Time spent outdoors during preschool: Links with children's cognitive and behavioral development

Ulset, Vidar; Vitaro, Frank; Brendgen, Mara; Bekkhus, Mona; Borge, Anne I.H.

doi:10.1016/j.jenvp.2017.05.007

Cited by 126 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 183 publications

(229 reference statements)

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“…A high frequency of outdoor activities in kindergartens represents a practical, easy, effective and cheap way to support child development (Ulset et al, 2017). OE offers a “complex learning environment where nature-based learning is being embraced by educators and can be seen in the experiences offered to children” (p. 11, Macquairre et al, 2015).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, a previous study by two of the authors of this paper (Monti et al, 2017) showed positive effects of a 1-year OE intervention in nursery schools, for children aged 1–3 years: compared to children in more traditional nursery schools, following daily OE activities children showed greater improvements in cognitive, social and emotional development, motor skills, and body functions (e.g., breathing, digestion, sleeping). A study by Ulset et al (2017) followed a cohort of 562 Norwegian children aged 3 to 7 years and measured different mental health dimensions, finding that inattention-hyperactivity symptoms tended to decrease and short-term memory (as measured by a digit span task) tended to improve as time spent outdoors in school increased.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indeed, different factors may influence this relationship and some of them may act as moderators, including child's gender, child temperament, family socioeconomic status, and parents' mental health (Ulset et al, 2017). Also, variables concerning the kindergarten or day-care center may play the role of moderating factors, such as group size and teacher-child ratio, barriers related to the natural context and/or the architectural structures (Ulset et al, 2017), and availability of specific play objects and materials in outdoor places (Brown et al, 2009). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Outdoor Education in Italian Kindergartens: How Teachers Perceive Child Developmental Trajectories

2018

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Outdoor Education (OE) refers to organized experiential education that takes place in the outdoor, characterized by action-centered and thematic learning processes. Literature shows how OE may have beneficial effects on different areas of child development, including cognitive abilities, social skills, and motor development. This relationship is not necessarily linear, but moderated by different variables. Until now, few studies have examined, using rigorous methods, the role of OE in children's development and studies of preschool aged children remain lacking. The current study aimed to explore teachers' perceptions of children's developmental trajectories over 2 school years, investigating whether teachers' perceptions differed between two kindergartens, one characterized by a consolidated OE approach and the other one characterized by a more traditional method of education. The sample was composed of 20 teachers, evaluating 93 children aged 3–5 (M = 46.95 months, SD = 6.73; 42 males): 13 teachers were from a traditional kindergarten (Traditional Group- TG) and evaluated 52 children; 7 teachers were from an OE kindergarten (Outdoor Group—OE) and observed 41 children. All the teachers completed the Kuno Beller Developmental Tables (Mantovani, 1995), in order to describe specific child developmental areas in 4 consecutive moments during 2 school years (T1-T2: January-May 2014; T3-T4: October 2014-May 2015). The 20 teachers also completed the “Outdoor Activities/Trips Diary,” an instrument created for this study to collect qualitative data on the characteristics of outdoor activities. Results showed that, in all the developmental areas, OE teachers perceived higher scores over time were found for the Outdoor Group compared to the Traditional one. Specifically, GLM ANOVAs Repeated Measures revealed a significant interaction of the 2 variables Time and Groups (p < 0.001): contrast analyses showed that OE children, compared to the TG children, were perceived by their teachers with higher levels in all developmental areas at T1 and T2, but not at T3 and T4. The findings suggest that the OE activites, compared to indoor ones and according to teachers' perceptions, offer greater opportunities to promote the child's development at different levels, especially when children are younger. Future studies are recommended analyzing possible moderating variables and long term effects of OE.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Outdoor Education in Italian Kindergartens: How Teachers Perceive Child Developmental Trajectories

2018

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“…This growth in the number of settings has been accompanied by an increasing interest in the practice of learning and teaching in such environments. However, literature so far has mainly focused on the activities taking place in natural environments (Doyle and Milchem 2012;Knight 2011a, b), the benefits of the environment in terms of psychological and cognitive measures (O'Brien 2009;Ulset et al 2017) and the interactions of adult and child within such environments (Waters and Maynard 2010). Moreover, there have been excellent studies that have focused on the person-environment relationship, that have used Ecological Dynamics theory as a framework (Sharma-Brymer et al 2018), proposed pedagogical frameworks using previous research (Barrable 2019), and investigated a sense of autonomy in space in a home context (Green 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shaping space and practice to support autonomy: lessons from natural settings in Scotland

Barrable

2019

Learning Environ Res

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In the present paper, I explore some of the concrete manifestation of autonomy support in natural childcare and early childhood education settings, under the organising framework of self-determination theory. More specifically, I present the ways in which early childhood educators shape the space of natural settings and use the affordances of the natural environment to promote autonomy in children aged 3-8 years. The practices presented are a result of direct observation in several Scotland-based outdoor settings, observations and organic conversations with educators in outdoor and forest kindergartens. Hopefully the practices and spaces presented in this paper can be of use by educators and setting managers who aim to support autonomous learning and intrinsic motivation in their pupils in outdoor natural early years' settings.

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“…While there may be variation in the features and proportion of time spent in each environment, the quality of experiences and interactions that occur in these environments are equally significant (NQS 2016). Despite the importance of both environments to a child's development, little is known about the influence of an educator's interactions with children in outdoor environments; consequently, the value of the outdoor environment for learning and development may be undervalued (Ulset et al 2017). The opportunities that outdoor environments provide-such as space, natural playscapes and access to equipment (e.g., bikes, climbing equipment and balls) also reinforces their unique role in children's learning, health, and development.…”

Section: Early Childhood Education and Care Centersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quality Interactions in Early Childhood Education and Care Center Outdoor Environments

Tonge

Jones

Okely

2018

Early Childhood Educ J

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Quality interactions are crucial for children's learning and development. Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) centers have the opportunity to support children's learning and development, yet the quality of interactions and influences on the quality of interactions in outdoor environments is not known. Research findings: this study assessed the quality of educator interactions in outdoor environments using the CLASS Pre-K assessment tool. 11 ECEC centres participated in the study, which included 110 educators and 490 children. 87 observations were collected to measure the CLASS Pre-K domains (1-lowest to 7-highest). Mean domain scores were 6.02 (emotional support), 5.23 (Classroom Organization) and 4.46 (Instructional Support). Regression analyses show free routines had significant relationships with Teacher Sensitivity (p = 0.03) and Instructional Learning Formats (p = 0.03), and increased amounts of time spent outside had the most significant relationships with Teacher Sensitivity (p = 0.001) and Behavior Management (p = 0.001). Practice or Policy: The major recommendations that would serve to improve the quality of interactions in outdoor environments include providing a free routine and increasing the amount of time spent in outdoor environments. As these recommendations are modifiable practices, they are potentially the easiest to alter and therefore, with minimal change, could enhance the quality of interactions between educators and children.

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Time spent outdoors during preschool: Links with children's cognitive and behavioral development

Abstract: This encompasses peer-perceived popularity status, family functioning, and socioeconomic status. Working memory * A child's score on the digit span test is a measure of working memory.

Cited by 126 publications

References 183 publications

Outdoor Education in Italian Kindergartens: How Teachers Perceive Child Developmental Trajectories

Outdoor Education in Italian Kindergartens: How Teachers Perceive Child Developmental Trajectories

Shaping space and practice to support autonomy: lessons from natural settings in Scotland

Quality Interactions in Early Childhood Education and Care Center Outdoor Environments

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