There’s something magical about October—the crisp air, golden sunlight, and vibrant leaves set the perfect scene for creativity and exploration. Our Grades 4–6 students recently took advantage of this beautiful season with a sketching trip to a nearby shrine.

This year, we’re trying something new with our art program: painting landscapes twice a year. For our first project, we focused on nature scenes (next semester we’ll try city landscapes). Before heading out, the students had a quick sketching refresher in the classroom. But, as we all quickly learned, sketching outside is a whole different story!

With no desks and no chairs, it was a bit of a challenge at first, but the students adapted quickly. They found spots to sit and stand, adjusted to the light, and started sketching what they saw. Trees, rock walls, shrine gates—each student captured something unique.

Back at school, they turned those sketches into watercolor paintings, and the results were just as good as the month of October! It was such a fun and stimulating way to spend the morning—and a great reminder of how much we can learn (and create) just by stepping outside.