The Power of Outdoor Spaces for Language and Communication!

Outdoor play in the Early Years can have a significantly positive impact on children’s developing language, vocabulary and communication skills. Here’s how to make the most of your EYFS outdoor learning areas to get them talking!

“The number of children waiting for speech and language therapy in the UK is at an all-time high” - so says the Chief Executive of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Steve Jamieson.

Talking to the Independent newspaper in 2024, he explained:

“Typically, they’re waiting for a speech and language therapist to assess their needs, which might include speech sound difficulties, developmental language disorder or a stammer, and identify the strategies and support that will help.

This can include direct intervention from a speech and language therapist or therapy assistant, advice for parents and carers, or training for staff in schools and settings.”

As it stands at the moment, more than 75,000 children in England are on the waiting list, and facing long delays. NHS data shows that over 22,000 children have been waiting 18 to 52 weeks and over 6,000 young people have been waiting over 52 weeks to see someone.

Mr Jamieson said: “Speech and language therapy services are close to breaking point, with high vacancy rates and not enough people in the workforce to fill the roles.”

The COVID pandemic has no-doubt exacerbated the problem. Today’s Reception-age children were born during lockdowns where normal social contact couldn’t happen.

But if a child’s communication needs are not identified in their early years, and supported appropriately, this can have hugely detrimental effects on their mental health, emotional wellbeing and their educational attainment.

Just this weekend, the Guardian newspaper reported on a school in London where children in the Reception class are part of a scheme where they’re being taught how to communicate properly - because pupils lacking speech and language skills are more likely to be excluded and caught up in violence:

“The boys and girls, all of whom joined Reception unable to talk properly, are being taught how to use language and communicate more clearly. Research shows that the path to getting excluded from school, then being exploited by criminals or caught up in a gang, often starts here in reception, with children who are left behind coming to feel they don’t belong in school because of their problems with language.”

According to the RCSLT, two-thirds of children at risk of exclusion from secondary school have problems with speech, language and communication which may be unidentified, and the same is true of 60% of those accessing youth justice services.

Communication is Key

Developing Language and Communication skills has always been a huge priority in Early Years settings - it’s not hard to see why, and this isn’t going to change any time soon. If anything, it now seems that Early Years educators have even more on their plates when it comes to helping children learn how to talk and express their needs.

Communication is a complex process. Not just a matter of acquiring vocabulary and exchanging words - children need to learn and understand context, recognise verbal and non-verbal cues, and how to express what is going on inside their own heads. There’s a lot happening and a lot to put into action!

And it’s so incredibly important that children get the continuous, ongoing opportunities that they need to be able to do this all throughout the day, because our language and how we use it goes right to the core of who we are as individuals.

How children are able to express themselves, communicate their needs and understand others, is deeply embedded into their sense of belonging, self and self worth.

Let’s Go Outside to Talk!

Outdoor play in the Early Years (and actually, far beyond) can have a significantly huge and positive impact when it comes to developing children’s language and communication skills.

It can be easy, with so much to do, to forget the natural ease with which the outdoor environment supports children’s learning. But actually, being outdoors offers the most unique opportunities for children to explore and to feel more relaxed in what they’re doing, and so better able or more willing to express themselves.

Whether engaging in imaginative play, exploring and describing the natural world around them, or playing with and negotiating spaces with peers - the outdoor learning environment can provide the perfect toolkit for children to experiment with language and communication without any restrictions.

The natural outdoor environment is and always has been one of the finest things for capturing children’s curiosity - sparking their interest and paving the way for meaningful communication about what’s happening around them.

There’s always something that catches their eye, always something to be inquisitive about, and always something to discuss. It’s the simplest and easiest, spotlight and pressure-free environment in which to get conversation with children flowing.

Active, Physical Play From the Get Set, Go!

From the very beginning, a baby’s motor development starts to influence their language development. Movement is often described as a child’s first real language (apart from crying or smiling, although they both take a surprising amount of physical effort at first!) as it’s how they express themselves before they can talk, through pointing, head movements, facial expressions and moving towards or away from things.

It’s a known fact that learning to move helps children learn to talk - those facial expressions, opening and closing their mouth, sticking out their tongue, making babbling and cooing noises and blowing raspberries are all part of the first stages of language acquisition.

And as a baby learns to sit, pull up to standing and hold themselves upright, they’re also getting their rib cage, lungs, vocal tract and articulators (mouth, jaw, tongue) ready and aligned in position.

Outdoors in the Nursery Garden, little ones have the space but more importantly the incentive that they need to get moving and exploring. There’s plenty to look at and plenty to reach for!

Opportunities to move around, to pull themselves upwards and strengthen those little muscles, are all part of preparing their bodies physically for communication.

(See: Freestanding Active Play for Nurseries)

Of course it doesn’t stop there! Children love, and need, to be active as they continue to grow.

In a school’s outdoor playground, they should have the space to engage in all the bigger movements - running, climbing, balancing, rolling, swinging, jumping - that call for lots of different language use.

Playing and engaging with their peers, expressing excitement (or dismay!), discussing new ideas and games for play, negotiating with others - developing new vocabulary and dynamically building and strengthening their communication skills, with support where needed, all the time.

‘Tuff’ Times Call for Loose Parts Play!

Nature provides all kinds of inspiration for conversation. Digging, planting, gardening. Gathering loose parts or ‘treasures’ from the playground and nature walks - sticks, leaves, pebbles, pine cones, acorns, flowers, mud - they’re easy (and free!) to access and promote some wonderful higher-level conversational turn-taking.

With something interesting for children to focus on (nature is always fascinating, and even more so if a child has personally found a ‘treasure’ and would like to share it), it’s an opportunity to expand their descriptive vocabulary through colour, textures, size comparisons and much more. Problem-solving skills and associated language can be well supported by asking questions, giving and following instructions.

(See: Nature and Planting, Essentials Tuff Spot Table)

Creative Role Play - Who Am I?

Role play is one of the very best Early Years activities for developing language and communication skills. By establishing designated language-enhancing role play zones in the outdoor learning environment, we can enrich children’s communication experiences, and provide a solid platform for education across all of the areas of learning.

What is it about role play that is so valuable in the Early Years? For a start, a role-play zone is a safe space. It’s here that children can explore and experiment with roles and ideas without any negative consequences - well in theory at least!

Because it’s all about practicing, with the back-up of a trusted adult if they need direction. Trying things out, putting into action real-life scenarios that they might have come across and working out how they might feel about them, what their thoughts and reactions are, what they can and perhaps can’t do in response to particular situations.

Practitioners play a vital role guiding children through scenarios where appropriate, by modelling effective methods of communication and ways to resolve any conflict.

Through role play, children will practice using language creatively - there is no real limit to what they might want to, and can, discuss! And so their vocabulary banks will expand, their understanding of grammar structures will fall into place, their confidence will grow, and their ability to communicate in an open and respectful way with others will develop organically.

The best outdoor role play facilities are usually those that are zoned into smaller areas, where children naturally need to play together in a close, interactive environment.

Playhouses are ideal because practitioners can theme them in any way they choose to support current learning topics - a shop, a restaurant, a hospital, a vet’s surgery, a mermaid’s cave, a pirate’s cove, or the house of the three bears - anything goes from term to term!

(See: Den Making and Playhouses, Imaginative and Creative Outdoor Play)

Outdoor Storytelling - What Do You Think?

Fostering a love of language through storytelling is easy when we take reading outdoors. The charm of a group story is almost irresistible to young children - even better in a cosy or ‘around the campfire’ style setting in the school grounds.

It’s somehow so much more enticing, and easier, for them to sit and listen and imagine the characters coming to life, when they’re outside in the fresh air - the perfect break-away space to readjust and refocus away from the more formal classroom environment.

Outdoor reading areas are about a great deal more than just listening to the reader. Of course that bit is vitally important - and learning to listen is an essential part of communication.

But opportunities to discuss the book together, what particular words mean, what might be insinuated, what the children think might happen next - it’s an almost limitless opportunity for language exploration and discovery in a group scenario, where children can comfortably learn to share ideas and learn from listening to each other.

(See: Storytelling Pack, Freestanding Communication and Language Zone)

We are the UK’s Number One School Playground Equipment Specialist, working in conjunction with education professionals across the UK to consistently improve what we do year on year.

Having worked in the education industry for over 25 years, we have a depth of experience in helping schools and nurseries to transform their outdoor spaces into outstanding learning environments for developing children’s language and communication skills. Contact Us today for free, expert advice.