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4th-Grade Teacher Builds Outdoor Classroom From Scratch And It’s Incredible.

As the summer months came to an end, a lot of families and teachers scrambled to figure out how to manage the upcoming academic year. While most found ways to adjust the existing model, a teacher in Wisconsin came up with a whole new idea.

Videos by InspireMore

Lindsey Earle teaches 4th grade at Prairie Hill Waldorf School, a private school set on 14 acres of land. With so much space at her disposal, Lindsey came up with the idea to build an outdoor classroom for her 2020-2021 year students.

Lindsey’s innovative idea came to her during planning sessions with fellow teachers. In an interview with GMA, she said, “As we were discussing plans for returning and things looked a little doomsday-ish, I proposed an idea that we build our own classroom.”

With the help of her husband and two sons, Lindsey built a 12-sided outdoor structure that has a tented roof and enough space for her 13 students and desks that are spaced out from each other to keep everyone safe and allow kids to go mask free when they aren’t working one-on-one.

The desks themselves are really innovative, too. Rather than traditional desks, the kids get canvas chairs (like camping chairs) and the desktops are made from outdoor sign boards.

Lindsey’s students aren’t the only ones getting to benefit from her (great) idea, either. Since her classroom was such a hit, every other teacher is getting one for their students as well! Volunteers, parents, and even students are all working together to build the new classrooms.

Given the importance of the in-person school experience, Lindsey and her school’s administrators are thrilled to have found a way to navigate the pandemic. Plus, what kid would say no to basically camping out for school?!

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