Elmhurst Academy Students Pledge to Great American Backyard Campout and Connect with Wildlife

Friday, June 24, 2016— Elmhurst Academy’s students became happy campers as they participated in exciting outdoor games and activities in their Great American Backyard Campout celebration. The event, sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation, provided the young learners with the opportunity to discover camping in an engaging way that connected them to wildlife through outdoor activities and learning experiences.

The nation’s National Wildlife Federation is one of the largest and oldest conservation organizations, and works to inspire Americans to protect wildlife for our children’s future. Its Great American Backyard Campout, part of Great Outdoors Month in June, encourages all families, neighborhoods, and schools to get involved to strengthen their bonds with nature and form a deeper desire to protect wildlife and wild places. This well-known event asks Americans of all ages to make an online pledge to camp anywhere, in which Elmhurst Academy took the challenge to camp from their own Outdoor Classroom.

During Elmhurst Academy’s Great American Backyard Campout celebration, students and teachers recreated an authentic campout experience with a collection of tents, activity areas, and a giant campfire. Many students, who were excitedly stationed in the tents, read aloud fun stories, told their own ghost stories, and also learned camping etiquette. They were also able to interact with additional camping gear such as flashlights, lanterns, and sticks to roast imaginary marshmallows. Other students tracked down animal tracks, and used their problem solving to determine what animals made their way through their campground.

Additional campout activities included water play, collecting firewood to start their giant campfire, birdwatching through binoculars, exploring into fishing pond, and participating in a team nature scavenger hunt. Each activity prompted students to think closely about wildlife and its components and find their own fun outdoors. “Our students learn a greater appreciation and sense of adventure with being outside with natural things. Getting to learn specifically about tents, camping gear, everything outside a classroom setting, is important,” said Mrs. Kaitlyn Berger, Nature Curriculum Specialist.

In perfect collaboration with the Great American Backyard Campout event, Elmhurst Academy also celebrated Summer Solstice that commemorates the day of the year with the most sunlight. With this occasion, students took the opportunity to learn more about the sun, solar power, and sundials, as well as learn about the sun as a cultural element to our world.