Six teachers from Mountain Valley Community School in Mexico will use recently-awarded grants to collaborate on outdoor learning projects at the middle and elementary schools.

The Maine Environmental Education Association‘s mini grants for the Outdoor Learning Program were announced Jan. 14 by Emory Buco Harger, director of communications. Nearly 100 Maine educators are receiving funding for the first time for 146 outdoor learning projects across the state.

Ideas at the Regional School Unit 10 school include creating a winter gear library, creating a hammock garden, or purchasing GPS units, among others.

“I am really glad to see so many applications from educators who have not made requests in the past,” said Anna Sommo, the association’s director of school and community partnerships. “This is very exciting because it tells me that there are still lots of educators who might not be a part of the environmental education network in the state who are excited about getting students outdoors.”

Sommo said getting outside during the school day is gaining traction in Maine as a way to develop key skills, decrease behavioral challenges, and cultivate young Mainers’ care for our environment. With so many benefits for students’ social, emotional and academic growth, every year the association funds Maine public schools representing all 16 counties, with this year distributing $127,615 to partially fund projects.

There were 173 applications for more than $220,000, far more than the money available.

Mini grants applicants at Mountain Valley Community School were submitted by Shane Smith, middle school alternative education; Cheryl Sevigny, physical education; Larissa Wing, fourth grade teacher; Maggie Corlett, fourth grade teacher; Jessica McMichael, kindergarten teacher; and Stephanie Dowland, fourth grade teacher.

When multiple teachers apply from the same school, the association often will offer them one grant to share. Harger said they reached out to all six Mountain Valley teachers who applied to discuss sharing two grants — one for the middle school and one for the elementary school.

“This is because we do not have enough funding to cover full grant amounts for all teachers who apply in Maine, but we still want to support as many schools as we can,” Harger said.

Harger said McMichael received $1,500, Sevigny received $750 and Smith received $1,000. Wing, Corlett and Dowland ultimately did not receive funds directly but will still benefit from the environmental education equipment and resources at their schools provided by the grant.

Smith said his alternative education program serves 14 students (grades 6 to 8), many of whom lack access to safe, durable winter clothing. The grant will contribute to a shared gear library of boots, jackets, hats and gloves that will support the school’s Outing Club.

He said this resource will remove a significant barrier to participation in outdoor learning, field trips and after-school activities by ensuring that every student, regardless of financial circumstances, has access to warm dry gear.

Smith said last winter, their students were unable to participate fully in outdoor learning because many lacked proper boots, jackets, and cold-weather gear. As a result, they were forced to spend the majority of the winter indoors, which limited hands-on learning opportunities which was especially challenging for at-risk students who benefit from movement, fresh air, and outdoor experiences.

Sevigny said she offers a popular geocaching/GPS unit for her students. They have 14 working GPS units, which means students must share. This is not ideal because the person that doesn’t get to operate the GPS is limited in how they can contribute.

Her mini grant will be used to purchase an additional 10 GPS units, and enable her to use two of the GPS units as loaners for families who wish to go but do not have the equipment they need.

This fall, Sevigny said only half of her eighth graders were able to experience the GPS/geocaching unit this fall. She hopes to be able to offer the unit again in the spring to all the other students.

Wing said some of the money will go toward creating a community hammock garden at the school, a space where teachers from grades prekindergarten through eight can take their students outside, enjoy a book, or even do some creative writing and journaling outdoors.

She believes this project could be a catalyst for many staff members as well, to see the benefits of getting students outside — a safe and manageable way for everyone to see the amazing benefits of spending more time outdoors.

Corlett said her project, with three playgrounds, would create three different sand pit elements. They would use railroad ties and/or donated logs to create the barrier to hold the sand in the spaces. One sand pit would have a mud kitchen, the second would have a rain gutter structure, the third would have a culvert for students to crawl through.

She said they will be seeking additional donations to make this possible. The rain gutter donations have been offered for this project. They are hunting for a donation of a large piece of plastic culvert and the small-part items and tools for each of the pits. Several boulders from a construction project were saved for use in and near the sand pits.

Dowland said their outdoor learning committee will take the time to plan and map out where they would like to create outdoor areas and how they can make it flow as much as possible with the natural ways of the land.

The goal will be to create equal outdoor learning opportunities for all students with different abilities.

Since starting at Meroby Elementary School in Mexico in 2016, the nature exploration program has been teaching students how to be safe and how to identify animal tracks, trees, leaves and other elements in the natural world.