62. The Benefits of Bringing Nature into the Classroom

Imagine walking into a classroom and…you are under a tree. Branches, leaves and the sun bursting through, the feeling of being outside. Forty plus years of empirical science developed at the University of Michigan teaches us, viewing trees or images of trees calms us and helps us focus. Nature In The Classroom is a nonprofit bringing this science to life by installing ceiling murals of trees in classrooms. Tree ceilings are installed in fourteen school districts in California, Colorado, Utah, and Pennsylvania, serving 8,000 students. The feedback from teachers and students is consistent with the scientific findings. Teachers express that students are more focused, happier and the trees create a greater sense of community in the classroom. Students are saying the trees are calming, make them feel creative and want to help the environment. Our speaker this week, Ernesto Rodriguez. Ernesto provided psychological services for US State Department Schools in Colombia and Saudi Arabia. He founded ER Photo in 1988, commercial and fine art photography, and his work is in the Curator’s Collection at MoMA NY and on exhibit in the Smithsonian. In 2002 Ernesto founded Sereneview®, to bring the science of viewing calming nature landscapes to the hospital patient bedside. Sereneview curtains are installed in over 3,500 hospitals in the US, Europe and Australia. He is the Founder and Executive Director of Nature In The Classroom®, a 501(c)(3) to bring the science and benefits of nature views to education settings. The link offer articles, podcasts and media: https://www.natureintheclassroom.org/media--articles.html YouTube video: https://youtu.be/zAnmvwQwNOs