Join us for a forest school session 12.45 – 14.45 Thursdays, term time only. Contact us to book your place, or find us on facebook Woodland Explorers (Wharfedale Montessori School).
Forest School has a developmental ethos shared by thousands of trained practitioners around the world, who are constantly developing their learning styles and skills to support new and imaginative learners. Its roots reach back to the open-air culture, friluftsliv, or free air life, seen as a way of life in Scandinavia where Forest School began. It arrived in the UK in 1993 and has grown from strength to strength since then.
Learn more about the History of Forest School in the UK.
“The process helps and facilitates more than knowledge-gathering, it helps learners develop socially, emotionally, spiritually, physically and intellectually. It creates a safe, non-judgmental 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.
There is lots of research out there to support the outcomes of Forest School, but we know that it isn’t just the educational outcomes and research that matter, our learners and leaders love it too!”
https://forestschoolassociation.org/what-is-forest-school/
Ofsted 2021
“There is an extensive range of activities on offer throughout the afternoon for all pupils. This includes a weekly Forest School session in the school’s own woodland. This is set within a nature reserve which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. This is used by the school to develop pupils’ understanding of the world. Pupils really look forward to their work and take responsibility for their wider learning”.
During the school holidays you can continue your forest school adventure with Zoey at Woodland Warriors: http://www.woodlandwarrior.co.uk/
Find out more about Forest school here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8b2vC-ecUuU