A standard school day for the average American youth takes place indoors. But for some young students who attend forest school, most of their preschool or kindergarten education occurs outdoors in forests, parks, or other wild sites. At these schools, educators allow their students’ curiosity to guide the curriculum (全部课程) and rely on nature to instill environmental values.

Forest schools vary in the amount of time children spend outdoors, what they study, and how they’re assessed, but all forest schools put nature first. They have the same standards for child development as traditional schools do, but their methods are rooted in exploring and conserving the natural world.

Khavin Debbs, Executive Director at Tiny Trees Preschool in Seattle. Washington, says one of the benefits of a forest school is how it can adapt to students’ unique needs. High-energy students can run and climb. Shy students can sit alone to observe an earthworm with a magnifying glass. At Tiny Trees, in addition to learning with art materials, books, and toys, students engage in a wide range of play-based learning, including going on hikes, observing wildlife, and identifying plants and animal tracks. They might cook over a camp stove, or harvest berries to make jam. The students’ hands-on activities help them grasp scientific concepts that might otherwise seem abstract. “They’ve seen a tree’s leaves turn different colors in fall, and then seen that same tree bloom again in spring. All those things really do help them understand.” said Debbs.

The notion of children spending time outdoors to learn and play is nothing new. The modern-day forest school concept originated in Denmark in the 1950s, and then spread through Europe and abroad. In the United States, forest schools are currently on the rise. A national survey done in 2017 found 250 forest schools operating in 43 states—100 more than the year before, with 80 percent of them maintaining waiting lists.

But even though they’re increasing in popularity, forest schools aren’t yet reflective of the cultural, linguistic, or cognitive diversity of American youth. Thus, schools that want to be more inclusive must be purposeful in increasing their influence and making their programs more accessible.

【小题1】What does the underlined word “instill” in paragraph 1 mean?

A．Represent.

B．Design.

C．Maintain.

D．Develop.

【小题2】What is the key feature of forest schools?

A．The free optional curriculum.	B．The nature-centred philosophy.
C．The novel standard for students.	D．The evaluation of teachers’ values.

【小题3】What is the author’s purpose in writing paragraph 3?

A．To highlight advantages of forest schools.

B．To show what teachers had for students.

C．To compare the differences in students’ grades.

D．To draw a conclusion from the teachers’ skills.

【小题4】What does the author want to convey in the last paragraph?

A．A limitation period of forest schools.

B．A solution to increasing popularity.

C．A wish to participate in a forest school.

D．A suggestion for the further development of forest schools.