Growing young minds: the importance of outside play areas and playgrounds at school

17/04/23

One of the most enduring and depressing images of pandemic lockdowns was of locked up play parks and silent school playgrounds. The background noise of children playing outside school in break and lunchtimes was one we were hardly aware of until it stopped. Hearing it again is really heartening and, with the onset of warmer weather in the spring months, we hope to hear children playing outside more than ever.

Outdoor classrooms have transformed education settings

Of course, schools, nurseries and other youth organisations have long been aware of the benefits to young people of spending time outside. Pre-Covid, outdoor classrooms had started to spring up everywhere. These days, with ventilation still poor in many indoor classrooms, the value of an outdoor educational setting is more apparent than ever before. These exciting learning environments are a very far cry from the formal, rather dull classrooms than many of us grew up with.

Getting into good habits

Spending time outside is good for our physical and mental health at every age and that’s well documented by health professionals. Clearly, getting children to form good habits for being active when they are young, will stand them in good stead for their adult lives too. For children, playing outside is good in so many more ways. Children who may find the confines of school quite overwhelming, may really thrive once they find themselves in the great outdoors. Learning to play energetically alongside their peers helps boost confidence and increases social skills too.

There are so many ways that creative outdoor play is good in other ways for young minds too. Whether they are enjoying messy play while ‘keeping house’ in a mud kitchen or clambering up a rope net across an imaginary raging river, playing outside will stimulate their imagination in a way that no other type of play can come close to.

At Ace Play, using our wealth of experience, we can develop an interactive playground setting that links with learning topics and targets.

From outdoor classrooms and adventure playgrounds to Daily Mile trails and outdoor play equipment, we specialise in creating stimulating, engaging and challenging educational environments for primary schools and day nurseries throughout the UK.

We offer a free consultation during which we will discuss the vast range of options available to you. We also provide a high level of aftercare, should it be required. Get in touch with us today.