We started today by learning a game called ‘Bat & Moth’. The class stood in a circle making a cave with two children in the middle, one bat and one moth. The bat was then blindfolded and had to listen hard to catch the moth that was making a little sound and doing its best not to get caught.
We sat around the fire circle and reminded ourselves of the rules we need to follow to keep us safe. Some of the class stayed to help get the fire ready. They stacked the wood with the largest at the bottom and the smallest at the top. Then using a flint and steel they lit pieces of cotton wool to add to the fire. They found this a little tricky but with some help they managed to get the fire started. Once the fire was going the children held popcorn kernels over the fire waiting for it to start popping – “look it’s popping”. When it was ready it was shared out and enjoyed by the whole class.
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.
A selection of bird teddies joined us at Forest School today. Some children made nests for the birds using hay. These nests were placed around the site. Stones were decorated as eggs and placed into the nests. The eggs were very brightly coloured, some with spots and some with stripes.
There was some great independent play from Maples today. A variety of food creations were cooked up in the mud kitchen for Mr Lulham to try. Some children went ’mining for gold’ in the small stream that runs down one side of Forest School. They sieved through the mud and stones to find their treasure. Others chose to practice balancing on the slack line, which was rather tricky with muddy boots!
Some of the class chose to have a go at making their own pens. They did this by cutting a small length of willow, then using a peeler they stripped off the bark – “wow, it’s so white”. A point was made on one end completing the pencil. As a group they gathered up some charcoal and crushed it into a pot, adding a little water and mixing it together to make a black paste. They then tried writing with the pencils they had made, which worked really well.
