Learning in the Outdoor Environment

This context of learning, in my opinion is one of the most important contexts of learning because this allows children to explore for themselves and it also encourages independent learning.  Learning in the outdoor environment is where children get to experience and explore the places they are not used to and they are not in a classroom environment.  Outdoor environments can include any class trips the children go on, the playground, or anywhere local where the teachers are allowed to take them. From my work experience, I went with the children to Cardiff Museum where they were able to have a hand on experience because they were allowed to look at fossils and look at slides under the microscope. This in my opinion allowed them to learn the information because they were able to learn for themselves and was free to learn at their own pace. Also while we were at Cardiff Museum there was an exhibition of the book the children were doing in class. Into the Forest by Anthony Browne, the exhibition allowed the children to experience things which had happened in the book because the book had “come to life”, the children could put items of clothes on like in the book, and this was very hands on.
Outdoor play caters for children in numerous of ways, this includes emotionally, socially, intellectually and physically.  I believe that outside the classroom environment children have the freedom to do what they want and get to learn while being creative.  For example, a child could be imagining they are making a potion and have to have certain things they need to put in there. They might need to learn what different flowers are called because they may only want certain ones in their potion. 

In my opinion learning in the outdoor environment can be very beneficial:

     

• Physically more active
• Learn through play and movement
• Learn to get along with fellow pupils
• Children are challenged e.g. surroundings can change depending on the seasons, therefore children get to learn what happens to the surroundings in the four seasons.
• Increases their creativity and allows them to learn what interests them.
• A “educational and social experience”
• Allows the child to become aware of certain things, like if something is sharp not to touch it.
• Children become aware of one and other because they may have to share different things e.g. buckets, spades, bikes etc.
• It allows experimentation; therefore the children get to learn for themselves

• Can improve literacy and numeracy skills by children having to learn words and they may need to calculate how many things they may need for their specific play for example if they are pretending to be a garage they might need to know how many litres are being put in the bike for them to know how much money needs to be paid.

Overall I believe this context of learning to be one of the most important ones because it allows children to become aware of their surroundings and allows them to learn when they do not realise that they are learning. This video shows why children think they should have an outdoor learning environment:

 

References:

Bilton, H. (2010). Outdoor Learning in the Early Years. Routledge.
Tovey, H. (2007). Playing Outdoors. Open University Press.
http://ardenprimary.co.uk/outdoor-learning/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grcCUtFaM_s