In their Forest School session this week our Nursery children created a Stick Forest on the hill at the front of school. The sparkler sticks were made with sparkly glue and bits of coloured...
At Harlow Green, we have developed an environment and curriculum which takes children beyond the classroom and places them into their natural environment as well as their community.
Forest School
Harlow Green is different from most schools in that it is a Forest School. The Forest School approach provides a hands-on, practical education in our outdoor environment. This part of the curriculum is managed by a qualified Forest School Leader – Miss Rowe – who continuously maintains and develops her professional practice. Miss Rowe is supported by Mr McMann during Forest School sessions. The Forest Education Community has put together the guiding principles for Forest Schools. These principles were agreed to ensure good practice across the country.
- Forest School is a long-term process of regular sessions, rather than a one-off or infrequent visits; the cycle of planning, observation, adaptation and review links each session.
- It takes place in a woodland or natural environment to support the development of a relationship between the learner and the natural world.
- We use a range of learner-centred processes to create a community for development and learning.
- Forest School aims to promote the holistic development of all those involved, fostering resilient, confident, independent and creative learners.
- It offers learners the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves.
Our approach at Harlow Green is centred on enabling children to develop a sense of independence and self-motivation, they become more courageous and can learn to realistically assess situations, are more self-reliant and opportunistic. This approach particularly supports the development of self-esteem and self-confidence. The focus in Forest School and Outdoor Learning is on short achievable tasks which then build in complexity based on observations of the children’s needs and interests.
Community Work
Developing children’s understanding about their local community and providing the opportunity to positively impact upon it is essential in developing the future generation. Through the regular curriculum but also through our outdoor curriculum, children are involved in projects which allows them to work within the local community in a variety of ways and to actively engage within it.
It was a beautiful crisp sunny day for Year 1’s Forest School session. First some games of Sticky Feet with our Year 6 outdoor workers, this game is fun but also encourages the children...
Our creative sessions continue at Angel Court with Rosie, a mixed media artists from the Equal Arts Council. Rosie works with Elizabeth the Storyteller and this week, linking to her story of the North...
In Reception Mrs Holt has been teaching the children about percussion. In class they tried to think about different ways of making a beat using items that are not instruments. We then headed into...
Miss Rutherfords class had their first Forest School session for this year. In class we had a class discussion about what our school rules, Ready, Respectful and Safe, looks like in the Forest School....
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...
In Year 4 this week, before heading out to the Forest School, the children took part in a Fire Quiz in class. They had a good understanding of safe fire preparation and management including...
Elizabeth Baker, the Story Teller from the charity Equal Arts, was in fine voice, regaling the adults and children with stories of Nature. Whilst she wove her wonderous tales the rest of us worked...
Year 1 got creative this week, Journey Sticks are a lovely way of encouraging the children to observe the changes in nature around them. They can be made at any time of the year...
