Place-based learning uses the local environment and community as the starting point for teaching the objectives of the curriculum. We will provide resources and create opportunities for cross-curricular learning on the land while fostering relationships between school and community. Teachers are expected and supported to take more learning outdoors for all the health and learning benefits that come with spending time outside and in nature. Examples of this work include:
- Investment in equipment for outdoor activities and learning
- Ensuring all students have access to clothing, and footwear for outdoor activities
- Participation in the year-long Take Me Outside For Learning Challenge
- Support for educator participation in learning opportunities to build capacity for outdoor learning (Cariboo-Chilcotin Teachers Association workshops and network, Environmental Education Provincial Specialist Association (EEPSA) partnerships, Open Learning Store webinars, Outdoor Council of Canada certification, other)
- Interactive digital map of place-based learning sites, resources, and opportunities
- Relationships with community educators, organizations, and facilities to bring community educators into the classroom and students out into community settings
- Independent Directed Study (IDS) framework to honour community and cultural learning with graduation program credits
Explore the ways we are LEARNING BETTER TOGETHER in, on, with, and from the Cariboo-Chilcotin School District land and communities:
Fresh Year, Fresh Tracks
Big Lake Elementary
Our students are kicking off the new year with crisp air, bright smiles, and cross‑country ski adventures here at Big Lake School. With every glide across the snow, they’re building confidence, perseverance, and a lifelong love of the outdoors.
Garden Harvest Field Trip
Big Lake Elementary
Big Lake students visited a local homestead in Beaver Valley to harvest vegetables. By working together in the garden, students experience a sense of belonging—connecting with peers, the land, and the community in a shared purpose.
Take Me Outside - Sticks and Tallies Math
Big Lake Elementary
During Take Me Outside Week, a group of primary students from Big Lake Elementary brought their math learning outdoors. Using sticks they gathered, students played "Sticks & Tallies" to practice creating and counting groups of five while working together in small teams.
Learning More About Trees
Big Lake Elementary
Big Lake Elementary was excited to welcome Martin Cruz from Scout Island to our community. Students excitedly went into the forests around the school being tree detectives, searching for clues to identify trees.
Big Lake - Walking Together
Big Lake Elementary
After reading the story "Walking Together" several times by Elder Albert Marshall and Louise Zimanyi, Big Lake students completed a few different collaborative projects - nature murals and wild animals.