2022-2023 E3 GRANT RECIPIENT

Congratulations to this year’s recipient of an E3 Grant!

Katharine Taleen (Otter Lake Elementary/Early Childhood) - All-Weather Outdoor Learning for Little Bears. This grant will allow preschool children at Otter Lake Elementary to continue their outdoor learning in wet weather (including snow) as rain suits will be available for all students. The MN Department of Education has indicated that outdoor education increases student problem solving and critical thinking abilities.

2021-2022 E3 GRANT RECIPIENTS

Congratulations to this year’s recipients of an E3 Grant. This year's recipients are listed below, with a total of $4,273 awarded.

Joan Lu, Lakeaires Elementary School, utilizing the Scholastic's Super Science magazine to help ESL students read and apply scientific concepts and intertwine literacy activities to add depth to their learning.

Aimee Eriksen, Erika Jagiella & Theresa Stender, Otter Lake Elementary, providing a collaborative learning environment for students who have exceptional needs, through hands-on manipulatives in the areas of Earth & Space Science, Physical Science, and Life Science.

2019-2020 e3 GRANT RECIPIENTS

Congratulations to this year’s recipients of an E3 Grant. A total of $4115 was awarded.

Otter Lake Elementary School: Submitted by Stephen Gravley, Jen Oyen, John Barnes, and Sue Welsh

The Outdoor Weather Station will be a large interactive display of weather instruments. It will help students access scientific tools to measure varying weather conditions and learn about the environment in MN. The project will allow for outdoor learning where students will be able to investigate the weather with their teachers and have easy access to observing the weather on their own during outdoor playtime.

Matoska Elementary School: Submitted by Dawn Maple

Dawn will be attending the National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference to gain knowledge of agricultural literacy to provide ideas on how to attract educators and students to the Outdoor Classroom/Schoolyard Garden. Agricultural literacy helps us understand how agriculture impacts our lives, including our food, shelter, and clothing. All of these connections to agriculture are relevant in regard to their impact on our lives. Students at Matoska have already been working in the school yard garden, harvesting food for our local food shelf, and participating in the local Harvest Festival which has helped bring forth a new generation of young people who have an appreciation for working in a garden and generating a love of the earth.

2018-2019 e3 GRANT RECIPIENTS

Congratulations to this year’s recipients of an E3 Grant. $4000 was granted for Phase II of Otter Lake Elementary’s Prairie School outdoor classroom, to educators Kristi Olness, Elizabeth Olson, Sara Starke, and J.J. Parker.

The Prairie School will be an outdoor learning space for students and teachers to creatively explore and honor the unique natural environment that surrounds the school. The primary objective of the project is to strengthen the outdoor learning experiences for the students, with a focus on complementing the prairie and Otter Lake Elementary’s Otter Trail.

After three years of planning, fundraising and determination the Otter Lake Outdoor Classroom Committee held a ribbon cutting ceremony on October 31, 2019.