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Child Development & Early Education vocabulary · Play and Learning

Outdoor play

Meaning in child development & early education, with examples

nounCore term

In child development & early education, outdoor play means: Play that takes place outside, in a garden, playground, park or forest, giving children space to run, climb, dig and explore nature.

In Turkish: açık hava oyunu, dış mekan oyunu, bahçe oyunu

How it is used

Used in planning, policies and letters to parents. Many settings offer free-flow play, where children move freely between indoors and outdoors. Forest school is a related approach based on regular sessions in woodland.

Example sentences

  1. We go out for outdoor play in all weathers, so please send a raincoat and boots.

  2. Outdoor play gives children space for big movements like running and climbing.

Common collocations

  • free-flow play
  • forest school
  • outdoor learning
  • outdoor area
  • risky playExciting play in which children test their limits and face a small, manageable chance of getting hurt, such as climbing high, balancing or going fast.
  • gross motor skillsSkills that use the large muscles of the arms, legs and body, such as rolling over, sitting, crawling, walking, running, jumping and climbing.
  • learning environmentThe indoor and outdoor spaces, resources and atmosphere of a setting, arranged so that children can explore, play and learn on their own and with others.
  • playActivity that children choose freely and enjoy for its own sake, such as building, pretending, running or exploring; it is seen as a key way young children learn.

More terms: Play and Learning

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