Beirut Preschoolers Head for the Hills, Learn in Nature

Getting to grips with the great outdoors (photo: ACS Beirut).

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Curiosity about the world around them makes preschoolers enthusiastic learners. Encouraging their questions, and helping them discover the answers, is also a great way for them to learn about nature.

To this end, we decided to take the students of the American Community School at Beirut’s Nursery B classroom to Deir el Qamar, in central Lebanon. Three parent volunteers came along to assist us.

After morning meeting in our “outdoor classroom,” we went on a mini-hike to listen to the different sounds of nature as well as to observe the outdoor environment. Students made paint from rocks and then painted on larger rocks; they searched for insects and spiders using magnifying glasses; and they collected rocks and sticks to make their own sounds.

In the words of one parent volunteer, “I joined Aidan’s Nursery B class to Deir el Qamar and what a lovely time we had. As a parent, I know the vital importance of play in all different forms. But nothing beats play in the great outdoors. How nice it was to see the children running about, getting creative and learning in a hands-on environment.”

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