Children love being outdoors – playing in the sunshine and breathing the fresh air.

It can also play an important part in their learning and wellbeing, giving them a chance to learn new things in a fun environment.

At The Nature Den, we believe outdoor learning, especially for young children, is key to their development.

Here Olivia Sharman, manager at the Nature Den, explores how the nursery encourages the children to play outdoors and why it is so important.

New experiences

Children thrive on new experiences, trying something new and exploring the world around them.

Outdoor learning gives children the chance to do just that, while developing their problem-solving skills and curiosity.

At The Nature Den, our ethos is that we are child-led, we adapt our surroundings to what the children would like to do and explore.

It is often the children who take their learning outdoors, and we simply follow where their imaginations take them.

Whether it is examining a flower they have picked, playing outside with friends or chasing a butterfly around the play area, there’s so much for them to discover.

Outdoor learning

A study by Forest Research revealed outdoor learning boosts children’s confidence, their social skills, their motivation and physical skills, as well as a knowledge and understanding for nature and the environment.

Getting outside and experiencing nature is even more important now following the disruption caused by the pandemic – where we all experienced long periods of time where we were unable to leave our homes.

Outdoor learning gives children the chance to rediscover the world outdoors and to spark a love for nature.

Our passion

It’s Outdoor Classroom Day on November 3, a global initiative that works to inspire and celebrate outdoor play and learning.

However, at the Nature Den, it’s always Outdoor Classroom Day!

Outdoor play is something we at The Nature Den are very passionate about, and offer to the children all day, every day.

The nursery also offers an off-site forest school session every week.

To find out more about The Nature Den, see here.