Science teacher Glenn Powers shows kindergarten students how to identify green crabs. Katy Inman photo

First graders sit crisscross-applesauce on yoga mats, hands raised to ask a question. Third graders peer into the Sheepscot River before swooping in to take water samples or spread out in a pine-shaded space to read. That’s what it’s like at the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) in Edgecomb, where kids spend a day each week learning outdoors. 

After receiving Down East Magazine’s 2024 Best Private Elementary School title, school Director Katy Inman pointed to CTL’s outdoor classroom as a distinguishing feature. Unlike most schools, once a week — rain, shine or freezing temperatures — students romp through the woods to attend class. 

In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in open-air classrooms to reduce screen time and blow off steam. But can they offer more for young learners than traditional settings can? Depends on who you ask. 

Experts have debated the merits of place-based education for much of the last century. While Corbin Lichtinger, a first- and second-grade teacher at CTL, said there’s an intuitive sense that its worthwhile, further research is necessary to understand exactly how. 

Still, the anecdotal benefits of exploration — free play, time spent in nature and physical activity — are well documented and match the experience in his classroom.  

“Our science program is much stronger than one might think at a school known for reading and writing,” Inman said. “This year, our older students [grades 5-8] will work in the field with Bigelow, Darling and Manomet scientists searching for green crabs, taking water-quality samples and helping inventory marine species. They will develop questions, record and analyze data, and present their findings to a public audience.” 

‘Hands-on learning sparks academic curiosity’

Before taking the helm, Inman recalled reading books written by Nancy Atwell, the founder of CTL, as a graduate student at Brown University. 

After working at multiple schools, she founded the Older Student Program at Touchstone Community School in Grafton, Massachusetts, using CTL learning models to develop the middle-grade curriculum. 

Fifth- and sixth-grade students use quadrats to study crab populations at an intertidal sampling location along the Sheepscot River. Katy Inman photo

“What intrigued me was how CTL fostered a sense of belonging and rigorous outcomes — high graduation rates and a refined skillset in all subject areas,” said Inman, noting that succeeding Atwell in 2019, she felt a twinge of fear, having held the school in high regard for so many years. “I’ve watched my kids learn to work hard and feel proud, honoring their curiosity and not trying to meet standards. Being able to experience the magic of this school as a parent has exceeded my expectations.” 

Now, in fourth and sixth grade, her kids have taken a fancy to the outdoor classroom. 

The timber-frame barn, used chiefly for CTL’s science programs, has expanded to include various subjects, like nature poetry. In winter, supplies are placed on a sled and launched downhill; students document observations with the camera since it’s tough to record data with gloves on. In autumn, leaves are collected and root systems are analyzed. In spring, students take water-quality samples from the river. 

Inman highlighted the pride in students’ eyes as they share what they learned outdoors or when her own children recount their findings at the dinner table. 

“Hands-on learning sparks academic curiosity,” Inman said. “Students are attuned to how the soil feels and the temperature of the air. … Those small details matter when forming memories. In the past, kids have made ceramics out of riverbank bud, creating a museum on the playground to show off their creations. That kind of joy from unplanned experiences makes for the best traditions.” 

Inman credited the outdoor classroom’s success to the educators, “who come with decades of knowledge and the ability to adapt on the fly,” and the school’s style of teaching the same topics simultaneously to all students. She emphasized the importance of nature-based play at every age, claiming it not only strengthens neurological pathways but equips young leaders with the necessary skills for the future.

“We aren’t explicitly saying ‘this is valuable,’ we’re letting students come to that conclusion themselves,” Inman said. “Everything the next generation does will be impacted by climate change. Fostering that connection to nature at a young age benefits our emerging scientists, architects, economists and linguists.” 

First grader Finley Barnes of Wiscasset sets up a solar oven and makes s’mores in CTL’s outdoor classroom. Katy Inman photo

The benefits of experiential learning

After working in the public sector for over a decade, Lichtinger changed his tune when he moved from Portland, Oregon, to Wiscasset. 

The switch came as a slight surprise; he had every intention of remaining in the public sector. Nonetheless, at Sunnyside Environmental School, Lichtinger recalled feeling stifled by computer modules and evaluations that impeded his ability to reach kids. 

Students in Glen Powers’ class use quadrats to study local crab populations. Katy Inman photo

He noted that one of the only times his former students would perk up was when they conducted field research or took a trip to a wastewater treatment plant to expand on what they learned in the classroom. 

At CTL, Lichtinger takes his students to the outdoor classroom every Thursday for an experiment — creating a weather station, collecting data or learning about the adaptation of birds with beak samples — followed by a period of free play in the woods. Back inside, they field questions and analyze measurements. 

“When kids are given the space to be themselves outdoors, a part of their mind, body and spirit gets activated,” Lichtinger said. “During free play, you might think students are fooling around. They are having fun, but real learning is happening, too. Place-based learning adds new layers of understanding to their toolbox. It’s one thing to learn about a concept but another to see it in the real world. As an educator, it also teaches me about my students — I see who plays with others or prefers imaginary play.” 

His said his passion for place-based education — a pedology that immerses students in local heritage, cultures and landscapes — emerged while planting gardens with New Mainers. 

“No matter your language or background, we find common ground when we work on a project together,” Lichtinger said. “I firmly believe that kids with a literal hand in the Earth will better care for it, and I see that at CTL — my students are empowered to go out and make a change.” 

First and second graders study the stream ecosystem in winter. Katy Inman photo

Praise from local scientists

The school’s science and history curricula get revised every five years. This year, students will study “Water: Fresh and Salt” with local scientists. 

Dr. Marissa McMahan of Manomet Conservation Sciences remembers teaming up with CTL in 2019. Leaning on one of her first experiences conducting fieldwork at the Lobster Conservancy, she made a protocol for the outdoor classroom. 

Students sample two quadrants in the low intertidal zone (parallel to the shore). Within each quadrant, they lift the rocks and seaweeds to collect all the crabs they can, both invasive species (like green crabs and Asian shore crabs) and native species (like Jonah crabs and rock crabs). Back in the classroom, each critter is identified, measured and sexed, and then placed back in the hiding spot where they were found. 

“Working with the kids is incredibly fulfilling, especially showing them something in their backyard they may not have known about before,” McMahan said. “Often, when they realize how abundant the shoreline is with green crabs, they think of creative ways to address the problem, like taking them home to eat or using them for compost. It renews my hope that some of the toughest battles we face today can be solved, and will be, with thinkers like these.”

Meggie Harvey, who connected with the school when she began working at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute in 2016, expressed a similar sentiment. She underscored that the intertidal data collected by students in Glen Powers’ class has also helped GMRI design and launch Findings from the Field, a peer-reviewed journal of middle school science research. Moreover, their findings have helped professional researchers understand what’s happening in the Sheepscot River estuary through “authentic science investigation.” 

Like McMahan, Harvey is inspired by the students’ curiosity and CTL’s willingness to preserve and be guided by just that. 

“As we aim to accomplish climate resilience, our work is centered on understanding how locals are processing environmental changes,” Harvey said. “This includes tuning into youth voices. CTL students are valuable members of today’s climate conversation and they’re tomorrow’s future decisionmakers.”