Goodbye and hello!
For many of our children this was their last week, so we wanted to make it extra special.
Firstly, we participated in lots of adventure walks! A firm favourite is the frog pond, here our foresters are able to bring nets with them and see what they can find in the water. The more we visit the more the children notice better spots to sit on and improve on their fishing technique. Another great spot is the ‘piggy train’ which is a fallen tree which looks as though it has the face of a pig. Here we are all able to engage in so much imaginative play as well as climbing.
Another very popular activity has been using chalk. With the glorious weather we have had this week, both groups have been setting up more on the meadow which is the perfect place to lie the large chalk boards we have. We have had drawings of rollercoasters, flowers, and of course the forest. It has also been fun because the children found different ways of mixing the colours and smudging them together. By adding water, the texture of the chalk changed, and our little ones were so fascinated by this, keen to test it out and show their friends.
Lots of the children have been enjoying playing with ropes this week. Ropes can be used in all sorts of different ways in the forest. We started simply by practicing knots and untying them. We then moved on to attaching the ropes to different items such as logs, then working together to try move the items. Finally, all of these skills could be put together and a group of children were able to erect a den using sticks, tarps and ropes. They were able to build this mostly independently and showed great communication with each other to get the job done.
No matter what we set up and how much fun every activity is, a fire is always best! To celebrate many of our children we had a fire and made blackberry pancakes. What a way to end the week. Together we collected blackberries and mixed the ingredients together before cooking them on the fire. Forest food always tastes so good when we have made it ourselves. Yum, yum!
While we are saying goodbye to many children, we have also had many new faces this week. It also amazes us how quickly they are able to settle and find new ways to explore the forest. A firm favourite has been muddy play! Our fantastic older children are always wanting to lend a helping hand, from inviting them to join their games or giving them cuddles when they may be sad. It is such a joy to see the children take such great care of one another.
With another fantastic week finished we hope you have a wonderful bank holiday weekend, and for those of you leaving good luck at your new schools!
Little Forest Folk
Wimbledon