Forest School
Welcome to ECS Forest School
Our Vision
Forest School offers our pupils the opportunity to take supported risks and experience the awe and wonder of the world around us. It enables children to explore, discover and learn about nature whilst developing their holistic skills such as independence, confidence, self-esteem and resilience. Forest School scaffolds the physical, intellectual, emotional and social development within a child-led approach. The sessions are a continuation of learning experiences across a long period of time that consolidates and embed key skills which can be transferred back into the classroom setting. We are fortunate to have our own Forest School area on site where the children can access the specialised learning throughout the year. We follow the Forest School Association’s key principles to ensure that the core ethos is maintained and embedded which include:
- Forest School is a long- term process with frequent and regular sessions rather than a one-off visit. Planning, adaption, observations and reviewing are integral elements of Forest School.
- Forest School takes place in a woodland or natural wooded environment to support the development of a relationship between the learner and the natural world.
- Forest School aims to promote the holistic development of all those involved, fostering resilient, confident, independent and creative learners
- Forest School offers learners the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves.
- Forest School is run by qualified Forest School Practitioners who continuously maintain and develop their professional practice.
- Forest School uses a range of learner-centred processes to create a community for development and learning.
Reference to: http://www.forestschoolassociation.org/
Forest School at Eastbury
Forest school is an enabling environment for cross-curricular learning to take place. At Eastbury we view our learners as
- equal, unique and valuable
- competent to explore and discover
- entitled to experience appropriate risk and challenge
- entitled to initiate their own learning at their own pace during forest school sessions
- entitled to develop strong positive relationships with their natural world
Although forest school sessions are planned the ethos of Forest School champions the importance of child-led play, where children are encouraged to use their own initiative and autonomy to take ownership of their own learning.
Things that we have done in our forest school sessions:
- Used magnified glasses to find and compare bugs
- used drills to make log necklaces
- discussed, designed and made natural bug hotels for the mini-beasts
- made musical instruments using natural materials
- learned the clove hitch knot to tie two sticks together
We are learning to become resilient, take risks and explore new environments!
