This term the children have been looking at all the different colours of autumn that can be spotted on the woodland floor or high up in the trees. We talked about how the leaves change colour and why they fall off the trees, the classes also noticed that there are some trees with leaves that don’t change colour and that hold onto their leaves. They observed how the fallen leaves come in many different shapes and sizes, some of the Sweet Chestnut leaves found were as long a child’s arm! Gathering up as many different colours as they could find the children were able to use the gathered leaves to make themselves a leaf crown. As a group we have talked about how tricky it can be at this time of year for birds to find food. The children have been able to help the birds out by making bird feeders to hang up around the woods. This was done by first filling the gaps of a pine cone with lard and then rolling it in bird seed. With a piece of string the bird feeder was hung from a branch ready for a hungry bird to come along for a little snack! In the woods the children have worked well in teams to transport the branches needed for their den from one part of the woods to their chosen den position. The positions of the dens have been quite creative and camouflaged; some have been hidden in a ditch and others hidden between two large fallen trees. Each den team dug themselves some clay that they shaped into balls, these clay balls were then used as currency to trade with other groups for extra natural materials for building. The classes have been joined at Forest School by a selection of woodland teddies, a Badger, a Hedgehog and a Squirrel. These teddies have gone off with the children to explore the woods and have little homes built for them, Badger’s low down on the floor and Squirrels home high up in the trees. Woodland class have been exploring the new pipes that are in the school Forest School site on the school grounds, testing how many children you can squeeze inside one pipe!
