Time outdoors helps get children active and can reduce child and adult stress. Not only can children run around, but they can uses their senses to explore the natural world, explore scientific concepts, build and create with “loose parts” and much more!
Outdoor Time Documentation
On your REACH Outdoor Play & Learning application, you will upload documentation of meeting the outdoor time best practices along with having a variety of outdoor play and learning settings, integrating outdoor play into the curriculum, and including outdoor play & learning in your written policy.
| REACH Application Documentation | Go NAPSACC Best Practice |
| You will provide documentation for only the age groups you serve: One weekly schedule from one preschool-aged classroom (3’s or Pre-K) that shows there are a total of 90 minutes each day (full-day) of outdoor time on the schedule. (Half-day: 45 minutes or more each day, 6-hour day: 60 minutes or more each day) One weekly schedule from one toddler-aged classroom (toddlers or 2’s) that shows there are a total of 60 minutes each day of outdoor time on the schedule. (Half-day: 30 minutes or more each day.) One weekly schedule from your family child care home that shows there are a total of 60 minutes each day of outdoor time on the schedule. (Half-day: 30 minutes or more each day.) | OPL2 Outdoor playtime is provided to preschool children for 90 minutes or more each day. (Half-day: 45 minutes or more each day.) OPL3 Outdoor playtime is provided to toddlers for 60 minutes or more each day. (Half-day: 30 minutes or more each day.) (FCCH) Outdoor playtime is provided to children for 60 minutes or more each day. (Half-day: 30 minutes or more each day.) |
Tips for your documentation:
- Provide only one weekly schedule for each of the age groups served by the facility.
- Please mark each outdoor play block on each schedule or make notes in the notes section of the application, so that reviewers can clearly see that over the course of the day, children get the total best practice minutes outside.
- Schedules must be from the past 12 months.
Example documentation:
Coming soon…
REACH Recognition 