LINDEN PUPILS LEARN ABOUT THE OUTDOORS

Have you noticed the newly planted trees at Linden School? They’re in the plot of land that is on the corner of Hawthorne Drive and Headland Road. These are native British trees and include silver birch, oak and beech. Well done to children at Linden School for planting them.
The school is actively promoting the use of the outside environment as a learning resource. You may have seen the children wearing their waterproof clothing, provided by the school, as they carry out their assignments. They are learning about natural resources around them and have been building shelters, constructing rope ladders, and using a variety of tools.
“When we go outside we get to do exciting things like looking at plants and planting trees,” says Shoheib Ebrahim (age 5).
“I like outdoor learning because it makes the lessons more fun,” says Krishan Patel (age 9).
What a delightful, positive attitude!
In fact, Linden School’s recent Ofsted inspection report supported the school’s view that outdoor lessons are beneficial to children’s learning.
“Outdoor learning helps pupils to investigate and practise newly learned skills and is contributing to the improvement in standards in mathematics and science.”
A letter to all pupils from the Lead Inspector said, “Your school provides you with lots of interesting ways to help you learn. It is great that you are making such good use of your large outdoor area to help you with your learning. We saw this when you were doing some measuring outside as part of your maths lesson. I hope the 60 trees that you planted in the spinney flourish so that children in years to come can enjoy the Linden Forest that you have made.”
Linden School is full of happy children being taught by a team of dedicated staff.
Mr Zaheer Mohamed, Headmaster, says, “Members of the community are more than welcome to visit the school and the spinney.”
For more information about what the children’s outdoor learning involves, or to arrange a visit, please telephone Leicester 2738435 and ask to speak to Carmen Phillips.
We could all learn a great deal from this wonderful initiative. Well done Linden School.
Sue Massey