Outdoor Learning
Subject led by Miss Hough
Outdoor Learning at St. Chad's C of E Primary and Nursery School aims to foster and ignite your children’s love of learning. Here we believe that all children have the right to experience the unique and special nature of being outdoors. We further believe that it is important to enable children to use the outside environment as a context for learning.
“The beauty of teaching outdoors is that the children often do not perceive it as ‘learning’ and yet they learn some of their most valuable lessons there. The lack of walls means that they feel less inhibited – both physically and mentally – and it allows them to join up their thinking by applying it in a real world context.”
(The Woodland Trust)
Outdoor education at St. Chad's CofE comprises of comprehensive Forest Schools teaching, an allotment, a sensory garden, outdoor classroom, a reading area and woodland spaces. We have a path around our extensive school field which can be used all seasons and adventure playground which children can use at playtimes. Being outdoors can help to bring learning alive and also provides experiential opportunities allowing pupils to respond positively to challenges and responsibilities, to manage risk and to cope with change.
Inclusion Quality Mark
On our visit in July 2015, our school was assessed not only as meeting the standards for the Inclusion Quality Mark award but to also become a Centre of Excellence for Inclusion. This is an incredible achievement; as of April 2016 there were only five other schools in all of Cheshire with this status.
After 3 years of annual inspection, we were awarded Flagship School status in 2018. This was renewed again in July 2019 and July 2020. To obtain the highest accolade we focussed on improving the outdoor learning available and as a result every class now delivers at least 10% of the teaching timetable as outdoor learning. The subjects covered outdoors are cross curricular and pupil engagement is high. Lessons link to the learning that takes place inside the classroom, forming the foundations of a new topic, lending itself to aquiring new a new skill or to consolidate the learning that has taken place.
Pupils love to take their learning outdoors. Activities are planned to utilise all areas of the school enviornment as well as the local area.
Weaver Dairy House Farm
We are very lucky to have Weaver Dairy House Farm a short walk away from school. In recent years pupils have visited Rosie at her farm during lambing season. However, this year our relationship with the farm has developed. A close working partnership has allowed for a curriculum to be created linking topics taught within each class to learning opportunities at the farm. The curriculum allows pupils to apply learning in a hands on way, in a manner that consolidates and develops skills across all subjects. These skills include harvesting and cooking with crops, learning how farming equipment and tools have changed over history, taking water samples from the River Weaver and identifying if it is safe for farming, developing map skills and creating mini beast shelters, to name a few.
The curriculum map has been developed with class teachers to ensure that the activities pupils will be engaging with at the farm link to the learning taking place in class.
The activities are subject to change dependent on the pupil's interest and direction the topics take over a half term.
Classes visit Weaver Dairy Farm once per term.
What we are working towards...
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We have all developed a new love for being outdoors as a result of recent lockdown measures. You might want to join in with some of the activities and find new ways to enjoy the outdoors.