Education Today Education Today Magazine
When it comes to creating fun and engaging learning opportunities, outdoor play is an invaluable resource. Whether you’re creating opportunities for real-world play or planning an outdoor science lesson, outdoor learning can be a great tool for a wide range of different age groups. Take a look at some of the following ideas for some inspiration.
Real-World Play
While real-world play is a type of play often encouraged indoors, it’s also easily adaptable to outdoor play too. For example, incorporating the benefits of mud kitchens, a car garage, or a market stall are all ideas that can help children engage in real-world play and learn essential communication and life skills.
Outdoor Classrooms
Creating a covered outdoor classroom area can help both children and teachers enjoy the benefits of spending more time outside all year round. Include seating areas and tables for carrying out projects. Heating systems in covered areas are also a great tool to allow for more outdoor time even in the colder months.
Studying Nature And Wildlife
One of the most important factors of outdoor learning is that it gives children the opportunity to learn more about the natural world. Consider carrying out lessons on subjects such as local wildlife, ecosystems, or changing weather and seasons throughout the year. Tasks such as finding different insects to tick off a list, or naming different trees based on the leaves they find can help children learn more about their environment, thereby creating more of a respectful attitude toward it and the effect we can have on it.
Sports And Exercise
Another important aspect of outdoor time in education is incorporating sports and exercise. There are a wide variety of different sports and exercise activities that can be planned in outdoor spaces, from simple sports day activities to more complex sports. Outdoor activities help combine the benefits of exercise with the benefits of being outdoors both for physical health, but also mental health.
Science And Curiosity
When planning outdoor lesson ideas, science is a great topic to focus on. Whatever age group you’re planning lessons for, outdoor science classes can be a valuable learning tool for increasing knowledge and boosting curiosity. It allows you to carry out classes in an environment that gives direct access to the subjects being taught about. For example, learning about the environment and how to help wildlife, or how plants grow and what they need to thrive. Carrying out science experiments in outdoor spaces can help make them safer and more exciting for the children, and offer a more practical space for everyone to take part in the lesson.
We hope these ideas have helped you plan outdoor play and learning opportunities for the children you care for, and have helped to highlight the importance of outdoor play in children’s learning and development. Whether it’s early years settings or high school classes, there is a wide range of positive aspects to outdoor learning that both the children and teachers can benefit from.
