ROSINTON, Ala. — It started out because some teachers at Rosinton School “wanted to plant something,” fourth-grade teacher Kelly Webb says.

The urge to plant has become, a few years later, four raised bed gardens, a butterfly garden, a greenhouse, a garden area, a small aquatic study area, and the beginnings of a nature trail around the campus.

Students of all ages use the facilities as springboards for science lessons, essays and hands on learning.

“This allows kids to do rather than to read,” said Webb. “This is a different approach to learning. Not every student learns the same way. This gives students a chance to connect with their environment.”

The pre-kindergarten classes got a lesson in how things can go wrong when they opened a pumpkin from their bed last year, hoping to make a jack-o-lantern. Unfortunately, the pumpkin was found to be full of worms.

“Students learn that things do not always go well on the first try,” said Webb. “They learn that it is important to figure out what went wrong and try again.”

Rosinton’s efforts at establishing outdoor learning centers was honored last week as the Alabama Wildlife Federation certified the school as the third in Baldwin County and the 25th overall in Alabama as an official “Outdoor Classroom School.”

“This means so much to us,” said Theresa Harden, the school’s principal. “We can have hands-on-learning experiences. There is no better way to learn as children.”

For Jesi King, the education coordinator for the Baldwin County Soil and Water District, the outdoor classroom is special. Her great-grandmother graduated from Rosinton in the 1920s, and four generations of her family have attended the school.

“This is truly a wonderful thing,” she said. “There is always something fun to do.”

Doyle Keasal, of the Alabama Wildlife Federation and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, presented the school with a large outdoor sign for the education classrooms.

“This is a real example to other schools,” he said.

Keasal also presented the school with $100 from the Alabama Wildlife Federation for the outdoor classroom and a complete set of the television series, “Discover Alabama.”

According to Webb, Wal-Mart in Foley, the Home Depot in Daphne, Baldwin County Farmers Federation, and. the Baldwin County Soil and Water District have donated to make the outdoor classroom a success. Webb added that other teaches, such as Richard Paul, have been writing grants for the classroom as well.

It has been a lot of work, Webb admits, but it has been worth it to the veteran educator.

“The children seem more interested, more engaged and more curious,” she said. “One sixth-grade girl says she’s seen a flower she has never seen before. She is bringing it in so we can identify it.”