As the evenings finally begin to draw out, and the mornings no longer seem as dark as midnight, we have been talking about the things that make us smile in the forest. This opened up all sorts of lovely ideas and thoughts about the things we appreciate. From the puddles we jump in, to the trees that protect us in the rain, we have heard it all. One of the children informed us that their highlight of being in the forest is “lunch outdoors with my friends.” It is great that these little people echo the same sentiments as their educators as well, as it is these little things that we greatly appreciate about the great outdoors.
This week we have had quite a few “days of two halves,” which have tended to consist of very wet and chilly mornings, and beautiful warm and bright afternoons, with some amazing pink and orange sunsets thrown in for good measure. Even in the cold and wetter weather, we have faced it head on, and this week we have enjoyed some very fun adventure walks in the elements that have been thrown at us! “Sunny hill” has been more like “muddy hill” and so red team set off to explore! Some children managed to go up the hill, some were less sure, and so they decided to stay and play in the muddy puddles at the bottom! Our mini explorers loved squelching in the oozy mud!
Green team set off for an adventure walk where they found a giant log balancing on an old tree stump, so educator Dan checked it was safe, before allowing the mini explorers to sit on the giant natural seesaw. The children had a great time, as all 8 of them got on and had a turn together! The wood teetered from left to right, and so did the children, but they laughed and giggled together, which was an absolute joy to see.
On Tuesday morning, we had a big surprise as the old oak tree right in the middle of camp had been cut down safely by the Rangers of Wimbledon common. The tree had been dead for quite some time, and we were aware of it possibly becoming a danger, so the rangers safely chopped it and left it on its side so the mini explorers could use it as a climbing tree. Needless to say, on Tuesday morning when they all arrived, they were very excited to see the new climbing structure! We have spent time explaining how we still need a tree trained educator to be close by when climbing, but it has given the children something completely new to explore now it’s at a level closer for them to access.
Next week, we await a possible return from Jack Frost, but in the meantime, have a wonderful weekend!
Little Forest Folk
Wandsworth