What if getting children outdoors isn’t simply good fun?

What if it could help them become more engaged in their learning, develop socially and emotionally, build confidence, move more and feel better too?

At Little Movers, we’ve always believed in the enormous power of movement and play.

But after attending the Rise Early Years Conference and hearing more about the research and thinking around movement, outdoor play, learning and child development, one thing became very clear to us:

We need to get more children outdoors.

And Little Movers wants to be part of making that happen.

This is about more than fresh air

For generations we’ve instinctively known that being outside is good for children.

But outdoor play can sometimes still be treated as an extra.

Something we do when the weather is nice.

Something that happens after the “learning” has finished.

The evidence gives us good reason to challenge that thinking.

A major systematic review looked at 147 studies into nature-based outdoor learning.

Researchers reported benefits including greater engagement and ownership of learning, social and collaborative development, wellbeing and some evidence of academic improvement.

Their conclusion was powerful: nature-specific outdoor learning has measurable socio-emotional, academic and wellbeing benefits and should form part of every child’s school experience.

And the evidence continues to grow.

A more recent review examined 41 studies involving 10,453 learners, from preschool through to college.

It concluded that outdoor teaching appears to improve learning in areas including science, reading, writing, social studies and mathematics, while also supporting factors associated with achievement such as motivation and wellbeing.

So perhaps we need to stop thinking of outdoor play as time away from learning.

Outdoor play can BE learning.

And this starts in the early years

For our youngest children, learning isn’t about sitting still and absorbing information.

They learn through their whole bodies.

They touch.

They move.

They investigate.

They repeat.

They experiment.

They communicate.

They take risks.

They solve problems.

They make connections.

Nature gives them an extraordinary environment in which to do all of those things.

Research specifically looking at nature-based early childhood education has found promising positive associations with areas including self-regulation, social skills, social and emotional development and play interaction.

The researchers also make an important point: we still need more high-quality research specifically involving preschool children.

For us, that’s not a reason to ignore outdoor learning.

It’s a reason to keep asking questions, keep learning and keep looking at how we can give children richer opportunities to move and play outdoors.

Rise North East is helping put this into practice

This is one of the reasons the work being done by Rise North East really resonates with us.

Their Step Outdoors Early Years programme uses nature-based outdoor play specifically to support children’s health, wellbeing and learning.

It is designed to support communication and language, personal, social and emotional development, physical skills and mental wellbeing.

Children are also given opportunities to develop independence, confidence, problem-solving abilities and healthy, active habits.

That isn’t “just playing outside”.

That’s child development happening through play.

A beach is so much more than a beach

We’ve seen this ourselves during our Little Movers summer beach sessions.

Look at a photograph and you might simply see children playing in the sand.

We see something different.

A child carrying a bucket of sand is developing strength and coordination.

A child deciding how much water their sandcastle needs is experimenting and problem-solving.

A child running across uneven sand is developing balance, stability and spatial awareness.

Children building something together are communicating, negotiating and collaborating.

A child finding a shell is discovering, questioning and building vocabulary.

A child brave enough to try something new is developing confidence.

They’re moving.

They’re thinking.

They’re communicating.

They’re discovering.

They’re learning.

And they’re doing it through something children are naturally driven to do:

PLAY.

What if we’ve made learning too complicated?

Children don’t always need more equipment.

They don’t always need another worksheet.

They don’t always need another structured activity.

Sometimes they need a stick.

A puddle.

Sand between their toes.

Leaves to collect.

A hill to climb.

Water to pour.

Mud to investigate.

Space to run.

And adults who understand that while it might look like “just play”, an enormous amount of development can be taking place.

Little Movers wants to lead the way

For almost two decades, Little Movers has championed the importance of movement in childhood.

Now we want to take the next step.

We want to become a louder voice for outdoor play.

Our summer beach classes aren’t the end of a summer campaign.

They’re the beginning of something bigger.

Little Movers will be developing and offering more opportunities for outdoor play across the UK, through our network and the communities we work within.

We want more Little Movers experiencing grass beneath their feet, sand between their toes, wind on their faces and the freedom to explore their environment.

We want to work alongside families, nurseries, schools and communities to champion the message that movement and outdoor play aren’t optional extras in childhood.

They matter.

Perhaps it’s time we changed the question

Instead of asking:

“What did they learn today?”

Perhaps sometimes we should ask:

Did they move?

Did they explore?

Did they investigate?

Did they communicate?

Did they problem-solve?

Did they feel confident enough to try?

Did they feel good?

Because when we create environments where children can do those things, we’re creating opportunities for learning and development too.

At Little Movers, we believe children were made to move.

They were made to explore.

They were made to play.

And we’re committed to helping more children across the UK experience the benefits of doing exactly that — outdoors.

This is only the beginning.

The research behind our thinking

Research into outdoor and nature-based learning continues to develop, but systematic reviews have reported benefits across learning, engagement, social development and wellbeing.

Rise North East’s Step Outdoors programme is another fantastic example of putting nature-based outdoor play at the heart of early childhood health, wellbeing and learning.