Forest School

We are incredibly proud that every child at Overdale Junior School has the opportunity to take part in ‘Forest School’ sessions throughout the year; this initiative enables our children to enjoy the fantastic grounds and varied habitats that we are privileged to have on site.

Through out ‘Forest School’ sessions, children are encouraged and inspired to challenge themselves through positive outdoor experiences. The aim is for our children to develop the following personal skills:

Self Awareness – The ability to understand who you are, what you want and why you want it.
Self Regulation – The ability to understand your emotional and physical needs and work towards meeting them.
Self Motivation – The ability to motivate yourself, finding a reason and the necessary strength to do something without the need to be influenced by another person.
Empathy – The ability to understand and appreciate how someone else is feeling.
Social Skills – The ability to interact and communicate effectively with others

At Overdale Junior School, we consider ‘Forest School’ to be:

an educational experience that allows learners to learn outside of the classroom;
an opportunity to develop new skills and find new interests through hands on experiences in an outdoor environment;
an opportunity for children to develop in their confidence and self-esteem;
an opportunity for children to learn how to understand and manage their own risks; and
an opportunity for children to take ownership and responsibility for their own play and activities.

Our ‘Forest School’ space is a blank canvas, full of textures and materials to enrich the senses and stimulate the learning journeys that we will all undertake. Gathering together, we will check in on how each person is feeling and what they wish to explore during their time in nature throughout this session. The children have the opportunity to collate their thoughts and be introduced to new ideas in order to spark creativity.

We conclude our time with review and reflection, checking in on the experiences and emotions of each person, sharing and recognising each individual’s insight. We aim that each member of our community feels valued and we recognise how we might nurture their individual character and connection with nature and their community.

Forest School takes place in the school spinney. The sessions are child led, with adults on hand to guide and support the children in the activities they choose to undertake. We are proud to be able to offer a range activities, for example:

trail making, using natural materials, ropes and tarpaulins,
shelter building,
knots and craftwork using found natural materials,
team games,
outdoor art and drama,
campfire cooking, and
safe use of tools.

The ‘Forest School’ curriculum at Overdale Junior School is based upon the 6 principles of Forest Schools:

Although each year group has a set of key learning objectives that they will work towards achieving each year, the sessions will be delivered in an order which is decided based upon things such as:

– The seasons

– The weather

– The needs of the children in the specific year group

– The interests of the children in the specific group

– The local area

Each session, the children will be able to engage with achievable and engaging sessions which are bespoke and tailored to the needs of the learners.

These activities will;

· be run throughout the year, each group of children accessing a session once a week for 2 hours and running for 6 weeks in total;

· provide children with the opportunity to work with tools;

· provide the children with the opportunity to learn through play; and provide the children with the opportunity to engage with new skills such as shelter building and fire building.