Our Week in the Forest...
‘Look at everything as though you are seeing it for the first time, with eyes of a child, fresh with wonder.’ Joseph Cornell
Along with the warm morning breeze we welcomed many new visitors to the forest this week, and what smiles it brought to the faces of our Little Forest Folk... it was of course our first Stay & Play week! It was an invitation for parents to join us all to discover and explore the environment where their children are developing their learning through child-centred, play based activities.
Each morning we have been joined in our log circle by a number of parents, it was sometimes a bit of a squash and squeeze so all the children wiggled and shuffled until there was space for everyone. This was an opportunity to experience first-hand some of the delightful communication, listening, and social skills the children are developing during our circle time, and highlighted the sense of pride and ownership the children are developing when talking about the forest rules and what activities they are interested in.
It didn’t take long for the mums, dads and even grandparents to become fully immersed in the children’s play; climbing trees, crawling through mud, reading stories, decorating tree bark and covering their hands in clay. Reflecting on just why our parents are such strong advocates for outdoor education, or possibly that they don’t get out of the office enough!!
The smiles, laughter and enjoyment for the children was priceless and a valuable opportunity for them to share their outdoor ‘classroom’, highlighting how this natural environment extends their learning and encourages them to participate in new experiences. To show off their mastery of tree climbing, their incredible balancing and coordination on the slackline and how they can negotiate the woodland terrain with ease. Their independence, self-confidence and ability to problem solve when attempting something new, their creativity, social interaction and of course their general curiosity and sense of wonder for the world around them.
It has been a delightful week to have so many parents visiting our setting and following on from the positive feedback we will most definitely extend this invitation again at a future date.
We hope that this experience has been supportive in understanding how our Little Forest Folk are learning, as this is central to our ethos, not just what they are learning.
Food in the forest:
Our March food in the forest can be found HERE
Cheese and chia seed hedgehog biscuits
Who doesn't like a biscuit shaped like a hedgehog? Made with Extra Mature Cheddar and Grana Padano cheese. These biscuits have an interesting crunchy texture, so much flavour and are full of protein!
Team update:
Some of our Big Forest Folk started their Level 3 Forest School Training last weekend, the team have relished the opportunity to grow and develop their forest skills ready to share with your little ones.
Here's a few snaps of the training in action:
We hope you have a wonderful weekend full of adventure!
Little Forest Folk
Fulham
