District."

Zrike said the district is looking for additional community support with the combined efforts of volunteers, the Salem Department of Public Services and charitable foundations having "the potential to create long-lasting positive impacts for students."

The funds will go toward structures such as waterproof steel canopies and gazebos with rubberized floors, permanent benches with shade, portable hand-washing stations and portable, durable whiteboards and desks.

Zrike said that while the outdoor spaces are timely given the coronavirus crisis, the goal will be to make as many of them permanent as possible. He said outdoor learning achieves "the proven benefits of improved classroom engagement, academic outcomes and social-emotional wellness."

Zrike said outdoor learning also enhances the curriculum of physical, life, earth and space sciences.

The district has created a Facebook page for those who want to support the outdoor learning effort

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This article originally appeared on the Salem Patch