Mama Beech

Things have been so busy we have pretty much abandoned writing a blog! Winter does seem to be developing into Spring, all the signs are there, and the weather is being very kind (at least here in Kent!), but there's always the concern that frost will come and ice will kill off all that has started to bloom. The Terms are flying by, how are we approaching two-thirds of the way through the school year already?  Not only does Christmas feel a bit like a fortnight ago, but the September start certainly doesn't feel like it was six months past!  Forest School is a constant no matter what, and we continue to take classes outside whatever the schedule, as well as co-plan Forest School training provision and hosting First Aid, and juggle the school's needs with offering more to the community. We are a team. There are three of us delivering sessions. Two FSLs have an additional role in school and our Forest School Lead deals with Forest School only. Even with a shared workload there...

To fully understand how children learn we need to understand how they experience that learning. A lot of what we as adults have learned in life feels innate. Most of us don't remember being taught to walk or talk, we don't necessarily remember being taught to hold a pencil or crayon, or how to wash ourselves. We just 'know' these things. Yes, for some of us, these skills were trickier than others, but if we have 'mastered' them, we do them without a second thought.  We never had planned 'lessons' in tidying up, most of us started when we were small by putting things back in a toy box, hopefully as a game! Yes, it may have been a struggle once putting things away ceased to be fun, but we all understand the concept - even if we're not good at it! I appreciate there are factors surrounding something this' simple' which means even as adults there is a vast scale of who does and doesn't do this well...! In education, we go through waves of ...

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 for sessions, 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...

Happy New Year All! A New Year is always a good time for change. Like a new School Year, or New Term, Birthdays, starting a new job, moving house, or any other time that feels like a perfect reason to make a change. In Forest School every day feels like a new start! Different weather, different seasons, different groups... nothing ever feels routine. It's what makes planning almost pointless and guarantees boredom is rare!  Every session I run has a 'plan', but no details. Activities I aim to have available, adaptable to weather and abilities, and open-ended to allow the children to follow their own learning, makes what I put on paper simply a guideline!  This year will be no different. I have a bank of ideas in my head and in the laptop that I can draw on to offer activities. There is no point in resolving OR intending any different! Personally, I've never made any resolutions, life gets in the way and makes them difficult if not impossible, but occasionally I use the ...

I have been preaching, repeating myself, whinging, whining, and banging on about Forest School since 2019. This is literally my 200th blog post charting the development, trials, and successes we've had. I try to acknowledge how all provision varies but everything in the blog is totally subjective, from our view point and experiences. It's all we know. In 2018 Chartham Primary School could only fit half a class into the minibus, therefore 15 children went off to swimming and 15 stayed for Forest School. This meant only years 3 and 4 had access to either  and on rotation for a six week set every few terms. The Forest School Leader was also a TA. Resources were few, and while the FSL was enthusiastic and highly capable, there was not time for planning or maintenance or site development...  A situation that's familiar to too many! In 2019 the school decided to invest time and energy into making Forest School something they did well. They committed to focusing on it and employin...