Northern Ireland
Situated in Dungannon, The Hill of the O’Neill has been witness to many important historical events through the centuries.
Two types of courses are available in England both are for practitioners working with Early Years Foundation Stage from 2-6+ years old
- The Creating Rich Experiences Outdoors course follows the syllabus of Module 1 of the Certificate in Outdoor Practice. It will help practitioners to understand what children really need in their outdoor environment. The four days of this course are spread over several months to give time in between meetings to put ideas into practice.
- The Certificate in Outdoor Practice focuses on the outdoor provision you make onsite in your setting on a daily basis for all of your children in the Early Years Foundation Stage from 2-6+ years old. A 12-day course that runs over a whole academic year to give time in between sessions to put ideas into practice. With a strong emphasis on early childhood care and education pedagogy, it continues the learning journey begun in your initial training in early childhood education and care, deepening understandings of both child development and the support you can provide for nurturing young children’s wellbeing, learning and development through being, experiencing and playing outdoors.
We have a number of courses running throughout England, complementing the EYFS Statutory Framework for children from 2 years old to the beginning of Year 1 (including mixed R/Y1 units).
The Certificate in Outdoor Practice focuses on the outdoor provision you make onsite in your setting on a daily basis for all of your children from 2-8 years old, working pre-Early level and through First level of Curriculum for Excellence.
With a strong emphasis on early childhood care and education pedagogy, it continues the learning journey begun in your initial training in teaching or early childhood education and care, deepening understandings of both child development and the support you can provide for nurturing young children’s wellbeing, learning and development through being, experiencing and playing outdoors.
We are running courses in Aberdeenshire, complementing Curriculum for Excellence, Realising the Ambition, GIRFEC and UNCRC
Two types of courses are available in Northern Ireland both are for practitioners working with Early Years Foundation Stage from 2-6+ years old.
- The Creating Rich Experiences Outdoors course follows the syllabus of Module 1 of the Certificate in Outdoor Practice. It will help practitioners to understand what children really need in their outdoor environment. The four days of this course are spread over several months to give time in between meetings to put ideas into practice.
- The Certificate in Outdoor Practice focuses on the outdoor provision you make onsite in your setting on a daily basis for all of your children from 2-6 years old. With a strong emphasis on early childhood care and education pedagogy, it continues the learning journey begun in your initial training in early childhood education and care, deepening understandings of both child development and the support you can provide for nurturing young children’s wellbeing, learning and development through being, experiencing and playing outdoors.
We have a number of courses running in Northern Ireland, complementing Sure Start Programmes supporting 2-3 year-olds, the Curricular Guidance for Pre-School Education for 3-4 year-old children and the Foundation Stage guidance for 4-6 year-olds.
There are two qualifications available in Wales.
Tystygrif Bod y tu allan - Is delivered in Welsh by our partners Mudiad Meithrin & accredited by Agored Cymru. I archebu lle ar gwrs Cymraeg cysylltwch ag eunice.jones@meithrin.cymru
The Certificate in Outdoor Practice - Complimenting the Welsh curiculum & delivered in English accredited by AIME. To book onto an english language course go to our find a course page and book through the website.
If there are no courses available and you would like to express an interest please Contact us.
Both courses focus on the outdoor provision you make onsite in your setting on a daily basis for all of your children from 2-6 years old.
With a strong emphasis on early childhood care and education pedagogy, it continues the learning journey begun in your initial training in early childhood education and care, deepening understandings of both child development and the support you can provide for nurturing young children’s wellbeing, learning and development through being, experiencing and playing outdoors.
We are currently planning a number of courses across Wales, complementing the Flying Start Health Programme for 2-3 year-old children and the Curriculum for Wales Framework for children from 3-6 years old.
The Certificate in Outdoor Practice focuses on the outdoor provision you make onsite in your setting on a daily basis for all of your children from 2-6 years old.
With a strong emphasis on early childhood care and education pedagogy, it continues the learning journey begun in your initial training in early childhood education and care, deepening understandings of both child development and the support you can provide for nurturing young children’s wellbeing, learning and development through being, experiencing and playing outdoors.
We are currently developing the possibility for courses in Ireland, complementing the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework Aistear – watch this space!
Three modules each made up of 4 units work together to make up the full level 3 OCN accredited certificate, designed to encourage the development of wonderful outdoor provision that makes the most of being outside. We will support you to work your way through the qualification in the way that works best for you while maximising the benefits for your setting, colleagues, children and families.
Watch videos
Watch Terri Harrison and Dawn Ewan exploring The Certificate in Outdoor Practice. Watch now
Who is the course for?
The course has been specifically designed to extend the understanding and expertise of practitioners and teachers/TAs who have at least 2 years experience in early years practice. The course is also very suitable for those holding a nationally recognised level 3 qualification but with less experience in practice.
So as to complete the implementation aspect of the qualification, you will need to be working or on placement with children from 2 to 6 years in any private, voluntary or maintained early years setting, school or childminding service.
How long is the course?
In general the course spans 12-14 months.
An example of a standard delivery of the full award would be one training day per month then to return to your setting to implement gained knowledge and experience. In this way you would complete a unit every month, a module every 4 months and complete the whole certificate over a 12 month period.
For Privately commisioned courses - This can be done over a shorter timescale but it is very important to allow enough time between each unit before moving on.
How will it work?
Employing a coaching approach, the course supports you to gradually develop a firm basis of understanding and competences in a long-term, incremental and stepped way. The structure allows you to gradually develop your own expertise across the year, providing a slow, regular and manageable approach.
Utilising a blended mix of face-to-face experiential sessions, in-person or online discussion and analysis sessions and guided study, you will be supported to work things out for yourself. Constructive observation, implementation and evaluation in your own setting’s outdoor space ensures that new understandings become embedded into your practice and are maintained. We aim for this training to work for everyone and to involve actual development of your setting’s outdoor provision and practice.
How will it help me?
Undertaking the Certificate in Outdoor Practice will:
- Build up your understanding and commitment to the outdoors as a powerful environment for learning in the early years.
- Foster the practical skills needed for creating a continuously available outdoor environment that really harnesses the special nature of being outdoors to meet how young children are most able to feel good, learn and develop.
- Support you to feel truly comfortable, confident and competent in working in your setting’s outdoor environment.
- Empower you to enact effective early years pedagogies in your work setting.
- Help you create wonderfully rich outdoor provision that works successfully to provide your children with exciting learning experiences that best meet the way they are designed to learn.
- Enable you to provide an outdoor environment that works well throughout the whole year, so that children and staff alike love being outdoors for lots of time, every single day.
What makes it unique?
The qualification is content focused, incorporates active learning and supports collaboration and gradual progress. The course is:
- Focused on the early years of childhood (2-6) and child development and wellbeing.
- Focused on onsite outdoor provision and on continuous provision that makes best use of the special nature and features of the outdoor environment for learning.
- Develops the setting itself as an integral part of the course, resulting in continuously improving provision that operates well throughout the year.
- Supports participants in working with their statutory curriculum framework in the outdoor context.
- Has an enabling and empowering process, working on comfort, confidence, competence, and the ability to articulate to others.
- Centered on research-informed effective early years pedagogies that integrate theory with practice.
- Carefully designed with the express intention of embedding training into practice, drawing explicitly on what is known from research about what makes CPD effective.
- Focuses on personal development of the participant through a coaching and action research style of training, including development of the staff team they work with.
- Provides the participant with a professional qualification as an outdoor specialist.
- Prepares the participant for a progressive range of training and qualification opportunities, broadening the outdoor context (such as Local Nature Play or Forest School) and/or increasing the academic level.
What are the outcomes?
Making a difference for practitioners and children.
The Certificate in Outdoor Practice from Outdoors Thinking has an enabling approach with the following ongoing impact and outcomes for practitioners, managers and settings:
- becoming comfortable and confident about working outdoors;
- becoming competent in being able to see the potential and in working with what the outdoors has to offer;
- knowing how to make the most of its special nature;
- knowing how to best support learning through play outside;
- becoming proactive in enhancing provision, practice and management of the outdoor environment for wellbeing, play, learning and development;
- belonging to peer support networks to sustain developments after the training and continue the journey;
- having essential and solid first steps in continuing on to Forest School or Outdoor Nursery training and qualifications.
How is the course accredited?
Our course in England is accredited by Open College Network West Midlands.
Frequently Asked Questions
Check out our FAQ page
Overview
Module 1
Creating rich experiences
Creating an outdoor environment that provides a rich landscape of stimulating, meaningful and worthwhile possibilities. We take an in-depth look at the incredible potential in the ‘super-ingredients’ of excellent outdoor provision and develop these in your own setting.
Module 2
Supporting Learning outdoors
Ensuring the environment being provided captures the special nature of the outdoors and meets the children’s needs. We explore in depth the natural learning methods of early childhood and work to transfer these into actual practice through developing your educational role.
Module 3
Making outdoor provision work well
Making learning outdoors enjoyable and rewarding and sustainable, requires organisation and management, this third step of the award supports you to make the most of developments in the two prior modules and to continue unlocking the fabulous potential of taking learning outdoors
