What are forest schools and what activities do children do there?

FOREST Schools differ from most school in the way they approach learning.

Here we’ve gathered everything you need to know about the schools from what they teach and what they stand for.

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Children in Forest Schools spend time in nature not in classrooms[/caption]

What are Forest Schools?

Unlike other schools, Forest Schools focus on outdoor learning and first arrived in the UK in 1993, after they started in Scandinavia.

The schools also aim to focus more on mental health and skills which are transferable and can help to build confidence.

The open-air learning is designed to help children take managed risks in a supported environment.

The long-term school has regular sessions, each around two or more hours long and will include “at least two seasons” over the 24-week term, Forest School Association explained on YouTube.

According to Forrest School Association: “The process helps and facilitates more than knowledge-gathering, it helps learners develop socially, emotionally, spiritually, physically and intellectually.”

Children will usually attend Forrest Schools at at nursery or primary school age as an after school club or part of the larger curriculum.

There are 108 Forest Schools currently in the UK.

What activities do children do at Forest Schools?

As the name suggests, the environment plays a big part in the day-to-day curriculum.

Children can take part in activities like woodcraft, where they can make their own furniture for example, as well as den building and team-building games.

What are the six principles of Forest Schools?

The six principles of certified Forest Schools are the basis on which all schools run.

These are defined and set by the Forrest School Association:

1. Forest School is a long term process of regular lessons in a natural environment and includes sessions on planning, adaptation, observations and reviewing.
2. Forest School takes place in a woodland or natural environment to support the development of a relationship with nature.
3. The schools aim to crate a community for learning.
4. Forest School aims to promote the holistic development of all involved, fostering resilient, confident, independent and creative learners.
5. Forest School offers learners the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves.
6. The schools are run by qualified Forest School practitioners who are specialised in the school’s learning.

What is taught in Forest Schools?

Although the curriculum may change from school to school they will often use the outdoor setting to connect different lessons.

Good School Guide explained: “[Forest Schools] link lessons on Romans to making bows and arrows out of wood.

“Science might involve filtering sediments with tree taps, or making elderflower cordial, identifying bugs using a magnifying glass.”