Mud glorious mud!
As adults we look out into our muddy forest and see this as a challenge. Well not our children, the more mud the more fun! Mud is amazing to squish in, add to imaginative food play and even to slide on. If kids are warm enough and stay dry under their waterproofs, there is just no stopping the fun. The muddier they are at the end of the day indicates how much they have enjoyed the day! We are always so impressed by how resilient the children become, quickly being able to recognise if they are becoming too cold or not to run in certain areas as too slippery.
We have been doing lots if climbing this week. Both groups have moved area boundaries allowing more access to amazing fallen trees to climb. These trees are so versatile for our play. By themselves they are perfect for climbing but by adding ropes we can make it easier or more challenging for the children. We love setting up spider webs and climbing frames adding to the adventure had in the forest. We also have had the slack line set up this week, amazing for balancing practice. On adventure walks we love to find new areas to explore and climb, further extending the fantastic physical skills the little ones develop.
As always, the imagination play in the forest is incredible. This week we have seen Firemen on the rescue, cats in the farm, monsters chasing and so much more. It is always a joy seeing how one small item can inspire so much play. Furthermore, this week we have seen the start of a new practitioner who brought a guitar with them to the forest. We all had so much fun listening and joining in with songs. Over the days the children have become more confident and are even singing the songs themselves with their friends.
Despite the cold the sun has still come out to say hello every day. If we are feeling cold or have too much energy there is nothing like running around on the meadow soaking up all the sunshine. This is often the perfect way to end the forest day. We have also been noticing the moon, often on our walk outs it is clearly visible in the sky. The children watch so fascinated, commenting on its shape and brightness. How amazing that we get to see so much of the world each day we are in the forest.
Another wonderful week in the Wimbledon Forest, we look forward to next week!
Little Forest Folk
Wimbledon