Outdoor learning presents many benefits for children. It promotes better health as it gets them up and about while allowing them to get fresh air and the calming benefits of nature. This has proven to improve mental health in children which has seen a sharp increase in recent years. The methods themselves also work well at engaging students, especially those that are visual and kinaesthetic. We have teamed up with an independent school in Hertfordshire to share 5 outdoor learning activities that you can try with your child.
Astronomy
Children love monsters and ufo’s. You can channel these interests by exploring the mysteries of outer space together using a telescope in your back garden. If you don’t happen to have a telescope, there’s no need to worry because the stars are just as fascinating. You can stargaze together, spot and map out the stars in Orion’s belt and teach your child about their cool characteristics.
Play Sports
PE forms an important part of education as it teaches children valuable life skills like problem-solving, teamworking and leadership. It can also boost their self-esteem as they pick up on new tricks and progressively get better. You’ll have plenty of lessons to go through as there are a whole host of sports from football to tennis.
Plant Together
Gardening is a nice, therapeutic learning activity that teaches children about nature and the biology of plants. As they take care of their plants they’ll slowly see growth, teaching them patience and lessons on the plant life cycle.
Visit a Farm
To teach your child more about agriculture, why not take them to a farm? They’ll be able to see how fresh produce is grown and prepped for stores as well as animals grazing. This can help them to foster a deeper appreciation for nature and an interest in animals.
Go Wildlife Spotting
There are beautiful nature reserves across the country and vast open green spaces where you can go to spot for wildlife with your child. With a drawing pad and a pencil, you can get your child to take note of everything that they see while you google to look up what they are. This is a nice and practical way that you can teach your child about nature and different species.
Create a Times Table Hopscotch
Hopscotch is an easy game that you can recreate at home using chalk. To create a twist that helps your child with their maths, you can call out maths multiplication sums for them to answer by jumping to the right number. To make this easier for younger children, you can create smaller tiles that are spaced closer together. The numbers can easily be switched out to focus on different times tables by washing them away with water so that you have space to practice another day.
Chalk Drawing
You can also use chalk to draw together either on the wall or on the floor. This promotes gross motor skills in young children, allowing them to build strength and muscle in their arms.
An Obstacle Course
We’re not talking about a ninja obstacle course but one that gets your child moving and thinking about how to take their next move. This can be a great family challenge to do together to see who can complete the course the fastest. For your course, you can have sacks to jump in and hooped tunnels to crawl through.
Treasure Hunts
Treasure hunts are exciting for children and give you the opportunity to quiz and challenge them using a series of riddles. This will get your child’s thinking cap on, getting them to think carefully and critically to find hidden treasure. With every answer they get right you can lead them closer to the treasure by leaving a clue.
Water Play
The outdoors is great for water play – You don’t need to worry about creating a mess or any accidents. You can use squirty toys or pistols to build on fine motor skills.
