The kindergarteners are sliding down a sheer, snow-pillowed boulder into a field of freshly fallen powder, as echoes of their laughter fill the forest. Clad in bright-colored insulated clothes, they’re all chiming in with wonder at the natural slide they’ve just created. When one boy finds his foot stuck in the deep, frozen muddle, a friend comes over to help dig him out. They call it friend patrol.
It’s a Wednesday in early November and several feet of snow from an overnight storm have buried the students’ outdoor classroom. They are among 234 pupils attending the free, independent Creekside Charter School in Olympic Valley, which serves pre-kindergarteners through eighth grade. Most of their fellow Creekside students are taking their classes indoors. These kindergarteners — between the ages of 5 and 6? They spend the entire day outdoors. Every day.
For about 45 minutes, the kids have been playing freely in the woods, supervised yet undirected. Kindergarten teacher Theresa Anderson and her teacher’s aide, Kristina McCarthy, are nearby, but the students are free to roam and explore within a given range. Activities like tree climbing and rock jumping are fine as long as they’re within the realms of safety. Mostly, the kids are encouraged to play, create, work together, and let their imaginations and nature chart their course.