Making connections with their world: Outdoor provision for under-twos in early childhood settings in Kent

This report is the second stage of a research project, A life ‘in and with nature?’ An exploration of outdoor provision in baby rooms, made possible by funding from the Froebel Trust. The outdoors is central to Froebelian philosophy and practice and, for Froebel, experiences in the earliest period of childhood were particularly significant since the ‘whole being is here only an appropriating eye…’ This research is inspired by his understanding that, ‘Life in and with nature, and with the clear, still objects of nature must be fostered at this time by the parents and members of the family as the chief point of reference of the whole child-life’1 and seeks to explore its significance in contemporary practice. The growing number of very young children in the UK and beyond who now spend time in formal day care suggest that it is important to know more about outdoor provision for under twos.