Take lessons outdoors and bring learning to life
Teaching outside the classroom isn’t just a change of scenery; it can be a powerful tool to enhance learning, promote creativity, and improve student wellbeing. Outdoor learning brings learning to life and is proven to increase student engagement, foster a love for nature, and develop critical thinking skills.
Outdoor learning should form part of the school day
Outdoor learning should form part of the school day. The outdoor learning space shouldn’t be reserved for the occasional trip but be a regular part of the school day. With topics such as plants, habitats, and seasonal change, it is clear to see the links and impossible to learn about these topics effectively, without venturing outside.
Limitless learning
Outdoor learning isn’t limited to biology or geology lessons. Mathematics, literature, art, and history can all be creatively adapted to the outdoor environment. Encourage students to observe, explore, and question the world around them. The fresh air, new sights, and different sounds can spark curiosity and foster a deeper understanding of the subject matter.
Evaluate your outdoor learning environment
Ensure you evaluate the quality of outdoor learning as rigorously as indoor learning to gain maximum impact on achievement and well-being. A learning space without walls introduces a whole different set of challenges. Careful management of this learning space becomes even more fundamental if you want to use it to its full educational potential. Weather, equipment, logistics, clothing, behaviour management and health and safety do not need to put you off. Just as with indoor space, informed planning, how you lay out your equipment, how you make use of the space and guide your pupils through the learning is key to achieving success.
Outdoor resources
When planning for outdoor learning, it’s important to be prepared. This includes developing a lesson plan suited to the outdoor environment, considering safety measures, and having the right equipment. Gratnells robust and mobile storage solutions can help make outdoor lessons run as smooth as possible. Pack all your teaching resources in a Callero Rover, which can easily be transported outside and back in again. Promote student-led learning by using SortED modular tray inserts in shallow or deep trays to create individual resource packs for groups.
