Geographical Adventures On The Playground: Outdoor Geography Activities

Author: Rebecca Occomore
Updated on: December 9, 2024

Geography is all about unlocking the outside world so it’s important we make every effort to take learning outdoors. From the physical features of landscapes to different places and people there’s so much we can discover about our world from geography activities. Outdoor geography activities encourage a love for nature and help children understand the world around them in a fun and interactive way. 

As the digital age continues to evolve and with packed curriculum timetables it’s easy for children to become more engrossed in screens and less engaged or willing to explore the great outdoors. However, the playground offers an incredible opportunity to move classroom learning to the outside. Children who enjoy the learning process are more likely to retain information and develop a lasting interest in the subject.

Here at Fun & Active Playgrounds, it’s our passion to create playground markings that make outdoor learning a rich, interesting and enjoyable experience. Our innovative and imaginative designers have devised a range of exciting ways to bring geography into your outdoor space, all in line with the current national curriculum. Whether it’s the physical features of landscapes or different places or people, our geography activities and playground markings can teach children lots about the world in which they live.

Let’s take a look at some creative ideas for outdoor geography activities you can do in your playground with ease.

Our Top Geography Playground Markings and Activities

Europe Map

Our Europe Map holds high educational value, which teachers can use to their advantage, without losing the attention of their pupils. The bright colours draw in the interest of children of all ages and can easily be used to introduce children to facts about their own country and the entire planet, as well as encourage adventure and exploration.

Children will have heard of countries such as Spain and France but our Europe map makes it easy for them to see where these countries are whilst sparking their natural curiosity to learn more about them.

Our Europe Playground Marking also allows children to physically interact with geographical information. They can walk from one country to another or even trace the path of a river; making the learning process more dynamic and engaging.

A fact file activity is a great way to help children develop their general knowledge about neighbouring countries and cultures. Why not use the Europe Map playground marking to bring the entire activity to life?

This fun activity will get children moving around, developing their social skills and learning more about major European countries.

Here’s how to use our Europe Map playground marking to create whole class fact files full of information your children actually want to know.

–   Bring a range of atlases and books outside in baskets plus sheets of large flipchart paper with the name of each country at the top. Spread the baskets of books and flipchart sheets around the area where you’ll be working.

–   Get children to move across the map in different directions. When you blow your whistle ask children to stop.

–   Ask children to turn to a partner and together decide which country they’re standing on.

–   Now ask one child from each pair to ask their partner something about that country. Eg. What’s its biggest river?

–   This partner must then go to the atlases and books and find out the answer.

–   On your whistle, children should go back and share their findings with their partner, then add their answer to the right country list on a big sheet.

–   Repeat the activity.

World Map

Our World Map with Oceans Playground Marking helps children to visualise the world, developing their geography knowledge and awareness. Children are often visual learners, and the large, colourful world map playground marking provides a clear and vivid representation of the world. This visual aid helps children better understand the relative locations of countries, continents, and oceans. Seeing the world laid out on the playground makes abstract concepts more concrete and easier to grasp.

The World Map Playground Marking encourages group activities and cooperative learning. Children can work together to solve geography puzzles, participate in team-based games, or complete scavenger hunts that require them to locate various countries or features. This collaborative aspect supports social skills, teamwork, and communication.

See our fun activity which can be played  using our World Map playground marking:

• Prepare question cards with fun facts or questions about each continent. (e.g., “Which continent is the Sahara Desert located in?” or “Name three countries in South America.”)
• Divide the children into teams and hand out the question cards. Each team will need to read each question and then answer by writing the answer underneath and then placing the completed question card on the relevant continent.
• You may wish to provide teams with atlases and books to assist with answering the questions.
• At the end of the task, all children are to gather around the World Playground Marking and the teacher will work their way across the marking reading out the answers and checking the cards accordingly.

Similar tasks can also be completed for using our UK and Welsh Map.

Compass Points

Our compass playground markings are a powerful tool for enhancing geography learning in children, offering a hands-on and interactive approach to understanding directions and spatial relationships. Introduce children to the intriguing twin subjects of science and geography with our brightly coloured compass playground markings. 

Our range of compass playground markings provide a tactile and visual experience that helps children grasp the concept of the basic cardinal directions in a way that is far more engaging than traditional classroom instruction. By physically moving in the directions indicated by the compass, children can internalise these concepts more effectively. This allows them to quickly progress onto the more complex inter-cardinal directions.

We’ve crafted an activity that combines, problem-solving, team work, physical activity and compass skills:

• Create a series of varying instructions, using compass directions (e.g., “Take 10 steps north,” “Turn east and walk 5 steps”). For older children, use more complex clues and introduce inter-cardinal directions (northeast, southwest, etc.).
• Gather the children at the starting point, preferably where the compass markings are visible.
• Re-explain how to use the compass markings to find directions (north, south, east, west).
• Group the children in teams and hand out the series of instructions.
• The children should read their instructions in their groups and discuss which direction they need to go first.
• It may be a nice idea to have all children to finish in the same spot.
• Celebrate the success and discuss what they learned about using a compass.

Incorporating geographical activities into outdoor play not only enhances children’s understanding of geography but also encourages a love for learning through hands-on experiences. These playful adventures on the playground provide an excellent opportunity for children to develop essential skills such as critical thinking, spatial awareness, and teamwork. By transforming outdoor spaces into dynamic learning environments, we can inspire the next generation to explore, discover, and appreciate the world around them. Let’s embrace the power of play and turn every playground into a hub of geographical exploration and education.

Browse our collection of geography playground markings today.