We are privileged at Woodthorpe to have a Forest School which Mrs Preston and Mrs Mason have successfully been running for nearly five years. We are very proud of our little burrow, a haven for children to learn, grow and play together in the outdoors, no matter what the weather!
Forest School combines games and acquisition of skills to enable a child to build their self esteem and to make choices to be risk aware as opposed to our risk adverse society we are living in at present. We teach the children how to dress for the weather, respect nature and the environment, use tools safely, fire safety and cooking on an open fire as well as shelter building and tying knots and hitches.
In Year 3 we have split the class into three groups, Foxes, Robins and Beetles. each group come out ten times throughout the year, hopefully experiencing the changing seasons and weather over the course of the year. Each child keeps a journal to explain, in their own way, what they have learnt, what they enjoyed and what they would like to learn. It is filled with photos, pictures and thoughts as unique as the child.