Learning about fires is particularly important at this time of year. Year 2 children have been learning about the Great Fire of London, in class they created their own houses using cardboard boxes. They decorated the houses marking on the wooden frames that would have been part of the houses original construction. Then they headed outside to see first hand how quickly fires can spread. Miss Rowe and Mr Mcmann had set the houses up to replicate a street. The end house was lit first, as the wind blew so the fire jumped from house to house. The children were surprised to see how many embers were blown up into the sky. Imagine if these burning embers had fallen and landed on the next street, and the next so spreading the fire across whole parts of a town or city. The wind whipped the flames high above the rooftops of their houses until at eventually the last house was just smoking ash.
Once the flames had gone out the children were invited to walk past the embers so that they could feel how much heat was still there and how easily it could reignite.
Principle 4: Forest School offers learners the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves.
Article 28 – We all have the right to a good quality education.
- Standing well back the children watched as the fire was lit.
- A slow start, the children thought it would be blown out.
- Soon however the fire took hold.
- The wind fanned the flames forcing the fire along the street.
- Soon the whole street was ablaze.
- After the flames had dies down the children were allowed to walk past the embers.
- They were surprised by the heat still coming from the ash.