Outdoor play in preschool and nursery

[SharonIrene50]

Hello, my name is Charlotte. I'm a qualified early years teacher and I wondered if I might ask parents do you feel that your child has enough outdoor play in the early years. Also, if your children do have access to lots if outdoor play, have you seen a difference in their happiness engagement, appetite and sleep. I am trying to promote the benefits if children being excited by nature and learning within an outdoor environment. I would live 5o hear your thoughts, either positive or negative. Thank you Charlotte

My children go to a nursery that is basically a shed in a field. They're outside all the time. They eat like shire horses and sleep like koala bears!

Hi, yes we were v lucky with our DC's nurseries. The first had acres of land, a little hedge maze and even a little farm! Someone came in to run toddler tennis and rugby lessons too. The second had trips to a local forest school. Reception class now have their own bit of playground, a small outdoor "classroom" and forest school area. It's a godsend for my 4yo as he's autistic and finds busy indoor environments tricky. And generally the more time they spend outside, the more exercise they get and the happier they seem

Wow, this sounds fantastic and I am so pleased for your daughter. Would you mind if I asked where this is? I am just about to finish a degree in children's well being and education at UCL. I am passionate about outdoor learning and teaching. A lot of these true if school are run privately and can be expensive. I am Hopi g to promote schools that offer disadvantaged children the chance to learn in an organic, holistic way.

I adore the concept if a shed in a field and your post made me laugh. I love hearing positive stories. I hope to try and bring more if this rustic, natural environment into mainstream education.

I am reading that children often spend , was time outdoors than prisoners. Also, that some children are getting an eye disorder called myopia due to lack if sunlight. It's very worrying. I really appreciate your feedback. Thank you very much.

Outdoor learning and forest schools are hugely popular down here in Devon.

My children are still only toddlers and I absolutely didn't want them sitting at a table. They follow the EYFS in a very holistic way. My children come home filthy everyday. They are secure and attached to their key worker and when we came back from holiday they got so excited to be back at nursery. It makes me feel very relaxed about being at work.

Sorry halesie, I thought DC meant daughter but my daughter has just told me it means darling child. I am not up with the times! I am very pleased that your 4 year old son us in such an inspiring setting x

Hi, yes it's amazing and we've been v lucky. We're in Home Counties - Surrey/Berks borders.

I teach in the nursery unit of a large inner city primary school in the North East. In an average 3 hour session our children are outside for about an hour (more in the summer) We also have a forest school and every friday spend most of the session out there. In the general outside area we have den building, a mud kitchen, water play, mark making, bikes and trikes, small world toys, a gravel area with sit on diggers and a huge sand pit among other things. We also have a set of water proofs for each child so we can go out all year round. We are a local authority (so free to access) setting.

I am so pleased to hear of children being happy and secure. I am so pleased Grumpyface that you have a strong relationship with your key worker as well as working with parents is crucial. I love the ch8ldren in my care to make as much mess as they like. Not all parents like that but I feel the more messy they are the more fin they've had. I am pleased Katy to learn that the children are men I g dens and playing with mud. It is my dream to create an accessible nursery/preschool that is built in a cabin within a natural environment. I am so pleased to see that this us happening in mainstream education. Thank you do much everyone for your input xxx

I have a niece who is 8 years,we used to live in an apartment and life was not that fun,come to think of it she has difficult in eating and socializing,on the other had my cousins are raised in upcountry and the appetite those kid have is out of this world,thank you for this thread in future in have to stay and look for school with compound for my future kids

Hi,
I am also at UCL and thinking of doing some analysis on things that influence children's diet and activity levels.
Parents/caregivers
Teacher/nursery staff
After school activities
Accessibilty of playgrounds/outdoor space
Medical advice
Contracted caterers (eg at school)
Curriculum (might limit outdoor time).
Any other ideas gratefully received!
Thanks

I am pleased that this thread is helpful.

Dear Durian. It's a small world! 🤣 I think you could look at papers/journals that:

Show that councils are selling off school playgrounds to boost the council's budgets.
The rise in obesity in children and health conditions arising from being overweight/having a poor diet such as rickets (lack of vitamin D from the sun) and myopia (short sightedness) due to lack of natural sunlight.

You could look at marketing for sweets and how that is changing. Used to be chocolates by check out counters that are now being replaced by healthier snacks.
You could look at adverts saying "this bar is a healthy nutritious snack for chikdreh" when actually it's a small size laden with sugar (or hidden terms that mean sugar). Some 'healthy bars' have as much sugar as a mars bar.

You could look at cultural differences in different communities and do they have a higher rate of obesity due to their cultural food (carribean, indian) or healthy cultures like Spain (Mediterranean diet full of fish and omega 3) and maybe the Scandinavian countries - more simplistic diet.

I hope this helps.

All the very best with your studies,
Charlotte

Thanks, yes good idea about playgrounds especially. And ability to interpret "healthy" marketing spiel. Thanks!

The headteacher of my DD's school (mixed area, higher level of free school meals and SEN than usual, Midlands) has spent a fortune on outdoor equipment for the nursery and reception kids. It is lovely to see the kids out there every day; the only issue has been they've had to get a lot stricter with safety, installing entryphone gates etc. It is a 1950s is school with lots of trees and the FS1 children are "free flow" so can play in any areas.

Personally I haven't seen a difference in my girls (I run a toddler gardening session so we are a v outdoorsy family anyway) but I when I've done voluntary work at the school, I do think the children behave far far better in the afternoon after a few hours outdoors.

As a tangent, has there ever been any research done in an official capacity about children's behaviour on windy days?! Anecdotally (my gran had a children's home in the 1960s so not a new phenomenon either!) they are so much wilder when it's blustery!

What great ideas sweetheartneckline! I had my thought of the wind factor. Very interesting and also the security aspects. Thank you everyone for this information xxx

Just to post a different perspective, thee was a tipping point for us, my dd is being moved from a nursery where she can play outside all day as she gets overtired, struggles to walk home as so worn out, sleeps badly, and her ability to listen and follow instructions is below normal, we think because she’s spent two years in an environment where they play outside all the time.

This is clearly a particular issue either with the setup of this nursery or perhaps our dd, we’ll see, but I am not convinced too much time outdoors sets children up well for conventional primary school.

@sweetheartneckline would you mind PMing me the name of the school. I would be Super interested to interview the head and find out what they found easy/hard/ any parental issues (e.g. the overtiredness mentioned by PP) or anything else. Thank you for the contribution!
Wind?! Never thought about that. We lived somewhere with lots of tropical thunderstorms but didn't notice a big influence from them tbf

Mine all has plenty of access to outdoors at nursery with plenty of structured and unstructured activities. Activities included crabbing, cycling around school grounds, short tennis, swimming as well as usual sandpit, painting fences with water, sprinklers and gardening.
That was a while ago but our tiny Local preschool has trips to the park, gardening, animal feeding on the farm, woodland walks and den building. Usual sandpit and waterplay too.

My children attend a Nature Kindergarten. There is no indoors.

Yes I should have been a bit more specific - it’s not that they play outside that’s the problem totally, but that there is very little adult interaction or structured activity - im sure there are fantastic learning opportunities in outside settings.

@joliefleurie I agree, I think some adult interaction or at least observation and occasional direction is desirable. Tbf most of the (hideous and expensive) Canary Wharf nurseries that I sent my DD to - no need except I thought she needed stimulating mornings aged 3/4 (doh!) had v little useful interaction. The v young and uninterested staff spent all their day making displays and filling out observation forms.
I do regret wasting several hours a day on that when she could have been in a park or something.

Sounds identical to our experience durian. Yes, interaction is key, lovely if it happens whilst examining ladybirds outdoors, but the interaction is what grows children, not whether they are outdoors - there are so many buzz words in education. Child led is another one that drives me crazy as again so easy to mean putting playdough our and leaving them to it.

I’ve found children influence what other children eat - they are always watching each other’s reactions and my elder dc went from being a brilliant eater to pretending not to like things based on what she sees others eat.

Yes, this has been the first year my children have had school lunches and the lowest common denominator taste buds seem to rule. No interesting flavours offered as far as I can see. We have reverted to packed lunches again.
I have been thrilled by the outdoor play area in my son's reception class tho'. Total revelation! Dreading imminent move to Y1 when he will be forced to sit down pretty much all the time (miserable school- on a waiting list to move to a more active one),