What is Outdoor Ed?

Outdoor Education (OE) programs provide hands-on education experiences to students. Also known as environmental education, these programs focus on hard science skills that are difficult to learn from a textbook or within the confines of a classroom.

• Observation skills.
• Forming hypotheses and testing theories.
• Getting hands-on with water, mud, leaves, fur and other nature elements.
• Recording findings.

Yet Outdoor Ed is more than science. It provides a natural environment for students to demonstrate core skills and apply previous classroom knowledge, often effortlessly and without their realizing that their skills and knowledge are being evaluated.

• Reading and following directions.
• Using mathematics, making comparisons and estimations.
• Use of language arts to describe what they see and self-expression through creative writing.

In addition, students have opportunity to practice soft-skills not covered in other curriculum - especially during longer OE events.

• Independence and care for self and personal belongings
• Living in a community environment.
• Working through differences and personal conflict.
• Building relationships and team formation with others outside their "friend" group.
• Putting the care and concern for others above personal desires
• Learning through outdoor play.
• For our parochial schools, opportunities to connect Bible knowledge with nature, and to grow closer to Jesus and the God of Creation.

OE Options

Walcamp's OE programs are based on our main campus and primarily serve schools within Northern Illinois. We also have schools attend from southern Wisconsin and from eastern Iowa.

We offer several different Outdoor Ed formats to best fit the needs of your students and faculty.

• Activities can be run by Walcamp instructors, with your teachers and chaperones providing supervision.
• Or, we provide the space and your teachers provide instruction for your students. Some activities may still require a Walcamp staff member (archery, canoeing, etc.).