2010–2011 Annual Report - St. Francis Episcopal Day School

On March 11, 2011, St. Francis dedicated its new outdoor learning environment, whichcomprises The Woods, The Path, and The Castle. Teachers incorporate our outdoorclassroom into their curriculum in imaginative and age-appropriate ways, and it isenjoying daily use as a base camp for the exploration of everything from math and science conceptsto dramatic play and music.We invite you to come view The Woods yourself when time allows. Come see the gardeningarea we call The Living Earth, the nature art and painting section called The Artist, and theTony & Patti BarlettaKim & Nestor VicknairKelli & John Weinzierl building area called The Endeavor, as well as the following inspiring spaces:Bank of America Matching Gifts • The Tree House, which features climbing platformsExxonMobil Foundation • The Awakening butterfly gardenGreater Houston Community Foundation • God’s Palette wildflower gardenJacob & Terese Hershey Foundation• The Concert, which features activities centered around music and movement• The Dig, where our students can hone their archaeological skills by using small hand toolsto uncover treasures• God’s Drop, which features a worship area with 12 natural stone benches representingthe 12 disciplesThe activity centers mentioned above are encompassed in the oval-shaped space near theOutdoor Activity Center known as The Woods, but our outdoor learning environment reacheseven further. It also encompasses The Path, which is lined by 31 trees planted last spring by ourstudents, and The Castle, which was Phase I of our outdoor learning space and which contains agardening area, a natural materials exploration area, and a greenhouse.The woodsBuilt by St. Francis volunteers in April 2010, The Castle was funded by adonation from Mr. and Mrs. Nestor Vicknair, a Jacob and Terese HersheyFoundation gift, and a BP A+ for Energy grant that was co-written by Science10 St. Francis Episcopal Day School