Language Learning Experiences
Outdoor Education Experiences
We have always spoken about the benefits of taking learning outside the classroom and making it a permanent feature of school life. Many schools have embraced being able to return to outdoor environments and expose students to a new way of learning through fresh challenges and organised adventure programmes.
As part of Outdoor Classroom Day 2022, we want to share with you four Top Tips that will help teachers maximise the success of their next outdoor learning trip or school residential. We spoke in a previous blog about how you can make your residential with The Bushcraft Company a huge success, but today we’re going to be diving in a little deeper into how you can bring the lessons learnt on camp back to the classroom.
1. Consider what you are looking to get from your school trip.
Is there a skills gap amongst your students, or are you looking to build interpersonal skills or cohesion between a new cohort? A good provider should be able to design activity programmes around your wider learning objectives, consulting in advance and assessing progress for post-trip evaluation.
2. Transport the learning gained back into the classroom.
The outdoors can act as a springboard for a wide range of subjects and can help embed knowledge in new areas of learning. Students can put the new skills they have learnt into action, through presentations for next year’s visiting year group, leading classroom discussions, or creating a visual piece for the wider school to enjoy in some form.
3. Manage student expectations.
Make sure students know what to expect and how to behave ahead of time, so that they are prepared both practically and emotionally. This will bring the best out of individuals when they arrive on-site.
4. Give students agency.
Allow them opportunities to lead and also to reflect, both during and after the trip as this can help with attainment. Be sure to encourage all personalities to thrive – the informal outside environment tends to lower barriers and encourage a sense of equality; students that may be quiet in the classroom may be more forthcoming outdoors.
Our parent company, Active Learning Group (ALG), celebrates 5 years in 2022. As a provider of experiential education its brands collectively offer over 70 years of educational experiences.
Delivering premier educational experiences to young people through outdoor learning on experiences such as Bushcraft residential trips, ALG enables access to transformational experiences through its safe, inspiring locations and teams of remarkable people.
If you’re interested in bringing your students along to Bushcraft then please reach out to our team to find out more!
