The Benefits of Taking Kindergarten Outdoors
By exploring outside their classroom—and even their schoolyard—two teachers found their students’ learning potential became boundless.
Your content has been saved!
Go to My Saved Content.What happens when kindergartners spend almost their entire school day outside, even through a harsh Canadian winter? When two teachers from Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School (PETES), in Gatineau, Quebec, dubbed a tiny park near their urban schoolyard “the magical forest” and started taking their small charges there daily, the learning adventures began. They say this approach has resulted in fewer distractions, better inclusion for all students, and more effective learning.
To learn more about the research behind the practices seen in the video, check out the links below.
- The American Academy of Pediatrics’ (2018)
- Kayleigh Skene, Christine M. O’Farrelly, Elizabeth M. Byrne, Natalie Kirby, Eloise C. Stevens, and Paul G. Ramchandani’s (2022)
- Rachel Parker, Bo Stjerne Thomsen, and Amy Berry’s (2022)
- Enrico Sella, Monica Bolognesi, Emma Bergamini, Lucia Mason, and Francesca Pazzaglia’s (2023)
- Jeff Mann et al.’s (2022)
- Susan Strife and Liam Downey’s (2009)
- Orla Kelly, Karen Buckley, Lauren J. Lieberman, and Katrina Arndt’s (2022)
For schools without easy or safe access to wilderness environments, teachers can find more resources to support outdoor learning in the articles “7 Ways to Connect Young Students to Nature” and “Promoting Outdoor Learning in Urban Settings” or watch the video “7 Tips for Moving Learning Outside.” There are also nonprofit organizations such as and the that offer resources to help educators get students outside.
Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School
Â鶹´«Ă˝ČëżÚ developed the Making Learning More Playful series with support from .