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St. Edmund’s Catholic Primary School
Outdoor Learning Intent Document
At St Edmund’s Catholic Primary School, our outdoor curriculum intent is to deliver a curriculum which provides our children with opportunities to experience learning associated with the outdoor environment to support pupils’ personal, social, and educational development, improve health and wellbeing, physical literacy, and develop environmental awareness. We believe that all pupils have the right to experience the unique and special nature of being outdoors. We further believe that it is important to enable pupils to use the outside environment as a context for learning.
The Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) Manifesto, launched by the government in 2006, states that ‘Every young person should experience the world beyond the classroom as an essential part of learning and personal development whatever their age, ability and circumstances.’
Implementation
Every child in the school has the opportunity to take part in two four-week outdoor learning blocks per year no matter the year group they are in. The sessions are planned so that the children experience the outdoor learning during all seasons of the year.
The first session focusses on outdoor learning safety, all children are taught about the expectations of their behaviour and how it impacts on keeping children and staff safe. Staff and children are made aware of the risks and through regularly evaluated risk assessments, how risk can be mitigated.
Each outdoor learning session is developed through a sequence of learning which develops the cross-curricular skills taught in Design Technology and Art and Design. Children are encouraged to use the environment around them when creating pieces of art, sculpture etc which are the final products of sessions.
Impact
Our outdoor learning curriculum offers high quality and well-planned lessons, which encourage progression. Key vocabulary is embedded in each lesson. Continuity and progression in the curriculum is built around the required knowledge, skills and understanding of outdoor learning.
In order to ensure our aims have been met, we scrutinise learning through:
• Observing and talking to children during the lesson to ensure they have understood the learning objective – Assessment for learning.
• Photographing evidence which will be stored on an ebook. Although staff must remember teaching children is more important than the collection of photographic evidence.
The above enables the teacher to make an informed judgement on the children’s understanding and record their understanding on the school tracking tool ‘itrack’
