Active Boundaries - case studies

Settings using our Active Boundaries resources report wonderful breakthroughs in spatial awareness & physical development, with children showing increased confidence in climbing and balancing.

Outdoor Hub

Blossom Years

Blossom Years, Imperial Way, is a Preschool Nursery in Chislehurst which is a green village in South London, with woodlands, fields and duck ponds. Chislehurst is classed as an affluent area.

The Preschool is next to Belmont Open Space and woodland with a Forest School Garden that backs on to a large field with horses which are very popular with the staff and children.

Thank you, Blossom Years, for sharing your experience of using our Active Boundaries resources.

Muddy Faces MFW4502 child crawling under bridge stile Blossom Years 60x60

"We thought the Active Boundary equipment would extend their favourite activities, allow them to make choices and give more ‘open ended’ opportunities for play. The equipment is great for demonstrating positional language, the children like to show me how they can “squeeze” through fence spaces and “crawl under” the ladder. The children also like to ‘decorate’ the fences and hang things off the posts.

Muddy Faces MFW4500 Footpath Stile 80cm child sat on stile near other children Blossom Years 2 60x60

"Although the children like to play independently they also enjoy inviting the adults to join in their play and like to show us what they can do, they ask us to “watch me ... ” or “I can do ... ”

This morning there was storm damage in the garden and we went for a walk around Forest School looking for changes. The children enjoyed working together to lift up and reposition the fence panels which had been blown over, it’s great that the AB resources are portable and can be moved around. I have also been using the fence panels to block off our fire pit when we are cooking, it means the children can watch what’s going on safely."

Muddy Faces Active Boundaries resources set up to create circular space child in centre Blossom Years 60x60

Top Tips

We set up the equipment in a basic circular shape and waited to see what the children would do. Once they had mastered the ladder and stile we felt comfortable to add some loose parts for them to include.

We have cable reels that became tables, camouflage netting which became a shelter, cushions that became a bed, and wind chimes and signs which became decorations for their structures.

They also bring the pots and pans from the mud kitchen to extend the activity and the younger children like to use the wheelbarrows to transport the dinosaurs, trucks and bark to ‘their space’.

St Patrick's Family Learning Centre

St Patrick’s Family Learning Centre operates from 8am-6pm; accommodated within a PPP facility which was purpose built in 2007. It comprises of 2 small playrooms for younger children and 1 large open plan room for 3–5-year-olds. Children hold various attendance patterns to support the needs of families.

All children have daily access to both indoor and outdoor learning opportunities and in the larger room this access is free-flow for most of the day.

Thank you, St Patrick's, for sharing your experience of using our Active Boundaries resources.

"One of our Lead Practitioners who had been looking for flexible boundaries for our 3-5 garden entered a Muddy Faces Active Boundaries newsletter giveaway and won!

We constantly strive to improve our outdoors environment to keep it stimulating and interesting for the children and the Active Boundaries resources seemed to fit the bill perfectly as they can be moved, interchanged with other resources, and also invite ideas and suggestions from the children as to how to use them.

MFW4613 Ladder Stile Set St Patricks Family Learning Centre child crawling under fence flap cropped 60x60

"Our children were so excited when they saw the new resources. They offered ideas about where they should be placed, moved them around, helped each other lift and manoeuvre the various sections, drew their ideas on large scale plans and took photographs for our display wall.

Staff noticed that some of the children required support to climb up the stile and also to remember to bend down low enough to crawl through the flap, this then led onto some children role modelling actions for other peers and also challenging staff to copy too – much to the children’s delight and which caused lots of laughter as they watched staff shimmy under, through and over the boundaries.

It’s been lovely seeing the teamwork develop amongst the children. The children have been developing not only their spatial awareness and physical skills but their mathematical and expressive language, their technical skills in problem solving, positive relationships and imagination."