Provide autonomy-supportive outdoor play in nature-rich settings to foster children's creativity¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 2 studies (2 review), q1–q2 · 0 of 2 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description¶

Across the reviewed kindergarten and nature-school studies, an important factor coinciding with nature exposure was the autonomy-supportive environment facilitated by teachers: children were encouraged to direct their own play and granted a high level of autonomy to use the natural setting as a canvas for their imagination. The open, ambiguous characteristics of nature kindergartens — lack of fences and manufactured equipment, and raw materials that can be moved and interacted with in different ways — facilitated a dynamic play environment. The review recommends considering autonomy and other situational factors when interpreting results of nature exposure interventions.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Access to outdoor natural settings with diverse raw natural materials
• Teachers who support child-directed play rather than directing activity

Constraints¶

• The review notes autonomy itself has been found to significantly predict creativity, so it may confound attributions of gains to nature exposure alone

Target Learners¶

• preschool and kindergarten children
• primary school students

Target Learning Goals¶

• creative imagination
• playfulness
• problem-solving in play

Affordances¶

• Art Soft Fascination Nature Creativity

Claims¶

• Creativity-supportive school climates combine autonomy, psychological safety, teacher encouragement, and rich resources [+W]
• Qualitative studies identify potential mechanisms linking nature and creativity, including solitude, relaxation, inspiration, and disconnection from technology [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Interaction with Natural Environment
• Guided Play

Examples¶

-

Key Sources¶

• Vella-Brodrick, D. A., Lewis, K. J., & Gilowska, K. (2024). Exploring the Nature-Creativity Connection Across Different Settings: A Scoping Review. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-024-09964-0