Outdoor Education Ideas

Hello,

If you’re looking for something to do during the day – don’t forget that spring is here!

If you have a garden, you can look for:
• Flowers starting to grow. Look at the colours of snowdrops and daffodils, as well as any other flowers you may have
• Leaves will start to unfold in trees, making the trees look green again
• Listen for birds in your garden – you can put any crumbs out for them and watch them enjoy the food
• If you have a bird feeder, give it a scrub, rinse it off then fill it up.

If you are inside, you can have a go at growing some plants from vegetable cuttings.

• Carrot tops will grow in a shallow tray of water, and once they sprout you can plant them outside to provide you with carrot greens. If you cut these, you can add them to salads. Just be careful cutting the tops with a knife – this is something best done by an adult.

• A shallow tray with some water in, kept away from direct sunlight with start to grown after about a week.
• Plant out once roots have grown, either in a pot, or in your garden
• Enjoy your carrot greens in a salad!

YouTube also has great clips showing how to grow an avocado plant from the stone. All you need is a small dish with water and 3 or 4 cocktail sticks. Once the roots and leaves have started to grow, you can put it in a pot and keep it inside.

There is a lot to see and do with nature at this time of the year. The animals and plants have been quiet all winter and now is the time they get ready to enjoy the summer weather.

Alan
Teacher of Outdoor Education
Orchard Brae School