Our week in the forest...
It has been another gloriously muddy week in the forest with many of the children resembling the muddy beast from Room On A Broom, ‘It dripped and it squelched, as it strode from the ditch’, the perfect costume for World Book Day!! At the same time there has definitely been a sense of Spring in the air with the appearance of the delicate blossom on the trees and carpets of daffodils magically appearing throughout the gardens.
In true Little Forest Folk style this week’s edition has been written deep inside the forest where we have been talking with the children to understand their views and experiences based upon one of our rules ‘Caring and Sharing’.
Throughout the week our focus has been sharing, caring and taking turns, with many of the activities, games and resources organised in a way that has encouraged the children to explore ways of playing cooperatively. These are really important life skills for younger children, and through discussions and modelling what it means to be a good friend, our Little Forest Folk have been shining examples of children who have enhanced their enjoyment of the setting through applying these skills. We have seen them compromising, negotiating, sharing resources, inviting each other to take turns, and also coping with the disappointment of not always getting their own way!!
Group games have been particularly popular, with the children initiating some great ideas using the natural resources around them. The obstacle courses were incredibly successful with children taking turns to indicate the next route, ‘first we jump over logs, up the muddy mountain, around the trees 10 times and leap the crocodiles! and off they went….
So what does ‘Sharing and Caring’ mean to our children?
‘Having fun together in the mud, splashing muddy mud on my face’
‘Playing with my friends’
‘I like to climb the tree and share my cars with Johan’
‘Dinosaur chasing, Grrrrr! Rooooaarrrr!’
‘To make my friend be happy if they are sad’
‘Making funny stories together’
It's wonderful to see the children creating and maintaining this sense of community firsthand, and we couldn't be more proud of our Little Forest Folk.
We have also celebrated our first Pancake Day in the forest this week with our own yummy pancakes topped with honey and lemon, they were a real hit! It was also interesting to hear about some of the children’s favourite fillings, although we’re not sure about the peas and custard! Maybe this is the influence of some of the stories we have recently been reading…
Food in the forest:
Our March menu will be introduced next week! See all of the menu changes in our update.
Our new dinner on Tuesdays:
Slow cooked beef, root vegetables and potato hotpot
The casserole steak will be seasoned and slow cooked in the oven with swede, parsnips and carrots, onions, garlic and mustard. It is then mix it with seasoned, boiled potatoes. A very hearty and healthy stew which also tastes delicious!
Our March food in the forest can be found HERE
Team update:
Otis has joined the team this week in Fulham.
Otis is a qualified early years teacher, has carried out research of Scandinavian style forest schools and is a huge advocate of outdoor learning.
Have a great weekend!
Little Forest Folk
Fulham
