Beyond the Classroom: The Best Way To Boost Student Success
If there’s one thing the coronavirus pandemic has shown us is that our children’s education stretches far beyond the physicality of a classroom. Learning Outside the Classroom is not a particularly new phenomenon; the notion was introduced back in 2006. However, the remote world we have found ourselves in has emphasised how anywhere can be a classroom.
This view on education helps to boost academic ability as by taking learning beyond the classroom, children end up continually learning, developing and growing. Whether this directly links to a particular subject or even if it is just beneficial to your child’s emotional and social development.
Please keep reading to find out more about Learning Outside the Classroom and how extra online tuition can help your child return to school on the 8th of March with confidence.
What is Learning Outside the Classroom?
Learning Outside the Classroom is focused on the importance of teaching and learning in places other than the classroom. The Council for Learning Outside the Classroom actively promotes getting children out and about, enabling them with challenging, exciting and different experiences to help them learn.
As a teaching tool, Learning Outside the Classroom has been proven to improve attainment and achievement by capturing the interest of all children; it has even been known to better behaviour of even children who can be difficult in a classroom environment.
For some children, the confines of a classroom can negatively affect their focus and attention spans. Sitting at tables and listening to a teacher throughout the day can be challenging. The way a classroom is designed, aiming to encourage competitive and independent learning, can have the opposite effect.
Instead, by mixing up a child’s learning environment, they are less likely to disengage from their surrounds. When each day brings not only a new topic to learn but also a new place to learn in, they are encouraged to take an interest in their surroundings. This stimulation prompts children to become more involved, sparking a sensory reaction, and encourages them to ask more questions.
Learning can happen at any time and almost anywhere, whether it’s a different indoor space or getting children involved outside; local parks, highstreet, museums and art galleries, even the tops of mountains and rivers banks can be used as a classroom. Importantly, these locations are not weather dependant or restricted to certain times of the year; these alternative ‘classrooms’ are accessible all year round.
How can you get involved with your homeschooling routine?
Learning Outside the Classroom is a great way to embellish your children’s learning and is so easy to incorporate into your homeschooling routine. Simply spending time on your daily walk to appreciate nature and the natural habitats that are on your doorstep, can be an extension to your science lessons. Not only will time outdoors refresh everyone’s energy levels and act as a much-needed break from sitting at the kitchen table; but, stopping to focus on the natural world will also help to develop your child’s emotional wellbeing.
Even though many places are currently closed due to the current COVID-19 restrictions, there are still interesting places and landmarks you can visit during your daily exercise. By taking your walks past churches, farmland or even the buildings in your local neighbourhood, your children are able to immerse themselves into the history of their local area, in turn furthering their understanding of their culture and heritage.
All these experiences add to a child’s wider education and life skills. For example, when completing your food shop, get your child involved in learning what ingredients are needed or see if they can add up certain items as you go round. These seemingly small tasks all add up and can help your child understand the basics of budgeting; life skills that will continue to develop and aid them as they grow older.
There are many ways that you can take your child’s education “Beyond the Classroom” and another fantastic option is to organise tutoring sessions. With online tutoring groups, your child can have more 1-2-1 time with a passionate teacher and use the additional support to reach new heights. After such a long time out of the traditional classroom, many children are feeling anxious about returning to school and concerned that they may be behind their peers. On the other hand, many parents are worried that their child hasn’t been progressing at the rate they could have during the lockdown and are looking for some help ensuring they hit their targets.
At Aim High, we are a team of experienced tutors that specialise in supporting children from the age of 5 up to the age of 15 with their core topics – Mathematics, Science and English. We use a four-step process to ensure they achieve the best grades possible and build up their confidence at the same time. If you would like to organise a free trial lesson, please click here.