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Bring a class or group of ten or more 1st-5th grade students to the Outdoor Classroom to partake in memorable, hands-on, environmental education lessons. Our staff and volunteer instructors will lead your students on a half-day adventure at our streamside property in the woods.

Availability & Day-of Details

• Spring Session: late April - early June

• Fall Session: late September - early November

We offer field trip opportunities for seven weeks each spring and fall on weekday mornings, excluding Mondays. A day at the Classroom typically begins around 10am for your students. There are two environmental education activities in the morning, followed by a 20 minute lunch break, and two more activities in the afternoon. We wrap up so that your students can catch the bus by about 1:30 pm. Timing is flexible for groups traveling from off-island. 

The majority of our environmental education activities take place outdoors, on the trails of our nature preserve property. Typically one of our four daily activities takes place inside the classroom itself.  

Classes are filled first come first serve. For schools or groups outside of South Whidbey School District, there is a $8 fee per student to help cover our program costs. Please email Laina to check availability for your group’s visit to the Outdoor Classroom.

Reminders for classroom teachers: 

Chaperones: All grades need at least two chaperones so that each small group has one chaperone in attendance. We welcome all adults who would like to attend. Chaperones will likely be asked to help at every station!

Contact Information: Outdoor Classroom Coordinator, Laina Stonefelt. Outdoor Classroom Office:  360-579-1272.  Mailing Address:  P.O. Box 617, Langley, WA 98260. Physical Address for busses: 7015 Maxwelton Rd, Clinton, 98236

Groups: We have four stations through which students rotate. Visiting groups need to be divided into four groups total (e.g. if you have two 3rd grade classes coming together from your school, each class needs to be split in half for four groups total).

What to Bring: It is always cooler here, so encourage kids to dress in layers. On rainy days, please send students with rain coats and boots if possible. Please have students wear strung/hanging name tags (no stickers, please!) that are legible for our Volunteer Instructors to read all day.

Lunch: Students should bring packed lunches that do not require a microwave or stove. We do not have garbage service so we ask that students take their garbage back to school or home with them (“Pack it in, Pack it out!”)

Environmental Curriculum

An education in salmon is at the heart of our program. As salmon are an indicator species of the health of a Pacific Northwest environment as a whole, it is important for students to understand the life cycle, anatomy, habitat, and challenges of salmon, and how many aspects of our environment are connected.

The curriculum we offer rotates each season, only repeats every three years, and is often updated for relevance in science and current events such that students will always receive a fresh experience during their visit. Our program builds a student’s understanding of important environmental principles, including watershed health, human impacts on environment, habitats, and structures and functions of watershed inhabitants.

Year A:

Fall theme: “Learning About Salmon – Salmon Life Cycle”

Spring theme: “Habitats and Creatures” 

   Year B:

Fall theme: “Water Ecology

Spring theme: “Birds in the Ecosystem”

 Year C:

Fall theme:  “The Food Web”

Spring theme: “Forest Ecosystem

Our Education Committee prepares between 4-8 different lessons each season, and we offer 4 lessons to each visiting group which are tailored appropriately to grade level. Our lessons are developed with applicable NGSS education standards in mind, which can be shared with teachers if requested.

We appreciate teachers and chaperones evaluations of our lessons and instruction. Your honest feedback helps us ensure we’re offering a quality program each season. Please feel free to anonymously return our feedback form at the end of your day, or via mail.