ICS London Celebrates Outdoor Classroom Day

Nursery and Reception had a wonderful time exploring nature, collecting leaves and throwing them up in the air, digging in the mud and building the most amazing mud castles!   

The children showed such curiosity and creativity as they discovered the different textures, colours, and smells around them. They worked together beautifully — sharing tools, taking turns, and using their imagination. It was such a joy to see their excitement and wonder as they connected with the natural world through hands-on play and exploration!  

In our KS1 Outdoor Learning, the students have been using natural resources to explore and compare numbers, helping us build our mathematical understanding through hands-on, sensory experiences. During wet play, students independently took the lead in using sand and water to co-create a flood scene, inspired by our own real-life experience of a flood in school. This student-led activity encouraged problem-solving, teamwork, and creativity as we made connections between our learning and the world around us.

The teachers also extended their classroom writing lessons outdoors by making their own books, and writing in nature. These experiences support KS1 goals by promoting curiosity, collaboration, and confidence, while developing early numeracy, literacy, and emotional understanding through meaningful, play-based exploration.  

Our Year 5/6 students also took their learning outdoors this week to explore our unit of inquiry, “Justice, empathy, and cooperation support sustainable peace and well-being.”

Guided by the overarching question :How does balance create peace in ourselves, our communities, and our planet? students investigated the idea of positive peace through hands-on experiences in nature.

As Eco-Detectives, they searched for signs of balance and imbalance in the natural world, observing how even small changes can impact whole ecosystems. Meanwhile, others climbed trees to gain new perspectives on balance, both physical and emotional, demonstrating courage, self-awareness, and thoughtful risk-taking.

Throughout the session, learners embodied the Learner Profile attributes of Balanced and Risk-taker, developing self-management skills as they navigated challenges, reflected on safety, and supported one another. They lived our school values of Respect, Resilience, Courage, and Integrity, showing care for each other and for the environment around them.

By combining movement, reflection, and inquiry, our students are discovering that balance -within ourselves, our relationships, and the world around us - is essential for creating peace that lasts.