Suggestions for further reading. Our aim is to help promote inspirational examples from other countries. In case you have suggestions (in English) to add to this list, please contact us.

7 C's - an informational guide to young children's outdoor play spaces / Susan Herrington

The author is a landscape architect, University of British Columbia, Vancouver.
Seven Cs is an informational guide for early childhood educators, designers, administrators, and parents.
1 The goal of Seven Cs is to help people design outdoor play spaces that support the development of young children and integrate the unique qualities of playing outdoors. The guide should be used in concert with existing codes, safety regulations, and design guidelines. Seven Cs is based on findings identified from a five-year multidisciplinary study of outdoor play spaces at child care centres in Vancouver.
2 This study was funded through the Consortium for Health, Intervention, Learning, and Development (CHILD). It has involved academic researchers, early childhood educators, governmental agencies, and professionals.

Play Again

The Coombes Approach: Learning through an experiential and outdoor curriculum / Susan Rowe and Susan Humphries

Over the last 40 years the Coombes School in Berkshire, UK, has developed an international reputation for its innovative approach to Nursery and Infant teaching. In this book Sue Humphries, the founder of the school, and Sue Rowe, the former headteacher, explore the principles behind the school and how others can learn from its approach. In particular, the book focuses on the innovative use of the school’s environment as a unique ‘outdoor classroom’ and the development of a sustainable and safe environment in which pupils can play and learn.
The Coombes Approach covers a comprehensive range of topics from curriculum design, pastoral care and the wider policy and community contexts in which the school has operated. Supported by an online resource bank of pictures of the school environment and pupils’ activities, this is an essential read for school leaders seeking to learn from the successes of the Coombes School’s unique approach to teaching.

Children's Outdoor Play & Learning Environments: Returning to Nature / Randy White and Vicki Stoecklin

Research Summaries – Connecting Children with Nature

These recommended research briefs have been grouped into four categories to make finding what you need as easy as possible. This is only a sampling of the growing body of research on the problem of children’s disconnection from the natural world, and the benefits of increased connection. Our goal is to provide easy access to key research that can be used in advocacy presentations or to share with colleagues. To find more comprehensive listings of research, see the recommended links at the end of this section.

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