The Outdoor Nursery (Times article)

[barking]

Outdoor Nursery.

i love this concept.

my 3 under 4's (at the time) all went for a whole summer holiday to an outdoor nursery in wiltshire. it had a building too, but they were outside almost all the time.
they LOVED it.

Children really need to be outside playing with real 'toys' - earth, mud, water, sticks, leaves, stones etc - they learn loads from being allowed to play in this way. I hope the outdoor nursery concept becomes more wide-spread.

I like this too, we have one in our village (my dds are too old though).. Only trouble is where we live we quite often get -30C in winter, they have a 'yurt' for those days

It seems a little extreme to me. And pmsl at the woman who spends 2 hours a day driving her daughter to and from it.

It's tricky in London but my DC's nursery has a huge outdoor space with a small woodland, and allotment and wooden climbing frames, they are free to go from outdoors to in whenever they choose. I love it, they love it.

I wouldn't be at all comfortable with forcing them to be outdoors all day every day.

I read about this when it opened with interest. TBH I think that I would prefer a nuresy that combined this type of outdoor play with some indoor time doing other actvities which can be just as child centred. Didn't realise from reports last year that they trek through the woods all day.

Indoors for my fantasy nursery could be nothing more than a hut or canvas marque type structure, I think it is just as natural to find shelter as it is to run about in the woods. I love the idea of a log hut , with a woodburing stove to huddle round to eat lunch which could be something prepared over the open fire rather than a philladephia sandwich packe that morning, and a couple of rickety tables for clay modeling and drawing. Sited in the middle of a natural woodland and that sounds perfect.

If you like that you'll love this

Well it sounds lovely for a couple of hours. Seriously, though, can't see it working in sunny Scotland. It is too cold to be outside all day.

Our preschool have just announced this but more along the lines of "please be aware we will now be out doors whenever possible, so dress your children accordingly".

I thought it was a great idea, as long as my DS is dressed warm no problem with it.

Oh, I saw the article, in principle it sounds great but in reality it really did sound like they were kept out in the most horrendous conditions. Isn't there something very nice about knowing your children are safe and warn indoors when rain and hail are lashing the windows? I cant imagine sitting at my desk at work in a cosy office with a nice cup of tea and knowing my kids were out in torrential rain and a howling gale. Although it would be lovely to think they were in the woods on nice days.

There is a nursery like this on on the the islands on the west coast of Scotland, which works really well.

We are looking at having one here, and we are very, very exposed! At the moment our island kids travel to a neighbouring island for nursery. The way I see it, when they get 'storm-stayed' at home, they are still outside playing or 'working' on the farm anyway. My kids only stay in if there is a danger of something blowing into them, lke the bins or bits of fence/rooftiles...they regularly blow over themselves in the winter

That would be for 2.5hrs a day though. And I have to admit, I'd be delighted knowing they'd had their 'outdoor' time and I wouldn't have to take them out beyond the garden!

no such thing as bad weather - just bad clothing