too cold or wet to go outside???

Too cold to be outside?

Very obvious but the weather is unpredictable, can vary in extremes in our climate and cannot be relied on to do what the forecast may suggest!!

The environment can offer different experiences depending on sun, wind and rain. Think of the excitement the first batch of snow can deliver.

Adult perspectives on weather can challenge practitioners, particularly negative opinions.

Questions sometimes asked are” What are they learning out there? What are benefits of being out in the rain? I don’t want them getting cold!”

Sometimes a practitioner can give a negative impression of outdoor play by comments made to children, “like don’t run around, go on the grass because it’s muddy or try not to get wet”

Tovey (2010) suggests adults find it hard to define their role in outdoor play, balancing freedom, risk and curriculum needs.

Woolley (2008) suggests that playing out in different weathers means the children learn about weather and its effects, this can then be linked to other learning.

Practitioners need to find positive ways of sharing the wonderment of the outdoor environment with less keen adults, which can include parents as well as other practitioners in the setting.

 Research shows that children thrive outside, playing outside promotes wellbeing, physical development and it’s good for you!

Positive interactions about the benefits of outdoor play should be promoted by photographs, conversations and backed up by research.

Parents and practitioners need to explore the outdoor environment through child’s eyes, revisiting the uniqueness of it all, looking at how flexible resources can be and how they can be used for many different purposes. The weather is a resource and its impact on the environment should be talked about and shared as a positive experience. Children need to be adequately dressed for exploring and experiencing all that the natural world has to offer including a rain shower or two!!

 

Tovey, H. (2010) Playing Outdoors.London.Open University Press.

Woolley, H. (2008), Watch this space: Designing for children’s play in public open spaces, in Geography Compass, 2, (20), pp.495-512.