THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT CAN BE AN OUTDOOR CLASSROOM

V teoretičnem delu diplomske naloge je predstavljeno projektno delo in aktivno učenje otrok pri naravoslovju. Podrobneje so opisane naravoslovne vsebineraziskovalno učenje, opazovanje, izkustveno učenje in problemski pouk. Predstavljeno je tudi timsko delo in sodelovanje s starši. V praktičnem delu naloge je opisan projekt »Gozd je most v naravo«, ki je bil izveden v vrtcu Tezno Maribor. Produkt celoletnega projekta je učna pot v gozdu Stražun. Opremljena je tudi z zanimivimi interpretativnimi tablami, preko katerih lahko obiskovalci skozi kratke tekste in zanimive ilustracije spoznavajo gozd in njegove prebivalce ter pomen ohranjanja tega izjemnega naravnega okolja v Mariboru. Zgodba učne poti je zgodba netopirja Boromira, ki oblikuje, spremlja in vodi vse dejavnosti na sami poti. V idejni zasnovi projekta so bili opredeljeni cilji: zagotoviti otroku možnost izkustvenega učenjamotivirati otroke, vzgojitelje in starše za spoznavanje svojega kraja in njegovih posebnosti. Spoznati pomen sodelovanja ljudi v družbi in skrb za naravno okolje, kar omogoča oblikovanje pozitivnega odnosa do okolja. Rezultati so zapisani kvalitativno – opisno v okviru evalvacije zastavljenih ciljev in analize izvedenega projekta.The theoretical part of the thesis presents the project work and active learning of children during science class. It describes the topics of the science class in detailresearch learning, observing, empirical learning and problem solving class. Moreover, team work and cooperation with parents is presented. The practical part of the thesis deals with the project “A forest is a bridge to nature” which was carried out in the kindergarten Tezno Maribor. The product of the entire project is the educational trail into the forest Stražun. The latter includes interesting descriptive panels which visitors can use to learn about the forest and its inhabitants, and the meaning of conservation of this exceptional natural environment in Maribor with the help of short texts and interesting illustrations. The story surrounding the educational trail is the story of the bat named Boromir who designs, accompanies and guides activities on the trail itself. The conceptual design of the project included the following goals: giving children the possibility of empirical educationmotivating children, educators and parents to get a better understanding of their own location and its specificities. We also wanted them to recognize the importance of a cooperation of people in a society, and the concern for the natural environment which enables us to establish a close relationship with the environment. The results are drawn up in a qualitative manner – descriptive in the framework of the evaluation of stated objectives and as an analysis of the concluded project