ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION Opportunities for learning outside the classroom are highly valued. Almost every primary schoolchild studies and learns in their school grounds through various cross-curricular subjects and activities during the year. Annually, several million off-site primary pupil visits take place. Providing experience for young children to learn through activities in the real world is important to primary teachers. The government’s Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto (DfES, 2006) endorsed, emphasised and encouraged the value, importance and role of extending children’s learning into the school’s grounds, the local environment and further afield. Learning outside the classroom builds on the vital and engaging experiences initiated through work in outdoor learning environments in the Foundation Stage, where it is a matter of routine for young children to learn in their outdoor area and through visits to such sites as a forest school, a shop and the park. Outdoor learning is not a new approach for schools, although it is not as widespread as usually assumed and may even be declining. You will consider why it is valued, constraints on learning out of the classroom and how such work can be undertaken effectively.
