Obviously one can have a series of lessons in the classroom in which your students only speak French.

The only problem is that some students will occasionally phase out of the on-going conversation and stop forcing themselves to think in French.

However recent research undertaken by a team at Yale University has revealed that intellectual activity in new and different places stimulates the brain to a much, much higher level than otherwise would be the case.

As a result, if the instruction that all conversation is to be in French is given when the lesson is taking place in a different environment, then the focus on speaking and thinking in French tends to be grasped much more thoroughly than when the lesson takes place in the regular classroom.

Of course, if the conversation can also be related to something in the environment, then the learning becomes even more deeply embedded.  But even without that link, the mere fact of being in a different place stimulates the brain so much that the focus on the language is much more intense.

One way to do this is simply to take a group of students for a walk around the school grounds, with the students in pairs, being instructed to converse all the time, but only in French.

However if the students can experience a new environment, then the opportunity to develop the conversation grows dramatically when they are instructed to converse on the subject of what they see around them.

And one way to do this is by taking a short trip in the school minibus.

The research on learning in different environments from Yale University is reported in more detail on the Outside.Education website, and there is no doubt that the simple diversion of removing the conversation from the classroom to another environment does enhance learning dramatically.

As for the issue of having a minibus available, this problem has been overcome via the increased availability of leased minibuses which allow more groups to be taken out. For a minibus taken on a lease is paid for month by month until the lease ends, rather than being paid for in full at the start of its use.

If you are interested in the idea of leasing a minibus to enable the school to run more trips outside the classroom there is information on that here. Alternatively, you can get in touch by calling the Minibus Team on 01753 859944 or by dropping us an email – minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk – and we’ll do our best to help!

You may have come across the “Daily Mile” – it is a project based around the notion that interrupting the school day in order to take pupils  out on a walk or run has a very positive outcome.

While one might assume that losing time from normal classroom lessons to go out for a walk might reduce the level of teaching, it appears that the opposite happens – and this is supported by analyses by the DFE and others.

Analyses of the project have been continuing since 2010, and most of the schools that take up the notion of interrupting work for a walk continue to report improved teaching and learning.

The only problem seems to be that after doing the same walk, or the same sort of walk, for a while, the improvement in learning diminishes  over time – although the improvement to the pupils’ physical health continues.

The reason for this is probably due to the impact on learning of the changing environment. As research from Yale University found, it is the change of environment that stimulates additional brain activity, meaning that more learning takes place in new or changed environments.

That’s not to say that there is anything wrong with The Daily Mile idea, but rather that if the walk can be varied and take in different places, then it brings two benefits: improving the pupils’ health and improving the retention of whatever is learned during the walk.

One of the best ways of organising this approach is to use the school minibus – especially if there are times of the day when it is standing idle in the school.  A school party goes out to a previously unexplored location nearby, the pupils walk, and as they walk they observe or discuss matters of educational interest.

And because of the extra brain activity that results from being in an unusual place, more of this knowledge is retained.

Indeed so beneficial is this approach that some schools are now starting to consider leasing a second minibus in order to facilitate such activities – as well as use the minibus for regular school visits and events.

There is more about the research into the benefits that are proven to come from learning outside on the learning outside website.

And if you are interested in leasing a minibus or upgrading a minibus to increase the learning outside opportunities your school can offer you will find this website of help.

Alternatively, you can get in touch by calling the Minibus Team on 01753 859944 or by dropping us an email – minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk – and we’ll do our best to help!

Self-evidently maths pervades the entire world.  And yet traditionally it is studied almost exclusively within the classroom.

Clearly this works, since every year pupils and students learn the subject and take and pass their exams. But the question can be asked, is there a benefit in studying maths outside the classroom?

Recent research undertaken by a team at Yale University has revealed that learning in new and different places stimulates the brain to a much, much higher level than otherwise would be the case.

As a result any form of study that is undertaken during or after a visit to a different environment tends to be understood much more rapidly than study in the normal classroom.  And it is remembered for much longer.

Of course, if the learning can also be related to something in the environment visited then the learning becomes even more deeply embedded.  But even without that link, the mere fact of being in a different place stimulates the brain so much that it is invariably learned and remembered to a much deeper degree.

The one issue that has traditionally held schools back from undertaking more and more lessons outside the classroom is transport.  However this problem has been overcome via the increased availability of leased minibuses which allow smaller groups to be taken out.

For a minibus taken on a lease is paid for month by month until the lease ends, rather than being paid for in full at the start of its use. As a result, over recent years more and more schools have been leasing their minibuses rather than trying to raise the money needed all in one go.

Thus teaching and learning has in many schools had a double boost. Once from leasing rather than buying an additional minibus, and once because learning outside the classroom stimulates learning far more than learning that happens inside the classroom.

If you find this development interesting and feel it is something your department could benefit from, there are two articles available that may be of interest.

The research on learning in different environments from Yale University is reported in more detail on the Outside.Education website

And if you are interested in the idea of leasing a minibus to enable the school to run more trips outside the classroom there is information on that here. Alternatively, you can get in touch by calling the Minibus Team on 01753 859944 or by dropping us an email – minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk – and we’ll do our best to help!