Not spending enough time outside affects a child’s health, well-being, and development. Time outdoors is great for both mind and body and makes children happier, as well as equipping them with the skills they need for life. Scholar’s Choice has many options when it comes to Outdoor Furniture that allows children to explore and be curious about the world around them.
Why Take Learning Outdoors?
By learning both inside and outside the classroom, children understand that learning happens everywhere, all the time. Children also become more motivated and self-directed when they learn outdoors, some reasons being that children like a change of scenery and that learning outdoors incorporates several different beneficial factors.
How Children Benefit From Outdoor Learning
Outdoor learning experiences offer many benefits for children – fresh air, exercise and creative exploration are just a few. Below are some examples of different ways to use furniture for outdoor learning.
Messy Play Tables and Mud Kitchens are about more than just getting messy! They provide a variety of different learning opportunities including sensory, imaginative, creative, and exploratory play.
- Exploring the environment through their senses
- Use of imagination
- Talking, listening, and describing what they’re doing
- Communicating with other children through role-playing games
- Use of kitchen tools which help develop fine and gross muscle movements
- Letter writing in the mud
- Measuring water and other materials for mud pies
Risky Play lets children experiment and pushes them to figure out what will happen without knowing the outcome. Risky play in early childhood can help develop a child’s self-confidence, resilience, and risk management skills – plus engaging in risky play can actually reduce the risk of injury.
The most important thing for parents, teachers, caregivers, grandparents, and guardians, is to provide children with an environment for play, and then let them discover!
Water Walls are a great STEM activity and teach children about gravity, angles, and water flow.
Another way to include math and science into your outdoor setting is with an Outdoor Bucket Balance Scale.
It’s not always easy for children to see how objects relate to one another, especially regarding size and weight. The bucket balance is perfect for measuring, exploring volume and weight, and comparing solids and liquids.
Other Outdoor Furniture options:
Woodland Tree Stump Bean Bags 4pk by Scholar's Choice
Tuff Tray Outdoor Stand by Scholar's Choice
Outdoor Nesting Blocks by Scholar's Choice
Preschool Project Table and 2 Bench by Scholar's Choice
Scholar's Choice believes that every child should love learning, and that means not only inside the classroom, but outside. Our selection of outdoor furniture gives children the opportunity to explore how the world works in a fun and educational way while being surrounded by the natural environment.
