Students build outdoor classroom at CHS

“We talk about succession, grass, then weeds, then trees,” notes Costyn, in his first year at CHS. “When you’re out there being what you’re talking about, it makes class happen very differently.”
Costyn floated the idea of an outdoor classroom to his environmental sciences class to see if the students were interested.
They were, and he let them take over.
“I facilitate but don’t dictate,” he says. “They planned it. Whatever the kids want to have… I want it to be their project.”
The students did most of the work, although Costyn ran the chain saw for safety’s sake.
Today, the site has benches and a speaker’s platform. It will soon have a whiteboard, roof, decking and tables. The kids are talking about creating a nature trail, a pond, a sign and an archway at the entrance to the path. They’re working to make it handicap accessible, a challenge considering the steep grade.
“We’ve bent a lot of nails, but it’s coming along,” said Costyn.
Costyn had to put on the brakes occasionally, such as when the kids suggested building a cabin.
“Some things, because of safety or the cost, things like that I have to nix,” the teacher said. “I went like ‘no, we can’t have a cabin.’”

Jackson EMC donated some used utility poles to the project, and the city of Commerce donated a pole and brought a big load of mulch to the site. McDonald Hardware donated a porch swing. The group salvaged the whiteboard from the old CHS gym, saving about $100.

All of the construction was done during regular class, and that’s made a difference in how students approach their studies, according to their teacher.

“It gave them an incentive to pick up the pace some,” Costyn said. “It’s harder to work in time because the demands on class are high, but when they have a chance to get out there, it’s amazing that they can pick up the pace and get out there. They love going out there.”

First the site had to be cleared of dead pine trees and debris. Charles Black Construction, the company overseeing the construction of the new school, used heavy equipment to break off some of the dead trees so they wouldn’t fall on students. The kids did the rest.

“They probably had to move at least 5,000 pounds of debris, rubble branches, tree trunks…” Costyn explained. “They dragged it out branch by branch, tire by tire wherever they found it.”

Costyn says the students are taking ownership of the classroom.

“It’s something they can come back to 10 years from now and say ‘I built this,’” he said.