Forest School Activites

Our forest school activities provide children with a stimulating and inspiring outdoor environment in which they can develop their personal, social, and emotional skills by exploring the world around them. All forest school activities are undertaken by our nursery school children as well as primary school attendees of our school holiday Adventure Camps and afterschool Bushcraft Clubs.

Den Building

Den building encourages teamwork, developing on the children’s social skills, their ability to work with others and to follow instructions.

Maths skills are also developed, with the children having to work out different ways to create the structure, the lengths of the branches and the size of the shelter.

Children will learn life skills and begin to understand the importance of shelter, the different types of shelter and their uses, and will also find out about the wildlife that build shelters, as well as building on their physical development in lifting and transporting things.

Twig Picture Frames

We use the natural world around us to be creative and to develop new skills. Creating twig picture frames helps children appreciate the beauty of the natural world around them while training their hand eye co-ordination.

Playdough Nature Faces

Playdough is a well-loved resource in the early years – it is safe to use and does not have a negative impact on the environment if it gets left behind.

This type of activity encourages the development of fine motor skills, with the children using their fingers and hands to manipulate the dough into different shapes. This is beneficial when learning to write and hold a pencil, as it helps to strengthen the muscles in their hands!

Children are given the opportunity to tune into their imagination when creating their new creatures, which also encourages the development of language and communication skills because the children will love telling others about their design!

Knot Tying

Tying knots is a tricky activity but is a great experience for all the children. This activity promotes fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and helps to build the muscles in the hands.

Children are encouraged to use their imagination, and a trial-and-error approach to tie things together- the younger children may wish to simply wrap the string around the sticks, and older children may keep trying until they tie it off! Problem-solving is a skill that children will carry through the rest of their life, and will help them to feel empowered by investigating and learning things for themselves.

Natural Art Collages

Creating natural art collages teaches children to collaborate whilst giving them an appreciation into the beauty of the natural world around them.

Natural Paint Brushes

Making natural paintbrushes explores different uses for different materials and objects. The children are able to explore their natural world and make their own decisions on which materials to use, and experiment with which work the best.

This activity also promotes physical development with their fine and gross motor skills, as well as their imaginative and creative skills.

We have also used natural materials, such as berries, leaves and charcoal, to make our own paints.