What activities do you do in Forest School?
What activities do you do in Forest School?
We asked Rebecca to suggest 11 Forest School activities that you can do with your own child, with next to no expense or equipment required.
- Build a bug hotel.
- The Duplication Game.
- Create a cairn.
- Potato peeler whittling.
- Flower crowns.
- Clay play.
- Build a den.
- Woodland dragons.
What is the difference between outdoor learning and Forest School?
‘The difference between outdoor learning and Forest School might be considered to be quite straightforward – that outdoor learning is an umbrella term that covers all sorts of activities and approaches, while Forest School is a defined approach,’ says The Ernest Cook Trust Schools programme lead, Liz MacKenzie.
What are the main features of Forest School?
Forest school:
- is a long-term process of regular sessions, rather than one-off or infrequent visits; the cycle of planning, observation, adaptation and review links each session.
- takes place in a woodland or natural environment to support the development of a relationship between the learner and the natural world.
What should a Forest School session look like?
‘Ideally it would be held in woodland, but it could be a meadow, a grassy park with a few trees, or even a beach. ‘ Forest school is child-centred with a high adult to child ratio. Observation, rather than direction, is key, and children learn to care for the natural environment through their activities.
How long is a Forest School session?
Forest School sessions are supposed to be regular and over a long enough period of time – not just a few one-off workshops. As a minimum, the FSA suggests at least 24 weeks, over at least two terms, at least two seasons and a minimum of two hours per session. However, many groups continue for years.
What is the role of play at Forest School?
The last point is why play is so important in the Forest School Setting. Play offers opportunities for individuals to use creativity while developing their imagination, dexterity, and social, physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. Research has linked healthy brain development strongly to play.
Do Forest Schools follow the EYFS?
Forest school therefore supports the EYFS curriculum and can be linked to other themes being covered at the early years provision or to experiences at home.
How Forest Schools help children learn?
Forest School can increase a child’s confidence and self-esteem through exploration, problem solving, and being encouraged to learn how to assess and take appropriate risks depending on their environment. This motivation can have a positive impact on attitude to learning in school.
What do children get out of Forest School?
Confidence: children had the freedom, time and space to learn and demonstrate independence. Social skills: children gained increased awareness of the consequences of their actions on peers through team activities such as sharing tools and participating in play.
What to do in a forest school classroom?
Whether you’re in a forest school or outdoor classroom, running a school gardening club, bringing nature lessons into your class, home educating with nature, or wanting to connect with the great outdoors at the weekend, you will love the Seasons School ideas. Pop your email address into the box below and I’ll send you your free resources.
Where did the idea of Forest School come from?
First developed in America, it first really popularity in the 1950s in Scandinavia, and it has spread from there to Britain in more recent times. In the forest school philosophy, children interact with a natural landscape and each other to learn social and technical skills.
What should I use to cut wood for Forest School?
One simple way to do this is use a ‘billhook’. This is a smallish tool that looks a bit like a scythe with a handle at each end. It is also good to have a chopping board that looks a bit like the one in the picture below. Place the piece of wood that you are going to cut on the board. A very small piece is definitely the best way to start.
