Prospect School's Outdoor Learning Center Gets Year-round Use

The following is a release from Community Consolidated District 181:

A frequent question posed by visitors to the Prospect Outdoor Learning Center, “Is it art or science?” can be answered by the photo to the right, snapped by Prospect School first-grade teacher Rosemary Grant.

“It’s both!” she said.

Grant is working on signage to explain the many features of the Outdoor Learning Center with co-developer Pam Henry, who also teaches first grade at Prospect. The signs, slated for spring installation, will invite visitors to go on a scavenger hunt to find the many “green” features of the newest addition to Prospect’s architecture.

Dedicated in October 2011, the projected was funded with a $17,000 grant from the District 181 Foundation as part of its science initiative, and donations from the Prospect Parent-Teacher Association and several area businesses, including AquaScape.

“As we are getting used to the Outdoor Learning Center, we have moved from fall to winter. I love that the students are becoming more observant and discovering the ice art,” Grant said. “I saw a group of 20 students huddled around the waterfall this week, discussing that some of the water had frozen and yet much was still running. Our first graders are measuring water, ice and snow temperatures and checking the air temperature daily with the large thermometer. We are constantly learning and growing in how to take advantage of this wonderful area for our science curriculum.”