orest schools and outdoor learning programs provide children with opportunities to grow physically, mentally, academically, and spiritually. Through gardening, caring for animals, exploring forests, and observing nature, students experience learning that engages the whole child.

Ellen G. White strongly supported outdoor education. In The Ministry of Healing, she explained that nature offers both educational and spiritual benefits. She described nature as a “living object lesson” that reveals God’s character and helps shape the character of children.

Ellen White believed children should not be confined indoors for long periods, as this can weaken both physical and mental development. Instead, she encouraged outdoor activity, fresh air, sunlight, exercise, and meaningful work.

She particularly valued gardening and agricultural education, believing that working the soil develops responsibility, practical skills, and healthy habits. Her principles closely align with modern forest school philosophy, where children learn through exploration, observation, questioning, and reflection.

Her teachings also connect with the Adventist understanding of God’s natural remedies and the “Eight Laws of Health”: nutrition, exercise, water, sunshine, temperance, rest, air, and trust in God.

Many Adventist schools across the North American Division are already embracing forest school models or increasing opportunities for outdoor learning. Schools such as Lester Coon Adventist School, Napa Adventist School, Muscatine Adventist School, Orlando Junior Academy, and Dunlop Adventist School are helping students connect learning with nature in meaningful ways.

If your school has an established, growing, or emerging forest school approach, we would love to hear about it and celebrate the ways outdoor learning is enriching Adventist education.

Forest schools remind educators that some of the most meaningful learning happens beyond the classroom walls. By reconnecting children with nature, schools can support healthier lifestyles, stronger wellbeing, deeper curiosity, and a greater awareness of God’s creation.

Leisa Morton-Standish, PhD

Director of Elementary Education

Dr. Leisa Morton-Standish is the Director of Elementary Education at the North American Division.

She has taught in small rural schools as well as in large urban schools. She has taught on the east and west coasts of the U.S, both in and out of the Adventist Education system, and overseas. She has also spent a considerable part of her career teaching at universities, including the University of Maryland, Washington Adventist University and Macquarie University.

Leisa holds a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Maryland, an MA in Education from California State University and a Diploma in Education from Avondale College.

Leisa is committed to Christ and the ideals of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Her first love is the classroom where she can share her passion for learning and her love for Jesus.

Orlando Junior Academy

Napa Adventist School

Lester Coon Adventist School

Dunlap Adventist School

Muscatine Adventist School