The Outdoor Classroom

Half-Term Explorers: Taking Learning Beyond the Classroom Gates

Half-term is an excellent opportunity for pupils to explore their surroundings and learn in real-world contexts just beyond the school gates. Whether your school sits in a busy city centre, a suburban neighbourhood or a built-up estate, there are rich opportunities to engage children through outdoor learning. Local parks, paved playgrounds and nearby streets all offer meaningful settings for curriculum-linked activities.

Many teachers already recognise the value of outdoor learning. The challenge often lies in planning experiences that are purposeful, manageable and appropriate for the KS2 curriculum. Urban schools, in particular, sometimes feel restricted by the physical environment available to them. However, with the right approach and well-structured tasks, even the smallest outdoor spaces can support geography fieldwork, orienteering and increased daily active minutes.

This post shares practical ways to use the area around your school this half-term, with activities that link directly to KS2 expectations and require minimal preparation.

Bringing KS2 Geography Fieldwork to Urban Settings

Fieldwork is a statutory part of the KS2 geography curriculum. Importantly, it does not require dramatic landscapes or specialist environments. Pupils can develop enquiry skills in streets, parks and playgrounds just as effectively as they can on coastal paths or in woodland.

For background on how outdoor learning strengthens curriculum delivery, you might find this useful:
Is Outdoor Learning an Effective Tool for Teaching the Curriculum?

Here are several simple fieldwork tasks that work particularly well in urban areas.

Urban Fieldwork Activities for KS2

Land Use Survey
Pupils walk a short, safe route near school and record different types of land use: housing, transport, shops, services, green space, leisure and industry. They can then compare this with maps or discuss patterns in human geography.

Traffic and Movement Study
Using tally charts, pupils record the frequency of pedestrians, bikes, buses and cars. This can lead to data-handling work in maths or discussion of sustainable travel in geography.

Micro-Mapping Exercise
Pupils sketch a small area such as the playground, school entrance or nearby park corner. They add symbols, simple keys and compass directions, building confidence before working with larger maps.

Sensory Geography Audit
Pupils record what they can hear, smell and see in specific locations. This supports descriptive writing as well as an understanding of environmental quality.

If pupils enjoy observational tasks, they may also benefit from the approaches in:
Nature Journals in the Rain

Increasing Daily Active Minutes Through Orienteering

PE guidance encourages regular movement and active minutes throughout the school day. Orienteering and outdoor navigation activities are ideal for this because they combine physical activity with problem-solving and teamwork.

Urban schools do not need large open fields for effective orienteering. Playgrounds, parks and courtyards can easily be used for short, structured challenges.

For examples of active outdoor tasks, see:
Get Moving: How UK Schools Are Boosting Children’s Physical Activity

PE Activities Suitable for Urban Schools

Five-Point Check Challenge
Place five numbered markers around a small area. Pupils must visit each one and record a corresponding code or answer a quick question.

Partner Navigation
One pupil describes a route verbally while the other follows. This encourages accuracy, positional vocabulary and teamwork.

Active Quiz Trail
Place short curriculum questions at each marker. Pupils must move to each point before writing their answer.

Mini Map Mission
Provide a simple plan of the playground or park. Pupils locate features, match symbols or identify check-in points.

For more ideas linking movement, maths and outdoor exploration, see:
Counting Conkers

Making the Most of Local Parks and Playgrounds

Urban parks are excellent learning spaces. Even very small parks offer:

  • surfaces for route navigation
  • benches for group tasks
  • varied materials and textures
  • trees, grass or planting areas
  • paths suitable for timed movement challenges
  • human and physical features to compare

Teachers who want to build confidence teaching outdoors might also find this helpful:
From Classroom Walls to Open Skies

Local parks bring curriculum content to life and provide a change of pace and environment that supports wellbeing, curiosity and motivation.

Using The Outdoor Classroom to Support Urban Exploration

For many schools, The Outdoor Classroom helps structure activities in tight time windows. Teachers can plan simple trails, generate orienteering routes or access ready-made outdoor tasks even when space is limited.

Tools on the platform support use in:

  • playgrounds
  • school courtyards
  • small tarmac areas
  • local green spaces

This can be especially helpful for urban schools looking to introduce fieldwork or active challenges without placing additional demands on staff planning time.

For more detail on the platform’s approach:
How It Works

Final Thoughts

You do not need woodland, open fields or rural surroundings to bring outdoor learning to life. Urban schools have rich, varied landscapes right outside their gates, from busy high streets to quiet corners of local parks. With thoughtful planning and clear, achievable activities, these spaces can become powerful learning environments.

If you would like to explore structured outdoor tasks for your own setting, you can create a free teacher account and access activities suitable for any school environment:
https://portal.theoutdoorclassroom.co/register