“He was the kind of pupil
who would give you a bit of
bother in the classroom, but
he just came into his own
when we went outside.”
This booklet offers the reader some very valuable
insights into how outdoor learning can deliver key
features of Curriculum for Excellence.
Early years establishments and schools across Scotland are
demonstrating a real commitment to encouraging and supporting
their children and young people to develop as successful learners,
responsible citizens, effective contributors and confident
individuals. They are all considering the best ways to provide
genuinely enjoyable and challenging learning experiences.
Many of these experiences will be found outside the classroom and
this publication provides education practitioners with ideas and
experiences they can incorporate into their teaching and learning.
The contents of this very readable booklet include examples of
highly successful learning experiences in a wide range of contexts.
They indicate, for example, how health
and wellbeing or sustainable
development issues might be explored,
and how creative and enterprising skills
might be nurtured.
“ The Scottish Government is clear about the potential of
learning outdoors in the widest sence in the development of
our children and young people. Grounds for learning make a
valuable contribution to this work.”
Fiona Hislop, MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning
I am confident that this booklet will
stimulate thinking and professional
dialogue on how learning outdoors can
be planned as an integral feature of a
curriculum which will provide
substantial benefits for our children and
young people.
Bernard McLeary
Chief Executive of Learning and Teaching Scotland
Grounds for Learning is
the Scottish programme of
Learning through
Landscapes, the UK
school grounds charity.
Our vision is for Scotland’s children
to be happier and healthier, to
learn more effectively and to
develop environmental
understanding and care through
enjoying excellent outdoor
environments and experiences
while at school.
To achieve this we:
• promote the value of outdoor
spaces to education policy
makers and practitioners
• work with schools and early years
settings across Scotland to help
them design and implement
practical grounds improvement
projects
• equip teachers and practitioners
with the skills and tools they need
to develop and use these spaces
more creatively
grounds 4 learning
How?
• Use curriculum planning time to
build outdoor learning into your
regular programme.
A survey of schools that have improved their
grounds found 65% reported an improved
attitude to learning.
• Create different learning
environments and resources
outside.
• Create a box of your own
learning resources that you can
use outdoors at short notice.
Why?
• Hands-on experiential
learning suits some children
– especially boys – more than
sitting at a desk.
• Noisy and messy activities
are easier outside.
• It offers challenge,
enjoyment, coherence and
relevance – principles of ACfE
Curriculum Design.
• Fresh air, natural light and
open spaces blow away the
cobwebs and stimulate the
brain.
• Teachers seem more like
normal people when they’re
outdoors.
• Outdoor learning can have a
positive impact on long-term
memory.
“ The outdoors is
becoming as
well used by the
staff now as
any other
classroom. For
most of my staff
it’s brought
creativity back
into teaching.”
Headteacher
• Explore GFL resources that can
help you take every curriculum
subject outdoors.
“Where schools are involved in
good quality outdoor learning,
which delivers positive outcomes
for young people,
we will identify such practice
in our inspections.”
enterprise and
vocational learning
Transforming your grounds offers a
fantastic vehicle for project-based learning.
Opportunities for work-related learning include:
• consulting with peers
• communicating with stakeholders
• developing a vision and action plan
• working as a team
• raising funds
• working with professionals
• designing
• implementing change
• managing a budget
• public relations
• evaluating success
Use grounds to develop vocational skills such as
construction, landscaping, horticulture,
engineering, surveying and joinery.
Inverness High School ploughed up one of their
pitches and turned it into a commercial organic
market garden.
unlocking creativity
Outdoor art offers a bigger
canvas: more scope for
mess and the best
opportunity to showcase
your children’s talents.
Imagine your school with:
• murals
• willow sculpture
• grass art
• an outdoor stage
• wind chimes
• light installations
• outdoor sculpture
• tree dressing
• flowers and planters
• mosaics
• fence art
• natural art
• welcoming entrances
What messages do your
grounds communicate to:
• your pupils?
• staff?
• the wider community?
grounds 4 participation
Getting involved with
practical grounds projects
gives opportunities for
those who struggle with
academic learning to
demonstrate other skills
and be publicly recognised
for them.
Effective contributors
Everyone has something they can
contribute to improving your
outdoor space.
Responsible citizens
“You’ll find much better looking
playgrounds than ours; but as
with any worthwhile journey, it’s
the process that’s really counted
here. It’s the changes to the inner
landscapes that have been so
important.” Headteacher
Involving pupils in developing and
looking after their grounds
encourages a sense of ownership,
pride and self-worth.
How proud are your
pupils of their school?
How does the quality of
outside space infulence this?
engaging
your community
Your grounds are the only bit of your school that
much of your community sees.
Working together to improve
your outside space is a great
vehicle for community
engagement and all the
positive learning this can
provide.
What’s more, practical grounds
projects are a great way to
engage parents, especially
dads, who aren’t interested in
your Parent Council or craft
fair.
However you want to improve
your grounds, there will be
members of your local
community who can help –
providing a workforce for
planting or clearing, offering
specialist skills or donating
materials such as surplus seeds
and cuttings to create a new
garden.
84% of schools that have
developed their grounds
report improved social
interaction.
grounds 4 social
development
Most of the really important lessons in life –
learning how to play fair, negotiate, make friends,
be part of a team, deal with bullies and have fun are learnt in the playground.
The quality of your outdoor space and the way
you manage it has a significant impact on your
ability to develop confident individuals.
Some children develop their social skills through
quiet play, or just talking with friends, and need
social areas which allow for both small and large
groups to gather. Others socialise through
physical play, developing physical skills, team
building and leadership skills.
Do your grounds help or hinder self
confidence in vunerable pupils?
pro-social behaviour
Think about how your outdoor space influences
behaviour
• Are there spaces to sit and
chat?
• Do they cater for different
sizes and type of group?
• Where can you find shelter
from wind and rain?
• Do you maximise
opportunities for fun and
activity in break time?
The way grounds are designed
and used strongly influences
the way children behave in
them.
Negative behaviour often
results from boredom. What’s
more vandalism can be
reduced if improvements are
planned and owned by pupils
and the wider community.
• Are you offering a wide
range of activity options?
• Do your grounds provide
different spaces for different
needs and reduce
competition for space?
73% of schools
that have
improved their
grounds report
improved
behaviour
64% report
reduced bullying
“Positive behaviour at
breaktimes translates
into classes that
settle more quickly in
lesson time.”
Teacher
grounds 4 health
For some children, school grounds are the only
place where they can enjoy safe outdoor active
play.
Many of the barriers to active outdoor learning identified by
teachers – risk assessments, transport, time, ratios, weather, access
to sites – can be overcome by using your grounds.
“ In play provision, exposure to some risk is
actually a benefit: it satisfies a basic human
need and gives children the chance to learn
about the real consequences of risk-taking.”
Children’s Play Council
Increase activity levels by
using:
• traversing walls
• trim trails
• playground markings
• goals and hoops
• temporary play equipment
• shelters
• tunnels and tyres
• dance and drama
• litter patrols
• playground activity supervisors
• gardening
85% of schools
that have
improved their
grounds report
increases in
healthy active
play
Highland Council bought all-inone waterproof suits and boots
for every child in pre-school,
enabling them to enjoy outdoor
play and learning in any weather.
“ If children have
grown the food
themselves from
seeds and
harvested it then
they have a major
incentive to try
eating it.”
Are you too quick to keep your
children indoors in wet weather?
Council Chair of Education
“We try and engage with
the weather at its most
exhilarating rather than
avoiding it.”
Nursery Teacher
the famous
Scottish weather
“There’s no such thing as bad
weather, only the wrong clothing.”
Billy Connolly
“Getting our kids active
outdoors early in life
makes them more likely
to adopt an active
lifestyle later in life.”
Play Development Officer
food and diet
You don’t need much space or money to start growing.
Use your garden to learn about food miles, healthy eating, measurement,
weight, scale, area, time, seasons, graphs, soil, weather, insects, money,
responsibility, marketing, teamwork, history, geography...
create calm
If grounds are uncomfortable, unpleasant
and uncared for then this is seen as
symbolic of a lack of care for young
people themselves.
Providing calm spaces makes some pupils happier to be
at school and creates a better mental state for learning.
How do your outside spaces make
your pupils feel?
Contact with nature relieves stress and anxiety.
Natural environments can help reduce the
symptoms of attention deficit disorder and increase
concentration levels.
“Both human and chimpanzee children
are placed in an environment that is not
‘natural’ but which has been structured
for them. However, the environment
created for the chimpanzee was
planned with more science, art and
attention to their needs and potential.”
Aaron & Winawer
Child’s Play: A creative approach to
playscapes for today’s children.
grounds 4
sustainability
Grounds are a real-world laboratory for
learning about soils, air, water, climate and
renewable energy.
Ideas:
• get a grant for your own wind turbine
• provide facilities to encourage cycling to school
• get composting
• collect and use rainwater
• use playground furniture from recycled materials or local
timber
• tackle your litter
“You can’t just sit in a
classroom and be taught
how to save the planet –
you actually have to get
out there.”
Secondary Pupil
“ Developing a
school’s
grounds is an
extremely
effective way to
reinforce key
environmental
messages.”
go wild
Outdoor learning improves attitudes towards the
environment For some children, a school garden
will be their only garden.
Use your outdoor spaces to give young people daily intimate
experiences of nature throughout the seasons, not just in a one-off
trip Even an asphalt playground can be turned into a wildlife haven
with a little imagination.
plants
• plant trees for birds and bugs
• choose flowers that
encourage insects and
butterflies
• cover ugly walls and fences
with climbers
birds
• manage some of your grass
as meadow
• grow bird-friendly plants
• plant bulbs for lowmaintenance flowers every
year
beasties
• uzse shrubs as school-proof
plants
• build a hedgehog box
• provide feeders
• make a bird bath
mini beasts
• create some log piles
• install a web cam bird box
• make bug houses
• provide trees and cover
• grow nettles
• create a mini pond
• provide stone piles
• grow long grass to
encourage voles and
mice
• build a butterfly house
• make a bat box
how grounds 4 learning can help
Newsletter
Keep in touch with news,
ideas, case studies and
inspiration through our termly
newsletter.
Advisory visits
Our advisors can visit schools
to give guidance on
developing and using your
grounds. Visits can be
complemented with pupil
workshops or twilight teacher
training.
“ It was fantastic to
have someone who
was very
knowledgeable in
this area. It gave us
an amazing
number of ideas.”
Early Years Manager
Resource boxes
Advice subscription
A box of publications and
materials near you that you can
rummage through and freely
borrow from.
Our membership programmes for
schools or early years settings
provide you with advice and
support by phone and email and
access to our comprehensive online
resource library. You’ll also regularly
receive resource materials by post
and enjoy discounts on publications
and events.
Publications
Transforming spaces
Training
Our CPD-accredited courses and conferences give you the skills you
need to develop your grounds and use them more effectively for
learning and teaching. These include twilights, full-day sessions,
advanced accredited training and national or Local Authority
conferences.
“ Picked up some fantastic and practical ideas
which I’m taking back to my own setting.”
Teacher
“ An excellent resource
full of realistic and
attainable targets.”
Head Teacher
With funding from the corporate, lottery, trust and
government sectors, we work directly with school and preschool communities, helping them to transform their outdoor
spaces and use them more creatively for playing and
learning.
Whatever your curriculum area,
age group or school type, we
have a range of books, dvds
and toolkits to inspire and
guide you.
New schools
Specialist design
advice on
grounds in new
schools.
Find out more about all of these support options by visiting www.gflscotland.org.uk,
telephoning 01259 220 887 or emailing gfl@ltl.org.uk
This publication was funded by Scottish
Natural Heritage.
Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is the government agency that
cares for Scotland’s natural heritage – plants, animals and their
habitats, geology and landscapes. We support outdoor
learning, publish resources for use in class or outdoors, provide
advice and can give grants for educational activities. Find out
more at: www.snh.org.uk
You can find a wonderful range of natural heritage sites to take
your classes to on our TeachingSpace web site. You will also
find activity ideas and other information to help you plan and
follow up your visit.
Find out more at: www.snh.org.uk/teachingspace
We support the work of Grounds for Learning, particularly their
provision of in-service training events and resources for
outdoor learning. Our research has indicated this support can
help teachers overcome the barriers to taking classes outside.
We have offices throughout Scotland. To find out what advice
our staff can give to support your outdoor learning contact
your local office: www.snh.org.uk/snhoffices