Apr 18, 2023 | Gardening, Science Outdoors
Sheds are very useful places. Most of us consider their value in relation to the storage of resources. This particular shed can be found at the Dearne Valley Old Moor RSPB Reserve. It demonstrates how you can add a few bits and pieces to create shelter, water,...
Mar 14, 2023 | Art & Music Outdoors, Maths Outdoors, Science Outdoors
Here in Scotland, our younger children are expected to have fun creating a range of symmetrical pictures and patterns using a range of media. Immediately the outdoor possibilities of such experiences run riot in my mind where the explorations can be bigger, better and...
Feb 20, 2023 | Early Years Outdoors, Maths Outdoors, Science Outdoors, Technologies
When you write a book, one of the interesting challenges is deciding what needs to be included and what should be omitted. It’s never an easy task. One concept that I felt I didn’t do justice to in Messy Maths, was that of rotation. Thus I thought it would be good to...
Jan 5, 2023 | Nature Play & Learning, Science Outdoors
When learning about nature and wildlife, experiential outdoor sessions need to happen. We need children to play and to practice key skills so that observing and understanding birds is a key focus of our time. Over the decades , a number of outdoor educators such as...
Dec 11, 2022 | Early Years Outdoors, Nature Play & Learning, Science Outdoors
Snow is precious. Be prepared in advance to make the most of the soft fluffy stuff as soon as it arrives. The post draws together various posts and ideas I’ve blogged about over the years to save you searching. Just to wet your appetite for snow, here are some...
Dec 2, 2022 | Early Years Outdoors, Literacy Outdoors, Nature Play & Learning, RME Outdoors, Science Outdoors
In 2005 I planted a holly tree in front of my house. It has grown slowly but steadily and since 2014 has consistently produced berries being a female tree. This does surprise me because there are no holly trees that I can see nearby. My understanding is that the...
Nov 22, 2022 | Early Years Outdoors, Play Resources, Science Outdoors, Technologies
Wind is about the movement of air. It’s the result of differences in air pressure. Air likes to move from areas of high pressure to low pressure. This can be demonstrated with a balloon. Inside a blown-up balloon are lots of molecules – many more than...
Nov 21, 2022 | Early Years Outdoors, Nature Play & Learning, Science Outdoors
At this time of the year, there are lots of puddles to meet and greet when out and about. Whilst children tend to like and play in puddles, I suspect they remain a secret source of fascination to many adults too. These suggestions are designed to help you respond to...
Nov 1, 2022 | Early Years Outdoors, Maths Outdoors, Nature Play & Learning, Science Outdoors
This blog post is a guest post by Justina Danišová, who is an experienced environmental educator and home partner in the Czech Republic. She has her own website and is influential across her country in supporting educators to develop learning and play opportunities....
Jun 15, 2022 | Nature Play & Learning, Science Outdoors
The summer term is a particularly good time to find minibeasts – in the cooler months the worms, insects and other little creatures tend to be less active or more hidden! Most children, when asked, are keen to hunt for minibeasts. Many want to use different...
Jun 12, 2022 | Gardening, Science Outdoors, Technologies
When children go bug hunting, many often want to create homes for minibeasts. Any measures which improve the biodiversity of an outdoor space help. Creating a range of habitats will help attract more creatures into the grounds. In the photo above, this minibeast...
Jun 9, 2022 | Early Years Outdoors, Gardening, Science Outdoors
There is something about humans which makes us not only want to adapt and change our own habitats and homes, but that of other creatures. Generally, the more natural an environment the better it is for wildlife to flourish. Given that most school grounds are highly...
May 17, 2022 | Early Years Outdoors, Science Outdoors
As my life continues to change, I’ve have been doing a huge amount of sorting out of my resources and deciding what brings me joy and that I wish to keep. My collection of magnifiers is one example. Over the years I’ve collected and used many different...
May 10, 2021 | Gardening, Science Outdoors, Technologies
I visit a lot of schools who like the idea of a compost bin and have one, but in terms of really using it, are a little unsure about what they are doing. The trick is to prepare in advance. Composting is not a spur-of-the-moment activity for a supply teacher....
Dec 21, 2019 | Art & Music Outdoors, Early Years Outdoors, Science Outdoors
At this time of year, chocolates are bought and the amount of wrappers thrown in the bin can mount up. At a recent training event I asked the participants to save their sweetie wrappers and we added them to a transparent tarp. It was a random choice of designs. I...
Aug 3, 2017 | Art & Music Outdoors, Early Years Outdoors, Science Outdoors
For one of my birthdays, I received a set of magnetic googly eyes. The idea is that you use them to attach photos to your fridge and that you can put the googly eyes over people or animal eyes for a comic effect. Naturally I saw their potential for helping children to...
Apr 8, 2017 | Science Outdoors
The beauty of undertaking science outside is that an ordinary playful activity can be channelled into an investigation which develops multiple competencies particularly analytic thinking skills. Regardless of the age of a child, creating splashes or splats is...
Jan 8, 2017 | Play Resources, Science Outdoors, Technologies
A guest blog post from Andrea Stevenson. I was truly inspired by a recent Creative STAR post about giving new life to a Christmas tree which would otherwise have been thought of as rubbish. The first thing we decided to do was cut off all of the branches leaving short...
Aug 7, 2016 | Science Outdoors, Technologies
“A cloud does not know why it moves in just such a direction and at such a speed. It feels an impulsion. This is the place to go now. But the sky knows the reasons and patterns behind all clouds, and you will know, too, when you lift yourself high enough to see...
May 23, 2016 | Art & Music Outdoors, Gardening, Nature Play & Learning, Science Outdoors
Recently I saw a blog post about creating natural watercolour paint from fresh flowers. With lots of flowers appearing now spring is here, I thought it would be a timely opportunity to have a go at this myself – a practice run before trialling on a group of...
