We are looking to have sessions ran by the wonderful, Sarah Bennett, who is a Froest School Practitioner and Outdoor Mental Health Practitioner. 

Forest School is where there are a variety of opportunities for children to freely choose what they would like to do and develop their emotional, social development and learn new skills.

Children will learn how to use tools and develop their understanding of risks through play and exploring. They should be able to independently light fire, use tools, climb trees, explore an environment over time with very little adult support and learn to support and encourage their peers in the process.

 

What do sessions look like?

1. Gather to welcome, senses connection to nature and safety rules.
2. Child-led activities such as tools, fire, ecology, nature arts & craft, den building, hammocks, mud kitchen (these will be introduced naturally over a few sessions).
3. Tidy up and game
4. Gratitude & Reflection.

 

Benefits

Child-led, meaningful experiences, social emotional development, skill sharing, praise, resilient to all weather.

 

Possible activities:

Fire Lighting

This area is away from others and should not be a walk-through. There are usually 3-5 fire lighting stations with 2 children at each station at any one time which means children can work in pairs or alone. Fire dishes will be brought on site so there will not be ground fires. Children are able to learn the elements of fire to understand the concept and risk taking of this activity.

Mud Kitchen

This area can be as simple as a pallet on the floor or a raised table. Buckets, cups, spades, pots and pans and paint brushes with accessible water (in a bucket, water butt or watering cans). There should be a designated soil/digging area so children know where the can and cannot get soil from. There could also be a clear tarp hung for mud throwing target or used for painting on.

Nature Craft

This area is simply a box of wool, scissors, string, wooden bits ‘n’ bobs, felts and sometimes clay  to allow children to creative from their imagination.

Den Building

This area needs to be around trees using long straight sticks or multiple tarps and plenty of  bungee cord for ease of putting up tarps without the knots around trees. This area could also have hammocks.

Children can be taught how to tie a hammock onto tree using a simple technique to allow easy putting up and down without the use of the dreaded double knots.