Some examples of projects and our work we are proud to have been involved in across Edinburgh:
Craigroyston Community High School Learning Community:
This academic year has seen us working with CCHS and their cluster primary schools to facilitate a ‘Learning Beyond the Classroom’ transition project. We started the project building relationships with the individual P7 classes. Working with targeted groups and starting term 1 off normalising learning beyond the classroom, gradually increasing the distance from the respective schools. In term 2 (January) we brought the groups from each school together at the high school. We planned learning that was not only curricular, but also involved lots of team-work and health and wellbeing to support transition. Our small groups have since become ambassadors for their school. They have taken on pupil leadership roles to support the transition of their peers. Building social stories and being a part of the whole class visits.
Pirniehall Primary School:
In January 2024 we started working with Pirniehall Primary School and have just secured funding to work with them for the next year! So far we have been working with class teachers to develop their practice, facilitating loose-parts sessions during break and lunch time and working with some targeted groups. We’ve really enjoyed our time there so far and can’t wait to see the results of another long-term, place-based project!
Craigroyston Primary School
We have worked closely with Craigroyston Primary School for almost 2 years. This long term development project has been made possible thanks to funding from the KPE4 Charitable Trust. This funding allowed us to commit to a long-term whole-school approach. Our staff are in school every week helping to nurture a shift toward sustainable and curriculum focussed outdoor learning.
Alongside our embedded work with P6-7 classes and teachers. We also work with the transition teacher and cluster schools. Providing positive experiences in the outdoor spaces at High School to enhance transition.
We also facilitate an Outdoor Nurture Group in the school’s environmental garden.
We started by getting to know the staff, pupils and community which allowed us to tailor our support in a truly place-based fashion. Check out our social media for updates!
Granton Primary School
Since January 2023 we have been working in Granton Primary School. Despite not having a huge amount of green space, we have supported classes in P3, P6 and P7 to develop their Outdoor Learning.
We created connections with the nature that can be found in their playground. Through a learner-centric journey, we connected our enterprise topic with learning for sustainability and raised money to develop “The Wee Forest”. The children wanted to re-wild this space. To gain inspiration, we helped the P3 teachers organise a trip to the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh.
At the start of our journey together the teachers were nervous about taking their classes outside. A few months later we took them all on the Lothian Bus to a different part of the city!
Juniper Green Primary School
We worked closely with Juniper Green Primary and their P3 classes to incorporate outdoor learning into their normal school week. When done right outdoor learning enhances learning in the classroom and provides a new means for raising attainment.
We achieved this by utilising local green spaces such as the lovely Bloomiehall Park!
St Andrews Fox Covert Primary School – City of Edinburgh Council:
This is the project that started it all! We were approached by the headteacher who was hoping to develop Outdoor Learning in their school. From the start she said “Stewart, in the nicest possible way, I don’t want you here long term!”. She wanted Outdoor Learning to become embedded sustainably in the very culture of the school, exactly what we hope to provide.
Almost a year after we started working together, St Andrew’s Fox Covert RC Primary School was awarded the national Learning Outside the Classroom Mark (gold status), the highest accolade of its kind!
Check out this article in the Edinburgh Evening News celebrating their achievements:
https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/education/edinburgh-primary-school-is-first-in-scotland-to-win-national-award-for-outdoor-learning-3329948: Our Work
Royal Yachting Association Scotland – Instructor Webinar Series
We were approached by RYA Scotland to deliver an interactive webinar session on “Reflective Practice” to senior instructor candidates. We understand that webinars can be a bit dry, so we included games and activities to spark the interest of those involved. The feedback we received was great and we look forward to collaberating with The RYA and other National Governing Bodies in future!
Local Hero Awards Nomination – Teacher of the Year Finalist
In 2021 we were nominated for The Edinburgh Evening News Local Hero Awards in the category of “Teacher of the Year” making it to the final! Our nomination was for work with a local primary school. Developing outdoor learning and the direct benefits to the lives of the young people involved.
Given the efforts of Teachers and school staff during the pandemic, we were humbled to have been nominated and the event was a delight to attend. We were in the company of some truly inspirational people, congratulations to all nominees!
https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/people/local-hero-awards-2021-here-are-all-the-finalists-3456318: Our Work
Edinburgh Environmental Education Research Blog
After completing an Applied Research Project at The University of Edinburgh, we presented our work to the current cohort of students and wrote a blog post about it. It was great to reflect on our time at Moray House and revisit the resource we created for teachers and facilitators to use. We hope to develop this into something we can incorporate into our work. Please have a read of our blog post and those written by others here:
https://blogs.ed.ac.uk/oeer/putting-outdoor-learning-in-its-place/: Our Work