What if early literacy learning did not always happen at a table indoors, within a book corner or a planned activity?
How wonderful if early literacy experiences for under-fives are already happening outdoors in nature, sometimes without us even noticing.
UKLA funded research project ‘Research Circle: Exploring outdoor nature-based literacy learning with families of under-fives’
Our UKLA-funded project explores the idea of literacy learning within nature outdoors. We investigate the potential of outdoor nature-based leisure activities to support literacy learning for under-fives and their families within our successfully established Research Circle (RC) model (Boardman et al., 2023; Boardman et al., 2024). Our RC approach is to ensure participatory, ethical and the democratic involvement of families. As such, we adopt a broad view of literacy learning within this RC project which includes speech, language, communication, comprehension, early reading and writing (Broadman, 2024).
Many UK families spend regular time (61% “monthly”, 31% “at least weekly” from 5,126 parents) in nature with their children (ParentKind, 2023), yet research has rarely explored what these experiences mean for early literacy. A small number of studies (Richardson, 2014; Richardson and Murray, 2017; Hacket et al., 2021) link nature and literacy learning, but mostly focus on teachers (Norling and Sandberg, 2015) rather than families. This is somewhat surprising because literacy can and does happen naturally when outdoors in nature: a child spotting and naming an animal, reading signs and following maps (emergent literacy), matching pictures, jumping in puddles etc. However, policy and most school-based approaches do not always value diverse literacy learning, which includes nature-based learning outdoors and the pivotal contribution of families. Our study aimed to shift this lens of supporting literacy as everyone’s responsibility (Boardman, 2024) and as part of the everyday worlds of families and communities.
Families attending nature-based settings in the North-West of England were involved in our RC in sharing their experiences and ideas about an outdoor nature-literacy resource. We explored their views on:
- The value of outdoor nature-based experiences with their children;
- How, if at all, literacy featured within these experiences;
- What literacy learning outdoors might look like.
Our findings so far
Our findings so far reveal that families are already engaging in meaningful literacy learning in nature. Many activities families described were examples of “sneaky literacy”: joyful nature-based moments of talk, noticing, questioning and storytelling that quietly build on early literacy learning. Themes from the questionnaire and focus group workshops with 26 families highlight that families notice, value and enjoy being outdoors in nature, which leads to supporting early literacy, even unintentionally.
- Families feel at ease in nature: most families who participated in the research accessed parks, forests and farms and described their outings as “cherished”, “joyful” and “freeing”. This sense of ease supports spontaneous literacy moments.
- Nature features constant prompts for literacy: families reported vocabulary-rich exchanges including naming animals, asking questions, discussing the weather, identifying birds and leaves and listening to sounds. Common interactions included question-and-answer exchanges, descriptive talk and reading signs.
- Literacy is embedded within outdoor play: families described treasure hunts, cloud-watching, pond dipping, gardening and wildlife spotting. Children engaged in telling their own stories, imaginative play, map reading, pattern identification. Some families reported their children linking what they learned outdoors to school topics or books, showing a deeper comprehension and meaning making.
- Literacy is not just about reading and writing: families shared their experiences of listening to sounds, building dens, expanding descriptive language and an improved understanding of the world and their place in it.
What does this mean for practitioners (and where to learn more)?
Practitioners working with families can focus on the value of literacy learning in everyday environments. Literacy learning happens everywhere – particularly including outdoors, often in small spontaneous moments (e.g. a child spotting an animal). Practitioners can help make sneaky literacy in nature visible and support families with the value of being outdoors.
It is more useful to think about literacy through a much broader lens, so that practitioners can nurture literacy outdoors within nature alongside talk, play, movement, exploration and sensory experiences.
Practitioners can access more information about the project through forthcoming conference presentations (Better Help 2026, UKLA 2026), UKLA Literacy Journal article submission and a chapter that will be part of the Handbook for Outdoor Education and Outdoor Learning (2028). A family-friendly pocket resource will also be co-designed with families to offer practical outdoor nature-based literacy activity ideas based on our research findings.
References
Boardman, K. (2024). Early Literacy for Under-Fives. London: Sage.
Boardman, K., Hindley, C., & Cont, S. (2023). Supporting under-fives and their families with communication, language and literacy development: A collaborative research circle project. Impact (19), 57-59. https://my.chartered.college/impact_article/supporting-under-fives-and-their-families-with-communication-language-and-literacy-development-a-collaborative-research-circle-project/
Boardman, K., Cont, S., & Davey, C. (2024). The ethics and integrity of research with schools, families and communities. Impact (22), 58-61. https://my.chartered.college/impact_article/the-ethics-and-integrity-of-research-with-schools-families-and-communities/
Hackett, A., MacLure, M., & McMahon, S. (2021). Reconceptualising early language development: matter, sensation and the more-than-human. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 42(6), 913-929. https://doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2020.1767350
Norling, M., & Sandberg, A. (2015). Language learning in outdoor environments: Perspectives of preschool staff. Nordisk barnehageforskning, 9.
ParentKind. (2023). The National Parent Survey 2023. National Parent Survey https://www.parentkind.org.uk/assets/resources/The-National-Parent-Survey-UK-2023.pdf
Richardson, T. (2014). Speech and language development in a forest school environment: an action research project. SAGE Publications. https://study.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/speech-language-development-forest-school-environment-action-research.pdf
Richardson, T., & Murray, J. (2017). Are young children’s utterances affected by characteristics of their learning environments? A multiple case study. Early Child Development and Care, 187(3-4), 457-468. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2016.1211116