What Huili Nursery pupils can learn from going outside?

Digital technology has no doubt elevated our quality of life. We now enjoy instant access to goods, services and, most importantly, knowledge. But these advantages bring with them their own unique problems, especially when it comes to the health and wellbeing of our children. Excessive screen time can promote a sedentary lifestyle at a time when physical activity is essential to their development. It also estranges them from the beauty of the natural world around them. 

At Huili Nursery Nantong, technology will, of course, play an important role in how we teach our youngest pupils. However, we also recognise that the sun, the blue sky, the leaves in the trees, the flowers and the grass can be powerful teaching tools as well. This is why outdoor education will be central to our curriculum.  

From mud kitchens to a steel tongue drum, our outdoor learning area will provide endless opportunities for discovery. It will also feature plenty of safe play equipment. Here, our pupils will put their boundless energy to good use as they develop their muscles and gross motor skills. But such activities will benefit more than just our pupils’ physical health. 

Our play equipment will present our pupils with a variety of age-appropriate physical challenges that will help them to acquire essential life skills, like courage, resilience, self-confidence and independence. Outdoor play with their fellow pupils will also teach them important social dynamics like civility and fair play.  

Young children learn through their senses, and the outdoors has no shortage of stimuli. 

As such, our teachers will often take pupils out of the classroom simply to observe, feel and record their outdoor surroundings. For example, in spring, children may take picture books with them to help them identify various plants and flowers. As summer approaches, they may be prompted to listen to birds or cicada songs.  In autumn, they may observe the turning colours of the leaves, and when winter comes, they will experience the invigorating chill in the air. In the process, they learn about the seasonal changes and even the planetary motions that cause them. 

But education is a strong partnership between our parents and teachers, and we hope that our parents will be fully engaged with us on this learning journey. To this end, we will also organise a variety of outdoor parent-child activities throughout the school year, such as visits to zoos and botanical gardens, lawn camping and more.  And, of course, your child’s outdoor education does not need to be limited to their time at our nursery.  As parents, you are their primary role model; the more active you are, the more likely your children will be as well. We, therefore, encourage you to get out there, get active and explore the outdoors with your children. Whether it is a sporting activity, such as a hike in the woods or a stroll in the park, the benefits are immense and long-lasting. 

We look forward to welcoming your children to Huili Nursery Nantong this September and discovering the outdoors with them.