Mama Beech

Forest School comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes. In the way that schools can have varying facilities, equipment, departments, grounds, class sizes, staffing, and buildings, basecamp can be centred at the heart of all sorts of Forest Schools. We have 3 sites on our school grounds. Each lends itself to different aspects of Forest School.  The Wildlife Garden has old and new trees, a large pond, and space for planting to attract all kinds of British Wildlife. There's a hidden mud kitchen and a 'secret' woodland and space for activities to take place. Under the Trees is amongst a mature woodland strip, where there are plenty of boughs strong enough to hold up swings and tyres. Their trunks support slack lines and provide space to climb. We have old bricks and a long mud kitchen to explore. The Copse is a cluster of trees that hides basecamp beautifully. There are a few child-designed structures around it and access to a long strip of woodland. It has swings, den spaces, tr...

One of the more difficult aspects of Forest School for most people to come to terms with is the 'Child Led' ethos. School Leaders, parents, any kind of inspector, and even the curious public often question it. Many of us have backgrounds in education before we train to deliver Forest School, so we are already well versed in curriculum areas, learning intentions, and engaging activities... all of which have planned outcomes. To then set children free to explore on their own requires an entire reset on how you've been facilitating learning and what you think it looks like. Being open to this change doesn't mean you don't have to adapt. I assume anyone training is already interested in a different way of helping children explore and understand the world around them. But whether it's a recent grounding in (or several years/decades of) data input via a spreadsheet, it frequently leads to a kind of hybrid approach to planning and assessment for Forest School Sessions...

This week I started to assess the students who studied their Level 3 Forest School Leader course with us. Luckily for me, I started close at home with a colleague. I had criteria to focus on as well as an overall impression to form. It wasn't entirely a tick chart, there was room for comment, for justification of opinion, or example of success/failure. This is mostly guidance though, Forest School, like most of life, is a little more nuanced than a 'yes' or 'no'. This became really evident when going over everything with the student afterwards. The ability to assess her own very good session was hampered by provisos on every point. She felt there was more she could have done, more she could have provided, more she could expand... And there probably was, but isn't that true of every session? I've got used to the assessment part of my planning being a shorthand that few others would understand. A quick reference to say how to improve an activity, or to try it ...

This week has been a bit manic. We are co-arranging the Level 3 Forest School Training which is happening next term at our site, and the admin around it arrives in fits and starts and takes up more time than expected when the emails ping in!  Meanwhile, usual sessions are going ahead across the school and need provision and development.  Across the week I have engaged the groups to help alter the Mud Kitchen a little. It is simply a makeshift structure of pallets, but they like using it - a LOT! So we discussed what they wanted to add, worked out how to add it, and then the children helped create the changes. This has ranged from planting a small hedge to hammering nails and using the bow saw to cut wood.  Children from Year 1 to Year 6 have had an input in the design, which will remain quite fluid to ensure it can easily be changed at a later date. The children decided they wanted a table, a sofa, and a way of 'serving' food to people not in the Mud Kitchen. So far, the ...

It's been an interesting week! Trying to catch up on a year's worth of admin, making resources, checking over the site, listing what needs to be done, cataloging what is usable and what needs replacing... As always THE most valuable thing any of us possess is TIME! The classes are enjoying their extended sessions. It isn't as rushed and the children are able to take time to explore many more aspects of Forest School as well as enjoy some time with staff to talk, ask questions, and learn a little more. Those children who need to run themselves ragged now get to do so and still have time to settle afterward into a game or activity. The dig pit has actually been empty a couple of times after children created big holes and then went off to do something else. We've had discussions about COP26, about joining a scout group, about what they did in half term. There have been some wishes and suggestions put forward, there have been discoveries and some alliances outdoors between ...