Welcome to the heart of educational excellence at Huili Nursery Hangzhou, where our commitment to holistic development resonates through every aspect of our teaching and learning. Our core values serve to create an unparalleled learning environment. Explore the insights shared by our highly experienced early years specialists detailing our daily efforts to offer an educational experience that goes beyond the ordinary. In our nursery, these principles are instilled in our youngest learners, laying the foundation for a lifetime of curiosity, exploration and academic success.
We recently organised a workshop for parents in EY1 and EY2 to share our vision about outdoor learning for their children and how we see it as valuable as the indoor classroom.
What is outdoor learning
at Huili Nursery?
Greg Pauline
Early Years Class Teacher
Early Years Education Coordinator
The significance of outdoor play has been extensively documented, as has the impact of outdoor experiences on academic success later in school life. At Huili Nursery Hangzhou, our carefully guided outdoor exploration equips children for a diverse range of environments in a world that demands imagination, innovation, teamwork, and positive collaboration.
Being outside not only benefits our minds, but it is also crucial for our physical and emotional wellbeing, pushing ourselves to strive further and discover our limitless potential. By persevering and taking calculated, guided risks, we develop into the individuals we are meant to be.
Here at Huili Nursery, we are nurturing the next generation of innovators, inventors, creators, and leaders. We need to put ourselves to the test, which applies to both indoor classroom education and outdoor experiential learning. This means that even when the weather isn't ideal, such as during rain or snow, spending time outside remains crucial.
Valentina Caputo
Early Years Class Teacher
Grade Leader
For the younger children in EY1 and EY2, this means fostering a love for curiosity while developing the whole body. For example, how the sky changes colour? How can I go fast and slow? How do I experience wet and dry, warm and cold?
A leaf can become a ticket to the cinema, mixing dirt and pouring it into cups will gather children in their little cafe and building with large blocks will take you to a doctor’s surgery where children role-play by making medicines and curing patients with rocks, sand and leaves. These may look like simple activities, but it takes a developed set of skills to interact, express and imagine independently.
As a whole year group with the support of Ms Irina and Ms Kelly, our atelierista and music teacher, we designed some experiences for children to explore the essence of the four elements: water, fire, earth and air. Through water I can see how emotions change and transform, with fire I can feel the energy released by pushing and moving objects and by creating new products and patterns. Earth can help ground and connect with natural materials like clay, rocks, dirt and sand; air can support body movement and the flow of ideas coming and going as children test them.
Learning outside is not only about physical exercise, but it becomes an inner motivation to be part of our community: be a connector and explorer.
How does learning outdoors
impact young children's development?
Become aware of body safety. This means for the child to start questioning 'How can I protect myself? What happens if I feel too cold or too hot? How do I deal with a new challenge?'
Boost problem solving and conflict resolution skills when interacting with others. While outside children have much more space and open-ended resources to negotiate and often, it takes friendships to change and transform as children meet with peers from other classrooms in a different context.
Cultivate an organic connection with nature. Basking in the sunshine, listening to the sound of the rain, waiting and growing a true admiration for nature are some of the possibilities that children master when being able to observe and appreciate the changes and richness of the natural landscape around us.
Also, learning in nature can improve overall health by actively engaging the development of the whole body.
Lily Xie
Deputy Head Nurse
From a medical point of view, outdoor activities can enhance children's human functions and immune system defence.
The ultraviolet rays of the sun, when exposed to human skin, allow us to produce our own vitamin D3. This vitamin can support the optimal bone growth process.
When outdoors children come in contact with a variety of microorganisms that support their body to build immunity accordingly. From dirt to sand and water, children have the opportunity to become stronger while being out in the fresh air.
When outdoors the light perceived by our eyes is natural and less constraining to eye development compared to indoor lighting. Research shows how schools that encourage a longer and prolonged time outdoors for their learning result in overall better eyesight development in children.
Learning outdoors is not only physical exercise and not only for young children but also about wondering how a little seed can grow into a tall tree, how clouds move so fast or slow, how free you can feel when sitting on the grass and observing the world around you. This is a lifelong process to embrace and cultivate!
What is your favourite memory as a child when exploring outdoors?
In choosing Huili Nursery Hangzhou for your child's early years, you're not just selecting a nursery; you're embracing a community where values matter, identities flourish, missions are accomplished, and visions become realities. Our commitment to providing a rich, bilingual environment, steeped in Huili Values, ensures that your child's journey begins on a solid foundation of courage, integrity, respect, and responsibility. As parents, your involvement in this unique educational community has become a shared venture, shaping the future leaders and innovators of tomorrow. Every day is an opportunity for your child to grow, learn, and thrive because Huili Nursery Hangzhou is where excellence meets early education, and the promise of a brighter future begins.
