We are lucky enough to have our own fenced-off outdoor area as well as having the use of the school’s fantastic outdoor spaces. We use a system called ‘free-flow’ access to the outside for most of the day (and throughout the year) which means that children can freely choose between outside and inside the nursery. We pay as much attention to planning learning and development opportunities for our outside area as we do the inside and we go outside every day in all weathers – we have wet weather gear for every child. Importantly, our staff have a genuine enthusiasm for sharing experiences with the children outside, regardless of the weather.
Children have opportunities to run, climb, explore water and sand, learn to use trikes and scooters, develop ball skills, investigate mini beasts and create wonderful imaginative scenarios such as pirate adventures. Our mud kitchen is an exciting place to mix a wide range of natural materials to make potions and yukky lunches. Playing ‘hide and seek’ is also a favourite pastime, with lots of interesting spaces. We just love being outside and we have the best muddy puddle in Faversham!