To the external eye, forest school activities may look like free play and some may ask ‘Why?’. Forest School Research (2022) explain that such lessons make a difference in the following ways:
- Confidence
- Social Skills
- Communication
- Motivation
- Physical Skills
- Knowledge and understanding of the world
At Brabyns, we are extremely lucky in that we have an abundance of places to visit in our local area. Year 2 often visit Brabyns Park where they get wrapped up, wellies included, and explore the different trees and even explore the water to see what fascinating things may have been washed down the stream.
This promotes a wide range of thought provoking questions. For example, one child marvelled in conversation about their discovery and even researched where it may have come from and what it was used for. This level of curiosity cannot be matched and therefore demonstrates the fundamental need for learning outside of the classroom.
On International Peace Day 2022, Year 2 visited Brabyns Park to appreciate the peace that nature offers. We also collected a range of rocks in collaboration with Year 1. When we returned to school, the children painted the rocks with a range of symbols that demonstrated peace to them. We later returned the rocks for members of the public to find. If you are lucky, you may find some even now.
