“We give the world to the child,” he/she/they argued Maria MontessoriInspired by this warning, the teachers at the IH-Oxford nursery school opened the classroom doors onto the school's garden.

The process of learning and growth, therefore, did not stop within the walls of the classroom, which was populated every day, but went beyond, under the blue of the sky and the green of the pomegranate trees.

Every Friday, indeed, the children put on their colourful raincoats, slip on their cheerful wellington boots and are ready for A thousand and one adventures. The young pupils discover a myriad of insects, observe the colour of leaves and their fantastic shapes, share secrets with a special “telephone”, prepare cakes and pizzas, sift, count, group, and divide, perceiving with all their senses. In short, a free environment that promotes and reinforces their precious creativity.

This appointment fits perfectly with the Montessori philosophy according to which the child needs both nature to reconnect with it, and movement as a means for true learning.

Learning that takes place outdoors, allowing children to move freely and explore with every part of their body, becomes joyful, pleasant learning that will remain with them for life.

The appointment is fixed and regular, and the children now await it with the joy and enthusiasm that allow them to develop a eco-responsible behaviour and to internalise the rules, rituals and timings that belong to this place.

Next Friday, to the next adventure with the awareness that “Children and gardens are alike. A garden is never today what it was yesterday. Neither is a child. One moment and it has already changed.”, as we read in the book by Beatrice Manni and Francesca Ballarini in the book “Children and Gardens”.

curated by educationalist Francesca Guido and the team from the International House Oxford Lecce Nursery School