NEWS

For Immediate Release

Contact

Stephanie Abbott
Phone (435) 477-8463
bsabbott0701@gmail.com

Hands-on Learning In The Outdoors

Learning Old Things In New Ways and
New Things In Great Ways
Cedar City, September 17, 2015

A Southern Utah University

Elementary and Special Education student, Stephanie Abbott was able to

have a grand adventure teaching a small group of children, hands-on, how
different states have different qualities, how resources are different in the
Eastern states than the Western state, about the ocean, and about WWII.
Stephanie Abbott was able to teach her three daughters, son, niece,
and nephew how different each state can be. Stephanie was able to go on a
trip where her, her husband, and four children flew to Denver Colorado. This
part of the trip was exciting for the whole family as they discovered how
airplanes left the ground, what to do if there was an emergency, and how to
react in stressful unfamiliar situations. When they arrived in Denver they
met up with her sister and brother in law and their two children. From there
they drove for four days to North Carolina. Throughout the drive they
stopped often to discover new things. One thing they discovered on their trip
were cicadas that only come out for two weeks, every 17 years. When they
arrived in North Carolina, they learned many different things about the

ocean. Some of these things were the tides, waves, sea turtles, and sharks.
Stephanies favorite part, other than the beach, was being able to tour the
WW II era USS North Carolina Battleship. She said, I learned so much
from the tour of the USS North Carolina. I gained more respect for all our
service members and what they go through so that I and everyone in the
USA can have the freedoms that we do.
Stephanies project came about because of a program at SUU called
EDGE (Education Designed to Give Experience). This is a program where
each student comes up with his or her own project. After the students get
approval on their project they put their project into action. Stephanie
prepared and got approval for her project from the Outdoor Engagement
Center. Her project proved to her that she wanted to become a teacher and
to work with students that have special needs. But most importantly it
showed her how hands-on learning is important, and how being outdoors can
make learning not feel like learning at all.
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