Holding an insect in your hand is a much more powerful way to learn about it than looking at a picture. Seeing, touching and drawing a plant can help you understand it more fully. Taking time for a walk in nature can inspire creativity and innovation. Principia School believes that offering students the opportunity for outdoor experiences is a key component of a well-balanced education. Located in Town and Country, the private day and boarding school serves students in preschool through grade 12, and it’s on the forefront of changes in educational methods and techniques. The school empowers students to lead their own education through project-based and integrated learning.
At 360 acres, Principia has the largest PreK-12 school campus in Missouri and is among the largest in the U.S. The grounds are home to diverse habitats, including prairies, ponds and forests as well as outdoor learning spaces like gardens, a beehive and a challenge course. “Principia students have access to so much more than the playground, soccer field and parking lot so many of us had at school growing up,” notes Doug Hoff, outdoor learning coordinator. “Our outdoor program is more than just the sciences. We have teachers in all divisions finding ways to bring their lessons alive through the outdoors and our amazing campus.”
Outdoor learning is an extension of Principia’s mission to offer experiential learning opportunities to its students. These hands-on projects foster engagement in core concepts while developing important skills like critical thinking, communication and innovation. “At Principia, we want to help students ignite their spark,” says Lynne Scott, director of stewardship, partnership and impact. “We ensure that students are able to engage with ideas and concepts in ways that are authentic and impactful, whether inside the classroom or outside of it. Getting kids out into nature allows them to make connections in a unique, tangible way.”
Principia encourages its students to consider their place as citizens of the world. “Principia values character education,” Hoff explains. “Learning is not just about time spent in the classroom, but actual experiences that instill lessons and skills they can transfer to sports, art, friends, family and more.” Scott adds that the school’s integration of sustainability into lessons and activities is an extension of the commitment to whole-child education. Students of all ages are challenged to understand their impact on the environment, whether it’s planting milkweed to support monarch butterflies or educating a St. Louis County community about how construction impacts migrating birds, evoking real change and inspiring it to become a “Bee City.”
One example of Principia’s dedication to outdoor learning and conservation is its annual BioBlitz. Held each spring since 2018, the event brings together students, educators, neighbors and community partners, including the Saint Louis Zoo, local scientists and other schools, to explore the biodiversity of Principia’s campus. The goal is to take a scientific survey of the flora and fauna that call the region home. This May, the BioBlitz documented more than 230 species, including plants, animals, insects, birds and fungi. “When you know about something, you care about it, and when you care about it, you’re inclined to take action,” Scott notes. “Our goal is to help our students become contributing citizens and stewards of the natural world.”
Located in Town and Country, Principia School is a coeducational day and boarding school grounded on the teachings of Christian Science, welcoming students of all backgrounds. Pictured on the cover: Students at the annual BioBlitz event on Principia’s 360-acre campus. For more information, call 314.514.3134 or visit principiaschool.org.
Cover photo and design courtesy of Principia School
Pictured at the top: Principia’s BioBlitz explores the biodiversity of its 360-acre campus.
Photo courtesy of Principia School
