Forest School is an inspirational process, that offers ALL learners regular opportunities to achieve and develop confidence and self-esteem through hands- on learning experiences in a woodland or natural environment with trees. The growing body of research points to numerous benefits to learner, educator, child and parent alike.
Forest School is the name of a specific ethos. Qualified practitioners carefully facilitate programmes which are uniquely tailored to the needs of the individuals within the group and have the fundamental aim of building participants’ self-esteem, confidence, independence and creativity. The name does not refer to an actual place; it refers to the philosophy.
The Impact of this is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience.
The impact can be seen through skills, 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 principals of Forest School state that it is:
- a long-term process of regular sessions, rather than a one-off or infrequent visits; the cycle of planning, observation, adaptation and review links each session.
- taking place in a woodland or natural environment to support the development of a relationship between the learner and the natural world.
- using a range of learner-centred processes to create a community for being, development and learning.
- aiming to promote the holistic development of all those involved, fostering resilient, confident, independent and creative learners.
- offering learners, the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves.
- run by qualified Forest School practitioners who continuously maintain and develop their professional practice.
At Forest School all participants (children and adults) are viewed as:
- equal, unique and valuable
- competent to explore & discover
- entitled to experience appropriate risk and challenge
- entitled to choose, and to initiate and drive their own learning and development
- entitled to experience regular success
- entitled to develop positive relationships with themselves and other people
- entitled to develop a strong, positive relationship with their natural world
This ethos creates learning communities where deep-level learning and progression are the norm.
www.forestschoolassociation.org/full-principles-and-criteria-for-good-practice
Forest School Blog
Lilac Forest School
21/03/2024
Lilac Class set off for Forest School on a sunny afternoon, although it was still rather soggy under foot following read more
Willow Forest School
14/03/2024
Willow Class started Forest School by learning a new game called ‘Bat and Moth’; the children all stood in a read more
Maple Forest School
01/02/2024
On Thursday 1st February. Maple Class went off to Forest School and while the sun was shining it was still read more
Lilac Forest School
31/01/2024
The children in Lilac Class thoroughly enjoyed their trip to The Ashdown Forest this week. Through the morning, they took read more
Lilac Forest School
26/01/2024
On Thursday 25th January, Lilac Class set off for Forest School across the very squelchy and muddy Croft and as read more
Cherry Forest School
11/01/2024
On Thursday 11th January Cherry Class set off for the woods on a sunny but rather chilly afternoon in search read more
Maple Forest School
04/01/2024
Before leaving for Forest School on Thursday 4th January, Maple Class spent time looking at some stone animal tracks and read more
Cherry Forest School
14/12/2023
On Thursday 14th December Cherry Class set off in the rain prepared for a muddy and adventurous afternoon. As the read more
Maple Forest School
07/12/2023
On Thursday 7th December, Maple class set of for a muddy walk to Forest School, talking about the noise their read more
Lilac Forest School
01/12/2023
On the way to Forest School this week, Lilac Class stopped at the wellie tree and tried to work out read more
Willow Forest School
23/11/2023
Willow class were very excited to be going to the woods for their forest school adventure this afternoon and we read more
Maple Forest School
16/11/2023
Maple Class got themselves ready for their first adventure to the woods for forest school. We talked about how to read more
Maple Forest School
13/10/2023
As soon as Maple Class were ready for Forest School they headed out on a hunt for some dry fallen read more
Lilac Forest School
05/10/2023
Lilac Class were very keen to head to Forest School for their first session back after the summer, and during read more
Willow Forest School
29/09/2023
Willow Class stayed on the school site for their Forest School this week. They worked really well getting the vegetable read more
Maple Forest School
22/09/2023
Maple Class were very excited to get outside and start exploring. Each were given a stick ready to go on read more
Cherry Forest School
14/09/2023
This were our first session back of the term and Cherry Class were keen to get going and explore forest read more
Willow Forest School
30/06/2023
The last session of Forest School of the year brings a time of reflection and the whole of Willow Class read more
Lilac Forest School
22/06/2023
Lilac set off for the woods for their last session of the year on the day after midsummer’s day. On read more
Cherry Forest School
15/06/2023
The last session of Forest School of the year brings a time of reflection. The whole class thought about their read more
Maple Forest School
08/06/2023
On the way to Forest School Maple Class each collected a rainbow selection of flowers and plants, inspired by the read more
Maple Forest School
18/05/2023
On the way to the woods, Maple Class played a game of ‘Owl eyes’, where they had to hide in read more
Lilac Forest School
11/05/2023
Lilac set off for the woods after a busy week of SATS and bikability. They collected some sticky week and read more
Willow Forest School
04/05/2023
On the way to the woods, Willow Class played a game of ‘Owl eyes’, where they had to hide in read more
Cherry Forest School
28/04/2023
This term Cherry Class’ topic is all about growing. The children played a game of ‘you are only safe if read more
Maple Forest School
20/04/2023
On the way to the woods, Maple Class played a game of ‘Owl eyes’, where they had to hide in read more
Buddy Time Forest School
30/03/2023
Maple Class went to the woods with their buddies this week. They showed their buddies what they had learned about read more
Cherry Class Forest School
02/03/2023
The class were great at spotting interesting signs of spring on the walk to the woods. They were very good read more
Maple Class Forest School
24/02/2023
On the way to the woods Maple Class started to spot the signs of spring. The children all played a read more
Maple Class Forest School
02/02/2023
The class set off to the woods, across the meadow and over the bridge. They had fun siding down the read more
Lilac Class Forest School
26/01/2023
Lilac set of for their Forest School session in the week of the Lunar new year. The class have been read more
Willow Class Forest School
19/01/2023
It was another cold and frosty afternoon as Willow walked to the woods. They shared details of the ‘Welly Walk’ read more
Cherry Class Forest School
12/01/2023
On the way to the woods the class spent time observing which animals had made footprints in the mud along read more
Maple Class Forest School
05/01/2023
Maple Class started their session by discussing the story of ‘The Gruffalo’s Child’. We talked about how the different animals read more
Maple & Cherry Class Forest School
08/12/2022
This week Cherry Class and Maple Class went to the woods together. They walked a different way to the woods, read more
Lilac Class Forest School
01/12/2022
The rain has made the journey through the meadow too muddy, so the children took the route along the Forest read more
Willow Class Forest School
24/11/2022
This week at Forest School we focussed on history, geography and science curriculum links during our walk to the woods. read more
Maple Class Forest School
13/10/2022
The children listened to the story of ‘Leaf Man’ who goes where the wind blows. They each had a stick read more
Maples Class Forest School
15/09/2022
Maple Class talked about how to be safe when walking to the woods and that we shouldn’t ever put anything read more
Willows Class Forest School
30/06/2022
On the way to the woods Willow Class got completely engrossed in the grass flower meadow and spent lots of read more
Lilac Class Forest School
23/06/2022
On the way to the woods, some of the class found some grasshoppers in the flower meadows. To start the read more
Lilac Class Forest School
20/05/2022
This week Lilac Class started their session by collecting dandelion flowers. They challenged each other to pick the longest stemmed read more
Maple & Cherry Class Forest School
09/05/2022
Maple Class joined Cherry Class at Forest School this week as part of their transition into year 1. They got read more
Willow Class Forest School
05/05/2022
On the way to the woods, Willow Class learned all about dandelions. They learned they are used as tea, their read more
Cherry Class Forest School
29/04/2022
This week the children started their afternoon by talking about being explorers. Cherry Class managed to survive the mud left read more
Maple Class Forest School
21/04/2022
Maple Class set off to the farm where the woods are, in search of signs of Spring and Spring animals. read more
Maple Class Forest School
24/03/2022
Maple Class took clipboards and pencils to record signs of spring. Thy palyed a hiding game of ‘Owl Eyes’ in read more
Lilac Forest School
17/03/2022
This week Lilac Class started their session by trying the rose hip syrup they had made in the Autumn. The read more
Willow Class Forest School
10/03/2022
On the way to the woods, Willow Class learned a song about spring and joined in with the actions. ‘Spring read more
Cherry Class Forest School
03/03/2022
This week the children started their afternoon by spotting signs of spring and playing ‘You are only safe when you read more
Maple Class Forest School
24/02/2022
Maple Class set off to the woods, insearch of signs of Spring. They found crocuses and daffosils and then some read more
Maple Class Forest School
03/02/2022
Like the ‘Wildlife Explorers’ last week, Maple Class took part in ‘The Big Schools Bird Watch’. They played listening games read more
KS2 Forest School
27/01/2022
All of KS2 set off for the woods together for a fantastic afternoon at Forest School. We talked about and read more
Maple Class Forest School
26/01/2022
The children talked about which animals were native in the wild in England. They then spotted some animal tracks and read more
Willow Class Forest School
02/12/2021
On the way to the woods, Willow Class made some silhouettes of animals and creatures in their shadows created by read more
Lilac Class Forest School
25/11/2021
This week Lilac Class had to wrap up warm, as the cold has finally come. They created some shadow puppets read more
Cherry Class Forest School
11/11/2021
This week the children talked about the changes they had seen in the environment. “Some of the trees look golden!” read more
Whole School Forest School
05/11/2021
The morning started with our intrepid breakfast clubbers arriving at 7:40am ready for breakfast, hot chocolate and a relax in read more
Maple Class Forest School
04/11/2021
Today Maple Class spent time kicking leaves and noticing the changes that had been occurring around them as Autumn develops. read more
Maple Class Forest School
14/10/2021
Today the class all had a stick and collected the fallen leaves on it to create a multi coloured ‘leaf read more
Lilac Class Forest School with Buddies
07/10/2021
This week Lilac Class went on an outdoor adventure with their Buddies! Lilac’s topic this term is ‘World War Two’. read more
Willow Class Forest School
30/09/2021
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Cherry Class Forest School
23/09/2021
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Maple Class Forest School
16/09/2021
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Lilac Class Forest School
24/06/2021
In the week of midsummers day, we have had rain, cold and now summer sunshine! Lilac Class took along the read more
Willow Class Forest School
17/06/2021
After the searing heat of earlier in the week, Willow Class Forest School started in the drizzling rain! They collected read more
Cherry Class Forest School
10/06/2021
It was a warm summer’s day, so along the way to the woods, the children spotted summer plants and trees read more
Maple Class Forest School
20/05/2021
Maple Class made ‘log dogs’ this week, by drawing faces on logs and creating a lead. They took them out read more
Lilac Class Forest School
13/05/2021
Year 5 have been taking part on ‘Bikeability ‘sessions this week, so Lilac Class decided to all ride to the read more
Cherry Class Forest School
06/05/2021
This term Cherry’s learning journey is ‘Plants and Growing’, so the children had a go at spotting as many of read more
Willow Class Forest School
29/04/2021
Willow class were full of energy, so we started our sessions by playing some games we knew and learning some read more
Maple Class Forest School
23/04/2021
This term our learning journey is ‘Turrets and Tiaras’. The children all had a willow horse or dragon to name read more
Willow Class Forest School
25/03/2021
As the Spring Equinox has just passed, the children talked about the advent of spring and played some games in read more
Cherry Class Forest School
18/03/2021
The impact of the Forest School experience can be seen through the skills, art and craft activities, observations and knowledge read more
Maple Class Forest School
12/03/2021
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Lilac Class Forest School
03/12/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Willow Class Forest School
19/11/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge they gain from the Forest School experience. The impact read more
Cherry Class Forest School
12/11/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Maple Class Forest School
05/11/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Lilac Class Forest School
15/10/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Willow Class Forest School
09/10/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Cherry Class Forest School
01/10/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Maple Class Forest School
24/09/2020
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
After School Club Forest School
13/03/2020
With a couple of brilliant small people, we set off after a busy day at school to tackle the muddy read more
Cherry Class Forest School
05/03/2020
The rain fell harder than it has all winter. We decided that we needed to brave it and go and read more
Maple Class Forest School
27/02/2020
This term our topic is ‘Turrets and Tiaras’. We learned about castles in the morning and played with knights and read more
Lilac Class Forest School
06/02/2020
After the wet and cold weather we have been so used to, it was gorgeous in the sunshine today. Miss read more
Willow Class Forest School
30/01/2020
The children are learning about Maps as part of their Geography curriculum this term. They all had a look at read more
Cherry Class Forest School
23/01/2020
The day was warmer than we expected, but we set off another way to the woods, because last week it read more
Maple Class Forest School
16/01/2020
It looked like rain at lunchtime, but as we headed out the wind picked up and blew it all away. read more
Lilac Class Forest School
12/12/2019
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Forest School Well-being day
05/12/2019
The whole school wet to the woods as part of our Well-being day. They spent the morning covering health, first read more
Cherry Class Forest School
21/11/2019
A cold fog had arrived by the time we were wrapped up warm and prepared for the woods, the children read more
Maple Class Forest School
14/11/2019
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Lilac Class Forest School
17/10/2019
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Willow Class Forest School
10/10/2019
The impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Cherry Class Forest School
03/10/2019
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Maple Class Forest School
26/09/2019
The Impact of Forest School for the children is the knowledge the children have gained from the Forest School experience. read more
Bring a Parent to Forest School
16/07/2019
It was a gorgeous summers day as we set off as a whole school and parents to the woods. The read more
Maple Class Forest School
15/05/2019
The clouds looked ominous, but Maple Class headed out in their wellies and waterproofs ready to adventure and look for read more
Willow Class Forest School
03/05/2019
Willow had a fantastic time in the forest on Thursday and, except for a few spots of rain on the read more
Cherry Class Forest School
28/03/2019
As part of ‘The Great British Spring Clean’, Cherry class donned gloves and spread out in a long line to read more
Maple Class Forest School
27/03/2019
In the morning, we had a go at using a saw to cut logs to make ‘ Dino Log Dogs’ read more
Lilac and Maple Class Buddy Time Forest School
14/03/2019
This week it was extremely windy, so we decided to adventure through the fields, rather than the woods. Maple Class read more
Willow Class Forest School
07/03/2019
This week, it was Willow class' turn to go into the forest. With the promise of sunshine in the afternoon, read more
Cherry Class Forest School
28/02/2019
It started to rain as we set out, but we managed to have a great afternoon anyway! We talked about read more
Maple Class Forest School
14/02/2019
The sun shone and we spotted spring crocuses with honey bees and talked about them finding nectar to make honey read more
Maple Class Forest School
17/01/2019
It was a freezing day, but we wrapped up really warm, with hats and gloves and set off to look read more
Whole School Forest School
15/12/2018
The children have worked so hard this term and have performed brilliantly at both of their Nativity performances, that we read more
Maple Class Forest School
09/11/2018
The sun shone and we talked about the difference in the weather from yesterday’s rain, when we got soaked walking read more
Willow Class Forest School
20/10/2018
The Children loved explaining the walk to Forest School to Miss Hare and Miss Williams. They spent time noticing the read more
Cherry Class Forest School
19/10/2018
We walked to the woods in the Autumn sunshine and stopped to collect some wheat which the children found along read more