Kelly Dixon
UM Associate
Professor of
Anthropology
& Archeology

More than 20,000 Montana school children participated in interpretive programs at state parks in 2010. Kelly Dixon, PhD, an Associate Professor of Anthropology and Archeology at the University of Montana, describes her experience using Montana State Parks as an Outdoor Classroom.

"I have always had a teaching philosophy grounded in experiential education. I like to take students on field trips to see important sites related to natural and cultural resources."

"The best teaching tool is the power of place, you can talk about places all that you want but when you have a wall of pictographs behind you or are standing where Lewis and Clark actually camped, it's a different experience. The students love it, I typically hear them say on the drive back that it was great and awesome."

"We are in Missoula and it's not easy to get to Billings, for example, with students. So I've supported my students along with elementary students around the state participated in the first-ever distance learning video conference classroom from a state park, Pictograph Cave, in October. We had objects to pass around in the classroom as the instructors were sharing stories and facts about the prehistoric hunters who left their mark on the cave walls thousands of years ago."

"I hope to partner with universities at an international level to do more video conferencing in months and years to come."

"I have 2 young sons and my goal is to take them to every Montana State Park."