brought to you by


Diary of an outdoor


learning subject leader Paula Michaud – St Chads C of E Primary School


As a reception class teacher, the outdoor learning subject leader and the trust lead practitioner for EYFS, I feel passionate about encouraging children to get involved in outdoor learning from a young age. There are so many opportunities to include this as part of lessons, for a whole host of subjects. In this article, I’ll give an insight into some of the outdoor learning we do in our school.


Taking learning outside has a positive impact on children’s learning as well as their motivation, involvement and wellbeing. Outdoor learning encourages children to work collaboratively, solving problems and assessing risks to keep themselves safe. There are many ways to bring the curriculum outdoors and no subject which cannot be taught outside.


Mapping skills in geography can begin with creating a journey stick, with children collecting objects from the areas they explore, leading to making and using maps of the area. The outdoor classroom is also perfect for creating miniature landscapes, whether for imaginary creatures, fairy tale worlds or linked to topics such as glaciers, volcanoes or rivers.


When adults talk about their childhoods many of their happiest memories involve being outside.


History topics can be enhanced with outdoor learning opportunities, such as joining sticks to create castles or other structures outdoors. A KS2 class recently used channels and guttering outside to make their learning about aqueducts come to life really effectively.


In design and technology children can explore designing and building dens and using real tools for woodworking and creating working models. They might also complete the cooking elements of DT outdoors, cooking on an open fire.


Science lends itself perfectly to outdoor learning across all ages, whether exploring shadows, weather, or minibeasts. Mixing ‘potions’ gives children many opportunities to explore different materials and observe changes which may occur.


Creative subjects such as art and music really lend themselves to outdoor learning. Natural art and sculpture can be created with anything from mud and clay to ice. A group of children recently made 3D castles from ice and used pieces of ice to make a snake as long as the playground! Natural dyes from plants and flowers can be used to make beautiful prints and pictures. And what better way to create still life artwork than to be out in nature looking closely at the object itself?


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