Willows class new topic this term is ‘How does it grow?’, so we set off to the school garden.

After explaining about how “plants need soil, and water and sun to grow, and rain, that is water and plants grow from seeds you know? and they grow in mud”. The children set about digging over the school garden patch. They found the roots of the plants and were very excited to explain their knowledge about how the roots give the plants their food.

Whilst digging they found lots of worms, and some ants eggs and tiny centipedes. It was so good to see such engagement and enthusiasm for their learning along with great working as a team.

Once the plot was cleared, they planted some bulbs leftover from the autumn and took great care to think about how deep the holes needed to be, how they had to cover them and pat down the soil.

With a wheelbarrow full of weeds, they set off down the Forest School area to tip them on the ground.

“The worms will like them down here”

“Other animals might come and eat the weeds here”

Willows joined in with the rhythms and words of a song and then used tapping sticks to make up new rhythm patterns to take turns in leading the class with.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.

The impact can be seen through the skills, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the fruit, plants and trees in relation to the seasons and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School Games.

The children kept themselves very busy with clearing any fallen twigs and small branches from the recent storm.

“This will be really good to make a fire!”

“Look at how big this branch is, it is taller than me!”

Some of them then used some of the wood to rebuild the den in the corner of the site. They worked together to build and balance and help each other carry larger bits of woods.

Other children returned to climbing in the large ivy bush today, where they had spent lots of time last session making a den.

They then passed ‘Stick Man’ around the circle to share what they enjoyed about the session.

“I likes planting and digging”

“I like building the den with my friends”

“I like finding worms, mine was massive!”

“I like going on the swing and pushing my friends on it”

The children talked about which animals were native in the wild in England. They then spotted some animal tracks and looked closely at the shapes and number of marks there were, before identifying each print. Some children then used stencils to create their own tracks with flour and a sieve. Some used the stencils to create clay prints of the woodland animals.

There were some animal skulls, bones and feathers to investigate and the children responded by asking lots of questions.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. The impact can be seen through the skills gained, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the seasons and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School games.

The rest of the afternoon saw Maples following their own ideas. They really wanted to continue with their work on the bug hotel, so searched for sticks and moss and other items in the Forest School site.
They also made a sign independently, including some lovely illustrations of the resident worms and insects!

There was lots of independent creating with clay, from clay animals prints, to sculpture, pots and beautiful creations with pine cones.

Maples really enjoyed their den building and used secateurs independently to cut back brambles from their den area. The other tools they used were peelers to peel some. Old Christmas tree branches to make deer antlers and a handsaw to cut pieces of wood to support their independent play.

There was also lots of climbing and swinging and running around!

It is great to see the confidence in self-chosen activities at Forest School developing in all of the children.

The class started their afternoon by practising ‘fox walking’. They all had to try to silently walk in a ‘sneaky, stalky’ kind of way, as foxes do when they are approaching their prey. The children tried hard to walk toe first, then heel, to make as little noise as possible.

The children then spotted some animal tracks and looked closely at the shapes and number of marks there were, before identifying each print. Some children then used stencils to create their own tracks with flour and a sieve. Some used the stencils to create clay prints of the wood-land animals.

There were some animal skulls, bones and feathers to investigate and the children responded by asking lots of questions.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. The impact can be seen through the skills gained, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the seasons and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School games.

The rest of the afternoon saw Chestnuts following their own ideas. They really wanted to continue with their work on the bug hotel, so searched for old pots and sticks to add to it and even found some clay in the ground whilst doing this.

They worked well together to create a barrier to remind everyone to keep away from the really wet areas and paths in the Forest School site.

This then led to some lovely den building. The groups of children moved logs into their dens to create sitting circles and then thought they would like a fire in the middle “to keep us warm…it is cold!” So they collected some woods and then had a go at practising their fire striking skills.

There was also lots of climbing and swinging and playing in the mud kitchen.

It is great to see the confidence in self-chosen activities at Forest School developing in all of the children.
There was time at the end of the session to share and listen to what they had all enjoyed about the session whist drinking a cup of warm apple juice.

“I liked making the animal tracks and sprinkling the flour”

“I like making the fire, I did it from a spark!”

“I liked the clay, but it was really cold and washing my hands was cold too!”

“I liked making the den with my friends, we carried the wood together and I liked our log seats”

“I love the mud kitchen”

Willows class were on the lookout for animal tracks and footprints today. They found some prints on the path and thought that they might belong to Jimmy the school dog.

“His prints look like circles and small triangles”

They then found a clue and sounded out the word ‘FOX’ and learned that fox prints are similar to dogs, but you can draw a X through a fox print.

Then they found some deer prints and thought that they might have been left by Father Christmas’ reindeer Rudolf!

The class then spent time exploring and following their own ideas in the Forest School area. There was lots of busy play in the mud kitchen and the children were very resourceful finding water to mix into their creations. The children’s negotiating skills were evident in the way they played and shared resources with each other.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. The impact can be seen through the skills, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the fruit, plants and trees in relation to the seasons and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School Games.

The WIllows children were very involved in climbing in the large ivy bush today and were proud of their skills of taking turns and working together to problem solve, when one of the branches snapped, by working together to move and reposition branches and other logs around their playing area.

Some of the Willows used stencils to push into wet clay, to create animal footprints. They talked about how the clay felt really cold and then rolled it into balls before squashing it into shape to create impressions of animal footprints. They then had a go at writing labels to accompany their clay prints.

At the end of the session the class listened to the story of The Gruffalo’s child, joining in with some of the repeated refrains and looking at the animal tracks which were in the snow in the illustrations.

They then passed ‘Stick Man’ around the circle to share what they enjoyed about the session, whilst enjoying a cup of hot apple juice.

The class started their afternoon with a game of ‘fox and rabbits’ to warm themselves up on the chilly afternoon outside. They took it in turns really well to chase the rabbit and try to make themselves ‘safe’ by creating pairs of children to be ‘burrows’.

Some of the children had a go at lighting the fire and then chopped oranges and apples up to create some hot, spiced apple juice. They added water, apple concentrate and cinnamon bark to the water and stirred it carefully as they brought it to the boil on their fire. This created a delicious hot drink, which was most welcome on the cold afternoon. It was great to see some children trying new tastes and flavours with increased confidence.

Next some of the children had a go at sawing a wooden hazel slice to decorate. They learned to hold the wood securely for each other and how to work in pairs to pull the bow saw to cut a thin slice of wood. They then used palm drills to drill a hole to thread string through. This required lots of persistence and concentration, which the Oaks showed as developing skills. Having threaded the slices onto string, they set about decorating them to create Christmas decorations. They also drilled holes to put sticks and cones into which gave the effect of miniature trees.

The class spent time taking turns on the tyre swing and using secateurs to cut back brambles to create a den together in the overgrown part of the space.

Their tree climbing skill are also developing, with some of them climbing high enough into the tree to see over the hedges and trees into the setting sun on the sheep fields beyond.

Finally some of the Oaks had a go at pulling some dead ivy from the oak tree. We discussed how it was a great habitat for many insects and found lots of woodlice and spiders. They then used string to tie the amazing sculptural ivy to the Forest School shelter as a decorative feature.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.

The impact can be seen through the skills gained, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the seasons and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School games.

Some of the children’s reflections about their session today were:

“ I love Forest School, it is my best lesson, because I learn to do new things like sawing woods and drilling it to make things…and I like playing in the mud kitchen with my friends too”

“ I wasn’t going to try the apple drink, but it smelled lovely, so I tried it and ended up eating the orange too”

“ I would like to use tools again, maybe to whittle some things next time”

The class started their afternoon with a game of ‘fox and rabbits’ to warm themselves up on the chilly afternoon outside. They took it in turns to chase the rabbit and try to make themselves ‘safe’ by creating pairs of children to be ‘burrows’.

The children had two challenges this after-noon. Firstly to light a fire to warm them-selves and to boil a kettle to make hot ap-ple juice for the end of the session.

The children sorted the sticks into widths and learned how to lay a fire. They then used fire strikers to create sparks to ignite cotton wool, which lit the fire. It is a tricky challenge, requir-ing motivation, persistence and quite sophisti-cated fine motor co-ordination. It was fantastic to see the perseverance and to enjoy a warm drink together as a reward for the hard work.

The second challenge for the children was to have a go at sawing a wooden willow slice to decorate. They learned to hold the wood securely for each other and how to work as a team to pull the bow saw and cut a thin slice of wood. They then used palm drills to make a hole to thread string through. This required lots of persistence and concentration and Maples showed their determination and focus with this. Having threaded the slices onto string, they set about decorating them to create necklaces and Christmas decorations.

Along with their challenges, Maples moved some more resources in the Forest School area to add to the bug hotel which was started last week.
They also spent time taking turns on the tyre swing and hammock and using seca-teurs to cut back brambles to create a den together in the overgrown part of the space.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.

The impact 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 and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School games.

At the end of the day the children shared what they had enjoyed and want to do next time.

“I liked lighting the fire”

“I liked swinging on the hammock”

“I liked sawing best of all”

“I liked using the cutters to cut back the brambles to make our den”

“I like the decorating”

Well done for such a productive and engaged afternoon at Forest School and for working so well together and completing your two challenges!

The class started their afternoon with a game of ‘fox and rabbits’ to warm themselves up on the chilly afternoon outside. They took it in turns to chase the rabbit and try to make themselves ‘safe’ by creating pairs of children to be ‘burrows’.

The children had two challenges this afternoon. Firstly to light a fire to warm themselves, and boil a kettle to make hot apple juice for the end of the session.

The children sorted the sticks into widths and learned how to lay a fire. They then used fire strikers to create sparks and to ignite cotton wool, which then lit the fire. It is a tricky challenge, requiring motivation, persistence and quite sophisticated fine motor coordination. It was fantastic to see the perseverance and to enjoy a warm drink together as a reward for the hard work.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.
The impact 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 and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School games.

The second challenge for the children was linked to their science curriculum, all about mini beasts and their habitats. Chestnuts worked hard to lift and carry pallets and wood to create the framework for a new bug hotel. They then started to fill it with pots, old crockery, wood, pine cones and leaves to create a habitat for the bugs in their Forest School space. They saw lots of woodlice whilst constructing and came up with some really engaged, creative ideas.

“We found clay…we can use it to fix the pots to the bug hotel”

“I have been out foraging and found these pine cones, we can use these”

“I have put clay on the pot, it has a face on it now”

“This wood can be a chimney on the top of the bug hotel”

Along with their challenges Chestnuts created in the mud kitchen and took it in turns to swing on the tyre swing and hammock.

At the end of the session they shared and listened to what they had all enjoyed about the session.

“I liked playing in the mud kitchen with my friends”

“I like making the fire”

“I liked all of it….everything!”

Well done Chestnuts for working so well together and completing your two challenges!

Willows class were thinking about autumn during their Forest School session this week. They looked at the trees and noticed the changing colours and leaves.

They started by playing a game of ‘Eagle Eyes’, where they tried their hardest to try to hide from the watching eagle. They had 10 seconds to move closer to the eagle’s nest, when the eagle closed their eyes, then had to hide again. Some of the children were fantastic at being quiet and stealthy and there was some excellent team-work, counting together.

During our last session the children had threaded food for birds, so this week they developed their fine motor skills by threading some leaves using a needle and some wool to decorate their Forest School shelter.

Some children went on to creating their own leaf kebab, by threading fallen leaves onto sticks. They then took these to the mud kitchen and spent a long time making ‘food’ with water, bubbles and leaves from around the Forest School site.

“If I mix yellow leaves and green leaves, what will happen?”

“Can you help me with the water?…We are doing good teamwork here”

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.
The impact can be seen through the skills, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the fruit, plants and trees in relation to the seasons and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School Games.

Willows talked about their learning as they were playing:

“I have go 4 leaves on my stick, now 5….now 6!””

“I liked playing the eagle eyes game”

“I like threading the leaves”

This afternoon we had Forest School in the pouring rain! Because it was so wet and rainy we enjoyed splashing in the puddles and some of the children found leaves to float down the pouring water stream created by the rain. It was so much fun! We then went into the hall to do lots of fun activities!

They started by playing a game of ‘guess the animal’ asking simple questions to try to discover what animal Dormouse had thought of.

During our last session the children had collected leaves and flowers and pressed them in the flower press. They talked about how the leaves would be too wet to use today and how the flower press had flattened them and dried them out.

The children used the flowers to create lovely collages of hedgehogs and then listened carefully to a story about a hedgehog. They talked about how they could do nice things for their friends, like the hedgehog did in the story.

Willows played a game of ‘rabbit, rabbit, fox’, taking it in turns to chase each other around a circle and try to get back to their space before they got caught by the fox.

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.

The impact can be seen through the skills, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the fruit, plants and trees in relation to the seasons ans the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School Games.

Then the Willows talked about birds and how they needed food throughout the winter and then created some bird feeders. They carefully threaded cereal hoops onto pipecleaners and twisted the tops to make circular feeders to hang at home.

Willows ended their session by taking it in turns to share what they had enjoyed about their afternoon.

“I liked splashing in the muddy puddles”

“I liked making the bird feeder”

“I like the hedgehog picture”

The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.

The impact can be seen through the skills, tools used, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge of the fruit, plants trees in relation to the seasons and the skills involved in learning how to play Forest School games.

It was great to see the perseverance of the children getting themselves ready, with their wellies and waterproofs for the first time.

The children picked some blackberries after identifying them correctly with the adults. They learned they shouldn’t ever eat anything they pick, unless their supporting adults have discussed it with them, because it might make them ill.

Some of the children had a go at painting and mask making with blackberry paint, made from the mushed up blackberries they had collected.

We explored the Forest School area, as if we were ‘going on a bear hunt’, identifying which places were safe and which parts we had to stay away from this week. There were some tall nettles, prickly brambles and large wet and muddy puddles, which the children saw and then stayed away from.

Then the children had the chance to play with the mud kitchen and go on the swing.

Some children used a flower press to press some willow leaves “…these are us!”, some petals and some ground ivy leaves they had found.

Willows ended their session by passing ‘Stick Man’ round the circle and sharing what they had enjoyed about the afternoon.

“I loved the swing”

“I liked ‘going on a bear hunt”

“I liked the flower pressing”

Our first time at Forest School was great!

We all had so much fun, we cannot wait to go again!