Forest School runs every Wednesday during Term Time.
‘Forest School is an inspirational process that offers ALL learners regular opportunities to achieve and develop confidence and self-esteem through hands-on learning experiences in a woodland or natural environment with tress’ (Forest School Association)
Little Milton Forest School Vision Statement:
“Our Forest School is a place where children and adults can experience the awe and wonder of nature. Forest School is the approach to offer a learning environment in which children and young people can explore, learn and grow free and of their own accord. Whether it is through sitting still and absorbing their surroundings, by laying on the woodland floor and watching insects go about their daily activities, or whether it is about climbing trees and ‘making and doing’ there is an appeal to adults and children.
Learners feel safe to learn by trial and error through child led opportunities. It enables all children to challenge themselves in a natural environment. In this day of rushing and hurrying, adults and children can take some time to just ‘be’. Children’s learning can be supported to encourage exploration with managed risks. This will help them to begin to manage their own risks.
Through the freedom that is given to them, they will find the greatest teacher of all: Nature, and through Nature they will find curiosity.
Curiosity lies within all of us and therefore we are all welcome at Forest School, children, young people and adults! We celebrate our diversity by bringing it into the group and we can all grow by sharing our unique strengths, and experiencing others’ at the same time!
At Forest School you can find challenges and risks. You can find your strong self, your vulnerable self, your happy self and many more feelings you may not have yet experienced.
One of the main principles that attracted me to Forest School was that adults can enjoy playing in the woods as much as children can. It gives everyone permission to play and explore at whatever level we feel comfortable with. In order to keep us all safe to play and explore, we need to create some ground rules that we all agree to follow and create together – rules about safety, boundaries, using tools and how to behave in the fire circle!
