Learning outside of the classroom comes naturally at The Russell School. With such extensive grounds, there are many opportunities to use our wonderful environment.
At The Russell School, we enrich and enhance our children’s learning experiences through taking their learning outside to develop hands on activities in a natural space. We teach outdoor learning to promote the school’s values across all year groups; opportunities to teach outdoors enhance all areas of the school’s innovative curriculum design.
All inclusive, outdoor learning is planned within our Imaginative Learning Projects to provide depth to learning and fresh perspectives for our children. Innovative opportunities may be on site in our grounds, in walks to local areas, on day trips or on residential visits. Through learning outside and connecting to the natural world, we hope to support the emotional, physical and mental well-being of our children.
Our well-developed Environmental Area with natural pond, wildflower meadow and a variety of habitats for wildlife is a crucial part of our science curriculum, as is our fruit orchard.
All children have the space to embark on growing projects whether they be in the Nursery or Year Six and this is continued in our thriving allotment.
The children have regular sessions in our outdoor classroom which is widely used as a teaching space. Our outdoor stage is used for telling stories and acting out plays. A bespoke tree fort winds its way around our beautiful Hornbeam trees, allowing the children to climb and play. A full orienteering course, encompassing the entire site, provides many opportunities for geography and PE, but is also actively used in both English and mathematics.
We also make full use of our local area; examples of this can be found in Reception who use The Copse to learn about their environment – climbing trees, hunting for animal tracks, cooking sausages in the open air, in Year Three who study our local history and geography in great detail through being out and about in the community and in Year Five who explore our local historical places of interest including Hampton Court.
All classes are encouraged to make a variety of visits throughout the year, including Thames Young Mariners, Ham House, Hampton Court Palace, The Natural History and Science Museums, The Globe Theatre and Kew Gardens to name but a few. All children also have the opportunity to visit the theatre every year.
As well as visiting many locations in London, we travel further afield for our residential journeys. In the Autumn Term, Year Five spend three days at Sayers Croft Environmental Study Centre in Surrey and Year Six have the full Isle of Wight experience for five days in the Summer Term.
We have staff fully qualified in Forest Schools and plan to develop this throughout the school.