An Exciting Outdoor Learning Environment for The Juniors
After completing a previous project at Northwood College For Girls’, our Southern Sales Director, Sam Flatman, was called back to begin the process of another exciting project on the college’s grounds.
Sam worked with the colleges Director of Finance and Operation, Tim Brown, to bring their playground ideas to life: a complete transformation of their Junior children’s playground!
To create an exciting outdoor learning environment that provided a range of activities for the girls attending the Middlesex college to participate in, we installed:
- An energising trim trail
- A Challenging Climbing Frame
- A Base for Outdoor Learning
- Natural playground surfacing
An Energising Trim Trail
Through the addition of energising Trim Trail Equipment, arranged in an adventure trail style, we have provided the children with a variety of physical challenges. The challenging trail includes a wide range of equipment, including:
- Parallel Bars
- Pull Up Bars
- Double Sided Climbing Wall
- Climbing Poles
- Net Traverse
- Rocking Log Traverse
- Rope Swing Traverse
The trail has been arranged to get progressively harder as they move along the obstacles, developing their balance, climbing confidence, upper and lower body strength, core stability, co-ordination and gross motor skills.
The double-sided climbing wall is a favourite amongst the girls! The children love racing across the wall, challenging each other to climbing races as each child takes on one side of the wall.
A Challenging Climbing Frame
Offering a climbing challenge for the girls to explore and improve their key physical skills on is our excellent Tryfan Climber. With flexible routes, several crossing points and many different ways to climb and traverse, the Tryfan is a fantastic open-ended challenge that enables the children to improve their climbing confidence one climb at a time!
As they explore the magnificent rope and log frame, the children’s balance, coordination, core stability, overall body strength and gross and find motor skills are improving during play.
The girls have loved using the magnificent climber as a focal point for imaginative play as they climb the logs and swing from the ropes like Tarzan in the forest!
A Base for Outdoor Learning
Through the installation of a Timber Outdoor Gazebo, we have created an excellent base for outdoor learning in the junior playground.
Taking away the constraints of an indoor classroom, the 5m Gazebo has created a thriving outdoor working environment in the school playground where a full class of thirty children can be taken outside to learn.
With a water-tight roof and cladded sides, they are protected from the rain and sheltered from the sun as outdoor learning goes undisturbed outdoors. The junior children love spending time in the gazebo, talking, socialising and playing with one another in the fresh air!
Natural Playground Surfacing
Northwood College wanted a natural-looking playground surfacing, so we installed our vibrant green Artificial Grass and bark. Through the inclusion of bark surfacing, we have zoned the playground and created a contrast in the playground colours.
We surfaced around the planters and trees in the playground, creating a small kickabout area for games of football: the sleeper edges of the planter’s act as a lovely side-line for the pitch. The girls love playing football, practising their fundamental sporting skills and improving their cardiovascular fitness.
Next to the planters, we have installed Perch Benches to provide the young girls with a natural space to relax and socialise with one another in the outdoor environment.
The junior girls absolutely love their new playground equipment and Tim is more than impressed with the aesthetically pleasing, educational and fun outdoor play space!
He had this to say about the new area:
“We are extremely pleased with the new outdoor area in terms of the design, the space and the adventure it gives to the girls. The girls are utilising the space and filling it with a sense of adventure, which is what we wanted.
The girls are more adventurous and creative in their game play and have taken on the combination of smaller and larger spaces, for example putting football goals in a smaller area and creating a football pitch.
We’re finding that they’re so much more active and they’re playing much bigger games instead of in their own little groups: all the age groups are playing together, which is really nice to see.
Already, we’ve had reading groups and intervention groups for teaching. So many of our cross-curricular lessons can use the new space.
When the girls come back in from learning outside, they are ready to learn because they’ve had that time to run, climb and play football – it’s been so beneficial to their lessons. The girls are really proud of the new space!”
If you would like to re-develop your outdoor space to create a wonderful outdoor learning and play area, please Contact Us.
