FUN!

The purpose of Forest School is to engage in Nature. It doesn't necessarily mean having a task or a plan, we follow the children's interests and build on those. Often if you explain that the outdoor area would benefit from a Bug House, or how useful a Bird Box or two could be, the children are eager to help. However, in order to really enjoy nature you need to immerse yourself in it, get to grips with bark and boughs, enjoy the breeze on your face, learn to respect the outdoors and find what it is about you as an individual loves...

For Year 3 this most definitely climbing trees!

The higher the better

It does cause a minor heart flutter at times, but like anything in life there are parameters to be met to keep you as safe as possible. 


Our basic tree climbing rules are:
  1. Tell an adult if you are going to climb so they can watch
  2.  Look up and plan a route
  3. look down and know at each stage how you intend to get back down
  4. before you climb, wrap your hand around your wrist, feel how thick it is - never hold onto or stand on a branch thinner than this as it is unlikely to take your weight
  5. stay close to the trunk
  6. you have 7 'patches' on your body: 2 hands, 2 feet, 2 knees and your bottom! At LEAST three of these MUST be in contact with the tree at all times
We do talk about dead wood and living wood but it isn't always easy for young children to recognise the difference, so adults select suitable trees to climb. And we choose BIG trees. Not Mama Beech, as huge and strong as she is she is not suitable to climb, but those that are can easily support 2 or 3 children at a time, and as long as there are observed, and careful they can climb together.

When they do, we find they instantly offer advice, look out for each other, talk their peers through routes up and down, offer encouragement and praise, and share each other's achievements in dexterity, bravery and pride.

Children who watch in week 1 usually try the first branch, even if it's just in a monkey-bar style, by week 4. 

Children readily admit they are scared, that their heart is banging in their chest, but they push themselves a little further anyhow, they are amazed to learn that's what being truly brave is: being scared and doing it anyway. 

And a tree is the very best gym equipment you will find!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Indoor Forest School

Image
On rare occasions, we need to cover a Forest School session INSIDE. It may be because the weather prevents a session, it may be a staffing issue, it may be an introduction for children who will find the outdoors challenging, but whatever causes it, there are times when setting up activities in a classroom is suddenly needed. I've said before that I have a large IKEA blue bag that I keep certain activities in, these are not necessarily ones I can/will use in Forest School, like jigsaw puzzles, colouring, cutting out, etc. It's fairly quick to add some of the nature table items, bug ID, and bird guides, etc. into the bag to make what is basically 'nature learning' feel a little like Indoor Forest School! One week in December started with me under the duvet with a fever and headache, and a PCR test pending. School canceled Forest School because waiting each day to decide what the following day's timetable would be was too hectic. So once back in on the Wednesday indoor
Read more

Stormy weather

Image
At the risk of sounding even older than I actually am "We have way more storms than we uses to"! Which may or may not be statistically true, but definitely a lot more have impacted our Forest School since 2021 than before. (Red sky in the morning, shepherd's warning!) Often, these charge in overnight or at weekends leaving me tip-toeing onto site to see what damage has been done. Frequently they gather pace at 4pm leaving the school day clear from session, and sometimes, the gods are smiling and they blow themselves out in the morning before the first class is due on site! They always make their mark though. Torn parachutes, flapping tarps, tree debris everywhere, litter blown in, on one occasion a 6ft trampolines rolling across the school. Field... There's the risk assessment required to ensure the site is fit for use, and damage to manage or remove. We're never totally unscathed! Sitting on a plateau at the edge of the South Downs doesn't help. The wind rush
Read more

Outdoor Learning

Image
In my own head, I separate Outdoor Learning and Forest School.  They are interconnected but to me, FS offers activities and supports what the children choose to do, whereas OL has learning intentions and aimed-for outcomes. Year 3 are currently looking at the Stone Age as a theme, and I was asked if I would provide activities to support this. In doing so I would have to remove the children's usual choice, their opportunity to follow their own interests & learning outside, and the ability to respond to what they discover and expand on it. This isn't a 'bad' or 'wrong' thing, but it isn't Forest School. Hence approaching it with a different ethos. In giving 21st Century children a tiny taste of life over two million years ago the week began with a definite learning intention. I went with 6 activities that every child could try on rotation. They would end up with perhaps 10 minutes at each exercise in life long ago, after a chat at basecamp that explained w
Read more