Blog home
The Blog

Fresh Ideas and Inspiration for education

Maths is Everywhere- Outdoor Maths Resources

In this blog we explore the benefits of outdoor learning and the resources to take Maths outside.

maths

outdoor learning

Posted on Monday 17th July 2023

Maths is Everywhere!

Outdoor Maths

 Maths is everywhere, so take your Maths lessons outside and allow your children to explore Maths concepts on a much grander scale in a natural environment.

Using the senses

Learning can be enhanced through using all our senses and taking Maths outside enables pupils to touch, feel, see, hear, smell and perhaps even taste while exploring Maths problems.

Engaging Pupils

The outdoors provides numerous, fun, motivating Maths opportunities that will engage students, promote curiosity, and enhance mathematical understanding. It can strengthen STEAM skills and 21st Century learning. The children can think critically and apply logic, learn from mistakes, and communicate information to one another. It enables them to think creatively and generate new ideas to solve a problem. It helps develop team building skills as students collaborate and share their thoughts.

Using the Outdoors

Taking Maths outdoors is a wonderful way to explore new mathematical ideas and consolidate prior learning in an active and positive concrete way. When children are outdoors they can be hands-on with materials of different shapes, sizes, colours, textures and patterns. The school playground, field, and garden are ideal places to investigate Maths outdoors, solve problems and make discoveries.

Learning outdoors provides space for physical activity, it benefits health and well-being and gives children fun, engaging ways to learn Maths skills, giving them hands-on experience, bringing Maths to life!

Outdoor Maths Resources

At TTS we have a fantastic selection of outdoor Maths resources, suitable for a wide range of ages and abilities. Rich mathematical language will be developed as you create meaningful Maths activities. We can help you create exciting Maths Trails, engaging Scavenger hunts and provide plenty of fun outdoor Maths learning.

 Great outdoor Maths Resources to get you started:

Other resources for developing a wide range of Maths concepts in fun engaging ways are:

Rugged Robot  

Rugged Robot is our first programmable robot designed for outdoor use!

It is great for outdoor Maths. For directional language, solving multi-step problems and with its data logger, perfect for making graphs.

Ideas for using Rugged Robot with Maths

  • Data Logging

With the data logging backpack attached, collect data at various points of the playground and then use this data to plot graphs. You could set up a journey to repeat a few times in the day and chart the movement of the sun for science too!

  • Shapes

Using Rugged Robot to explore properties of shapes. Children can programme a path for Rugged Robot to create a particular 2D shape. Look at features of the sequence that are needed for different shapes, for example same number of steps for shapes with same length sides.

  • TacTile Reader

With the Tac-Tile reader cover the instructions over and ask pupils to see if they can write out what the steps are from watching the Rugged Robot. Reveal the TacTile reader to see if they were right!

  • Obstacle Course

Set up an obstacle course for Rugged Robot in the playground and see if students can programme their robot to navigate the course without knocking over any obstructions in their path. Set a challenge for teams and deduct time penalties for errors!

Outdoor Maths will engage and energise your children through active Maths sessions and enable them to make sense of otherwise abstract concepts. Using their bodies children can solve mathematical problems.

Outdoor Maths resources and games make Maths real. The pupils will enjoy handling the resources, moving around them and understanding Maths concepts more clearly.

Featured products

Posted in