There is an important message from Jason Leitch the National Clinical Director for the Scottish Government about child care. The message is clear don’t do anything different because children won’t understand but be obsessive about washing your hands.
National Clinical Director @jasonleitch speaks to us about outside play and getting children outdoors as many times as they wish while in an enclosed space ššš¦
Tim delivered a train the trainer course to allow practitioners to be trainers for the Forest and Outdoor Kindergarten SCQF level 7, the plan is to embed this training throughout the authority. As in the last post on this training it is based round exploring the three areas of People, Place and Pedagogy; the Who, Where and Why of good practice.
The training was delivered at the Water Wheel Building in the Castle Grounds and the surrounding area and although it was chilly it was a great space to play in.
We started by discussing fun important memories from growing up, and although we were in an outdoor setting most of people memories had an outdoor element to them.
Even with the theoretical content which was needed we tried to make the course as practical as possible to illustrate how the learning through playing can be taken outside.
The aim is for the participants to grow their confidence to take the principles into their nursery setting and encourage others to spend more time outdoors with the young people.
We particularly love bumble bees so the page about them was very useful but the page on wild flowers is also helpful in trying to identify the plants you might find. It is a well researched site and if you are trying to identify things you have found when you are outside in the Hebrides it is worth a visit.
In April Sgoil Dhalabroig (Daliburgh School), in South Uist, took delivery of their new fleet of kayaks and canoes to use on the loch next to the school as part of their development of their outdoor spaces. (They were helped by SSE Scottish Hydro).
To allow the staff to run sessions Tim ran a training and assessment session and then some sessions for the pupils. This a fantastic resource and they have plans to develop the area round the loch with the community.
With other schools having lochs next to them this is a model which could be developed there to increase Outdoor Learning. If you would like help please contact the Outdoor Learning team.
Juliet Robertson makes some great recommendations for being outside with early years and primary school pupils in this video.
The comment we like is ‘weather is an adult’s perception not child’s perception’ (8’50”). From the comfort of your desk it looks like a terrible day but when you are out it is rarely wet all day. Preparing to be outside is the important thing.
Hopefully you find her comments as useful as we did. For more information on Juliet her web site is Creative Star
We are in the middle of the busy season, with the team out and about working with schools and young people in the outdoors. There are often questions about ticks and Lymes disease, we thought it would be useful to post some information about what to do if you are bitten by a tick and things you can do to prevent being bitten.
It is important ticks should not stop you going outside but to take a few sensible precautions to prevent being bitten and if you are, what to do about it.
Lymes disease if carried by ticks which latch on and then take a blood meal. The Comhairle have produced a leaflet with information on the disease (CnES Tick leaflet). More information can be found on the Lymes Disease Action web site.
Ticks in Scotland can carry the germ that causes Lyme disease
Ticks are small spider-like creatures that can be found onĀ bushes and undergrowth in Scotlandās countryside, parks and gardens from spring through summer and well into autumn. Most ticks that bite people are unlikely to be carrying the germ that causes Lyme disease, but there’s no way of knowing at the time. So, it is best to:
Try to avoid being bitten by ticks
Remove any ticks that do bite as quickly as possible
How to prevent tick bites
You can reduce your chances of being bitten by ticks by:
covering skin which may come into contact with plants
wearing long trousers tucked into boots and long sleeves
using an insect repellent containing DEET
trying to stick to paths and avoid dense undergrowth
Hopefully this helps and if you have any questions contact your GP or if you need more information contact the Outdoor Team.
Over the weekend an invitation to sign up for this event arrived, this is a great opportunity run by the British Council and the University of Edinburgh. It is a facilitated online learning course which is free and is a GTCS accredited course (General Teaching Council for Scotland).
The course starts on the 19th January so sign up soon.
If you answer YES to any of the following questions, then you should be seriously considering this course:
Are you interested in Learning for Sustainability and implementing it in your school?
Do you need practical help and support?
Would you benefit from sharing your ideas with other professionals?
Are you interested in developing or extending a British Council Professional Partnership with a school overseas?
The Course will help you with think about the following:
Critically consider the nature of teaching and learning within the context of Learning for Sustainability, which includes Sustainable Development Education, Outdoor Learning, and Global Learning.
In the context of the British Councilās ācore skillsā, reflect critically on developing the skills and dispositions required of teachers and learners related to Learning for Sustainability.
Apply in practice, and reflect upon the impact of, principles and practices of and approaches to Learning for Sustainability.
Work together towards the development of a Learning for Sustainability professional network for practitioners to support teacher learning and practice in Learning for Sustainability.
This is a fantastic opportunity and we recommend considering taking part.
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