Forest School

We live in a wonderful part of rural Oxfordshire yet many of the children show little understanding of their surroundings. Building resilience is a great benefit to them, both now and in the future.

The Forest School Association explain that the process helps and facilitates more than knowledge-gathering, it helps learners develop socially, emotionally, spiritually, physically and intellectually. It creates a safe, non-judgemental nurturing environment for learners to try stuff out and take risks.

Forest School inspires a deep and meaningful connection to the world and an understanding of how a learner fits within it. Our approach to risk means that learners constantly expand on their abilities by solving real-world issues, building self-belief and resilience. We believe that risk is more than just potential for physical harm, but a more holistic thing, there are risks in everything we do, and we grow by overcoming them. Forest School therefore, helps participants to become, healthy, resilient, creative and independent learners.  

What do they learn?

• Children learn creative skills using new tools to make sculptures and achieve tasks set out by the leader, developing self-esteem and confidence.
• Children are provided with small, achievable and progressively more challenging tasks which they are likely to succeed. 
• Children work in pairs or teams to achieve learning outcomes, developing children’s understanding and consideration of feelings. Enjoying the calm, relaxing natural environment.
• Children gain a sense of connection with the world around them and have time to develop relationships with their peers and nature.