Overview

The Arlington Outdoor Education Association (AOEA) and the Arlington County Public Schools (APS) are partners in the Outdoor Lab. Almost every school day, a bus full of enthusiastic Arlington County Public School children travel out to the Lab to break free from the classroom and experience nature, science, and the outdoor environment first‑hand. Teacher‑naturalists lead students in a wide variety of activities to support and supplement the classroom science curriculum. Annually, the Outdoor Lab provides hands‑on outdoor and environmental education to more than 9,000 students from elementary grades through high school. Students come face‑to‑face with native creatures, walk the woods, learn about the terrain and plant life, and study the extraordinary skies. Perhaps most importantly, they develop a respect for and appreciation of the natural world while learning that science is interactive and alive. .