Using Artificial Grass for Teaching Phonics in PE

Artificial Grass is a brilliant surface for playgrounds. Not only does it have the usual benefits of being safer than concrete and more durable than natural grass, it can also contribute to a child’s learning.

One of the amazing things about artificial grass is that brilliant patterns and designs can be installed into the grass. A full range of different colours are available in our online shop and we use these to create bespoke designs in the grass.

A school that we had recently completed an installation and opted for a simple design, of four splodges of different colours, on the four corners of their installation. This simple design was all that was needed for teachers at the school to create fun and effective learning games.

During a PE Lesson, the class was split into four teams and asked to stand in the four corners of the artificial grass. The teacher stood in the middle and a set of phase 3 to 5 phonics cards were laid out around the teacher. On the count of three, the children ran into the middle and picked up a phonics card, they then had to shout the sound on the card and when they got a correct answer, they could run back to their area.

 

The children really enjoyed the experience and had a lot of fun taking part and using their phonics skills during PE. The children were able to enjoy their learning experience and will continue to do so with multiple variations of this game.

On concrete or tarmac, there will always be a risk of children falling over and scraping their hands and knees. Artificial grass is a safety surface and it can even be installed with a shock absorbing layer underneath. The grass we used in this installation was our Pro Play which is extra durable and unlike natural grass won’t wear away over time.