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Forest School gives children the opportunity to explore and learn
in a wild outdoor setting, over a series of regular sessions.
Activities take place in all weathers (except extreme winds or
storms), and are specially planned for the group. We combine bushcraft
and survival skills with ecology, environmental awareness and
creative activities to give young people a challenging and exciting
outdoor learning experience. Children age 9+ can work towards
their
John Muir Award - Discovery Level during the sessions.
Our Forest School sessions aim to get the children enjoying working
together and being active outdoors, discovering more about their
local environment, and learning useful, practical skills. We have
worked with children from Primary 1-3 as well as P4-7, tailoring
the sessions to suit the class.
Some examples of activities include: tying knots for tarps, firelighting
with sparks, baking bread on the campfire, building group shelters
and mini-shelters, working together to record the plants, trees,
and minibeasts in their woodland (and this year we have also made
visits to nearby shoreline sites, making an interesting comparison
of habitats), collection and purification of water, survival strategies
- what to do in an outdoor emergency, plants and their uses -
and dangers. The focus is on the young participants and their
responsibility to look after themselves, their peers, and their
environment, especially when tools and campfires are involved.
This term we are delighted to be taking part in the Chequered
Skipper Survey 2012.
We are grateful to Scottish
Natural Heritage for supporting the pilot project at Acharacle
and are happy to work with other schools.
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