IT’S not often you get points in an exam for building a great sandcastle, but at the Technological University of Shannon, (TUS) students training to work with young children will have an opportunity to get down in the sand box.
Outdoor play is increasingly being recognised as a key component to the development of children from a young age.
Understanding its importance, TUS has unveiled its first outdoor classroom at its Moylish Campus in Limerick, providing Early Childhood Education and Care degree students with a practical facility to develop a range of skills when working with young children in an outdoor environment.
The aim is for students on the course to experience how important and wonderful outdoor play is and to that end they will be taking a lot of their own lessons outside.
The new outdoor classroom includes several sensory, developmental, as well as physical activity amenities, giving students the opportunity to complete a large proportion of their curriculum outside.
Outdoor play acts as an important mechanism to support cognitive, physical, social and emotional wellbeing in young children. And their soon-to-be teachers are loving it too.
Speaking about the development of the new outdoor classroom, Amy McGuire, Head of Department, Sport and Early Childhood Studies said, “The Covid-19 pandemic significantly highlighted the importance of outdoor play and its contribution to the health and development of children.”
Yvonne O Sullivan, owner of Naionra na nOg pre-school in Shannabooly, who was recently recognised for their progressive approach to outdoor play at the Early Childhood Ireland policy conference in March said, “The outdoors provide such a unique opportunity to extend learning for children through a different lens.
“Accessing students who are equipped with an extra layer of understanding in providing holistic learning outdoors and seeing beyond the classroom walls is invaluable to me as an employer.”
Shauna Fisher, a current fourth-year student in Early Childhood Education and Care at TUS said, “The new outdoor classroom has given me practical, first-hand experience about the many benefits of being outdoors for children, and the extent of learning and development that can take place.”
