Forest Schools East

Forest Schools

The Forest School initiative originated in Scandinavia in the 1950s, the aim was to encourage children to learn social, physical and educational skills while encouraging an appreciation and understanding of the environment. By the 1980s it had become an integral part of the Danish early years programme and was well established in all the Scandinavian countries. Forest School now has prominence in the UK with Forest Schools being part of early year education in Worchester, Oxfordshire, Shropshire and Wales.

Forest School provides an excellent opportunity to bring learning to life, allowing children, young people and adults to explore and learn in a constructive way. This inspirational process increases self-confidence, self-esteem, improves individuals’ ability to work co-operatively and counters a lack of motivation and negative attitude towards learning, while offering the opportunities to take risks, make choices and initiate learning for themselves.

The Forest School is a secure area of woodland, which acts as an outdoor classroom where people can explore, investigate and discover the natural environment. Sessions are organised and run by Qualified Forest School Leaders, while the leader will have a planned a range of potential activities, which might include shelter construction, bridge building, mapping or artwork with natural materials, it is the participants themselves that determine the range and scope of the activities.

Participants are invited to woodland sites where they are supported in their learning, encouraged to explore the outdoor environment and appreciate nature. They use tools and learn boundaries of behaviour both physical and social. It has been found the combination of freedom and responsibility is particularly beneficial to those with little confidence or challenging behaviour. Forest Schools allow participants to grow and discover their abilities without fear of criticism or failure.

Forest Schools provides a valuable teaching tool for a wide range of curriculum subjects, and is an excellent way to support and enrich the National Curriculum. Forest Schools can help develop and learn a range of subjects from Biology and Sciences, Maths, Citizenship, Design and Technology, P.E, Art and English. A non-classroom environment gives children increased stimulation and encourages a greater learning potential.

Participants can be involved in a range of activities from Pond and Stream Studies (Reception, Key Stage I and II) to Woodland Ecology (A-Level).

Forest School allows participants to learn and explore in a constructive way and encourages them to be active. Forest Schools gives confidence in the outdoors and the tools to develop healthy lifestyles while providing a unique and unforgettable learning experience.

Forest School sessions

It happens all year, in all weathers. Groups are suitably warned that the Scandinavians believe that there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing.

There is a regularity of visits. Most Early Years groups are looking at ½ day, once a week, for a year. Older groups do 6 - 10 week stints of full days. Anything less is classed as a taster, not a life-changing experience.

The content of the sessions can vary slightly between the groups, and the ethos of the individual leaders influences things a bit. But generally you are looking at a period of orienteering - with the Early Years that involves the leader going to them first, to build trust and understanding, before taking them out to the site. This may involve looking at objects from nature, exploring the nursery garden, and story telling. And having a session with parents to explain and reassure.

The next stage is establishing negotiated ground rules about how far they can go from the adults, how close to sit to the campfire. Once in the wood, groups construct a shelter of some kind. The particular centre bit of the wood used by a group is theirs for the duration of their visits, so that a den being worked on is not disturbed by anyone else.

Then there are explorations, stories and songs, which is a process that builds and develops. I am anxious not to be too prescriptive about the content of the sessions for two reasons. Firstly, the ethos is to be child-led, and to prescribe content

It is to restrict the range of the possible. Recently I had the privilege to observe a three-year old at play with a dog and a stick under the shelter of a tree. They all seemed fully engaged, concentrating deeply, getting a lot from the experience, but I would be hard pressed to say what they were doing. The Forest School should provide all young participants with the time and space to follow their own star - or stick! Secondly, your initial training will have deepened your understanding about how sessions can be structured. One thing it is, however, is oral - there are no books, manuals or clipboards in the Forests, other than the things needed for emergency procedures, like registers.

At the end of whatever length of visits there is a closure - with Early Years that may be a picnic or an over-night camp with all of their family involved and invited to share what they have been doing.