Ombersley Forest School
Here, at Ombersley Endowed First School, we are extremely fortunate to have a Forest School facility on site meaning that the whole school can benefit from this positive way of learning.
The Forest School model originates in Scandinavia and involves participants journeying by foot (if possible) to a local woodland environment to learn outdoors on a regular, sustained basis. It is a long-term child-led, educational process that promotes, observes and explicitly supports the social, emotional and physical development of children, young people and adults in an outdoor, preferably woodland, environment.
A Summary of potential benefits of forest school
A Summary of potential benefits of forest school
- The forest school program evolves from the needs of the child and includes the child’s interests.
- Children developed good self esteem in a climate of small achievable steps
- Provides a real context for language
- Provides the practitioner with an alternative view of the child and further insights into a child’s particular development.
- Beneficial to a child’s all round development, particularly in the areas of personal, social and emotional, language and communication.
- Underpins the principles laid down in the foundation stage guidelines.
- Provides opportunities for the children to take risks, problem solve and use thinking skills.
- Complements learning in the classroom and can be transferred.
The 6 Principles of Forest School
The six key principles of forest school are:
- Forest School is a long-term process of regular sessions, rather than one-off or infrequent visits. The cycle of planning, observation, adaptation and review links each session.
- Forest School takes place in a natural or woodland environment to support the development of a lifelong relationship between the learner and the natural world.
- Forest School aims to promote the holistic development of all involved, fostering resilient, confident, independent and creative learners.
- Forest School offers learners the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves.
- Forest School is run by qualified Forest School practitioners, who continuously maintain and develop their professional practice.
- Forest School uses a range of learner-centred processes to create a community for being, development and learning.
