Autumn Term at Forest School

We have come to the end of another term of Forest School and what a wonderful term it has been.

On the most part we have been lucky with the weather, but Storm Arwen and Storm Barra did bring its challenges. We were all still able to have fun, even if it may not have been in our normal forest school environment. It was not just the day of the storm, but also ensuring the sites were safe after they had happened.

At a Bridport school, part of a willow tree needed to be chopped down after Storm Barra as it had blown over and was no longer safe. Autumn is such a fantastic season to partake in forest school with so many natural resources on offer.

With the leaves falling from the trees we have used them in many ways from making leaf crowns to leaf rain. Pine cones were collected and pine cone birds made with a session learning about birds and migration. Conkers are also always fun to collect and can be used for many crafting activities. The conkers were saved and conker spiders were made at Halloween with spider webs from collected sticks and wool.

When Bonfire night came around it was an excellent time to start talking about fire safety. We practised the Stop, Drop and Roll technique and crawling to escape a smoked filled room. Marshmallows and popcorn cooked on the fire are always such a highlight for the children and was what was mentioned most when reflecting at the end of the term.

The beginning of December soon came around and with it the excitement of Christmas. It is always fun to bring Christmas into the Forest school sessions. Making reindeer from clay, painting Santa on sticks, decorations for the tree on wood cookies, Christmas songs around the fire and hunting the site for hidden chocolate coins are just a few of the fun activities.

Such a great way to finish the term.