Outdoor Learning
What is Outdoor Learning?
“Playing and learning outdoors is life-enhancing. It is how children grow, learn, and discover.”
– National Outdoor Play & Learning Position Statement, Scotland, 2020.
In Early Years, Outdoor Learning includes all learning experiences that take place outdoors, including: an outdoor space of a setting, beach, forest, woodland, and/or any other greenspace.
Playing outdoors enhances learning and is fundamental for children to thrive in health, wellbeing and development. A child’s right to play outdoors is underpinned by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), and is highlighted within the Scottish Government’s Health & Social Care Standards.
Through access to a range of outdoor activities, we expect that children will:
- Participate in a wide range of activities that will support a healthy lifestyle.
- Develop the skills to access and manage risk.
- Experience personal achievement and build confidence.
- Explore and make choices.
- Develop physical skill through movement and energetic play.
Why does Outdoor Learning matter?
“It is undeniable that daily, high-quality outdoor play experiences have a direct and positive impact on children’s physical, cognitive, social, mental health and emotional development.”
– Realising the Ambition, 2020, Page 54.
Spending time outdoors helps children to develop holistically, providing a unique range of learning opportunities that impact positively on children’s health and wellbeing, both mentally and physically.
In addition to the array of associated health and wellbeing benefits, Outdoor Learning can:
- Help children to develop greater understanding of the natural world, and improve learning around sustainability.
- Enhance child development through wider learning opportunities and the development of skills.
- Offer diverse opportunities to take risks and be challenged.
- Help children develop greater resilience and enjoy increased ability to handle stress.
- Increase opportunities for large gross-motor activity, leading to better fundamental movement skills.
- Most importantly, it can be great fun!
Whilst it is important to acknowledge and appreciate the multiple benefits associated with outdoor learning, it is equally important to recognise the potential consequences when opportunities for outdoor play and learning are absent, namely, the detrimental impact upon health, wellbeing, and development.
How can I support Outdoor Learning?
“Research suggests that children under five should have at least 180 minutes of physical activity every day and that should include outdoor play.”
– Realising the Ambition, 2020, Page 8.
As many young children are spending an increased number of hours in our ELC settings, there is a need for all services to consider both the quality and frequency of outdoor provision they provide as a priority.
Throughout Fife there are many early years services providing a wide range of delivery models. Each setting operates a variety of opening times in addition to both term time and full year provision models.
While we recognise every setting has a uniqueness there is an expectation that all our young children have experiences of:
- Daily opportunities to have access to an inspiring outdoor play space.
- Free choice for children to move between both indoor and outdoor play environments.
- Opportunities to experience and explore nature.
- Opportunities to access outdoor play and learning throughout the year.
- High Quality resources that support learning and development.
