Maple Class started their session on the playground ready to have a go at conker rolling. Standing in a long line they took it turns to roll there conker as far as they could and once it had stopped moving they ran and stood where their conker had landed. Once everyone had rolled their conker the children picked their conker up so that they could have another go, they were all trying to beat their distance from the previous roll.
As a group the class walked around the edge of the playground on the hunt for as many different leaves as they could find, they found Beech, Sycamore, Cherry and Silver Birch leaves. These leaves were then used by the children to do some leaf rubbing pictures. They placed the leaf upside down with a piece of paper over the top, then using a crayon they rubbed over the leaf, making a print of the leaf. The children tried many different leaf and colour combinations.
Some of the class chose to create things using clay. They made some Hedgehogs using the husk from a conker to create the spiky back, then using a stick they poked holes into the clay body to create the eyes. Others chose to use the conker itself as a snail shell, making the body of the snail from clay. They then found two small sticks that they could push into the clay as the eyes. The conker snail shells were then coloured in a variety of bright colours.
There was some great team work from the class today as they chose to take on the task of raking up as many leaves as they could. This was to clear an area so that they could build themselves a tarpaulin den, pegging it as high as they could up the fence so that they could walk inside without bending over.
Great work Maple class!
Lilac Class set off in the sunshine for an afternoon of Forest School. Stopping at the wellie tree, the class were asked if they thought that if they were all combined would they be as tall as the wellie tree. There were some very mixed answers but using a stick to work out the rough height of the tree, the children then laid down head to toe starting at the trunk of the tree, making a long line to see if they could reach Dormouse who was standing where the class had agreed the top of the tree would be. The line was a little wonky but if straight, Lilac class combined were as tall as the wellie tree!
Once in the woods the class divided into groups of their choosing, one group went to gather some fire wood, another prepared apples and blackberries for jam making and the last group laid and lit the fire. Once the fire was roaring the prepared fruit was placed in a pan and cooked until mushy. The children then took it in turns to toast some bread over the fire. Eating the jam, on toast was a huge success!
Willow Class set off in the rain for a rather soggy Forest School session. Stopping at the Wellie tree the class used a stick to work out the rough height of the tree, they then all held hands with the first person touching the tree and stretched themselves out in a straight line to see if they were as tall as the tree. Willow class were almost as tall as the Wellie tree!
As they walked along the Forest Way the class came across many large puddles. They spent time jumping in them trying hard to make big enough splashes to get their friends. Some tried to jump over the puddles, which they found that this worked best if they ran before they jumped. Finding a large puddle in a field entrance the children started jumping in it and the water quickly changed colour, one child shouted:
“we are making chocolate milk “
Once at forest school some children helped to lay the fire and practice their fire lighting skills. They listened and followed the instructions given, and it wasn’t long before they had managed to light their cotton wool. The children then had a go at making apple and blackberry jam, which was enjoyed by all the class in a sandwich.
With all the rain that has fallen, the stream that runs through the wood was nice and full. The children used trowels to create a channel leading to a hole in the ground. The water then rushed down their channel before disappearing down the hole. They used the excess mud to make a bank to stop the water going the wrong way, Great team work, Willow Class!
Last week, all Year 5 and 6 children from the Ashdown Cluster met for an adventure in the forest. They set off making their way through some squelchy mud and many puddles before arriving at our destination.
After having a tour of the area and going over some safety rules for Forest School, the children were divided into groups, ready to set off to explore by themselves and to try some of the planned activities.
Once the children had got the fire roaring, they were able to a roast a marshmallow, and once it was looking nice and gooey (and maybe a little charred around the edges) the marshmallow was placed between two chocolate biscuits ready to be enjoyed!
Amazing team work was observed happening amongst the children at the stream where they worked together to make many dams using long lengths of wood. They gathered up some thick clay-like mud and packed any gaps in the wood where the water was managing to get through. After this, the dams worked well as they created little pools of water behind them. These are some of the things the children said they enjoyed at whilst on their Forest School adventure:
“I loved jumping in the stream”
“I liked building dams”
“S’mores”
“I loved fire lighting”
It was great to see the children from all three schools working so well together.
