HWB Outdoor Learning – 9 CFE Early Level Lesson Plans

Take learning outdoors with this practical collection of 9 Health and Wellbeing lesson plans designed for Early Level within Curriculum for Excellence.

Created for use in an outdoor setting, these ready-to-use lesson plans provide engaging, age-appropriate opportunities for children to develop their emotional wellbeing, physical health, self-awareness, relationships and understanding of healthy choices.

Overview of the Resources
The resource includes 9 structured Early Level HWB lesson plans, each designed to be delivered outdoors.
The lessons use practical, play-based and discussion-led activities to help children connect Health and Wellbeing learning to their own experiences and the world around them.

Themes Covered

• Naming Feelings – recognising, naming and talking about emotions.
• Being a Good Friend – exploring kindness, cooperation, sharing and friendship.
• Healthy Eating – identifying healthy foods and making positive choices.
• Hygiene and Self-Care – understanding routines that help us stay healthy and well.
• Managing Big Feelings – exploring strategies for coping with strong emotions.
• Food, Energy and Activity – understanding how food gives our bodies energy and why movement matters.
• Self-Regulation: Recognising My Body Signals – noticing physical signs linked to emotions and learning how to respond.
• Mindfulness: Noticing My Surroundings – developing awareness through the senses and the outdoor environment.
• Inclusion: Everyone Belongs – celebrating differences, kindness, participation and belonging.

What’s Included?

• Each lesson plan includes:
• Learning Intention
• Success Criteria
• Resource Details
• Warm-Up
• Teacher Input
• Guided Input
• Independent Input
• Plenary
• Assessment - Say, make, do, write approaches
• Differentiation - Support and challenge

The lessons are structured to provide a clear progression from teacher modelling and discussion through to guided and independent learning.

Assessment
Assessment opportunities are built into every lesson using Say, Make, Do, Write approaches, allowing children to demonstrate their learning in different ways.
This provides flexible opportunities to assess learning while recognising the varied ways Early Level children communicate and demonstrate understanding.

Differentiation
Every lesson includes suggestions for adapting learning to meet the needs of different learners.

How to Use This Resource
These lesson plans are designed to be flexible and practical, making them suitable for a range of outdoor learning environments.

Activities can be delivered in:
School grounds.
Outdoor classrooms.
Playgrounds.
Gardens.
Woodland or natural spaces.
Local outdoor areas where appropriate.

The plans can be used as individual lessons, as part of a wider HWB programme, or adapted to complement your existing Early Level planning.

Simply choose a lesson, gather the suggested resources and take the learning outdoors!