#ForestSchoolsjourney

As we build towards official forest school days we are exploring our site as a class and thinking about things that we notice and drawing out attention to the space that we have and how we can use it.

This paper which was referenced in the hundrED article Immerse kids in nature and watch them grow.  hundrED   states that increased contact with nature can improve the way children learn. The interest for me comes as I try to manage and maintain a mainstream learning environment and the expectations of that with my forest schools journey.  The key for me in this paper is that there were no negative outcomes from offering outdoor learning and that it was only enhanced by time spent in nature for a wide variety of students.  One of the 'key findings' was that „ "Learning outside the classroom was most successful when it was an integral element of long-term curriculum planning and closely linked to classroom activities." (page 4).  As I question more and more the input of the teacher and the lack of student contribution in many learning environments, this statement is both encouraging and evidence FOR including forest schools within the school setting but also...

I'd like to further explore the research that forest schools is based on and reflect on the natural learning that occurs.

Forest Schools is a concept of which I have longed for even before Forest Schools became a thing.  The idea that children learn in nature, from nature and with nature at their own pace and of their own doing sounds, well, natural!  Within my classroom program the natural world and the opportunities for hands on, scientific discovery have factored heavily.  I teach naturally within this type of environment.  It can seem a little chaotic at times, slow at others but isn't that the natural way of things?  There are ebbs and flows in most systems yet the more I teach within a classroom the more I fee that the schooling model, with however much freedom one is afforded does little to mirror this. As this school year has begun along with my own Forest Schools journey I find myself very much in the middle without a clear focus and feeling the need for some clarification of expectations.  School has paid for my Forest School learning, there is a strategic goal ag...

As I begin this Forest School Journey alongside my current role as classroom teacher I'm struggling to marry the expectations, or perceived expectations of a program that is intended to accelerate progress of students in literacy and the process of learning through self discovery. I am excited yet nervous about embarking on this course and what may come to light in terms of my practice.  I feel torn between having school pay for the course, a little bit of pressure to 'achieve' something and provide evidence when naturally I would like to see how the children adopt the forest schools approach and respond to it.  I want to be sure to offer them an authentic opportunity and experience that is not coloured by my expectations or requirements. As I start this course I feel a deep sense of responsibility as a teacher and as a parent, a responsibility to allow for self expression and self discovery and not impose thoughts, ideas or feelings on my students or children.  I hav...