SAUspace

Having class outside is good for the soul and the skills!

Sometimes when it’s a really nice day, a professor will walk into the classroom, say “Does anybody else realize how nice it is outside?”, and then proceed to invite the class out onto the plaza to engage in class discussion in a more comfortable environment. It is one of my favorite things ever! Sure, you may not have the PowerPoint right in front of you to help capture everything the prof says, but the atmosphere offered by this form of class time cannot be found anywhere else. Often I’ll find that great discussion comes from these times!

I’ve been outside many times for my Art Foundations class this fall. Since the weather is still nice (isn’t it wonderful?!), and since a portion of our grade is “hands on” activity, our professor usually sends us outside to do our drawing activity for the day. My friend Rachelle is in my class, and we’ll usually end up sitting right in the middle of the plaza to do our assignment. I think it’s wonderful that this can happen! It allows the students to feel more relaxed and oftentimes more willing to learn. Unfortunately, the temperature is slowly starting to fall… which means less class time outside. That’s alright – I enjoyed it while it was here!