With research suggesting that Covid-19 transmits significantly less in open spaces than indoors, many schools are seeing the power of Outdoor Learning – as its approaches allow children to work in “bubbles”. Our Outdoor Learning programmes have long been both popular and successful – and are ideally suited to the current situation, providing children with fantastic opportunities to place curriculum areas in context, to enjoy all the myriad benefits of being outside and to engage in social (but safe) behaviour.
All of them exist in age-differentiated formats from EYFS to Year 6 (P1 – P7) – and allow us to work with a number of groups in a single day – and all can be safely delivered in accordance with individual schools’ Covid-19 policies.
Outdoor Maths
Outdoor spaces provide wonderful opportunities to explore how numbers and shapes create both the built and natural worlds. So our engaging (and very active!) outdoor maths workshops, utilising our specially designed portable Outdoor Maths Trail, feature a range of tried and tested al fresco activities, bringing home the relevance of numeracy to our everyday lives – and providing lots of scope for problem solving too!
“All the pupils from Nursery to Year 6 enjoyed exploring how much fun Maths can be outdoors and the after school family outdoor activity was a great way to engage parents and carers. Would definitely book again." Kirkdale St Lawrence C of E Primary School
Outdoor Shakespeare
From the Scottish heath to the streets of Verona, from an Athenian forest to a mysterious island, Shakespeare wasted no opportunity to bring the outdoors to the worlds he created. And with our Outdoor Shakespeare programmes, we bring that element to you! Working in one of your outdoor spaces, we’ll treat your pupils to a uniquely actor’s eye view of the texts, in age-differentiated workshops exploring anything from characters and settings to whole plays!
Outdoor Literacy
From The Gruffalo to Alice in Wonderland, many of the “greats’ of children’s literature, of course, are set wholly or partly outdoors – inspiring our exciting and engaging Outdoor Literacy workshop - CSI: Bookmark … The Book Review Competition at Little Podmore Library received record entries this year – but someone snuck in before judging was complete, and jumbled up all the entries! In a series of age-differentiated workshops, your children will work in “bubbles” on a carousel supporting them in realising just how much they know about literature. And, as they explore to the full their creative connection-making skills, we’re sure they’ll be able to make sense of it all!
Outdoor Science
Rather than relying on “whizz bang” experiments or outlandish props, our creative science programmes use a range of drama-based techniques to cement prior learning, clarify difficult concepts, introduce new content and extend thinking. So they provide a brilliant way of allowing your children to work in individual “bubbles” while safely interacting with others. We have different workshops for each year group, all developed in line with curriculum requirements – and, of course, we make use of age-appropriate strategies throughout.
Purchase Your Own Outdoor Maths Trail
Our Outdoor Maths Trail comprises ten durable, waterproof bags, each containing age-differentiated Outdoor Maths questions, challenges and activities - together with all required resources (plus a Teacher's Guide) - all contained in one easy-to-carry box. Available in formats for both primary and secondary schools, the Trail focuses on a whole range of mathematical areas including additive reasoning, multiplicative reasoning number patterns, fractions, percentages, properties of 2D shapes, properties of 3D shapes, money, positional language, multi-stage problem solving and logic problems. Find out more here.
“The Maths Trail you designed for us has proved a great hit with both staff and children!” Primary Education Centre
Find out more about how we are responding to Covid-19