EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT

Lesson 22: Out door play activities in ECE center

Environmental study or Nature study

This is a very important and essential activity in ECE centre. This provides opportunity for the children to come out of four walls and be familiar with outside environment. This activity aids in intellectual, emotional and social development of children. Hence all ECE centers must have provision to take the children round to different places to expose them to natural activities in the environment. The teachers should bear in mind that no model, how much valuable it may be, can convey sufficient idea as the real object in nature will do.

Nature study has another advantage. While observing different things or phenomena in nature children ask various questions and talk among themselves. This provides them with ample opportunities to express their feelings and helps in fluent speech. The children should be encouraged for free and spontaneous growth and development. They should be exposed to different objects of nature. This will help the children to have sufficient ideas about the nature. This direct approach with the nature will help them to understand the nature better than any type of explanation given by the teacher. Children should be encouraged in the activities like collecting different materials and objects from nature and preserving them for development of pre- arithmetical skills such as shape, size, colour and counting etc.