Pear class week 1 blackberries and conkers

Today our Year 1 children had their very first Forest School adventure! Half the class explored in the morning, and the other half in the afternoon. The weather gave us everything – bright blue skies one moment and heavy downpours the next – but we embraced it all and had such fun in the rain.

We started by walking down to our Forest School site, thinking about a good Forest school name. Around the fire circle, we played games, shared ideas, and talked about the treasures of autumn – conkers, acorns, and blackberries.

Mrs Sunderland showed the children how to use a palm drill to make holes in conkers for threading, and then we picked juicy blackberries from the hedgerow to mash up for tie-dye. The children loved experimenting with fabric, elastic bands, and berry dye to create beautiful patterns.

There was plenty of excitement with den building, bug hunting, and even catching raindrops from the canopy. We finished off with a treat of apples, hot chocolate, and biscuits made by the children themselves – the perfect way to end the first session.