Outdoor learning

Outdoor learning is an approach to education that focuses on taking teaching and learning experiences into open-air spaces, so the outdoors is central to how children learn.

Outdoor learning can take place in various settings, such as school gardens, parks, woodlands, beaches, or playgrounds. It encourages hands-on exploration, play, investigation, and discovery in outdoor spaces. Typical activities include searching for mini-beasts under logs, building shelters, observing weather changes, or making art with natural materials. The focus is on the learning experience, encouraging children to think, feel, and move as they learn.

The emphasis in outdoor learning is on experience and process. It values curiosity, risk awareness, and problem-solving over specific academic results. Staff use the outdoor setting to help children test ideas, use tools safely, work in groups, and manage emotions. Nature—such as trees, soil, weather, and wildlife—provides a stimulus for learning in language, science, maths, art, and physical development.

Key benefits for children include better physical health, stronger social skills, and improved concentration. Time outdoors supports gross motor skills and balance, such as running, climbing, and lifting. Being outside can reduce stress and improve mood, helping children learn and manage their emotions. Working in pairs or groups builds communication, cooperation, and leadership skills. Outdoor tasks also develop observation, creative thinking, and practical problem-solving.

• Plan a simple nature scavenger hunt to observe plants and insects.
• Run a team-building trail where children solve small physical and thinking challenges.
• Observe a seasonal change and record findings in drawings or simple charts.

Outdoor learning often overlaps with place-based learning when activities use the local landscape, but its main focus is on using the outdoors as a learning setting rather than prioritising local history, culture, or civic issues. This is why outdoor learning closely connects with environmental and eco-education, but its focus is broader, using the outdoors as a setting for all kinds of learning, not just environmental topics.

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For more information, why not try What is Learning Outside the Classroom?

NEN Explain: What is Learning Outside the Classroom?