We started Forest School today with some of the group helping to lay and light a fire ready to enjoy s’mores. The children helped to set up and once everything was ready, they were able to practice their fire striking skills. The children who found this easy worked with the younger ones who found it a little harder and helped them to light their piece of cotton wool. Once the fire was lovely and warm, the children took it in turns to come into the fire circle and toast a marshmallow. They placed the warm marshmallow in between two chocolate biscuits ready to be enjoyed.
Some children chose to make toilet roll bird feeders. They did this by covering a toilet roll in lard and then rolling it through some birdseed. Then they put a piece of string through the toilet roll and tied it off so that the feeder could be hung from a nearby tree ready for the birds to enjoy!
Using more empty toilet rolls, the children made themselves binoculars to help them spot any birds that may hiding in the trees ready to test out the bird feeders. They used masking tape to hold the two rolls together and added a piece of string so they could wear them around their necks. Then they used pens to personalise and decorate their binoculars.
Sadly, the base camp that had been made by the group in their last session had been turned into something a little different by another group. The class did not let this bother them, they very quickly moved all the material back to their chosen location and started the reconstruction of their base camp.
There was plenty of free play in the mud kitchen with all sorts of yummy sounding food being created. The group also made the most of the new tyre swing, taking it in turns to push their friends.
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience, this can be seen through the skills gained, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants and trees in relation to the seasons.
