Category: Outdoor Play & Learning

Resources to Support Outdoor Play and Learning

National Guidance to support high quality Outdoor Play and Learning

Outdoor Play and Learning is a key priority in our Early Learning Quality Strategy.

There are a number of important national guidance documents to support this area of priority. It is really important that pedagogical leaders and teams are conversant with the main messages in this guidance.

Care Inspectorate has been in touch to say that every setting will receive a hard copy towards the end of July of the Space to Grow Indoor Outdoor Settings guidance. In the meantime you can access the document here via the Care Inspectorate HUB.

It is really important that we are all clear on what it is to be an indoor/outdoor ELC settings. This definition from the guidance is very helpful,

“An indoor/outdoor setting is a premises-based setting where the scale and quality of the outdoor space is appropriate for enhancing the child’s quality of play and learning experiences. High quality natural outdoor space combined with high-quality indoor space and quality opportunities and experiences for children are all taken into account when considering the number of children the setting is registered for. Both the indoor and the outdoor area must be accessible to the children 100% of the operational times. An indoor/outdoor setting will take account of the practices of a solely outdoor or satellite setting.” (emphasis added)

Page 8

We are absolutely delighted that our very own Nethermains Nursery Class is featured in the document (pages 29 & 30). If you are interested in finding out more, do not hesitate to contact Ashley Cupples, EY Pedagogue.

Page 26 gives practical hints and tips on what practitioners need to consider before embarking on establishing an indoor/outdoor approach.

The resource should act as a tool to be used in conjunction with:

Space to Grow

Out to Play

My World Outdoors

Practice Note: Early Learning and Childcare: Delivering High Quality Play and Learning Environments Outdoors

New Loose Parts Toolkit 2019 Edition

I know many of you have been keenly awaiting the publication of the Loose Parts Toolkit 2019. Find it here https://www.inspiringscotland.org.uk/publication/loose-parts-play-toolkit-2019-edition/

I am especially pleased to be recommending the toolkit to you due to the emphasis in the document on the role of the adult, which is one of our big priorities this session. Chapter 3 is a must read.

I’d love to read your comments about the document and would be grateful for any advice /support for others you’d like to share. Read more

Bringing More Play into the School Day

Play Scotland have created a new toolkit

“Play is key to raising attainment”
Scottish Government

Play Scotland Toolkit

Play Scotland’s Play Types Toolkit is for schools and education professionals, and others working with children in various settings.

Playing is an integral part of children’s day in many educational and childcare settings.  Children play before the bell goes in the morning; at playtime and lunchtime; and after school ends.  Increasingly, playing is part of class time across Scotland too.  Falkirk Council staff an use this resource to help recognise the interconnections between playing, learning, growing, developing, being healthy and being happy.

Who is the Toolkit for?

The Play Types Toolkit is intended for schools and education professionals though we are sure people in other settings will also find it useful.

The aim is to highlight the range of types of play children experience, their vital contribution to learning and development, and to make integration of play into the curriculum simpler.

What do we mean by play types?

Play types can simply be described as the different behaviors we can see when children are playing.

This toolkit uses the play types from play theorist Bob Hughes’ Play Types – Speculations and Possibilities in which he explains that ‘each play type is both distinctly and subtly different from the others.  It is useful to be able to recognise them since engaging in each one is a necessary conrollary for a child’s healthy development.’

Loose Parts Play

The Early Years Curriculum team are aware that many of Falkirk’s EYC settings have been or currently are focusing on developing their use loose parts as part of their provision. Inspiring Scotland have produced a toolkit which we would encourage practitioners within these settings to use to reflect on their provision of loose parts play. The Loose Parts Play toolkit was produced to support people working with children and young people across all age ranges and settings. It aims:
• To raise awareness of the value of loose parts to children’s play
• To provide practical guidance about loose parts play to those who work with children and young people of all ages
• To advocate the use of loose parts as an approach to developing play opportunities at home, school and in the community.

 

https://www.inspiringscotland.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Loose-Parts-Play-web.pdf

My World Outdoors

In Falkirk, we recognise that spending time outdoors and particularly in natural environments is good for all of us and especially for children. The Care Inspectorate have produced My World Outdoors with the aim of making a positive contribution to the further development of outdoor play as part of all early learning and childcare in Scotland.  Falkirk Council expect all it’s early years and childcare centres and practitioners to be providing high quality experiences in the outdoors and to be using this resource to understand Care Inspectorate expectations regarding risk-benefit assessment processes.  This resource should also be used to look outwards at the examples of good practice provided in this resource and to use these as a basis of reflection on the quality of outdoor play experiences practitioners provide in their own setting.

My World Outdoors