Forest School Jo

Apologies for the lack of blog this weekend just gone. I usually aim to do it on a Friday afternoon - and it sometimes spills into the weekend, but lately, time has been running away from me! With the last of Summer fading away any sunny day feels like it needs grabbing! My weekends are full of housework, laundry, errands, and chores, and when the sun shines the opportunity to ignore it all is very tempting. Of course, it doesn't actually go anywhere, but ignorance is bliss so I spent Sunday at a Flower Farm and have been playing catch up with the hoover and washing machine ever since! Meanwhile, although the new school year doesn't feel very new anymore, there are still a lot of changes and rearranges to accommodate. Forest School is always a work in progress, so developing sites and practice while getting to know new children means a lot of reworking. My two colleagues new to Forest School know the school well but don't know the classes in Forest School, this is a learnin...

In my experience, September is a weird month. It signals the start of a new school year and a new school term. For independent Forest Schools things change, as some children leave to start school, or move schools, Summer Camps are over and new children start, but the weeks and sessions continue as they have done all year round. In School it's almost the same thing, a whole new EYFS, last year's Year 6's  have moved on, new pupils dotted about across the school, a new timetable, some new staff, and an overgrown Forest School to tame. September means change. For those of us who have done little Forest School over the School Holidays, there is also the slow return to the normal routine. To a different pace of life to that of August. Whether you've had a busy Summer or a lazy Summer the alarms were switched off and choices of how to spend each day were almost endless! Every year FSLs in schools everywhere have to adjust to having breakfast within 30 mins of getting up, to l...

Eight great articles that support going outside, being outside, and learning outside! How it can help life post covid, and aid adulthood. How it improves mental health and supports learning INside! Grab a cuppa... PIONEERING RESEARCH TEAM CHAMPIONS DEEPER CONNECTIONS WITH NATURE From The University oF Derby Call for more play time amid ‘schoolification’ of UK childhood from  Sally Weale   Should Outdoor Learning in Schools be Compulsory? from  Joe Bogumsky 10 Tips for Improving Active Play at Your School  My School - My Planet Green space during childhood may improve adult mental health 'Why are kids learning inside?': How the Covid pandemic could take education outdoors in Scotland for good The Wildlife Trusts call for every child to have a daily one-hour nature boost.