DENNING Montessori offers nursery children access to nature, which is essential for their wellbeing and development.
There are profound benefits to early years children accessing real natural habitats — ordinary gardens, school playing fields, urban parks, and marginal green spaces found in many residential neighbourhoods aren’t enough. The Denning Montessori Nursery and Forest School has been providing young children with access to real countryside — fields with sheep, a vineyard and a stunning private forest — for the last 25 years.
Located just eight minutes’ drive from Henley town centre, it offers a unique rural idyll. Your children are likely to see a variety of animals on the way to school, which adds to the experience.
Early childhood is a critical point in maximising the chances of formative experiences, which is enhanced by facilitating access to natural areas.
Research shows a correlation between those who report having had positive experiences in nature as children and those who take action to protect their environment.
Studies show links between access to nature and the ability to sustain concentration, delay gratification and cope with stress — and the benefits carry on into adulthood.
Studies have also shown that memories of a special place in nature, experienced in childhood, can give a pool of calm that can be drawn on in difficult times. Meanwhile, ethnographic observations have shown games are more imaginative and creative in natural environments.
Studies with children leave no doubt about how natural play stimulates the imagination and fosters a deep sense of connectedness to the larger universe of living things.
Play in nature has been found to promote physical agility and social confidence.
The Denning Montessori School are leaders in nurture, with an exceptional reputation.
Last year the school’s principal Jenny Blain won an award sponsored by Barclays Bank as one of the five most inspirational people in the UK’s childcare sector.
Some places are available for September. For more details, email jenny@Â denningmontessorischool.com or call 07982 620710.
