Using the Natural Environment to Organize Outdoor Experiential Learning for Preschool Children (Aged 4–5)

Dear Teachers,

I am a student in the Childhood Pedagogy study program at Vilnius College. I invite you to participate in a survey aimed at finding out how preschool teachers use the natural environment to organize outdoor experiential learning for children aged 4–5.

Participation in the survey is voluntary and anonymous. The responses will be used only for academic work and presented in aggregate form.

When answering the questions, please refer to the last four working weeks during which you worked with children aged 4–5. One activity means one separately organized session. In some questions, you may select several answers. If you select “There were no activities,” “Did not use,” or “No assistance needed,” do not select any other options.

If you cannot find a suitable answer among the options, select “Other” and enter your response.

Thank you for your responses!

Olùkọ̀wé nìkan ló lè rí àwọn àbájáde

Àkókò ìdáhùn tí a fojú díwọ̀n less than 11 minutes

Encouraged them to ask questionsInvited them to share their predictionsSuggested testing their predictions through experimentsEncouraged them to compare the resultsInvited them to share their discoveriesThere were no such activities

I planned the objective and the activity steps in advanceI planned the objective, but changed the activity steps in response to the children’s ideasI organized activities in response to the children’s spontaneous interestI did not organize any activities

More natural spaces or better opportunities to access themAdditional exploration materialsMethodological recommendations or activity examplesPractical trainingAdditional adult assistanceNo additional assistance needed

Using the Natural Environment to Organize Outdoor Experiential Learning for Preschool Children (Aged 4–5)

How many experiential activities in the natural environment did you organize during the last four working weeks? ✪

In which natural spaces did you organize activities with the children? ✪

What natural materials did you use when organizing activities? ✪

What did you use natural materials for in the children’s activities? ✪

What kinds of experiential activities did you organize in the natural environment? ✪

During how many separate activities did the children conduct experiments with water, sand, or soil (during the last four working weeks)? ✪

What mathematical tasks did the children do using natural objects? ✪

How did the children explore natural objects and phenomena? ✪

How were the objects for exploration usually chosen? ✪

How did you encourage the children to ask questions and look for answers while exploring nature? ✪

How did you usually plan experiential activities in the natural environment? ✪

What did you usually do when a child was unable to complete an exploration task? ✪

Which areas of children’s learning and development did you aim to foster by organizing activities in nature? ✪

What obstacles prevented you from organizing experiential outdoor activities during the last four working weeks? ✪

What would have helped you better organize experiential activities in the natural environment during these four working weeks? ✪