Growing with Nature

Growing with Nature

"We commune with nature directly by touch, smell, taste, sight and sound." 
- Joseph Cornell
Adult memories of favourite childhood activities are most often centred around outdoor experiences. Treasure hunts in the garden, picnics in the forest, fishing for tadpoles and climbing trees.

It is through these first hand experiences with nature that children delight in discovering things for themselves and gain direct insight into the way the world works. This helps them to develop their sense of self and begin to understand how they fit into the world around them.  

At Shepherds Hill we believe that the freedom of the natural environment provides enhanced opportunities for learning over and above those possible inside. We aim to excite our children's interest and love of the natural world through the joy of being outdoors. Our children use the garden every day and have access to woods and meadows where we often climb trees, play hide and seek and have picnics. We find children thrive on the extra space available for moving around outside and many readily embrace skills they are reluctant to partake in whilst indoors. 

Our indoor environment also incorporates many items of nature which we use for sensory discovery and discussion. These explorations increase the children's understanding of the natural world and enable them to develop respect and a sense of responsibility for all living things, their community and the world. 
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