Despite clear benefits to children’s physical and mental health, focus, academic success, and encouraging sustainability behaviors, integrating consistent outdoor time into school activities can be challenging. In a research project following 17 teachers from upstate New York, a Cornell team explored if and how teachers were able to use the green space in their elementary schoolyard, generating results that could help provide children with consistent access to natural spaces.

The work, supported by the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability, the Cornell Einhorn Center for Community Engagement, and the Cornell Master of Public Health program, was published on Dec 3 in the journal Frontiers in Public Health.

“The goal of this project is to make it easier for schools and educators to take students outside during the school day consistently, so students get the benefits of spending time in nature repeatedly throughout each week,” says Dr. Amie Patchen, lecturer in the Department of Public and Ecosystem Health, who co-led the study with Dr. Gen Meredith, associate professor in the same department. “Often, outdoor time in schools is tied to an event, like a field trip, but when this ends so does the outdoor time.”

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