How to promote outdoor learning?
Rosetta Feeney
2025-06-15 05:15:38
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Growing plants in schools has a number of benefits including: Improving mental and physical wellbeing Enriching the curriculum from science, PSHE and geography, to art and design Teaching about the environment and the importance of biodiversity and sustainability Building life skills such as confidence, resilience, teamwork and communication.
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Fern Rau
2025-06-06 12:09:41
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Our outdoor learning ideas and activities have been developed by teachers and early years educators, and are ideal for both curriculum-led outdoor learning, Forest Kindergarten, and Forest School.
Browse and download our free outdoor lesson ideas for every age and subject area.
For further guidance related to outdoor learning and play, visit our blog or browse our publications.
Dominique Witting
2025-05-28 22:51:37
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By taking this view and aiming to enhance these pockets, we could find a way for urban schools to promote connection to natural environments, even on a concrete playground. Use what you have From planters to a strip of grass to a couple of trees embedded in the concrete, there is green space in tiny pockets of peace and the wildlife will show you where. You could create some planting and digging spaces using a stack of pallets filled with compost. Let the children lead Take groups of children outside to explore. The children’s fascinations will naturally shine through, particularly if staff are enthusiastic and model observations. Often, you may not have had the time or opportunity to explore the area around your school. A hidden gem or green space may be concealed just around the corner. Venturing outside to learn every week throughout the year will mean that children will start connecting to their school and local environment and take a real sense of pride and care towards it. Outdoor learning doesn’t have to be expensive. Ask for help from your parents and the wider school community. Many parents and carers work in related industries or have valuable skills that they may be willing to offer. Why not run an outdoor learning site set-up fun day and get everyone helping to make your ideas a reality. Make the process of enabling outdoor opportunities dynamic and flexible. It is worth remembering that outdoor learning experiences are more likely to be successful if you involve young people in their planning and delivery. Pupils can research venues, organise fundraising activities and get involved in risk-benefit assessments. The most important thing to remember is that the more you do outdoor learning, the easier it gets.
Sandrine Farrell
2025-05-21 16:07:52
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Just start, don’t wait until you’ve ‘done’ your playground or built an outdoor classroom, or whatever grand vision you might have, to start teaching out of doors. Instead, begin with what you’ve got. It doesn’t matter if you’ve only got a square of tarmac, it still offers a different learning environment and experience to being indoors. You’ll find that once you start using your school grounds regularly for learning, you’ll start to see new possibilities as to how to develop them.
Use as much natural stuff as much as possible, we often start our sessions with a scavenger hunt or treasure hunt to collect the inspiration and resources needed. Foraging and collecting helps children connect to nature, the seasons and their local environment.
Be messy, be noisy, be solitary, be very quiet indeed, use all the aspects of being outdoors to maximise the benefit for your pupils. Your outdoor space is a free asset that you can use to enhance learning across the curriculum – there’s a growing body of evidence to support the benefits to learning, social skills and health.
Treat it as a must-have, not a nice-to-have, so be as robust in your planning, differentiation, assessment and record keeping for outdoor learning as you would indoors.
‘Outdoor learning’, ‘learning in natural environments’, ‘learning outside the classroom’, ‘Forest School’, ‘school gardening’ – whatever you’re after, there’s a stack of information, advice and training out there to help you build your confidence and make great outdoor things happen.
Cruz O'Connell
2025-05-21 13:37:48
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: 4
Outdoor Adventure Learning might provide opportunities for disadvantaged pupils to participate in activities that they otherwise might not be able to access.
Through participation in these challenging physical and emotional activities, outdoor adventure learning interventions can support pupils to develop non-cognitive skills such as resilience, self-confidence and motivation.
The application of these non-cognitive skills in the classroom may in turn have a positive effect on academic outcomes.
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