What is Outdoor Classroom Day?
Celebrated twice a year, Outdoor Classroom Day is fast approaching and on the 8th of May,
Teachers up and down the UK will embrace the great outdoors for their pupils to learn and play
in nature’s classroom.
According to Outdoor Classroom Day, more than 17,000 people across the UK and Ireland have
joined the movement so far, demonstrating the importance of outdoor learning on the
development of children and young people.
To celebrate the expanse of opportunities the great outdoors offers all year around, education
recruitment specialists, Spencer Clarke Group, uncover the cognitive benefits of outdoor
learning for school children.
The Cognitive Benefits of Outdoor Learning
There are a number of cognitive benefits of outdoor learning for school children.
1. Enhanced Problem-Solving Skills
-Real world environment
– Letting children explore a dynamic environment where they
have less control and may encounter challenges is an effective way to enhance their
problem-solving skills.
– Hands-on experience – Whether they are tasked with building a den or following a trail,
outdoor learning affords children the opportunity to assess situations, experiment and
adopt strategies to help them accomplish their goal.
2. Improved Sensory Processing
-Nature’s Classroom presents new experiences
– With outdoor learning comes new sensory experiences, such as
sounds, sights, smells and textures that allow children to engage their senses.
-Sensory integration – Spending time outdoors can develop sensory integration,
improving the brain’s ability to organise sensory information. Frequent exposure to
different stimuli can help children learn appropriate responses to sensory information.
3. Increased Curiosity
Exploration – As the natural environment changes over time, this can encourage children to explore and question the nature that surrounds them. Whether it’s discovering an animal track or coming across a plant they don’t recognise, nature is the perfect environment to evoke curiosity and questioning amongst young people.
Unpredictability – Within nature there are no set rules for what might occur and the
unpredictability of the natural environment allows children to explore, learn and be
curious about what happens next.
4. Better Risk Assessment Skills
-Evaluating challenges – Being able to effectively evaluate a challenge and make
informed choices to overcome an obstacle is an important life skill for children. Outdoor
learning provides plenty of safe opportunities for a child to face a challenge and be
required to assess the risk before them. For example, navigating a piece of uneven
terrain means children have to assess the risk and carry out sensible actions to achieve
their desired outcome.
5. Reduced Stress
-Calming the mind – The sights, smells and sounds of the great outdoors along with the
health benefits of fresh air can help to lower children’s cortisol levels, the body’s
hormone associated with stress.
Less pressure – The classroom may sometimes be a noisy, overstimulating
environment for pupils and therefore a change of scene and a larger area to move
around might help children feel calmer.
6. Enhanced Cognitive Flexibility
-Adjusted thinking – Whether it’s sudden changes in the weather or unfamiliar terrain,
outdoor learning can require children to adapt their thinking to navigate their new
surroundings.
-Strategy shifting – Outdoor learning might present the need for children to change their
strategy for accomplishing a task with no prior planning. The ability to adapt new
strategies is a great way to enhance a learner’s mental agility and promote creativity. Explore the Muddy Puddle Training Packages.
7. Enhanced Imagination
Unstructured play – Giving children the opportunity to explore, learn and play with fewer
rules than the classroom allows them to use their imagination freely. The great outdoors
is the perfect environment for children to maximise their creativity. Whether a stick
becomes a wand or a tree symbolises a shop, exploring nature allows children to invent
characters, construct stories and build their imagination.
