Adventure in the Outdoors
Children have endless opportunities to explore, discover, and play - building dens, rolling down hills, pond dipping, and even growing their own vegetables. Teachers make full use of the nature reserve, Forest School, EDEN area (for quiet time), outdoor classroom, and sports fields, taking learning beyond the classroom to make it more hands-on, exciting, and memorable.
Forest School
Our Nursery and Lower School children have regular Forest School lessons in a special wooded area, led by our highly trained practitioner, Miss Peters. Sessions build confidence, resilience, problem-solving, and creativity, all whilst having lots of fun in nature. Climbing, building, and exploring also helps children to develop those all-important gross and fine motor skills.
Before children can begin to write, children need opportunities to push, climb, squeeze, and manipulate materials, developing strength and coordination that lay the foundations for writing and more formal learning.
Forest School also links with our Education for Social Responsibility (LINK HERE) programme, helping children connect with the world around them.
The Great Outdoors
Our youngest children spend as much time outside as possible. Green Shoots and Kindergarten share a large multi-sensory playground, where there is plenty of space for water play, tricycle riding and getting creative in the sand. Reception has its own outdoor playground too with climbing equipment, a mud kitchen, and plenty of room for painting, building, and messy fun.
As children progress through the school, outdoor learning continues to play a key role. They love learning outside whether it's tadpole hunting, storytelling in the woods, or solving maths challenges in the fresh air. Taking lessons outdoors brings learning to life in ways that a classroom just can’t match.
"We know that children learn best when they're fully involved and having fun - learning outside allows for discovery and exploration in a way that only the great outdoors can deliver."
—Rachel Peters, Outdoor Learning Coordinator
