ANY LEARNER, ANY SUBJECT, ANY DEVICE
How it works
The Outdoor Classroom is an established educational software company offering an all-in-one digital toolkit for schools to take their learning outside of the classroom, and increase physical activity. Inspired by the sport of Orienteering, pupils use a tablet device to navigate around their school site, scanning a series of permanent plaques to uncover curriculum-based questions presented in a variety of media formats.
Easy lesson planning
Teachers can plan active outdoor lessons in a few quick clicks on our schools portal. Courses can be differentiated for all learners, from varied distances to suit physical ability to scaffolded questions for pupils with a mixture of attainment levels. Our vast public media library also offers teacher-vetted media for speedier lesson planning, and a variety of media options to engage pupils with all educational needs.
Engaging active learning
Following their teacher-set courses, pupils locate scannable plaques, installed around their school site, using the digital orienteering map. Scanning the plaques reveals questions or challenges set by the teacher that pupils must solve before moving to the next checkpoint. Any lesson or topic can be taught outdoors, and by offering a boost of energy between each checkpoint helps to engage and focus the learning.
Unmatched data reporting
One of the biggest benefits of The Outdoor Classroom is the ability to track every single step and log all learning that has taken place. This data is available to be viewed for every pupil, class and year group which can be shared with OFSTED, parents and governors to easily evidence the impact of outdoor learning.
VARIED MEDIA FOR ACCESSIBLE LEARNING
Pupils with additional learning needs enjoy using the variety of media formats available. Questions can be presented as audio clips, videos, text or pictures and answers can be given as photos, videos, audio clips or drawings, catering for all styles of learning.
What our schools have to say
Tailored CPD and Teacher Training
Learning outdoors isn't just for students. Everyone can benefit from active learning. Staff training and CPD sessions can be delivered using The Outdoor Classroom to get staff actively engaged. All members have access to a training module which can be used to deliver customised teacher training sessions at a time and date to suit staff schedules.
Partnership with British Orienteering
Thanks to The Outdoor Classroom creating new and innovative opportunities for orienteering to reach a wider audience, we have partnered with British Orienteering (the National Governing Body for orienteering in the UK). We are delighted and honoured to be recognised in this way for the work that we are doing and we are excited to work together on lots of initiatives to grow participation in the sport.
Festivals and Competitions
Creating equal sporting opportunities for children is at the very heart of what we do, which is why we offer annual competitions like The Big League and regularly release pre-planned content for special seasons and educational events like Women’s History Month and Internet Safety Awareness Day, that can be used for intra-school competition. On a more local level, our Little Leagues programme allows SGOs, SSPs and clubs to create smaller-scale leagues for schools within their network to encourage increased activity and boost sporting competition opportunities without the need to travel.
“ I never got the opportunity to do Orienteering at school. Instead, on the weekend, my parents took me all over the country to participate in events. I was incredibly fortunate.
The problem is that so many children miss out on these opportunities to engage in sports and reap the benefits that come along with it, which is really what drives me every day — making that possible for all children. ”
Josh Jenner
Founder & CEO