Absolutely delighted to have Emily from Abundant Life Children guest posting this week, sharing her thoughts on how to create an outdoor area that allows for real quality learning.
Practical
Tips for Making Outdoor Learning a Reality
I am one of those “outdoor education”
types: championing the child’s right to be muddy, cheering unstructured time in
nature, encouraging adventure, and supporting efforts to unplug. Yet, despite my utopian idea of young
children busily building forts or crouching to inspect the tiny wings of a
moth, actually developing a style of education that works outside is an ongoing
challenge!
I grew up a city girl in Southern
California. Despite what you might
assume, I spent a good deal of time outside engaged in typical childhood
endeavors of tree climbing and endless swinging. Mostly, I remember playing for
long stretches with my brothers or my friends, making up story lines to mimic
the realities we observed around us.
My mission as an early childhood educator
has been to identify the critical elements of nature play and find a way to
make those elements work-able in my day-to-day experience. I am an in-home care provider, meaning I am
charged with the care and education of a small crew of seven children with a
wide age range (currently, 15 months old – 4.5 years old). They arrive at my home around 8:00 am and
stay until 5:30 pm. I am responsible for
preparing meals (breakfast, morning snack, lunch, and afternoon snack). I clean, I assist with toileting, I encourage
thoughtful interactions between children, and I structure the day.
Through the process of developing my space,
I have found several key elements and ways of implementing those elements that
have been very successful in my setting.
1.
Defined spaces. Environment signals
usage. Cluttered spaces signify high intensity
activities and chaos (think giant, unordered toy boxes). Partitioned, disconnected spaces suggest
inflexibility in material movement.
Wide-open fields offer spaces for running and kick a ball, but limit
small-motor, creative play.
Strategically designing an
outdoor classroom involves balancing the many uses: areas for art, areas for
small gatherings of 1-2 children, open areas for running and jumping, areas for
creative expression, and areas for messy and dirty play. One of our favorite and most frequently used
areas is a large rectangular area with a mulch base. It serves as our art and outdoor eating area,
since it is a natural space for messy activities.
2.
Independence – keeping the children in charge. My firm belief is that one
of the greatest gifts we can give to children is to foster their sense of
competency. How frustrating is it to
want to do something, but lack the ability?
An outdoor classroom should provide lots of child sized items, movable
step stools, and clearly defined and age-appropriate expectations.
On nice days, we frequently
take our shoes off outside (sand + shoes = bummer!). But, keeping track of seven pairs of shoes is
an impossible task for me. Children at
Abundant Life are clear about the expectation: if you take your shoes off, put
them on the shoe shelf where they can be easily found later.
3.
Water.
For play, and for washing.
Children need water to facilitate their experiences with other materials
(dirt, sand, grass, etc.), to expand their basic mathematical and spatial
development, and to clean up when they are ready to come inside.
A water hose with an on-off
valve that children can activate on their own, a sophisticated water pump
allowing children to draw water whenever they want, or even a large group size
water thermos on a low table can provide the opportunity for children to
collect water for their play whenever they want.
4.
Specific interest areas. The following is a list of areas that I think
are a “must have” in outdoor classrooms.
Some of these areas rotate in my outdoor classroom, but all are
available at any moment when the need arises.
Digging space – an unused dirt patch in the corner or a dedicated sandbox. Children should be able to dig deep and mix
with water. Keeping kitchen materials
nearby facilitates dramatic play with mud or sand.
Levels – children want to climb in order to see the world from a different
point of view. When we finished digging
for our sand pits, we used the dirt to create a grassy knoll in the middle of our
yard. Large tree stumps, moveable wooden
crates, or heavy-duty wooden blocks that can be stacked accomplish the same
idea.
Tinkering area – loose parts and fasteners.
Consider hammers and nails, string, tape, glue, natural materials such
as pinecones and acorns, small pieces of wood, wooden wheels, and popsicle
sticks.
Mixing station – an assortment of dry and liquid materials for children to combine
and mix. In the past, we’ve included
oats, vinegar, oil, baking soda, lotion, syrup, liquid water color, sand, dried
beans, rice, and sequins. Some areas
prohibit the use of food items for sensory play as it can send a conflicting
message about the use of food, so deciding on what materials to include
requires some reflection.
What about you? My outdoor program is always changing…do you
have ideas that are on your “must-include” list when you take children
outside? Leave a note below in the
comments – I’d love to hear your ideas!
………………………………….
Emily
Plank is passionately passionate about care for children in their early
years. She is a play-enthusiast, expert
block-builder, and skilled storyteller, honing her skills during her days with
the children at her in-home program, Abundant Life Children. When she’s not playing, she is tirelessly
spreading the message of play and respect to those who work with children
(teachers, parents, and policy makers) through her blog, abundantlifechildren.com,
and her in-person workshops and presentations.
She is honored to contribute to Learning for Life!
