Nov. 4 is Outdoor Classroom Day

Thursday, Nov. 4, is Outdoor Classroom Day. It’s a global campaign to get children outdoors to play and learn at school as part of the movement to make time outdoors part of every child’s day.

Given recent times, the green space in our communities and our own backyards has become more important than ever. The ‘backyarding’ trend of doing more activities from school learning to working and socializing outside is here to stay, according to the TurfMutt Foundation.

Here are just a few reasons why learning outside is good for children:

• Teaching outside can help students be more attentive to learning.
• Learning outside can help children develop important skills for future success in the workplace, including social and problem-solving skills.
• Increased exposure to nature reduces elementary students’ anxiety.
• A review of research published between 1990 and 2010 indicates garden-based learning positively academic outcomes, including improvements in science, math and language arts.
• Children in the UK who spent just one hour per week learning outdoors showed significant, immediate improvements in mood and longer-term improvements in well-being.
• An Australian study revealed that students spent more time on-task in outdoor classrooms versus indoor ones.
• Children in Bangladesh earned significantly higher science scores after being taught outdoors versus their indoor classrooms.

To learn more about the many benefits of spending time in green space all year long, check out the TurfMutt Foundation’s Living Landscapes Fact Book.