We are passionate about providing as many outdoor learning opportunities as possible for children aged 3 months - 5 years old. At the heart of Playschool is the philosophy that children thrive when given the freedom to play in nature. Come rain or shine, outdoor play has many benefits for health, learning and wellbeing. Playschool gives children the appropriate space to explore, learn and develop in the outdoors whatever their age, whatever the season.
We use our outdoor space for all sorts of activities, including mud kitchen and water play. We also have great fun running, rolling, kite-flying and bubble-blowing too.
We take full advantage of what Dennington has to offer and go exploring most weeks. We enjoy walks through the village and along the local footpaths, as well as visits to the allotments, park and church.
Our Outside space
Our outdoor provision maximises the range of outdoor play opportunities that we can offer. With opportunities to climb, balance, run and jump, our staff have the chance to empower age-appropriate risk-taking which supports children to develop independence, confidence and good self-esteem. All this physical play is great stimulation and supports the development of improved attention spans too!
At Little Oaks Playschool, children have access to a secure outdoor 'wild' area, for big physical play (including our mound for running/climbing up and rolling down!). In our previous locations, we have always had our very own vegetable garden - the children have been involved with growing a variety of produce, such as tomatoes and cucumbers in Summer and squashes and pumpkins in Autumn. The children enjoy these in their snacks and lunches. We are currently preparing our raised vegetable beds for planting later this year.
Anything you can do inside, you can do outside too... Our outdoor provision is fully resourced to ensure children have access to a range of activities. There is always a large selection of materials such as books, pens, paint and paper, clay or playdough and water play, wherever we're based!