Top Tips to Improve Outdoor Learning in Your School
For this post, we’ve collaborated with class teacher and environmental education specialist, Edd Moore. Edd strives to help schools and their pupils become Eco Ambassadors, supporting them to achieve their sustainability goals and make positive change.
Children getting out into nature to learn about nature is one of the actions schools can take to show their commitment to becoming zero carbon, in line with the UK government’s 2030 - 2035 target. This target is part of the DfE Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy that was launched in April 2022.
You might have also come across the Nature Premium Campaign which is calling for the government to introduce, fund and support a Nature Premium. This would guarantee regular time spent in nature for every child and young person. The campaign is backed by organisations including the Woodland Trust, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), the Forest School Association (FSA) and the Eden Project.
But why is it so important to be getting our learners outside and connecting with nature?
Outdoor learning has so many benefits for our pupils, as well as the environment. These include opportunities to:
develop teamwork and social interaction
support mental health and wellbeing
encourage physical activity
build self-confidence and independence
learn about and care for the environment
More and more schools are encouraging their staff and pupils to get outside and discover what is growing and living around them. Learning about and connecting with nature is also the first step to caring about and protecting our planet.
In this post, we’ll provide our top tips for making the most of outdoor learning in your setting.
Take a lesson outside every day
It may not always be possible, but a great place to start with outdoor learning is to plan how you can take lessons you are planning outside. You can aim to teach one lesson outside every day, in the knowledge that this won’t always be possible. You could even start with sharing a story outside, at the end of the school day.
If this feels a little overwhelming, take one subject area and think about the opportunities there are to get outside when putting together your medium-term planning. The easiest curriculum subjects to begin with include science and geography. You’ll probably quite quickly start to spot opportunities to take learning outside in art, design and technology, English and PSHE. Before you know it, you’ll be extending outdoor learning to your history, RE, maths and computing lessons.
Take part in Outdoor Classroom Day
Taking part in Outdoor Classroom Day is an excellent way of getting started when it comes to outdoor learning. This event takes place twice a year, giving you and your colleagues plenty of time to plan ahead and get the whole school involved (maybe even the wider community, too!)
During Outdoor Classroom Day, teachers and pupils can play and learn in an outdoor environment. That might be on the school grounds, but if outdoor space is limited in your setting, it could be an outdoor space nearby.
Of course, as a school, you don’t have to hold your Outdoor Classroom Day on the set dates. If there are other times in your school calendar when an outdoor learning day would fit better, get them penciled in and planned for, then spread the word.
Get involved in other nature-themed awareness events
As well as Outdoor Classroom Day, there are some fantastic awareness events throughout the year that schools can get involved in, creating ample opportunities to get pupils outside.
Schools can take part in the RSPB Big Schools’ Birdwatch in January and February, then Plantlife’s ‘No Mow May’. The Butterfly Conservation’s Big Butterfly Count then takes place in July and August.
You could even get creative about other days or weeks the school celebrates and add an outdoor learning element to those. How about a link to the outdoors on World Book Day? Or making sure some of the activities you plan for Science Week take place outside? And what about featuring ‘outdoor careers’ as part of your Careers Week?
Set the scene for outdoor learning
Here at Eden Learning Spaces, we have a fantastic range of soft seating that’s perfect for outdoor learning activities. The products in our Learn About Nature range are water-resistant and wipe-clean making this collection ideal for outdoor use.
This incredibly popular range includes realistic-looking tree stump stools which come in different sizes and are stackable for convenient storage. Our toadstools are also great for creating a fun fantasy learning space outside.
Our multi-seater logs and hay bales have room to seat more than one pupil and out log-print quarter stools are perfect for small group work. Our Learn About Nature range also includes durable, comfortable bean bags, cubes and cushions in beautiful grass, meadow and autumn leaves designs.
For a really flexible seating option to use in your outdoor learning activities, our ‘grab & go cushions’ with a nature or seasons are perfect for pupils to carry around.
Schools might also look for companies who supply environmentally-friendly furniture to support outdoor learning, such as recycled plastic benches and planters.
Adopt a Forest School approach
The Forest School approach to learning brings children into contact with the natural environment allowing them to play, explore and discover the world around them, take risks, roam in nature, be physically active, improving health and wellbeing. Children who take part in Forest School activities are also often inspired to encourage their families to take them outside into nature to explore woodlands, meadows and places by the sea.
More than simply learning outdoors, Forest School has clear outcomes that are not curricular-led. Many schools offer Forest School one afternoon a week, coming off timetable, while others offer it as an extra-curricular activity which might run after school.
Forest School helps pupils develop a range of life skills including self-belief, creative thinking, confidence, enthusiasm, communication, team work, problem-solving skills, leadership and emotional wellbeing.
Forest School activities might include:
Den-building using outside resources
Foraging for items they can cook and eat
Cooking on an open fire
Using the natural resources around them to make their own tools, like a mallet
Learning skills like whittling
Making natural paint pigments and dyes
Get creative with sourcing resources
Linking up with local tree surgeons who are willing to donate and deliver tree branches and large logs for the children's use is a good way of getting natural resources to use in school.
You might also be able to find local shops willing to donate produce near its sell-by date for pupils to use for their outdoor cooking.
Get pupils gardening
School gardening should be encouraged so every child has an opportunity to get into the garden to learn important knowledge and skills. These include planning what to grow, where and when, digging, sowing seeds and knowing when to harvest.
Gardening activities can lend themselves brilliantly to cross-curricular knowledge and skills. Pupils can use what they have grown to make a dish using weighing, measuring, chopping and grating skills, while learning how to follow a recipe. Through gardening, young children will also improve their fine motor skills, which are essential for supporting their writing.
If gardening with a whole class feels a little challenging to begin with, why not set up a Gardening Club after school or during a lunchtime? A member of staff might be keen to run it or you may have parents and carers who are interested in volunteering.
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS)’s Campaign for School Gardening is well worth joining. You’ll find lots of ideas and resources on their site, too.
Make links between the school and the community
Pupils can reuse the seeds from vegetables and fruits to plant new ones rather than buying seeds. Schools can also link up with their local garden centre who will be keen to donate compost, seeds and pots. Schools might develop a relationship where the centre might be able to donate some of their time to come and support children and staff in the garden.
The Rotary, WI and Church groups that have expertise in allotments or growing your own food are always keen to share their knowledge with schools and will volunteer their time to come into schools.
Your school could even open up its own vegetable shop and sell produce that has been grown in the school garden or perhaps the produce could be taken to the local weekly market or monthly Farmers' Market. This helps children’s communication skills, teamwork, maths - handling money, weighing, addition, giving change and increases their confidence.
Grow your own potatoes
Schools can also sign up to ‘Grow Your Own Potatoes’ who will deliver potatoes to grow with all the equipment given for free. If schools do not have the space for a garden, they can upcycle containers, such as welly boots, tyres, barrels or pallets into plant pots.
Learn about reducing food waste and climate change
Teaching children to grow food by the seasons and relating this to ‘food miles’ is an excellent way to help young people understand the importance of food in relation to climate change.
The large amount of edible food we throw away contributes to climate change. We are wasting not only the food, but valuable resources that have gone into creating it.
Why not use the leftovers from school meals to make another dish like stews, quiches, omelettes, salads? Schools could use these ideas to create a recipe book to be sold to parents and the community.
Schools can also raise money for a Ridan Food Waste Composter. This will not only teach children the importance of life cycles but will also save the school money on food waste collections, reducing their carbon footprint.
Schools can even sell their compost for a donation to parents and the local community, link up with other schools in the area and donate what they have, or team up with their town council to use the compost on raised beds and council-run parks.
Encourage wildlife into the school grounds
Rewild areas of the school or make a meadow, picking wildflower seeds like buttercups, knapweed, teals, forget-me-nots, sunflowers rather than buying seeds. This will encourage insects and other small animals to the area. You might be able to plan to develop a pond area, too, if you don’t already have one in the school grounds.
Learn about flora, fauna and biodiversity
Teach children how to discover, identify and name plants, trees, insects and birds in their school grounds is a great way to engage children in nature. They can assemble this information in an illustrated nature journal.
Biodiversity is so important to nurture and encourage children outdoors to improve their health and wellbeing. Teach children about the importance of butterflies, bees and other insects within our ecosystems and for the production of food growing and lifecycles.
Younger children often really enjoy making bug hotels from pallets. There are loads of ideas online, like this one from The Wildlife Trusts.
Brilliant Bird Spotting
Having a bird hide with flaps that lift up so children can quietly look out with binoculars and identification sheets to see what birds are being attracted into the school grounds is very popular in primary schools. Children love being outside, sitting still, being patient and quietly waiting to see what birds they can discover. Our hay bales, Learn About Nature bundles and Seasons Grab & Go Cushions are ideal for this activity so children can sit comfortably and enjoy the world around them.
If possible, have a volunteer expert on hand to help the children identify the birds, share relevant information and answer any questions. Many children will then be inspired to have a go at home or in their local park at weekends. Their knowledge and confidence grows especially when they are documenting what they see in a nature journal, so they can come back to it and remind themselves where they saw the birds, what they were called, their habitat and what they eat.
Care for birds in the school grounds
Children and young people can also make bird boxes out of reused wood and a terracotta pot or make bird feeders from pine cones, pumpkin, coconut or orange skins, apples or kitchen rolls. These are some great practical activities that children of any age can easily get involved in.
Study the local area
Whether it’s a walk in the town looking at historical buildings, visiting a local farm or developing students’ map reading skills through an orienteering activity, teachers can make the most of their local area. Looking for links to the curriculum is key to planning meaningful activities. Reaching out and developing relationships with members of the local community will open doors to opportunities for your pupils.
Many schools get involved in investigations linked to their local environment. For example, as part of The Big Plastic Count, run by Greenpeace and Everyday Plastic, pupils can get outside and assess the local litter problem. Asthma + Lung UK run a programme for schools called Clean Air Champions, in which students choose their activities and design their own scheme to raise awareness and fundraise for communities worst affected by air pollution.
Sign up to a school scheme
Signing up to an Awards scheme can help provide your school with a focus and clear direction. If getting your learners outside more is on your school improvement plan, an Awards scheme can offer structure and help you develop action points.
Discuss your school’s goals as a staff and gauge the level of involvement staff members would like to have in environmental education and outdoor learning activities. It’s highly likely that one or more members of the school team are passionate about this area of teaching, learning and whole school development.
The RHS offers five levels to work towards in the School Gardening Awards scheme, while the National Nature Education Park and Climate Action Awards supports climate action plans and offers lots of resources to support the curriculum.
Eco-Schools offers a programme which comprises three elements: The Seven Steps Framework, the Eco-Schools Themes, and Assessment for the Green Flag. The programme begins in the classroom and expands to the community, through action-based learning.
Develop eco warriors of the future
Getting young people outside and involved with some of these activities and taking advantage of different learning environments will help learners to understand the causes and effects of climate change and the dangers of biodiversity loss. Hopefully, their first-hand experiences of outdoor learning will inspire them to take action towards protecting the planet and developing a sustainable world, and encourage their friends, families and community to do the same.
At Eden Learning Spaces, we are huge advocates of outdoor learning to support a rounded learning experience. Our Learn About Nature range makes the perfect addition. If outdoor learning isn’t possible, you can even bring the outdoors inside! See the full Learn About Nature range here or reach out to our team for further discussion on how our products can support your learning aims.
