Outdoor Education & Learning at HIS

We integrate the outdoors deeply into every term and week at HIS. We believe there are many benefits that result: in personal wellness, in a sense of connection and love for nature—essential to our vision of developing students who can care for our planet—and in the chance for scientific study. One of the most valuable and advanced forms of academic learning we offer is the teaching of systems thinking, and we believe that the study of natural ecosystems is the optimal way to develop this way of thinking.

In practice, our Outdoor Education & Learning programme begins in the first days of the school year, when the entire school goes on a 5-day camping trip near Hakuba to connect as a class, in our advisory groups, and with the beautiful natural environment around us. Four more times throughout the year, we will go out for multiple-day experiences in nature, across all seasons. These experiences build toward students leading their own wilderness expedition in the 11th grade. By the time HIS students graduate, they will be skilled outdoor explorers with, we hope, a deep personal connection to the outdoors.

In addition to our multiple-day experiences, students will have regular experience and access to the outdoors. Whether skiing in the winter (the Iwatake Mountain Resort and gondola is a short walk from our school), or exploring and studying the school’s forest throughout the year, students will have regular opportunities to explore and enjoy the magnificent country around them.