{"id":17681,"date":"2016-06-21T15:46:46","date_gmt":"2016-06-21T19:46:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.cos.ucf.edu\/?p=17681"},"modified":"2016-12-20T11:29:37","modified_gmt":"2016-12-20T16:29:37","slug":"ucf-arboretum-welcomes-new-explorers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/news\/ucf-arboretum-welcomes-new-explorers\/","title":{"rendered":"UCF Arboretum Welcomes New Explorers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo

Photo Courtesy of UCF Today<\/p><\/div>\n

Story by Gene Kruckemyer, UCF Today<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The UCF Arboretum has more helping hands thanks to a new initiative embraced\u00a0by UCF’s Creative School for Children<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Creative School was recently named a certified Nature Explore Classroom by the national Nature Explore program<\/a>, an initiative that recognizes schools and other organizations that make a commitment to use the natural world as an integral part of learning. Nature Explore Classrooms were developed by a team of educators, landscape architects and researchers in response to the documented growing disconnect between children and nature.<\/p>\n

The school, on Gemini Boulevard just west of the UCF water tower, offers not just inside classroom programs but now also presents a variety of outside interactive elements geared to create an environment of discovery, exploration and development.<\/p>\n

Designated centers on the campus provide hands-on activities such as nature art, music and movement, climbing, butterfly garden, vegetable garden \u2013 and even dirt-digging and \u201cmessy materials\u201d areas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe set out with a year-long initiative to transform our playground to a nature-based classroom,\u201d said Amy Hesse, director of the school.<\/p>\n

And how do children learn in this environment?<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough observation, interaction, exploration, risk-taking, decision making, project-based learning \u2013 and play,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The transition included training the staff about using nature in teaching, working with the UCF Arboretum<\/a> for landscaping and sustainability of the new gardens, enlisting volunteers to help install new equipment and materials, and arranging with Wellness & Health Promotions Services<\/a> to offer gardening lessons and share harvests with families and UCF students.<\/p>\n

At the end of the year of redevelopment, the school hosted two workshops presented for the southeast region members of Nature Explore<\/a>, which is a collaboration of Dimensions Educational Research Foundation and the Arbor Day Foundation.<\/p>\n

View original story on UCF Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Story by Gene Kruckemyer, UCF Today The UCF Arboretum has more helping hands thanks to a new initiative embraced\u00a0by UCF’s Creative School for Children. The Creative School was recently named a certified Nature Explore Classroom by the national Nature Explore program, an initiative that recognizes schools and other organizations that make a commitment to use […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":126,"featured_media":17682,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[33,38,13,25,28,29],"tags":[304,814,946,2441,3457,3479,3841],"class_list":["post-17681","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arboretum","category-breaking-news","category-news","category-staff-news","category-top-news","category-ucf-news","tag-arbor-day-foundation","tag-creative-school-for-children","tag-dimensions-educational-research-foundation","tag-nature-explore","tag-ucf","tag-ucf-arboretum","tag-wellnes-health-promotions-services"],"yoast_head":"\nUCF Arboretum Welcomes New Explorers - 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