Forest Schools

[trickerg]

I've just done a week's training as a Forest School Leader, which I loved, and now have to do LOADS of work before my assessment next July. Are there are teachers/parents with experience of up-and-running forest schools, with any advice to give/opinions about them?

DS did FS at preschool for 3 years and DD is now at the same preschool - they both love FS.

DS is at school now, which doesn't do FS, and I think it is a real shame. He really comes out of himself outdoors and I think he is much quieter at school than he was at preschool.

I would love for me my dds to do FS - how do you find out where they do it? and do you have to attached to school/preschool thing to take part??

www.forestschools.com/

That's the web-site. On our level 3 course, there were TAs, teachers (nursery, primary and special school) and people who wanted to offer forest school activities as part of new ventures.

Our course was quite expensive (£850 or so) but includes a week's training, 2 days' outside first aid and an assessment week. We have a mountain of work to do: introduce the parents, teachers and governors to Forest School; liaise with external agencies about location and sustainability; essays about childrens' learning; brochures and resources for the children.... We are very glad that there were three of us on the course, as we are allowed to share the workload. We are also lucky because, as teachers, we all have some knowledge of school policies and insurance.

Are the forest schools all one organisation who communicate with each other? (does that mean you'll get broadly the same experience in them all?) Are they linked to the forest school camps organisation?

It is one organisation, with private training providers. There is a forum on the web-site, and we have been invited to a cluster group meeting of forest schools in our area, having just done the initial training. So, I'm guessing there will be future contact with other schools...??

No, they're not linked. Forest Schools originated in Sweden, whereas (looking at the FSC web-site) FSC grew up from Quakers, Woodcraft Folk, etc in the UK.

Hi Ive recently helped out at a forest school session at our school, im training to be a teaching assistant, ive heard its supposed to be compulsory by 2011 that schools have access to a forest school, dont know how true that is but was wondering if anyone had done a level 1 or 2?

many thanks

kaz

my hubby is just about to do his level 3 FS, he started out as a parent helper and now 3yrs down the line he is on the verge of being made the project manager for our local area. my hubby is also running a project for family camping a

Um- Picture the scene: It's February. You've woken to a howling gale, driving rain and 4 degrees. The outside world is a writhing grey, tumultuous mass of whirling leaves and buffeted rain, the clouds march angrily across the lowering, threatening sky. You shudder inwardly.

Would you send your 4 year old out to spend the day in a dank, darkening woodland in THAT when you'll spend the day in a lit, CH office, having arrived via heated car?

Don't do it to your kids! Don't do to them what you wouldn't do to yourself!

I speak from only having read a newspaper article that said the FS movement continues all year around unless the Met Office have issued an actual Red Warning for the area- when they take to the village hall for lunch.

We ran forest school for the whole year last year (our first year). Looking back, we all preferred the frosty, cold winter days, when the temperature was hovering around zero and there was a furry layer of frost on the branches, giving them a magical quality. Fab.

We don't go to FS if the wind is 16mph or more. That's our decision - but we do go to the school field instead.