When creating the perfect Early Years education programme, you need to incorporate a range of skills and ideas that are crucial for school and home life, along with concepts that can help to develop lifelong, healthy habits.
Outdoor play and learning can have several distinct benefits for young children, both for their development and their health.
In this blog, find out the benefits of the Happy Days Nurseries outdoors learning programme as we answer the question: why is outdoor play so important in Early Years education?
1. What does outdoor play consist of?
Outdoor play, despite the name, is more than simply playing outside. It is about taking the appropriate risks to experience exploration, discovery, inquisition, safety, the development of good habits, improving health, and much more.
Inquisitive & Ambitious Thinker within our curriculum focuses on outdoor play and was constructed using several different key ideas and inspirations. These include the Wanderlust Programme, which draws upon early education approaches in Scandinavia, Canada, and Austria, and the STEM learning programme, which helps to incorporate key areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
It is also an excellent opportunity to teach children about the natural world and preservation efforts, discussing the importance of our ecosystem, habitats, and wildlife, while also encouraging positive environmental habits like recycling and growing plants.
Outdoor play is a safe and enjoyable learning experience that can help develop several core components of Early Years learning.
2. Cognitive benefits of outdoor play
One of the most important developmental benefits of outdoor play is on the brain, helping to stimulate a child’s senses, and allowing them to feel more in tune with their body. Touch, sight, smell, and hearing are all stimulated through outdoor play with many of the things they interact with being new or interesting.
Additionally, outdoor play can help to increase focus in children, improving their attention span and encouraging them to find ways to engage themselves. This can also lead to a better understanding of problem solving, such as when a ball gets stuck in a hedge or toys in the mud.
Even better, outdoor play is often associated with a reduction in stress levels among children, which can help contribute to healthy development in other areas.
We have outdoor mindfulness and yoga sessions which are designed to help our children channel these positive aspects of outdoor play. Studies have found that yoga can help improve a child’s concentration levels, lead to better breathing, and increase happiness levels.
3. Emotional benefits of outdoor play
Outdoor play can be both a collaborative and independent venture, depending on the play session. When children play in a group, they can develop their social and communicative skills alongside bravery, exploration, and more. They will often work together to overcome obstacles or develop their understanding of key concepts like sharing.
When playing alone, outdoor play can foster a sense of discovery and independence within children, prompting them to explore these feelings in a positive way. They may investigate and look to find out more about small animals or plants they encounter.
These emotional and social skills are crucial in their transition to school, providing them with a strong foundation to boost their confidence, make their own friends, and adapt to their new environment quickly.
4. Health benefits of outdoor play
At Happy Days, we strive to encourage healthy habits for our children. A big part of our outdoor play curriculum is sun safety, and as a registered partner of Sun Safe Nurseries, we pride ourselves on the effectiveness of these teachings to prevent serious future health risks.
Outdoor play can also help boost the health of a child through the strengthening of their immune system. This can help prevent them from getting sick so often through childhood and can even help improve their health into adulthood.
Additionally, outdoor play helps to improve stamina, agility, balance, and strength – all key parts of early health development.
5. Physical benefits of outdoor play
Outdoor play can help the physical development of children through exercise and collaboration. Active outdoor play can help the development of motor skills and coordination while also building healthy exercising habits that can last a lifetime.
That’s why we have our “Let’s Move!” and “Let’s Kick It!” learning programmes, designed to encourage exercise within children through play activities like balance bridges and football matches.
These kinds of enjoyable but challenging activities help develop skills at a faster rate than adult initiated activities, providing a specific task that helps them stay active. This can help develop their bone density, large muscle groups, and stability while helping to maintain a healthy weight and reducing the chance of diabetes in later life.
6. Get in touch with Happy Days Nurseries
Do you think our look on outdoor could work well for your child? Have any questions regarding our Early Years outdoor learning? Interested in finding out more? Get in touch with Happy Days today and give your child the best possible start to their education!
Our team are available over the phone on 0800 783 3431 during the week or consider emailing us at enquiries@happydaysnurseries.com and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible!