Outdoor Learning
Outdoor learning is an essential part of child development.
Connections outdoor space is open-ended, self-directed, discovery and play-based. Children can explore the natural world through all their senses and learn how it works in deeply engaging ways.
Experiences in our Good Friends Garden ~ Kitigan mino inawendiwin:
Gardening & land stewardship
Our outside space is a garden full of plants and wildlife. This shared space was created with our neighbours the Aboriginal Child Resource Centre to show children how the natural world works and how they fit within it.
We learn about plants and how they grow over time – exploring different seeds, learning how to plant and harvest them, and what they need to survive. We show families how different bugs- from caterpillars to worms - interact with different plants, and we explore the important ways our ecosystem evolves and how families can positively participate in this.
Special guests
We invite guest speakers and experts from all over the county to help us explore different facets of the natural world. For example, on one of our special event days a Forest and Nature practitioner from the Natural Pathways Forest School brought in different elements from the forest for the children to touch. All our theme days are interactive and help children and their parents and caregivers to talk more with each other about the world around them.
Unstructured play
Play is creative, unplanned, rewarding, and an important part of learning. In our outdoor space, we have a mud kitchen, water table, rocks and logs that promote gross motor skills, coordination, and collaborative play. Our Outdoor Educator fills this space with different materials daily. Our outdoor space lets children engage in dramatic play, such as being explorers or scientists who discover all manner of bugs and animals.
Park days
Outside, children learn where they belong within the natural world. This is why we also regularly host park days at nearby parks. Families can drop by any time while we are there and join each other in playing at the park. We always set up a variety of activities, from large gross motor toys to pretending to be explorers looking for critters and interesting plant life.
Why the outside matters:
Play
Playing outside has proven health benefits and increases wellbeing, both mental and physical. In our outdoor learning space, children can develop their gross motor skills, coordination, and sense of movement, action, and location by climbing on rocks and trees. Research shows children play better together outside – and there is nothing better for collaborative play than our mud kitchen!
Grow
Playing outside can help children self-regulate and lower stress and anxiety. Children engage more deeply and meaningfully when playing outdoors. Research shows that time outside heightens children’s self-esteem and that outdoor spaces can allow for more full-body expression and engagement of all five senses. The outdoors also offers significant physical health benefits.
Discover
In the outdoors, there are more chances for children to ask questions of their world and engage in inquiry and creative problem-solving. Our learning garden provides provocations for unstructured play in which children are required to engage their sense of imagination, curiosity, and wonder.
What's happening now?
Our outdoor space, the Good Friends Garden ~ Kitigan mino inawendiwin, is open Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 3 PM. Please come by anytime!
