Outdoor Adventure Education
At Rumworth we have a developing Adventure Learning curriculum. As with all innovative approaches to learning, we aim to be values led, evidence informed and impact focussed. Developing our students’ independence and employability skills are two of our key curriculum intent themes.
The Education Endowment Fund (an independent charity dedicated to breaking the link between family income and educational achievement) and research conducted by the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom, clearly indicates that regular access to Outdoor Learning will aid us in developing our students as team players, being trustworthy, being responsible, having excellent communication skills, developing emotional intelligence, developing decision making skills and developing a strong mind set. Having spoken to employers, we know these skills are highly valued in the workplace too. To this end, outdoor education supports us in our wider curriculum key themes of independence and employability.
Growing Places
We encourage all curriculum areas to utilise our extensive outdoor space - ‘Growing Places’. Our staff fully understand the benefits of outdoor education and look for opportunities to deliver aspects of their lessons within this special provision.
Each day, all students have a 30 minute Outdoor Learning session. Our teachers provide a range of options for the students to access. Examples include sporting activities like football, rugby, handball and basketball. Team games like French boules, problem solving and orienteering. Artistic activities such as outdoor art, photography and music. Nature appreciation through outdoor walks, access to Forest Schools and our outdoor debating society.
All KS3 students access our wonderful Forest Schools provision once per week. Forest Schools immerses our students in a natural environment, fostering connections with nature, promoting holistic development and enhancing wellbeing
.
Duke of Edinburgh Award
We proudly facilitate the Duke of Edinburgh Award program, providing opportunities for our 6th Form students to achieve Bronze, Silver, and the prestigious Gold awards, empowering them to engage in outdoor expeditions, community services and personal development activities that foster resilience, leadership skills and a sense of accomplishment.
Horticulture
Our 6th Form Horticulture vocational pathway opens the door to a plethora of enriching outdoor educational experiences for our students. Students immerse themselves in the art and science of cultivating and growing crops, witnessing firsthand how this transforms our school kitchen and bistro menus. Beyond the soil, students delve into the intricacies of planting and maintaining a variety of plants and flowers, acquiring essential skills to care for expansive outdoor spaces. The students are situated within our horticultural provision, utilising our two outdoor classrooms as their bases. These spaces serve a dual purpose, serving as areas for both collaborative activities and the completion of theoretical components required for their accreditations.
Rumworth Grand Show
The Rumworth Grand Show is an annual Rumworth School competition. All students and staff are encouraged to take part and contribute. Each class, across school and 6th form, has a plot of land to sow, grow and harvest edible produce and each year group has a larger plot of land to design, build and maintain a show garden. A show garden creates the illusion of a larger space in a small area. That’s the secret: create an illusion of space and the garden suddenly becomes more interesting. Each year group is judged on choosing an appropriate theme, an appropriate design, quality of the execution and how well their allocated budget has been spent. Both the design process and the eventual judging is supported by professional judges who contribute to the Chelsea Flower Show.
Outdoor Learning
The students thrive during Outdoor Learning and the positive influence of this time spent outdoors extends beyond these sessions. Access to adventure outdoor learning has shown positive benefits to our students’ behaviour, their non-cognitive outcomes such as self-esteem and subsequently their academic progress.