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Hello families.
I hope everyone is well and safe.

To help families through this time of no statutory education Nature Days is hear to help you get out and do some outdoor learning in our amazing Gower.

Nature Days will be posting activities to do every weekday so that you can get outside, get learning and have fun.

I will be posting the activities on Facebook as well as twitter #NatureDays and on my website Nature Days.co.uk  Blog. Please follow along and do whatever you like to keep your family entertained and learning outdoors.

Don’t forget that at the moment the outdoors is STILL OPEN!! and free.

The activities may be specific to a location on Gower or one you can do in a range of locations or just your own garden.  I will also be posting ideas for anyone who can’t get outside of some STEM and Forest school activities you can do inside.

I hope you will join me and have fun exploring outdoor learning with your family.

Dawn

1. Providing cross curricular field trips. Integrating the “What Matters” statements of the AoLEs into fieldtrips.
2. Developing bespoke programmes based on student planning for each theme.
3. Highlighting the opportunities for developing the Four Core Purposes in each field trip.
4. Creating Challenge cards for use on field trips for independent learning.
5. Creating follow up mission cards for use in the school grounds, post field trip, to build on the learning and experience.

Our field trips are linked to the new Curriculum for Wales and aim to reach the needs of every learner from Nursery to Sixth form.

Field trips are available as cross curricular experiences or can be focused on one of the six Areas for Learning and Experience.

All days are bespoke for each school which will build on previous learning and skills. We work with teaching staff to create activities that work across all six AoLEs and build towards the Four Core Purposes.

All field trips aim to cover all four Core purposes.

Examples of how Nature Days develops students to reach the Four Core Purposes.

Ambitious, capable learners:

• Providing a challenging environment and activities which pupils will enjoy.
• Provide different contexts for pupils build up a body of knowledge and learn new skills to explore that environment
• Provide problem solving opportunities.
• Provide different setting that pupils have to communicate effectively in.
• Opportunities to explain ideas and concepts they are learning about in school and relate to real life experiences.
• Use of outdoor numeracy so students can use number in different contexts.
• Opportunities to interpret data and apply mathematical contexts through real life experiences.
• Opportunities to undertake meaningful research and evaluate critically their findings.
• Providing the opportunity to engage pupils in their learning.

Enterprising, Creative contributors:

• Real life problems outdoors allow pupils to apply their knowledge and skills to create ideas and products.
• Real life problem solving allows pupils to think creatively.
• Outdoor environments provide opportunities for challenge and creative thinking.
• Field trips are ideal placed for pupils to take measured risks.
• Team work activities outdoors provide opportunities for different learners to excel, lead and play different roles and take responsibilities.
• Outdoors build resilience and emotional well-being.

Ethical, informed citizens:

• Undertaking meaningful evidence collection through the enquiry process, to help pupils form views.
• Provide real life opportunities to engage with contemporary issues, e.g. pollution, climate change, flooding.
• Explore their responsibilities and rights in relation to their environmental impacts.
• Opportunities to observe and understand the impact of their actions on the environment.
• Learning and experiencing the diversity of the natural world.
• Experiencing how to become more sustainable in their habits.
• Learning about Wales and the world.

Healthy, Confident individuals:

• Explore ethical beliefs lots of which are linked to seasons and nature.
• Building emotional and mental well-being through taking part in outdoor activities.
• Developing confidence, resilience and empathy by developing outdoor skills and being surrounded by nature.
• Take part in physical activity and experiencing the impact on their physical and mental health.
• Learning how to keep safe and well outdoors.
• Taking decisions about managing risk.
• Learning mutual respect for nature.
• Using the environment as a performance space.
• Opportunities to face and overcome challenges in the real world through real life problem solving.
• Learning everyday life skills and knowledge to help pupils develop independence outdoors.

With the publishing of the draft New Curriculum for Wales, Nature Das has been undertaking INSET and ADDS sessions to help schools develop outdoor learning within the new curriculum.

Below is an outline of how outdoor learning is vital to the New Curriculum for life.

Focus on Areas of Learning and Experience.  These are more easily experienced outdoors through outdoor learning or school trips.  This should mean schools integrate trips and outdoor learning experiences more into their planning.

Four Core purposes develop independence and real life learners.  This can be developed through the use of school grounds for problem solving activities across the curriculum. Taking measured risk is in the four core purposes which is supported through outdoor learning. Becoming ethical citizens involves gaining knowledge of nature and empathy for the Welsh environment which can only be achieved through exposure to the outdoors.

Biggest change in the curriculum is the AOLE Health and Wellbeing which identifies the importance of outdoor learning in the enrichment and experience. An easy way for schools to start to address health and wellbeing is to ensure students have regular access to outdoor space and outdoor experiences which can positively impact children’s attitudes, beliefs and self-perception.

An exciting start to the new academic year as schools start to experiment with the draft Curriculum for Wales, Successful Futures or Donaldson.

Nature Days is also embracing the new curriculum by developing field days incorporating the four core purposes and the Areas of Learning and Experience.

Field days, in their very essence, are Learning Experiences, so at Nature Days we already have a head start for facilitating the new curriculum.

We are very excited to be generating new field trips based on themes schools are using with their learners, and would welcome any input by schools on what themes they would like to explore though field work.

Nature Days has also developed INSET training on how to develop an outdoor curriculum which supports the four core purposes and AoLEs. If you need some help in this area please contact Nature Days.

Nature Days has also been undertaking INSET session on “Teaching science in primary using your outdoor space.” Support for non- subject specialist in teaching science at KS2 as well as foundation phase and integrating scientific enquiry into all aspects of the curriculum.

I am pleased to announce that Nature Days has just achieved the Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Kite mark for its field work!!

Nature Days is also leading the way in getting ready for Donaldston and the new curriculum for life. If you are starting a new topic how about taking your class on an inspirational field trip to spark off their ideas and start the planing process.