Regina teacher Dennie Fornwald promotes puddle play

Spring can be messy.

Snowbanks melt into soggy, muddy puddles and where there is a mess to be made, you can bet kids will be right there in the middle of it.

"This year I thought why fight it? Kids are drawn to puddles, they are kid magnets," saidDennie Fornwald,the Pre-Kteacher at Glen Elm Community School in Regina.

Fornwald not only lets her three-and four-year-old kids play in the puddles, she promotes it.

"I think it's a really wondrous time of year, I think every person remembers being a kid and playing in puddles," she explained.

Fornwald takes her Pre-K class outside every day unless it's 30 something she says is only possible because her students have proper outdoor clothing.

"It's kind of magical. It's also a chance for them to explore forces of nature and physics, to get their balance on the ice and in the mud, and also just to develop appreciation for the outdoor environment."

I use part of my budget to buy second-hand boots.- DennieFornwald, teacher

She says she expects children will occasionally come to school without proper outdoor wear such as rubber boots, so she always makes sure there are extras on hand.

"I use part of my budget to buy second-hand boots. I always have extra socks around."

"The parents have been great about sending extra clothes in their backpack and no one has complained about the extra laundry," Fornwald added.

Fornwald is pastpresident of the Saskatchewan Outdoor Environmental Education Association (SOEEA), whichworks to get people outside to explore the natural world safely and respectfully.

The group'sGrowing Up WILD Program encourages teachers to take their elementary school students outside to explore wildlife and nature.