Outdoor School – Taking Learning Outside with Safe and Sound | AD

It’s been such a strange time recently. No school. Home-schooling. Staying at home for long periods of time with little ones and trying desperately to stay sane. One positive during the past lockdown is the weather. It has been amazing from April pretty much on and off and this has meant it has been easy to get outdoors. This was our saviour, even during the early stages of lockdown. I was thankful everyday that our daily exercise was not taken away from us. The girls and I would go for daily walks to our local woods and for some part, since lockdown has ended, we do still go to the woods. That place became our outdoor school, taking the learning outside.

For many people getting back to “normal” (what is normal now anyway?) is quite a stressful thing to do. I know many who don’t want to venture far; they don’t want to go the theme parks and have days out. They want to continue getting out but locally and with not many people. For us, we have done a few small days out: National Trust and local parks but we haven’t booked anywhere big yet. It does feel strange. Almost like we don’t want the faff of having to worry about the rules, which are so important to follow.

So outdoor local life will probably continue for us for a little while, until school begins again. But what is great about this, is you can keep up with some learning, whilst getting out and about.

The only issue of course, with getting outdoors with kids, is it can result in trips and falls, bumps and scrapes. We have had a few falls, brushes with stinging nettles and general bumps whilst getting outside over lockdown. We need supplies and this is where Safe and Sound products are perfect for your bag (that huge bag that has EVERYTHING in it!) You don’t want a trip over to ruin your trip out!!

Safe and Sound has a range of plasters that have been designed especially for children; hypoallergenic and gentle on their delicate skin. They have some cool designs too, which of course helps children to feel better after a fall or bump. They are waterproof and the plaster material is a transparent film, with flexibility; perfect for wriggly, busy kids.

My girls are completely chalk and cheese so my eldest was immediately drawn to the unicorns, dinosaurs mermaids and princess designs and my other little girl, straight to the dinosaurs, monster, robots and space-ships!

These plasters are a must for your bag! Safe and Sound also have some hand sanitiser and a foaming hand sanitiser with Aloe Vera. You can clean your hands before cleaning up your little one and perfect for the current climate!

So let’s take learning outdoors with that reassurance that any bumps and falls will be taken care of quickly and easily.

Outdoor School

Here is how you can take the school subjects to your local settings; the woods, the park or a National Trust if you feel ready.

Maths – Maths can start simple. Counting how many leaves you can pick up. How many trees you can see in a small area? Or take it a bit further. Look at a flower and its petals. Use it to do a little fraction work. Take a tape measure and measure the distance between trees. Maths doesn’t have to be tricky or boring when outdoors.

Biology – our local woods is amazing for learning about a bit of botany! During early lockdown it was bluebell season. My eldest did a little about plants and flowers at school but it is great to have a little look at flowers in more detail. Have a look at the bees flying around they can learn about pollination and the life cycles of plants. Failing that, my girls like a bug hunt and squirrel hunt!

Physics – the park is good for a simple physics lesson or even the woods if you have a rope swing. Force and energy discussions can start. I simply asked my daughter how we got the swing moving and why did it stop. It led to a good chat about energy transfer and force. My hubby loves this kind of thing too!

English – the woods is a magical place for children and it can really feed their imagination. My eldest will write stories now and then and as you walk, you can start to think about a story they may like to write. Either do a bit there or save it for home. Monsters, fairies, animals…the ideas are endless.

PE – My girls love our local woods are there are so many logs to climb on and walk along. This is so amazing for their balance and co-ordination. Jumping, running, cycling, scooting. Getting outdoors is great for exercise. If you are in the garden, a small obstacle course could be an idea? Or playing with balls for co-ordination too!

History – National Trust days out are perfect for a bit of history or if you don’t want to go far do a little research on your local area. There are little plaques in our woods that give us a little more information. Kids love a bit of role play and pretending to go back in time too.

We had some fun with these sculptures, finding out about them and who made them at a local National Trust.

There many activities that may not even fit into a subject but will be great fun for leaning and team building if more than one child:

– Den Building – you may need to take some old sheets with you

– A treasure hunt – make a list of things your little ones may be able to find if out in the woods

– Hide and Seek

– Making a daisy chain or flower crown

– Bubble blowing

The outdoors holds so much potential for learning for kids. It’s fun. They are getting exercise and fresh air and learning; often without even knowing it! Outdoor school is different and unique for them

Just make sure you have your bag packed and don’t forget some Safe and Sounds plasters for those little accidents, that kids are so prone to when having fun.

Disclosure – this is a sponsored post.