Course Information at a Glance
Course length: Approximately four hours
Course format: Online and self-paced
Coursework: There is no coursework, written assignment or formal assessment
Who is it for? Teachers, teaching assistants, SENDCos, pastoral staff, nurture teams, Early Years practitioners, school leaders, behaviour leads and outdoor learning practitioners
Age range: EYFS, KS1, KS2 and adaptable for older learners
Experience required: No previous specialist outdoor learning experience is required
How do you complete the course? Work through a combination of short reading sections, videos, audio content, practical examples and reflective prompts
Can I complete it at my own pace? Yes. Your progress is saved, allowing you to pause and return whenever it suits you
What will I receive? Access to the online training and eligibility for a Muddy Puddle Teacher® certificate of completion
How do I access it? The course is accessed online through your Muddy Puddle Teacher® account
Is it included in my membership? This specialist course is included as part of the Gold & Ultimate Memberships
Who Is This Behaviour and SEMH Course For?
The Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH is suitable for classroom teachers, teaching assistants, SENDCos, pastoral staff, nurture practitioners, behaviour leads, Early Years professionals, outdoor learning leads, Forest School practitioners, alternative provision staff and school leaders.
The course can be completed by an individual practitioner or used as part of a wider staff professional-development programme.
It is suitable for mainstream schools, specialist schools, alternative provision, pupil referral units, nurture settings, Early Years settings and home education.
You do not need to be a behaviour specialist or mental health professional to complete the course.
The training is designed to help education professionals understand what behaviour may be communicating and make practical changes within their own role.
The course does not encourage staff to lower expectations or remove boundaries.
Instead, it helps practitioners combine clear, consistent expectations with relational, regulation-aware and inclusive practice.
Explore our SEND Outdoor Learning Hub for further resources and guidance.
What Will You Learn?
By the end of the Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH, you will have a stronger understanding of how outdoor learning can support children who struggle with behaviour, regulation, relationships or emotional wellbeing.
You will explore how unmet needs, sensory overload, anxiety, communication difficulties, trauma, shame, low self-esteem and previous experiences of failure can influence behaviour.
The course will help you understand how to build emotionally safe outdoor routines, use co-regulation before expecting self-regulation, reduce unnecessary conflict, respond to behaviour without escalating it, create purposeful movement opportunities, provide meaningful responsibility, support children to experience success, strengthen relationships through shared activity and help children return to learning after dysregulation.
You will also consider the difference between behaviour management and behaviour support.
Behaviour management often focuses on stopping an action.
Behaviour support looks at why the action is happening and what the child needs in order to respond differently.
For a broader introduction to outdoor teaching, visit our Complete Guide to Outdoor Learning.
Why Can Outdoor Learning Support Behaviour and SEMH?
Children who struggle with behaviour or emotional regulation often experience repeated correction.
They may regularly hear instructions such as sit down, stop moving, be quiet, concentrate, wait, share, calm down or make the right choice.
Over time, some children begin to associate school with failure, conflict or shame.
Outdoor learning can help interrupt this pattern.
The outdoor environment provides more space for movement, practical activity and shared experiences. It can allow adults and children to work alongside one another rather than always facing each other across a desk.
Children may be able to show strengths that are less visible in the classroom. A child who struggles with written work may excel at building, organising, leading, carrying, problem-solving or explaining ideas practically.
These moments matter.
When a child begins to experience themselves as capable, trusted and successful, their relationship with learning can begin to change.
Outdoor learning is not a reward for good behaviour.
It can be part of the support that helps children regulate, participate and succeed.
Understanding Behaviour as Communication
Behaviour does not happen in isolation.
A child’s actions may communicate anxiety, confusion, frustration, sensory discomfort, tiredness, fear, embarrassment, unmet communication needs or a lack of emotional safety.
A child who refuses to go outside may be worried about noise, weather, mud, insects, transitions or not knowing what will happen.
A child who runs away from an activity may need movement, space or relief from a demand.
A child who disrupts a group task may feel uncertain about how to join in successfully.
This does not mean that unsafe or harmful behaviour should be ignored.
It means that adults need to respond to the behaviour and remain curious about what may be driving it.
The Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH helps practitioners look beneath the surface and consider what environmental changes, communication support or regulation strategies may be needed.
Explore our Outdoor Behaviour Strategies for Schools for further practical support.
Is it included in my membership? This specialist course is included as part of the Gold & Ultimate Memberships
Regulation Before Learning
Children cannot always think, listen or make thoughtful choices when they are dysregulated.
When a child’s nervous system is in a state of fight, flight, freeze or shutdown, repeated verbal instructions may increase pressure rather than improve behaviour.
Outdoor learning can provide natural opportunities for movement and physical regulation.
Walking, carrying, pushing, pulling, digging, balancing, collecting, building and transporting materials can all create purposeful movement.
These experiences can be included within learning rather than being offered only after a child has completed their work.
A child might collect numbered objects for a maths activity, carry equipment to prepare a group task, build a structure as part of a design lesson or walk a route while discussing a story.
The course helps practitioners consider how movement and regulation can become part of curriculum access.
It also explores the role of the adult.
Co-regulation begins when a calm, predictable adult helps a child feel safe. This may involve reducing language, slowing the interaction, offering space, modelling breathing, acknowledging emotion or helping the child begin a familiar practical task.
Children learn regulation through repeated experiences of being supported.
They do not learn it simply by being told to calm down.
Building Positive Relationships Outdoors
Relationships are central to behaviour support.
Children are more likely to accept guidance, recover after conflict and take learning risks when they feel respected and emotionally safe with the adults around them.
Outdoor learning can create opportunities for adults and children to connect through shared experiences.
Working together to build a shelter, carry equipment, grow plants, solve a practical problem or explore the school grounds can feel very different from an interaction centred on correction.
The adult is still leading the learning and maintaining boundaries, but the relationship becomes more collaborative.
These experiences can be particularly important for children who have begun to see adults mainly as people who tell them off.
The course helps practitioners consider how language, body position, tone of voice, proximity and activity choice can affect relationships outdoors.
It also explores the importance of repair after difficult moments.
A child needs to know that a relationship can survive a mistake.
Supporting Children Who Avoid Learning
Some behaviour that appears disruptive may be a form of avoidance.
A child may refuse, joke, argue, wander away or provoke a response because the learning feels too difficult, public or risky.
Children who have experienced repeated failure may protect themselves by avoiding the task before anyone can see that they are struggling.
Outdoor learning can provide alternative routes into the curriculum.
Children can demonstrate understanding through movement, practical activity, talk, objects, drawing, collecting, sorting or building before being expected to record their ideas formally.
This does not mean removing academic expectations.
It means creating a more accessible starting point.
The course helps practitioners use outdoor learning to build engagement gradually while maintaining a clear purpose.
Visit our Outdoor Learning Interventions for SEMH for ready-to-use resources.
Meaningful Responsibility and Success
Children with behavioural needs are often given fewer responsibilities because adults are concerned that something may go wrong.
However, meaningful responsibility can help children feel trusted, valued and connected.
Outdoor learning creates many authentic roles.
A child might prepare equipment, check boundaries, lead a warm-up, organise materials, photograph the activity, demonstrate a task or help return resources at the end.
The responsibility needs to be achievable and clearly explained.
It should not be used as a public test of the child’s behaviour.
When children experience genuine success, adults can recognise specific strengths such as persistence, leadership, creativity, kindness, organisation or problem-solving.
This is more meaningful than general praise.
It helps children develop a different story about who they are as learners.
Try This in Your Setting
Choose one child who regularly becomes dysregulated during a particular transition or lesson.
Before focusing on the behaviour, consider what the child is being asked to manage.
Is the transition noisy? Are the instructions too long? Does the child know what will happen next? Is the activity too difficult? Are they expected to wait for a long time? Is there an opportunity for movement?
Make one small adjustment.
You might give the child a purposeful job, use a simple visual sequence, reduce the amount of spoken language or begin the session with a short carrying or collecting task.
Observe whether the adjustment changes the child’s ability to enter the activity successfully.
The aim is not to excuse behaviour.
The aim is to remove an unnecessary barrier before it becomes a conflict.
What Will You Do During the Course?
The Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH is practical and accessible.
You will work through short sections of online training containing reading, videos, audio content, examples from educational settings and reflective prompts.
You may be encouraged to think about a particular child, lesson, transition or area of outdoor provision while completing the course.
This helps you connect the training to your own role and setting.
There is no coursework, written assignment or formal assessment.
You will not need to submit a behaviour plan, portfolio, case study or assessed observation.
Any reflection activities are designed to help you apply the learning rather than test you.
How Long Does the Course Take?
The Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH takes approximately four hours to complete.
You can complete it in one session or divide it into shorter sections.
Your progress is saved, allowing you to pause and return whenever it suits you.
There is no requirement to complete the whole course in one sitting and no fixed deadline.
Schools may also choose to use sections of the course during staff meetings, SEND development sessions, twilight training or INSET time, subject to the appropriate membership or training licence.
Do I Need Previous Experience?
No previous outdoor learning, behaviour or SEMH training is required.
The course begins with clear principles and gradually introduces practical strategies.
It is suitable for practitioners who are new to the area and for experienced staff who want to reflect on and strengthen their current approach.
The course does not train participants to diagnose mental health conditions or replace the role of specialist professionals.
It focuses on what education staff can do within everyday school practice.
Do I Need a Forest School or Woodland?
No.
The course is designed for ordinary educational settings.
The strategies can be used in playgrounds, yards, courtyards, gardens, fields, decking, artificial sports areas and small outdoor spaces.
You do not need a woodland, Forest School programme or specialist outdoor equipment.
The focus is on using the space you already have in a purposeful and inclusive way.
Visit our Outdoor Learning in Small Spaces Guide for further ideas.
What Equipment Will I Need?
You will not need expensive equipment to complete the course.
Many activities can be supported using ordinary resources such as hoops, cones, rope, chalk, clipboards, buckets, crates, bamboo, cards, fabric and natural loose parts.
The most important elements are the adult approach, the structure of the session, the language used and the opportunities provided for regulation and success.
Any specific equipment mentioned within the course will be explained before the relevant activity.
Is This Course Suitable for SEND?
Yes.
The course is specifically designed to help practitioners make outdoor learning more accessible for children with behavioural, emotional and additional needs.
It considers communication, sensory processing, regulation, movement, relationships, anxiety and participation.
Practitioners should always adapt the strategies according to each child’s individual needs and any professional guidance already in place.
The training can sit alongside an Education, Health and Care Plan, behaviour support plan, pastoral plan, risk assessment or advice from external professionals.
Will I Receive a Certificate?
Once you have completed the course, you will be eligible to receive a Muddy Puddle Teacher® certificate of completion.
To request your certificate, email info@themuddypuddleteacher.co.uk.
Please include your full name, the title of the completed course and the email address to which you would like the certificate sent.
Certificates are issued electronically unless otherwise agreed.
Is This an Accredited Qualification?
The Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH provides a certificate of completion and can contribute to your professional-development record.
It is a specialist CPD course rather than a standalone mental health, counselling or behaviour qualification.
Where a course forms part of an accredited Muddy Puddle Teacher® pathway, this will be stated clearly within the course information.
Explore our Accredited Outdoor Learning Training Pathway to discover the next stages of your professional development.
Can This Course Be Used as CPD?
Yes.
The course can contribute to your continuing professional development and may be recorded within appraisal evidence, a professional-development file or a reflective journal.
You may wish to record what you learned, which strategies you introduced and the impact they had on engagement, regulation, relationships or participation.
The course is particularly relevant for staff developing their knowledge of SEND, SEMH, behaviour support, trauma-aware practice, regulation and inclusive outdoor learning.
Can Schools Complete the Course Together?
Yes.
The course can be completed individually or used as part of whole-school professional development.
Schools may choose to work through sections during staff meetings, behaviour and inclusion meetings, twilight sessions or INSET time.
Completing the course as a staff team can support a more consistent approach to behaviour, language, regulation and outdoor learning across the school.
Each person accessing the course must be covered by the appropriate membership or training licence.
What Is Included?
The course includes approximately four hours of online training, practical guidance for supporting behaviour and SEMH outdoors, strategies for co-regulation and emotional safety, ideas for using movement and responsibility, examples that can be adapted for ordinary school grounds, reflective prompts, access through your Muddy Puddle Teacher® account and eligibility for a certificate of completion.
There is no coursework, formal assignment, examination or assessed portfolio.
Ultimate members can also explore the wider online training library, specialist SEND courses, outdoor learning resources and accredited professional-development pathway.
How Do I Access the Course?
Sign in to your Muddy Puddle Teacher® account and open the online training area.
Select Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH and begin the course whenever you are ready.
Your progress is saved, allowing you to pause and return at any time.
Is it included in my membership? This specialist course is included as part of the Gold & Ultimate Memberships
Continue Your Outdoor Learning Professional Development
After completing the Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH, you can continue developing your practice through related Muddy Puddle Teacher® courses.
Relevant next steps may include Outdoor Learning Specialism: ASD, Outdoor Learning Specialism: Speech, Language and Non-Speaking Learners, Outdoor Learning Specialism: Dyslexia and Dyscalculia, Level 1 Outdoor Learning Training and the Accredited Outdoor Learning Practitioner Pathway.
Ultimate Membership gives you access to the complete online course library, specialist SEND training and the next stages of your outdoor learning professional development.
Start the Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH
Develop practical, relational and regulation-aware ways to support children through outdoor learning.
Complete approximately four hours of online training at your own pace, with no coursework, no written assignment and no formal assessment.
Start the Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH
Is it included in my membership? This specialist course is included as part of the Gold & Ultimate Memberships
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Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the Behaviour and SEMH course take?
The course takes approximately four hours to complete. It can be completed in one sitting or divided into shorter sections. Your progress is saved, so you can pause and return whenever it suits you.
Is there any coursework?
No. There is no coursework, written assignment, examination, portfolio or formal assessment. Reflection prompts are included to help you apply the learning within your own setting.
Is this a behaviour-management course?
The course includes practical behaviour-support strategies, but it goes beyond rewards and sanctions. It helps practitioners understand behaviour as communication and use relationships, regulation, movement and outdoor learning to reduce barriers.
Is the course suitable for children with SEMH needs?
Yes. The training is designed to support children with social, emotional and mental health needs, including children who struggle with regulation, anxiety, relationships, engagement, confidence or behaviour.
Can the course be used in alternative provision?
Yes. The principles can be used in mainstream schools, specialist settings, alternative provision, pupil referral units, nurture groups, Early Years settings and home education.
Do I need a large outdoor space?
No. The strategies can be used in playgrounds, yards, courtyards, gardens, fields, artificial sports areas and small outdoor spaces.
Will I receive a certificate?
Yes. Once you have completed the course, you can request a Muddy Puddle Teacher® certificate of completion by emailing info@themuddypuddleteacher.co.uk.
Is the course included in Ultimate Membership?
Yes. The Outdoor Learning Specialism: Behaviour and SEMH is included within Ultimate Membership, alongside the wider training library, SEND specialisms and accredited outdoor learning pathway.
Author
Written by Sarah Seaman PGCE MA
Founder of The Muddy Puddle Teacher®
Teacher for over 19 years
Bloomsbury author
Trainer of thousands of teachers across the UK
