Forest School Week 4 (Morning and All Day Nursery)

                                                                     Forest School

Week 4

Morning and All Day Nursery

Today we started the session with a new game called Forest Fire. The children had to pretend to be woodland animals. They all immediately thought about being safari animals, so we had to think hard about our British woodland animals like badger, fox, squirrel, and rabbit. In the game the animals must run across the woodland over to safe space without being caught by the fire. If they do get caught, they join the fire and make a long chain. This begins to teach the children that small fires can easily become big fires and how wildlife can be impacted by that.

This week we introduced a new tool, the peeler, which we use to whittle wood. In the week the children had read the story Stick Man by Julia Donaldson, so we showed the children how to make their own stick person. We used the skill of whitling to create the head which they could later draw a face onto. The children also learned how to hold and twist pipe cleaners effectively to attach the arms, which in turn strengthens their handwriting muscles. They used wool, leaves and other natural materials to make clothes and decorate their stick person.

We set up a puppet theatre space where they could use their stick people, or the woodland animals, to put on a show. This supports their language development and imagination skills as they take on the role of the characters.

We closed the session by reflecting on one thing that made them happy in Forest school. This is the start of talking about their feelings. Some said that making their Stick Person made the happy whilst others told us that it was the bubbles, running or their friends. Lots of children said that “everything” made them happy which made me very happy.

Outdoor Adventures Week 2 (Tuesday afternoon)

 Chater Outdoor Adventures

All Day and Afternoon Nursery

Week 2

The afternoon and all day Nursery children enjoyed our second outdoor adventure this week with the Nursery teachers. 

We searched for, and compared, the different shaped leaves we could find in our outdoor area.  We looked at the colours (red, yellow, orange, green and brown) and used words to talk about how the leaves looked and felt such as oval, round, pointy, jagged and smooth.

We then used the leaves to print onto clay.  We will wait for the clay to dry then make some nice decorations to bring home.  During our outdoor learning time we also enjoyed using crayons to make leaf rubbings.  This is something you could try at home.  

We finished off our session with a nice cup of hot chocolate to warm up!

Forest School Week 3 (Morning and All Day Nursery)

 

Forest School

Week 3

Morning and All Day Nursery

This week we were exploring light and dark. We made some dens for the children to hide in and provided them with finger torches to explore with.

 

We discussed the different ways people use candles to celebrate special days; for example, we have candles to celebrate our birthdays. The children all knew about Divas for Diwali, Jewish people light them to celebrate Hanukah and Christians use them for Christingle in church. Sometimes we have candles to remember someone special. We provided little electric candles and invited the children to make their own candle holder or Diva, for someone special, using clay. We showed them how to make patterns on them using sticks and leaf prints.

 

The children also had a choice of making dens for our Forest Friends. We used the mallets to put sticks into the ground, practicing the skills of carrying and passing it to each other safely. They liked making a house for Hedgehog. 

In Forest School there are lots of opportunities for physical development. The children have really enjoyed exploring behind the bushes and some are getting good at climbing on, under and around the low branches. To get into our log circle the children have to climb up and down a steep slope which has been hard for some. We have noticed a big improvement in their growing confidence and coordination.  

Outdoor Adventures (Tuesday Afternoon)

Chater Outdoor Adventures

All Day and Afternoon Nursery

Week 1

The afternoon and all day Nursery children enjoyed an outdoor adventure this week with the Nursery teachers. 

The children are learning how to get ready by putting on waterproof trousers, wellie boots and a warm coat.  Some children brought hats and gloves to help keep them warm.

The children learnt where we have our basecamp and enjoyed the game of hide and seek.  When the adult shouts "1, 2, 3, Where are you?" they reply "1, 2, 3 Here I am!" They really enjoyed finding some good hiding spots in the trees!

The children learnt the rules "No pick, no lick" and "Be careful how you carry a stick" to help keep themselves safe.

We had a treasure hunt looking for "a yellow leaf, a stick you can carry and a small stone!"

We also enjoyed hot chocolate and singing back in basecamp at the end of the session.

Forest School Week 2 (Morning and All Day Nursery)

Forest School

Week 2

Morning and All Day Nursery

Today the children began to learn how to use tools safely. We introduced the mallet. We showed the children how to use it to put pegs into the ground. They learned to walk with it down by their side and how to pass it by giving the handle to their friend.

We played 1,2,3, Where are you? The children are already responding faster to the instruction “Come to me”.

The children then had a choice of activities:

Some chose to find and look carefully for insects, we found a Glass Snail, several woodlice, spiders and a slug.

We learned about the wood Elder and the fact that it has a soft centre called pith. The children made beads and fireworks by pressing the pith out of the wood and threading pipe cleaners or tissue paper into it.

Others enjoyed exploring and problem solving with water in guttering, whilst others explored digging.

At the close of the session the children all showed us how much they had enjoyed the session by holding their hands apart. They all had had a great time.

Forest School Week 1 Morning and All Day Nursery

 Forest School

Week 1

Morning and All Day Nursery

Today Nursery had their first introduction to Forest School. They learned the important rules to keep us safe. We learned that we must not pick the vegetation or put things in our mouths and, equally important, how to play safely with sticks. We learned a little action poem to remind us: “No pick, no lick, be careful how you carry a stick.” I wonder if they can show you the actions at home?

We taught them a new game of hide and seek which they loved, called 1,2,3 Where are you? This is designed to teach the children to listen to and follow instructions. They have to recognise when we say “1,2,3, where are you?” or “1,2,3, Come to me” and respond appropriately.  

We wanted the children to explore the new area and begin to recognise some of the plants. We encouraged them to look closely at, and sort, the different leaf shapes. Using the magical theme of Halloween, we sent them to hunt for “ingredients” of our  magic potion. We created a fabulous magic spell to turn Debbie into a nice witch.

The first step of the day was to learn how to dress and undress themselves into waterproofs and boots independently. We learned that to keep ourselves warm we need to wear extra layers, hats and gloves. Please can you support your children by providing an extra layer of warm clothes on Thursdays and help them to practice dressing so that they can be more independent. Several children in Nursery can now put on all their outdoor clothes by themselves and do up their own coats. Well done.