Forest School
Autumn 2024
Leaves are falling!
It's harvest time!
Videocam
Highlights 2023-24
Inside the bird boxes
Forest School Activities
The pond and the allotment
Finding forest fungi
The sunflowers now look like this!
Summer Term 2023 - July
Following on from learning about seeds...the parachute was used to explore seed dispersal!
Doves enjoy bug hunting and explored using the 'Pitfall trap' method of collection.
Caterpillars have been busy!
Do you know the lifecycle of a ladybird?
Using cherries to create art!
Look at the sunflowers!
Summer Term 2023- June
Inspired by finding a stag beetle, Wrens and Robins created their own minibeasts individually and in groups.
The sunflower seeds we planted have started to grow, but the squirrels have eaten a few (some seed cases left behind)!
Come and see our wheelbarrow and potato entries!
Inspired by the visiting author and her book. Doves collected different litter and in groups, after much deliberation, created a timeline of decomposition. Do you think a banana skin, plastic bottle, cardboard box, carrier bag or glass jar would take the longest to decompose?
Wrens arrived at the Sycamore welcome tree and settled amongst the branches was Butterfly!
Then they found several other toys from their classroom! Why were they there? How could they be rescued?
They had great ideas and worked together to bring them back safely!
With Royal Ascot in mind, children created carriages, horses, hats, cakes and even the Grandstand from materials found in Forest School!
Wrens looked around the Forest for natural items with which to create facial features....leaves for hair, stones for eyes, sticks for mouths, seeds for earrings....!
Robins and Wrens have been learning about seeds. They made models of sycamore, maple and ash 'helicopters'.
Doves developed their whittling skills using a peeler.
They also created mini shelters and planted more donated saplings!
Summer Term 2023 - May
We made clay hedgehogs....
and got creative with mud!
We looked for signs of hedgehog activity in the Forest and refreshed their homes, but there was no evidence on the camera!
The rain came down, so we were busy constructing shelters in groups -great team work!
Different colours found in Forest School....
What has created this rolled up leaf?
Doves were busy creating Forest instruments and making music!
Listen to the big pan!
Doves found a stag beetle!
Summer Term 2023 - April
What can you do to help our planet?
We have been planting saplings received from Woodland Trust.
Aswell as planting more saplings, Doves have been sowing seeds to later go in the allotment.
We recycle paper in the classroom. We recycle food waste and take some to the Compost in the allotment. We turn off the lights when they are not being used. We turn off the taps when they are not in use. We pick up litter. What can you do?
We celebrated the King's Coronation by making sceptres, crowns and orbs. We also did some leaf bashing (Japanese Tataki) to create a robe fit for a king!
Spring Term 2023 - March
What do you know about Food chains?
Can you name a producer and a consumer?
What is a predator?
Doves have now completed their lanterns, with a hanging loop and a safe tea light.
What would be next in these repeating patterns?
Wrens help water some of the saplings in the Forest.
Our friendly Robin was singing to us today!
How did you feel when we had snow?...."excited, happy, amazed, surprised" or "disappointed, because it would be cold." These were some of the responses in Year 2. Look what they made...
Wrens and Robins decorated plant pots with sticks and then tied with ribbon or wool. Finally a viola plant was planted in the pot with compost. Happy Mother's Day!
20th March was National Frog Day, so we found out facts about frogs and enjoyed singing 'Five little speckled frogs...'
Many children have been intrigued by the catkins from the poplar trees in the Forest. One Robin decided to collect them, with a little help and she'd got 134 plus the ones on the fallen branches!
Spring is here!
Doves took advantage of the wind, by making pinwheels and kites!
We have received a delivery of saplings from the Woodland Trust and they will be planted soon.
Doves have been busy making markers and deciding where best to plant them.
Wrens and Robins found this letter in Base Camp and then went to find them. Some had an instruction to follow, while others they matched their patterns and wrote down its number.
Wrens created their own Easter garden with a tomb. Can you remember this from the Christian story of Easter from the bible?
Spring Term 2023 - February
Have you seen any signs of Spring?
Wrens found an alien crash site in the Forest!
They went on a search for the aliens, suggested names for them and found some alien slime!
They created some great alien spaceships...small to large!
Have you spotted any UFO's? The spaceship is no longer in the Forest!
Robins made seed paper.
What occasion are these made for?
Did you make pancakes in half term for Shrove Tuesday? In teams, Doves constructed pancakes and tried to flip them!
Wrens were joined by their Owl buddies in the Forest. They shared pancakes and listened to a story. Thank you chef Mrs Miles!
The robin who regularly visits the Forest has been joined by a mate and will be looking to build a nest to lay her eggs in.
Wrens constructed a nest for all of them, after playing team games about what birds eat!
Robins also built different nests and did some research from non-fiction books.
Spring Term 2023 - January
Happy New Year... Doves made natural, refillable party poppers!
All you need is a cardboard tube, balloon, tape and leaves!
Bird Identification by Wrens, Robins and Doves.... preparation for the annual RSPB Schools Birdwatch which Doves did on Wednesday 11th January. They have since submitted their results to the RSPB and shared the results with the whole school in assembly on Friday 20th January. Well done.
It would be great if you could take part in the Big Garden Birdwatch (see link below).
What was your most popular bird to visit your garden?
In school, it was the jackdaw and woodpigeon.
Chinese New Year - 2023 is the Year of the Rabbit. Do you know the story behind the zodiac?
Wrens acted out the story and made Chinese lanterns. Robins created a Chinese dragon....it even breathed fire! Happy Chinese New Year
Despite the cold temperatures, we enjoyed looking at all the frosty patterns and signs of life!
Children wrote in the frost!
We looked at blocks of ice from the pond through the microscope!
Children then made their own ice sculptures using some of the natural things found in the frost (photos to follow).
Wrens placed them on their fence, so that they could watch them melt during the afternoon!
Year 1 hung their ice sculptures around the forest.
Children enjoyed finding ice in different areas of the Forest, including the mud kitchen!
Year 2 developed their hammer and nail skills on a can filled with ice, creating a lantern. They also investigated different ways to melt ice.
Being National Storytelling Week, story stones were used to help tell the story of The Hungry Caterpillar and then lead on to their own imaginative creations!
Autumn Term 2022 - December
Tree Dressing Day occurs annually on the first weekend in December. It celebrates the importance of trees and encourages us to value and care for them. Tree Dressing Day was initiated by Common Ground, a U.K.-based charity based in Dorset, that has been at the forefront of community conservation and environmental education in England for over 30 years.
TREE DRESSING DAY ACTIVITIES
Dress a tree
There’s no better way to celebrate Tree Dressing Day than to go out and dress a tree! Choose a tree, or group of trees, that are important to you or your community and dress them in ribbons, cloths, lanterns, and more.
Plant a tree
Planting even one tree can make a huge environmental difference! Trees are essential for life on Earth, and this is a beautiful way to show your appreciation.
Hug one
Embrace trees in or around your community! The purpose of Tree Dressing Day is to celebrate the importance of trees and to value and care for them in a powerful way that expresses your appreciation.
Look at the changes we have noticed at the 'Welcome tree' this month.
Wrens created snowmen...will we get snow this month?
Each class used clay and leaves to create natural decorations.
The birds have been busy, so we filled up their pumpkin feeders with seeds and lard!
We have snow!
We looked for animal prints in the snow...what do you think has visited Forest School?
We think one of them might be hedgehogs, but they should be hibernating; so the children made sure the homes are cosy.
We created full size 'photo' frames.
The children made individual and group Christmas wreaths and decorations. Some of which will be displayed at the front of school.
Year 2 used a bow saw to make a wooden cookie and then decorated it.
The pond is frozen too!
Autumn Term 2022 - November
Doves class used a variety of resources to identify different types of fungus around Forest School.
