Forest School Blog

Today, our Year 3 class enjoyed a Forest School session in some very hot weather! With temperatures soaring, everything we planned around keeping cool, staying safe, and having lots of fun. Before setting off, we gathered in the shade to discuss the weather conditions. There was not a cloud in the sky, just beautiful sunshine, a tiny breeze, and plenty of warmth. We decided to walk to our Forest School site, taking our time and making sure everyone stayed comfortable. When we arrived, we headed straight for the shade beneath the trees. Usually, we gather under the canopy, but today the natural shade from the woodland trees provided the coolest spot. We checked in with our nature names and then got straight to work. Our first activity focused on rope work. The children learned how to tie overhand knots and reef knots, practising carefully and helping one another to master these useful skills. Next, we enjoyed a creative storytelling activity. Each child chose a pebble and drew either a ...

  This week at Forest School our focus was fire. The main learning focus of the session was fire and the fire triangle. The children explored the three elements needed for fire to exist and thought carefully about how each one can be controlled in a safe setting. To support this learning, we went on a collection task to find different types of sticks, sorting them into “spaghetti-sized” and “pencil-sized” pieces to understand how fuel needs to be prepared for effective fire building. The children showed good observation skills and followed instructions carefully during the activity. We then built a small  fire and discussed safety throughout, including clear expectations and boundaries. The session also included practising correct procedures for extinguishing a fire safely, reinforcing responsible behaviour and awareness when working with heat and flame. For the first time, we introduced the hammock, which quickly became a popular space for rest, reflection, and shared enjoyme...

 Today’s forest school had an international focus as the school celebrated International Day. The children chose to make necklaces and decorations inspired by Guna designs, exploring patterns and creativity from another culture while developing fine motor skills and design ideas. We also carried out our usual outdoor activities, including wood chopping, den building, and bug hunting, which encouraged teamwork, resilience, and confidence. For the first time, we introduced the hammock, which quickly became a popular space for rest, reflection, and shared enjoyment of the outdoors. The main learning focus of the session was fire and the fire triangle. The children explored the three elements needed for fire to exist and thought carefully about how each one can be controlled in a safe setting. To support this learning, we went on a collection task to find different types of sticks, sorting them into “spaghetti-sized” and “pencil-sized” pieces to understand how fuel needs to be prepar...

  This morning, Year 3 children from Apple class enjoyed another exciting Forest School session. On our walk down to the site we used our colour charts and challenged ourselves to find one natural and man made thing of the same colour. We began by checking in with our Forest School names before Mrs. Sunderland introduced us to elderflower. We looked closely at the flowers, enjoyed their scent, and explored what elder wood looks like. The children then had the opportunity to create their own elder beads by carefully pushing the pith from the centre of a small piece of elder wood and stripping away the bark. Many children chose to continue this activity, turning their beads into necklaces and keyrings. Den building was very popular today, especially with Buster’s group, who created an impressive waterproof shelter. We also enjoyed using some of our new bug hunting resources, which inspired lots of awe and wonder. We found 5 butterflies, 10 ants, 22 woodlice, 5 spides, 2 grubs, 1 moth...

Despite the very windy weather last Wednesday, Ash Class fully embraced the British summer! With the canopy safely taken down, we all pulled on our waterproofs and headed outside for another Forest School adventure. We started by gathering around the fire circle to learn our Forest School rules and think about the nature names we would like to use over the next six weeks. The children then got busy creating beautiful flags using the Japanese art of Hapa Zome, hammering summer flowers and greenery onto fabric to make colourful natural prints. Some children learnt how to safely use palm drills to make holes in wooden cookies ready to turn into necklaces, while others enjoyed making God’s Eyes and practising different knots to thread and secure their creations. One of the highlights of the session was making our first Forest School hot chocolate. The children learnt the steps carefully and agreed it tasted delicious! We also had some very helpful wood choppers, enthusiastic den builders a...