Although the warm weather is set to continue for a little while longer, the summer holidays have ended in all regions today. For many children, it will take some getting used to sitting at their desks for hours on end again. IVN Natuureducatie is calling on State Secretary Paul to put an end to the intensive child farming system in which children have less outdoor space in the schoolyard than a free-range chicken and spend 99% of their school time indoors. More and more schools also want to take their classes outside. Outdoor lessons are not only much more enjoyable than indoor lessons; they also support the learning process, improve concentration and encourage children to exercise more. However, Dutch schoolyards receive a resounding fail. Research by KRO Pointer shows that none of the municipalities examined applies the new quality standard for schoolyards.
During lessons, many children often gaze longingly out of the window. And that is entirely understandable, because all sorts of things naturally happen outside. Being outdoors literally gives your brain oxygen for learning, and moving around helps you process the material from the classroom more effectively. It is high time that school construction underwent a major overhaul and that more use was made of outdoor space for learning.
Enthusiastic pupils and teachers
More and more primary schools in the Netherlands are focusing on outdoor lessons. This naturally applies to lessons about nature in particular. Who would want to learn about a robin or a frog from a book? You want to see one in real life. But language and maths lessons can also be made much more effective in the fresh air. There are all sorts of possibilities. Grab some sidewalk chalk, draw circles on the wall containing the answers to multiplication tables, and give the children a ball to throw into the correct circle. Guaranteed success: children are enthusiastic and retain the material better.
Moreover, going outside during school hours is also important for health. Research keeps emerging showing that obesity among children is an increasing problem and that motor skills have deteriorated in recent years. With all kinds of lesson activities in the healthy outdoors, you create a win-win situation.
Overcrowded concrete deserts
School construction, however, still fails to adapt. The classroom continues to hold a monopoly on learning. Schoolyards are constantly being completed that look very much like cramped concrete deserts. Moreover, the fragmented subsidies for green schoolyards are creating inequality of opportunity in the Netherlands when it comes to access to green spaces. Whether, as a child, you can play, learn and exercise in a pleasant green place or in a small, cramped, paved yard now depends very much on where you live and which school you attend.
Photo caption: Maths is perfectly suitable for an outdoor lesson.
Source: IVN.