The Effects of Outdoor Play & Children with Learning Disabilities – The outdoors is a key learning and play environment for all children. Being outside allows children to interact with their environment, greatly aiding their development. They enhance their socialising skills as they discover new and exciting things with their friends, and it is no different for children that have disabilities.

Children with disabilities are highly likely to produce stronger responses outdoors compared to when they are playing indoors. For children that have disabilities, it can be a huge disadvantage for them to spend more time indoors as they need to be outside for fresh air and exercise.

Outdoor activity increases cognitive functions such as thinking, remembering, decision making and learning. This is doubly important for children with disabilities as the outdoors can make learning much more fun. For children that have autism and ADHD, outdoor play provides them with the space they need to work off that excess energy and interact with new people. It has been proven that outdoor play helps enhance their mental focus, making learning become that little bit easier. Anything that helps to make learning for any child easier is well worth investing in.

We have a range of Multi Use Games Area’s, or MUGA’s, that are suitable for a variety of sports such as Football, Basketball, Hockey and more, giving children the perfect opportunity to learn, interact, develop, socialise and have fun. Not all children enjoy taking part in sports, but some children love to watch and when they are provided with the correct facilities, it’s like watching the real thing for them which they can find really exciting and stimulating. Hopefully, in time, this will encourage them to eventually take part.

Some children with learning difficulties struggle to express how they are feeling. Hence why it is important for us to create an environment which takes their mind off their worries so they can just have fun. Playing outdoors allows them to adapt to different learning environments which can only be beneficial for them.

Quite simply, outdoor play results in happier, healthier children and that is what we want to help achieve.

We hope you have enjoyed this blog ‘The Effects of Outdoor Play & Children with Learning Disabilities’. If we can help improve your school or park, please contact us today, our team is ready to assist.