Sask. students turn to community, businesses to make outdoor classroom vision a reality

A Grade 4 class in Milestone has received support from dozens of local Saskatchewan businesses to help build their outdoor classroom design.

The students have been spending social studies classes fundraising for an outdoor classroom that they collaboratively made.

The pandemic caused classrooms across the province to start having classes outdoors in the fall.

"My students were starting to want more shade, almost getting kind of upset... that they were outside as much as they were because they didn't have a spot to go. So then they came up with the idea to make a gazebo or to make an outdoor classroom type setting," said Rebecca Carson, Grade 4 teacher at Milestone School.

Carson split her class into groups and they each came up with a list of what they'd like to have included in an outdoor classroom design and presented it to each other.

Once the school division was on board, the students worked with landscape designers whocreated a design based off the students' drawings and ideas.

The design will be an enclosed gazebo with two walls with stadium-like seating and a third open wall with a chalk board.

"The kids got to learn all about those processes as well as they got to practice their public speaking, their designing and everything else that would go into that," said Carson.

Students have also learned how to apply for grants and ways to creatively raise money.

"They're always excited for social. It's become their favourite class because they feel that they actually get to have a say and get to help out in an actual decision being made within their communities," said Carson.

Aiming to build classroom in June

Now the students are hoping to raise $60,000 dollars for the project.

One of the students, Hunter Moon, came up with the idea to do a local business themed raffle basket.

Moon said she got the idea because she has her own local business where she makes wall hangings called Three Little Moons.

Carson saidshe made a post on the Love Local Saskatchewan Facebook page and within 24 hours, she said she received an "overwhelming amount of support" with50 messages offering donations.

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She said she is hoping to have the outdoor classroom built in June. The goal is to have a local construction company build the project and to have a kick-off celebration with local food trucks.

"What this is really shown us is that basically Saskatchewan is almost like this large, connected small town where almost everyone's like a neighbour," said Carson.

"It's like we're a neighbour who needs a cup of sugar. And all of these businesses and all of these people are reaching out to help because they know that when other tables are turned, we're always there to help them, too."