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Outdoor Classroom Day

Outdoor Classroom Day is a global movement to inspire and celebrate outdoor play and learning, at home and at school. On Outdoor Classroom Day itself, which has two dates each year, teachers celebrate with a special day outdoors for their class.

Dorset Coast Forum celebrate Outdoor Classroom Day every Spring and Autumn and invite Dorset coastal schools and communities to join us in celebrating our coast. We offer opportunities for schools to join us out and about on the coast to learn about their local coastline in a fun and interactive way.

If your school or community group are interesting in taking part, please contact us to find out if we have a project in your area.

Visit Outdoor Classroom Day website
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Outdoor Classroom Day Baiter Park Poole - 22 May 2025

We had a fantastic time celebrating #OutdoorClassroomDay2025 at Baiter Park in Poole this May!

The event brought together 166 enthusiastic pupils from 7 local schools, accompanied by 26  school staff, for time out of the classroom packed with over 15 fun and educational STEAM activities focused on our incredible coastline and its wildlife.

Here are some of activities that took place:

A huge thanks to all the schools and organisations who took part and got involved. The weather was perfect, the pupils were engaged and well  behaved, and the energy and enthusiasm from all the activity leaders made it a truly memorable experience. We loved seeing so much joy, curiosity, and learning in action!

 

            • Bayside Academy
            • Bishop Aldhelm’s Primary
            • Canford Heath Junior School
            • Manorside Academy
            • St Joseph’s RC Primary
            • Talbot Primary
            • Longspree Academy

Here are some brilliant Pledges for the Ocean made by students at Outdoor Classroom Day in May.

Photo Gallery - Outdoor Classroom Day Baiter Park Poole

Chesil Cove Outdoor Classroom Day

 January 2025

Dorset Coast Forum visited Year 6 and Year 10 students at the Atlantic Academy, Portland.  Due to the weather it was a mixture of indoor and outdoor classroom day with a range of activities covering coastal management. A tour of the coastal defences at Chesil Cove, Portland took place in the classroom using Google Earth. The highlight of the day being the wave tank demonstrating how different flood defences work. A quick tour of the Great Gale 1824 exhibition showing the impact of an extraordinary storm 200 years ago in Portland and throughout the Dorset coast helped us to consider how coastal defences now help protect our coasts and communities.

See the wave tank in action in the video below.

Swanage Outdoor Classroom Day November 2024

Dorset Coast Forum Project Officer Sara and artist Andy Knill Art celebrated Outdoor Classroom Day 2024 on the 7th November. Pupils of St George’s, St Mary’s and St Mark’s schools and community group @allsortd joined them on Swanage seafront to view and learn more about why this coastal flood protection scheme is so vital. They followed the Flooding Swanage with Art trail on the temporary flood defence blocks along the seafront from the Mowlem to Gee Whites.

Art trail leaflets are available from Swanage Information Centre and you can find out more about the

>> Swanage Town Coastal Protection Scheme

Swanage Wave Barrier Art Project November 2023

Children from 3 Swanage Schools were taken on a ‘Talking Art Walk’ along the seafront to see the Flooding Swanage with Art project with DCF Project Officer Sara Parker and local artist Andy Knill.

Swanage Seafront May 2023

Swanage schools joined DCF and educational experts from Sustainable Swanage and the Environment Agency and took part in hands-on science and technology activities.