Cindy Soule is a teacher in Portland, Maine, an area known to have extremely cold and snowy winters.But cold weather is not stopping Soule and her students from continuing with outdoor learning during the coronavirus pandemic.Earlier in the school year, students in Soule’s fourth-grade class had outdoor lessons on things like pollination and erosion.Then, the snow came.In face coverings and warm clothes, the students took their school supplies outside in buckets.Then, they turned the buckets over, put them down in the snow, took a seat and went to work.The lesson that day centered on snow and the formation of snowflakes.Schools across the U.S. have pushed for outdoor learning to keep students and teachers safe and stop the spread of COVID-19.Infectious disease experts worldwide have noted that the virus spreads less easily outdoors.Now, with temperatures dropping in much of the country,some schools have made plans to continue outdoor learning during the winter.Anne Stires is an outdoor learning expert in Maine.
