• Home
  • About Otis and Us
    • Meet Otis
  • Blog
  • Work with us
  • Contact us
  • Nav Social Menu

    • E-mail
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • Days out
  • Festivals
  • Accessories and Reviews
  • Competitions

Otis and Us

  • Van Life
  • Campervan recipes
  • Glamping
  • Travel
  • Travel Tips

Study reports that Children who go camping do better at school and are happier and healthier

Glamping

14 Apr

A study carried out by the Institute of Education at Plymouth University and The Camping and Caravanning Club in 2015 explored the perceptions of the relationship between education and camping. The study found that children who camp in the great outdoors at least once a year go on to do better at school, as well as being healthier and happier, according to their parents.

585 families, who were the Camping and Caravanning Club members, returned an electronic survey.

glamping in Wales

The study found that 4 out of 5 of all parents in the survey thought camping had a positive effect on their children’s school education.

98% of parents said camping makes their kids appreciate and connect with nature, 95% said their kids were happier when camping, 93 % felt that it provided useful skills for later life and 100% had new experiences when camping.

The study also reported that 15% of parents found that camping provided an opportunity to escape technology (laptops, tablets, mobiles, etc) whilst 20% of parents said that camping gives their kids freedom, independence and confidence.

Interestingly, 82% of parents felt that camping had a positive effect on their child’s education. The four main themes emerging from the study included added learning opportunities, sharing camping adventures and experiences in the classroom, reinforcing or practising school learning, and the transfer of learning to school.

83% of children took part in free play during their last camping holiday, whilst 80% took part in nature walks and 70% took a seaside or woodland visit. This dominance of free play, nature walks and seaside visits corresponds with the response of 98% of the camping parents that saying appreciating nature was a positive effect from camping for their children.

The top five National Curriculum subjects thought to be better understood by camping included History, Geography, Science, Maths and English.

When children were asked what they remember most and think they have learnt from camping, the most common themes were making and meeting new friends, having fun, playing outside and learning various camping skills.

In Summary, children who camp in the great outdoors at least once a year go on to do better at school, as well as being healthier and happier, according to their parents. Camping can have a positive effect on children’s school education,  offer new learning opportunities, varied experiences and memories that last a life time. So what are you waiting for? Pack the car with your essential camping gear and hit the road to create some memories of a lifetime!

For more information head over to the Camping and Caravanning club online

Otis and Us

Pin for Later!

Children who go camping do better at school and are happier and healthier

I love to hear what you think of my blog, do leave a comment.

You can find us over on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter

3 Comments

Previous Post: « Monday Escapes 8/4/2019
Next Post: Archerfield Walled Garden, East Lothian: A family friendly day out »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jacqui says

    April 14, 2019 at 8:13 pm

    I agree completely with your comments made about camping and children’s happiness, personal development and appreciation of lifes simple pleasures !

    We started taking our first child camping at the age of 2 and have enjoyed exploring our country and France in our campervan ever since We love packing up and heading off. Living a simple condensed life, for those few days/ weeks – appreciating the countryside, seaside and mountains. I have to say our best holiday so far was when we spend a week in the West Highlands of Scotland! Making memories is what it’s all about – and we certainly did ! I would like to think that one day, our children ( I hope!) will remember our little travels and will recall those memories with warm, happy, fondness. Hopefully they will grow into relisilent and happy individuals who appreciate the simple pleasures. Thank you Otis and Us for your informative posts.

    Reply
  2. Clare (The Travelling Wilbennetts) says

    April 15, 2019 at 6:56 am

    I could not agree more. We go at least once a year and already looking forward to the first this year. Our little girl becomes feral (in a good way) and I love it.

    Reply
  3. Cristina - Memories of the Pacific says

    April 15, 2019 at 6:48 pm

    This is very interesting. I think it’s very important for kids to spend time in nature. My parents used to take me camping as a kid and I loved it.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Let’s Connect

  • E-mail
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Latest on Instagram

otisandus.blog

Vanlife Family • Travel


Ad🌟Top Tip 🌟

Fairy lights dotted around a
Ad🌟Top Tip 🌟

Fairy lights  dotted around a climbing frame
 
= A few more extra hours outside over the winter months 

Add in a flurry of snow ....

#1000hoursoutside 

#wickeyadventure #wickeyplaytime #lockdown3


🚐Vanlife with kids 🚐

I often get messages a
🚐Vanlife with kids 🚐

I often get messages asking “where do you all sleep” and where did your toddler or baby  sleep in the camper ?

We bought our #t5 when our eldest was just 2, and we have had to adapt as our family has grown. We didn’t have the roof converted until much later so we tried a fair few sleeping options! 

I thought It might be helpful if I listed all of the sleeping options we have tried in our vwT5 because I often get questions about sleeping options with young kids.

⭐️Our new born baby slept in a sleepyhead in the camper as it was easily transportable and worked as  crib.

⭐️ We then found a deluxe travel cot that fit perfectly at the base of our rib bed and this worked from about 6 months 

⭐️We then moved on to a toddler inflatable air bed placed again at the bottom of our bed. We  found the toddler beds fit perfectly across the width of the van 

⭐️moving on we purchased a hammock that fitted over just the driver and passenger seat  and this worked great from about 3+

⭐️ Finally as our family grew... We  had our pop top roof added and the children slept well in the roof. We had a safety net fitted to the opening  of the roof and this allowed all our children to sleep in the roof safely and gave us some peace of mind - particularly as our son was young.

I’ve linked my post in my stories but do let me know if you have tried any other options that work for young children, particularly if you don’t have an elevating roof! Always here if I can help with anything or if you have any questions.

🌈


A vintage rainbow 🌈

Mucho love tonight - hope
A vintage rainbow 🌈 

Mucho love tonight - hope you are all doing okay x


💫Still one of my most favourite captures 💫

💫Still one of my most favourite captures 💫 

Just popping on to wish all of you a Happy New Year 💕

Here we are .... Still hanging out in tier 4, (but hey I have three lovely days off 🤩) we have all got this🙌🏻

For now I’m going to keep dreaming, planning, doing a bit of vanlife shopping and redesigning our campervan 😂 (so if any of you lovely vanlife peeps can share and tag me in a picture of your interiors I would be eternally grateful). 

Hey I may even get this dissertation done 🤣

If it’s okay I’ll keep sharing the little bits in between, and of course our van life tips and tricks over the new year, until we can explore once again. 

Thanks for sticking with us - happy new year to my faves, lots of love and stay safe 

The Otis and Us tribe xxx


🌲 And that’s me signing off for Christmas. 🌲 

Let’s hope 2021 brings some sunshine, plans, adventures and a glimmer of hope. 

To all my lovely friends, family and wonderful vanlife peeps, thanks so much for all the love and support this year. 

Wishing you all a Happy Christmas and New year from Otis and Us xxx

Ad / We are still loving our @wickey climbing fram
Ad / We are still loving our @wickey climbing frame, and so grateful to have this wonderful play area in our garden for the kids since the lockdown number two. 

It’s my last day of annual leave today. So we have spent the afternoon adding a few fairy lights to the MultiFlyer climbing frame - sprinkling a bit of magic and festive cheer out in the garden....

Moving on to the the camper next :) it definitely needs some fairy lights and a tree - Don’t you think? 🌲 

#wickeyadventure #wickeyplaytime #vimage


Load More…


Follow on Instagram


Browse by Category

Trips100 - Travel Blogs
Trips100

BritMums

Amazon Associate

“We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”

  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies Policy
  • Disclaimer
Ad🌟Top Tip 🌟 Fairy lights dotted around a Ad🌟Top Tip 🌟

Fairy lights  dotted around a climbing frame
 
= A few more extra hours outside over the winter months 

Add in a flurry of snow ....

#1000hoursoutside 

#wickeyadventure #wickeyplaytime #lockdown3
🚐Vanlife with kids 🚐 I often get messages a 🚐Vanlife with kids 🚐

I often get messages asking “where do you all sleep” and where did your toddler or baby  sleep in the camper ?

We bought our #t5 when our eldest was just 2, and we have had to adapt as our family has grown. We didn’t have the roof converted until much later so we tried a fair few sleeping options! 

I thought It might be helpful if I listed all of the sleeping options we have tried in our vwT5 because I often get questions about sleeping options with young kids.

⭐️Our new born baby slept in a sleepyhead in the camper as it was easily transportable and worked as  crib.

⭐️ We then found a deluxe travel cot that fit perfectly at the base of our rib bed and this worked from about 6 months 

⭐️We then moved on to a toddler inflatable air bed placed again at the bottom of our bed. We  found the toddler beds fit perfectly across the width of the van 

⭐️moving on we purchased a hammock that fitted over just the driver and passenger seat  and this worked great from about 3+

⭐️ Finally as our family grew... We  had our pop top roof added and the children slept well in the roof. We had a safety net fitted to the opening  of the roof and this allowed all our children to sleep in the roof safely and gave us some peace of mind - particularly as our son was young.

I’ve linked my post in my stories but do let me know if you have tried any other options that work for young children, particularly if you don’t have an elevating roof! Always here if I can help with anything or if you have any questions.

🌈
A vintage rainbow 🌈 Mucho love tonight - hope A vintage rainbow 🌈 

Mucho love tonight - hope you are all doing okay x
💫Still one of my most favourite captures 💫 💫Still one of my most favourite captures 💫 

Just popping on to wish all of you a Happy New Year 💕

Here we are .... Still hanging out in tier 4, (but hey I have three lovely days off 🤩) we have all got this🙌🏻

For now I’m going to keep dreaming, planning, doing a bit of vanlife shopping and redesigning our campervan 😂 (so if any of you lovely vanlife peeps can share and tag me in a picture of your interiors I would be eternally grateful). 

Hey I may even get this dissertation done 🤣

If it’s okay I’ll keep sharing the little bits in between, and of course our van life tips and tricks over the new year, until we can explore once again. 

Thanks for sticking with us - happy new year to my faves, lots of love and stay safe 

The Otis and Us tribe xxx
🌲 And that’s me signing off for Christmas. 🌲 

Let’s hope 2021 brings some sunshine, plans, adventures and a glimmer of hope. 

To all my lovely friends, family and wonderful vanlife peeps, thanks so much for all the love and support this year. 

Wishing you all a Happy Christmas and New year from Otis and Us xxx
Ad / We are still loving our @wickey climbing fram Ad / We are still loving our @wickey climbing frame, and so grateful to have this wonderful play area in our garden for the kids since the lockdown number two. 

It’s my last day of annual leave today. So we have spent the afternoon adding a few fairy lights to the MultiFlyer climbing frame - sprinkling a bit of magic and festive cheer out in the garden....

Moving on to the the camper next :) it definitely needs some fairy lights and a tree - Don’t you think? 🌲 

#wickeyadventure #wickeyplaytime #vimage
If this year has taught us anything, it’s defini If this year has taught us anything, it’s definitely to not take anything for granted. To take each day as it comes and to enjoy the simple things in life, finding  joy in those ordinary moments. 

I don’t need reminding of this but family and friends are everything. As are good old hugs. (I miss hugs!) And plans. Blooming love a plan. 😍

So ill keep on bobbing on here if that’s okay? I’ll keep planning, writing about our campervan adventures and sharing our van life love and outdoor life. Because we have to have hope and we have to keep dreaming.... 

Hope you are all doing okay, sending a virtual hug if you need one this weekend. My inbox is ALWAYS open, always.
🚐 4 years! 🚐 4 years blogging!! Wowzers tha 🚐 4 years! 🚐

4 years blogging!! Wowzers that has flown by!! 

I’ve had lots of new followers lately so thought I would pop on and say hello and tell you a little bit about us.

I’m Katy and I am behind Otis and us travel blog. I started the blog during my maternity leave - really because I love taking photos and wanted  a place that the kids can look back on and to document our van life adventures. I  am a full time specialist nurse and also currently working on an MSc. I am a whirlwind and life is definitely jam packed but I wouldn’t have it any other way :) 

We love our beautiful T5!! We have made so many memories and taken some wonderful roadtrips over the years. We haven’t managed to get out in the van much this year, but hey I’ve still been dreaming ... hopefully next year🤞🏻🤞🏻

We have three free spirited kiddies who love nothing more than a road trip,  sleeping in the poptop roof, exploring, beach life and toasting marshmallows. 

Mr Otis and Us, what can I say? The chilled one who has so much patience😆. He drives the many miles, lives on coffee and never ever says no to my crazy road trips and ideas. 

So here we are - the Otis and Us tribe, popping on to say hi. 
 
Thank you so much for following along, for all your interaction and love. It means the world. I love to hear from you all, every message and every comment. Thank you 🙏🏻 

Hope you will stay with us for 2021 , 

Stay safe 

Katy xx 🌈

📸 credit @canonuk

Copyright © 2021 · Otis and Us | All Rights Reserved

This site uses cookies, to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Find out how to disable cookies in your browser by reading the full policy.AcceptRead the policy