Getting back to nature
Bunmi Adams, Early Education Manager, examines the benefits of outdoor play.
Forest School is based on a philosophy of nature-based play and hands-on learning experiences in a natural environment. This type of outdoor play can bring a wealth of benefits to children including:
- Enabling them to understand, appreciate and care for the naturalenvironment.
- Improving their confidence, self-esteem and independence.
- Providing opportunities for them tomake choices, initiate learning for themselves and take risks within a safeenvironment.
- Allowing them to become moreconfident in the natural environment.
- Providing a practical element totheir learning
- Encouraging self-discovery
- Improving communication skills
These benefits are already apparentin the first cohort of 1st Place nursery children who have been attending ForestSchool twice a week since January. Our children have been independently gettingthemselves dressed in warm clothing, walking to and from the park, setting downbags of outdoor essentials, and excitedly working with the same groupconsisting of children from all three 1st Place nurseries.
The curiosity of the children as theyobserve nature and ask endless questions has been a joy to watch. Theirexploration of Forest School has included a quest to see what is in the pond,an investigation of worms, the construction of a tepee and thoughts aroundcreating a map of the route from the nursery to Cobourg Nature Park. Thechildren even picked up an existing map and imagined that it might do thetrick!
As we all know, learning is richerwhen it is linked to home experiences and at our next Parents’ Forum, we willbe looking at how to extend Forest School activities to the home including:
- Woodland walks and nature trails
- Making nature crowns and teddy homes
- Sharing Forest School stories
- Playing ‘123… where are you?’, a hide and seek game
- Puddle splashing
- Mud painting and mud sliding
- Exploring and collecting woodland materials to make natural art
- Scavenger hunts
- Animal watching
- Making clay creatures
- Playing natural music
The idea is to move parents andchildren beyond simply going to the park to play, but to think about and encouragemeaningful engagement with nature.
In a world dominated by technology and distraction, we need to remember the art of play and the simple pleasures that can be taken by going back to basics – getting back to nature.
