Clare Devlin Education Consultancy : What Might Happen When We Rethink The School Day?

As we move towards the Autumn Term, I’m reminded of a recent visit I made to Tops – The Outdoor Primary School in Greystones, Co. Wicklow.

Tops is an outdoor school for children aged 4–12, and my visit gave me lots to reflect on, not because this is the way to do education, but because it offers us another way to think about what children need in order to learn, grow and thrive.

The day begins outdoors.
Children arrive directly into the outdoor space, where they have time to play, move and regulate their bodies in their own ways through running, spinning, twisting, turning, climbing and even hanging upside down!

Moving indoors doesn’t mean stopping the learning.
Around 10:30/10:45, children transition to the classroom, change their clothes and gather for snack. Banana bread, made daily by staff, creates a wonderfully social occasion before a morning plenary brings everyone back together to revisit those teachable moments.

Then comes a gentle transition.
A morning meeting in the forest provides space to share children’s agendas, consider what needs attention and connect as a group. Then… back to uninterrupted play, with adults skilfully facilitating, observing and differentiating learning.

From experience to reflection.
Children then have opportunities to record their thoughts more formally. With mixed ages from 4–12, children learn alongside and from one another, while adults support each child at their individual stage of development.

There was a strong sense of community.
Hide and seek in the garden became much more than a game. Younger children learned from older children, while older children had opportunities to consolidate their own learning and develop responsibility and care for others. There was a beautiful family feeling.

And then back to the forest…
Interestingly, the children engaged with the outdoor environment in a completely different way in the afternoon. Some immediately sought out swinging, spinning and rocking experiences, selecting movement that supported their own regulation. Others chose the more intricate whittling space.

The level of concentration at whittling was remarkable.
Children knew the boundaries. They knew how to keep themselves safe. They knew how to use the tools responsibly. What stood out was the deep concentration, skill and confidence that could be observed when children were trusted with real tools and meaningful experiences.

So what did I take away from my visit?
Perhaps the most important question isn’t “Could we replicate this?”
It is:

“What could we rethink in our respective settings?”
Could we create:

More opportunities for movement?
More uninterrupted play?
More mixed-age learning?
More time outdoors?
More opportunities for children to regulate themselves?
More trust in children’s capabilities?
More space for adults to observe, facilitate and respond?

Different settings will find different answers.
But sometimes visiting another school gives us permission to pause, question what we do, and imagine what might be possible.
Thank you to the team at Tops for sharing their practice and allowing me to see learning through a different lens.

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What Might Happen When We Rethink The School Day?

Posted on 26th August 2026