Informal nature experience on the school playground

Abstract

In Germany, all-day care and all-day schooling are currently increasing on a large-scale. The extended time children spend in educational institutions could potentially result in limited access to nature experience for children. On the other hand, it could equally create opportunities for informal nature experience if school playgrounds have a specific nature-oriented design. This article is written from the perspective of a primary school teacher and presents the findings of a meta-analysis which looks at the impact nature experience has on the development of children. Furthermore, the first results of a research study on green playgrounds in primary schools is discussed. The results so far seem to indicate that green school playgrounds have the potential of providing nature experience particularly for primary students