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The Outdoor Environment – The Perfect Place For Young Minds And Senses

The Outdoor Environment – The Perfect Place For Young Minds And Senses

There is no hiding the fact that an outdoor space at any early years location is a great asset. Children love being outside, whether they are finding bugs hiding in the undergrowth, or pretending to be a superhero.

Their play and learning outside is stimulating and memorable.

The outdoors can be used in many ways to improve the sensory learning of your children. Here are a few outside activities they can engage in and what you can do to enhance their experience and learning.

  1. Wildlife

Children love learning about nature around them, whether it’s rabbits or spiders, they’ll be entranced by creatures great and small. One of the best learning experiences you can undertake is pond-dipping, with appropriate supervision. Or perhaps you could create a wormery or talk about the lifecycle of the caterpillar/butterfly?

  1. Weather

The weather can be a stimulus for not just our eyes, but also our ears and skin. You can use different weather to talk about what they can see, hear and feel. Make it extra educational by talking about other weather such as snow and very hot weather and what precautions children should take to stay safe.

  1. Balance Games

The world is not flat, and little hills and play-apparatus can allow children to experience and improve their physical abilities. Running up and down hills is great fun and allows children to burn off some extra energy.

  1. Sand And Mud

Sand and mud kitchens are a fantastic way for your children to use their imagination and messy play is not often rejected. However, you can use sand for many other often activities such as noughts and crosses or hopscotch. This can help children learn turn-taking or counting.

  1. General Environment

The environment all around you is perfect for many learning activities, from colour or shape recognition, to counting. You can ask the children to highlight things in their environment to discuss, or you can point them out yourself.

How do you use the outside environment to enhance your children’s learning? What activities has your education setting found most beneficial?

Let us know in the comments below.

 

Able Canopies Ltd. design, manufacture and install commercial grade canopies, shade sails,
awnings and shelters across the UK. We specialise in servicing the education, leisure,
healthcare and retail sectors and have extensive experience working with
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