Looking for fresh ways to teach shape, space, and measure? Take your maths lesson outdoors! Teaching these concepts outside not only makes learning more fun and memorable, but it also helps students apply maths in real-world contexts—measuring natural items, comparing sizes, spotting shapes in the environment, and even calculating capacity using leaves and sticks.
Here are six easy-to-run outdoor lessons that cover key curriculum objectives while getting your students active and engaged:
1: Outdoor Measuring Scavenger Hunt
Send students on a scavenger hunt where they’ll measure lengths using standard or non-standard units and solve clues as they go. This lesson combines problem-solving with movement and is perfect for building early measuring skills outdoors.
Download here.
2: Capacity Hunt
Get creative with this hands-on exploration of capacity. Students estimate and measure how much various containers hold using water or natural materials, developing an understanding of volume in a practical, splash-friendly way.
Download the lesson here.
3. Ordering Lengths in Nature
This activity challenges students to collect and measure items like sticks, stones, or leaves, then order them from shortest to longest. It’s a great way to reinforce size comparison, number ordering, and measuring accuracy—all with items they find outside.
Download the outdoor lesson here.
4. Column Addition Using Real Measurements
Bring addition to life by measuring different items outdoors and then adding them together using column addition. A great link between number operations and real-world measuring tasks.
Download the column addition lesson here.
5. Classic Shape Hunt
This set of task cards is perfect for encouraging independent exploration of shape, position, and measurement concepts. Students work through a variety of outdoor challenges—like finding right angles in the environment, spotting 3D shapes, or estimating distances. Use them as a warm-up, main activity, or station rotation to reinforce key maths skills in a practical setting.
Download the task cards here.
6. Measuring The Wild
This open-ended activity encourages students to use different tools (or their own hands, feet, and leaves!) to measure natural items. Then they’ll order, compare, and even record data, making it a fantastic mix of maths, science, and nature.
Download the activity sheet here.
Teaching maths outdoors brings abstract concepts to life and helps students see their relevance in the real world. Whether you’re measuring muddy puddles or estimating the volume of a leaf pile, the natural world is full of opportunities to explore shape, space, and measure.
Browse all our outdoor maths resources on Educate Outside and make your next maths lesson a breath of fresh air!
Looking for fresh ways to teach shape, space, and measure? Take your maths lesson outdoors! Teaching these concepts outside not only makes learning more fun and memorable, but it also helps students apply maths in real-world contexts—measuring natural items, comparing sizes, spotting shapes in the environment, and even calculating capacity using leaves and sticks.
Here are six easy-to-run outdoor lessons that cover key curriculum objectives while getting your students active and engaged:
1: Outdoor Measuring Scavenger Hunt
Send students on a scavenger hunt where they’ll measure lengths using standard or non-standard units and solve clues as they go. This lesson combines problem-solving with movement and is perfect for building early measuring skills outdoors.
Download here.
2: Capacity Hunt
Get creative with this hands-on exploration of capacity. Students estimate and measure how much various containers hold using water or natural materials, developing an understanding of volume in a practical, splash-friendly way.
Download the lesson here.
3. Ordering Lengths in Nature
This activity challenges students to collect and measure items like sticks, stones, or leaves, then order them from shortest to longest. It’s a great way to reinforce size comparison, number ordering, and measuring accuracy—all with items they find outside.
Download the outdoor lesson here.
4. Column Addition Using Real Measurements
Bring addition to life by measuring different items outdoors and then adding them together using column addition. A great link between number operations and real-world measuring tasks.
Download the column addition lesson here.
5. Classic Shape Hunt
This set of task cards is perfect for encouraging independent exploration of shape, position, and measurement concepts. Students work through a variety of outdoor challenges—like finding right angles in the environment, spotting 3D shapes, or estimating distances. Use them as a warm-up, main activity, or station rotation to reinforce key maths skills in a practical setting.
Download the task cards here.
6. Measuring The Wild
This open-ended activity encourages students to use different tools (or their own hands, feet, and leaves!) to measure natural items. Then they’ll order, compare, and even record data, making it a fantastic mix of maths, science, and nature.
Download the activity sheet here.
Teaching maths outdoors brings abstract concepts to life and helps students see their relevance in the real world. Whether you’re measuring muddy puddles or estimating the volume of a leaf pile, the natural world is full of opportunities to explore shape, space, and measure.
Browse all our outdoor maths resources on Educate Outside and make your next maths lesson a breath of fresh air!
Adam