Children from Rowley View Nursery School participating in the Moorcroft Environmental Centre Forest School, Moorcroft Wood, Moxley, Walsall, West Midlands, July 2011 - Paul Harris/2020VISION
Forest School
What is Forest School?
Forest School is an inspirational form of environmental education that offers children regular opportunities to learn and develop new skills through structured activities and free play in a woodland environment.
Several children who previously found it difficult to integrate with others are now more able and willing to do so. Quieter children have now found their voice in class and ask more questions and are more confident.Mablin's Lane Primary School
Den making c. Claire Huxley
Den making
Learning about fires
Wild cooking
Wild art
Forest Schools engage with children on a regular basis in a woodland setting with the main aim being to ensure the participants benefit from their outdoor experiences, in terms of their self-esteem, behaviour, social skills and overall wellbeing. Forest School provides a different approach to learning with the key characteristics listed below:
- Sessions are often child-led
- Sessions happen regularly over time
- Takes place outdoors in the natural environment, usually within a woodland
- Takes place in all weathers
- Led by trained forest school practitioners
- Opportunity for risk taking
Read more about the concept of forest school and academic research
Forest school activities can include:
Making a Bogart (tree spirit) out of clay and natural materials
Shelter making and animal homes
Learning about different woodland plants and animals
Practicing lighting fires with fire steel and trying some outdoor cooking
Making a wooden name badge with tools
Natural art on the forest floor
Woodland games
We run Forest Schools at:
- The Quinta Nature Reserve, Swettenham, Holmes Chapel, CW12 2LF
- Moore Nature Reserve, Lapwing Lane, Moore, Warrington, WA4 6XE
- Holly Bank Wood, Thorton-le-Moors, Ellesmere Port, CH2 4JK
- Marbury Country Park, Comberbach, Northwich CW9 6AT
- Spud Wood, Lymm WA13 0SL
- Bog Wood, Sankey Valley Nature Park, Warrington WA5 9PB
If your school grounds are suitable then we can come to your school to run sessions or we can work on a Wildlife Trust site near to the school.
In this programme we like students to come for a minimum of six half-day sessions. We are happy to offer more than six sessions if this is deemed to be beneficial to the children concerned.
Alternatively, we can offer one off taster days to give your children a valuable natural experience in the great outdoors.
Forest School (https://youtu.be/ToII0lZGqkU)
Forest School
Contact
If you would like more information or to make a booking please contact us on 01948 820 728 or email schools@cheshirewt.org.uk