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| The wonderful world of outdoor learning |
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Forest schools and outdoor-based learning programs are growing increasingly popular in Europe, as more and more primary schools realise the importance of reconnecting children with nature.
Promoting a love for the outdoors, unstructured free play and outside exploration and learning experiences are now also finding their place in early childhood education and care services across Australia. But what are the key motivators behind this shift?
Health benefits
The health benefits from nature play are vast. A recent study in the Netherlands found connections between children living more than 1km from green space and 15 major illnesses such as anxiety disorders and depression. Unstructured outdoor play exposes children to a variety of differing environments and surfaces, resulting in better coordination and balance. Children learn to climb, jump, crawl, run, throw, dig and develop gross motor skills and fine motor skills at a far better rate than a child who is limited to indoor play, or human-designed play equipment.
With obesity on the rise, the physical activity from outdoor play is a huge step in improving the health levels of children. Current Australian guidelines recommend children aged 1–5 years should be physically active for at least three hours each day, and children aged 5–18 years should do at least 1 hour of moderate to vigorous activity per day. The benefits from this include stronger bones and muscles, improved coordination, healthy heart and lungs, and reduced risk of diabetes, heart disease and obesity.
As well as the physical benefits, reconnecting with the environment introduces children to the basics of ground-to-mouth nutrition, understanding where food comes from and a first-hand appreciation of what foods we put into our bodies.
Gardening and outdoor learning also introduce an understanding for basic hygiene – washing hands and instilling a safe practice when using tools and equipment. Children who grow their own fruits and vegetables are more likely to eat them, and are more likely to continue healthy eating habits throughout their adult lives.
Social benefits
Growing, harvesting and sharing are a part of our culture, and the social experiences that this brings are hugely beneficial. Learning to contribute to a community gives children a wonderful sense of belonging, as well as a greater sense of responsibility – becoming stewards for the wellbeing of the plants. This responsibility in turn breeds confidence, empowering them to make decisions and developing responsible attitudes and self-discipline.
But it's not just about gardening. Outdoor play is a vital part of social development. Playing outdoors in groups introduces problem-solving and communication skills, as well as taking turns, sharing, negotiation and leadership.
Giving children the space to immerse themselves in nature also gives them a deeper appreciation and respect for the environment and for nature. As custodians of the future of our planet, reconnecting children with our planet is a huge step towards the environmental future of our planet.
Also, by making connections between environment, food, health and sustainability at an early age, this can lead to an understanding for fair trade products, learning to live sustainably and recycling and respecting the planet's resources.
Education benefits
Children learn through playing. As Albert Einstein said: "Play is the highest form of research". Indoor play doesn't provide the varying conditions that outdoor play offers; every time you head outdoors you will come across something different. Adapting to these varying situations is how we develop resilience and grow.
Outdoors, every facet of education has a chance to shine: use maths to measure and collect data; vocabulary to describe new colours and textures; science to uncover details of life cycles, soil elements and bacteria; microscopes to understand biodiversity. The trial and error of outdoor discovery stimulates problem-solving skills, teamwork and decision-making abilities. These skills, in turn, can transfer straight into the classroom, with children being more focused and engaged in the classroom. In fact, studies in the US discovered that students involved in nature-based education improved their science testing scores by 27 per cent (American Institutes for Research 2005).
But most of all, outdoor play is fun! Kids are happier, healthier, and able to explore the world on their own terms.
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