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Aug 7, 2024 · Outdoor play is crucial for healthy brain development. The frontal cortex, responsible for controlling emotions and problem-solving, is activated during playtime. The experience of playing forces the brain to make neurotransmitter connections that are critical to a child's development. Imaginative play and child development go hand in hand.
- Inspring Awe And Wonder. There are certain things that you need to be outdoors to see and experience. Think back for a moment to your own childhood memories and if you are like me, your first thoughts will draw you back to a time when you were outdoors.
- Forest Schools Encourage Problem Solving. A forest school is alive with opportunities for natural problem-solving. Ask the children to build a waterproof den, a home for a hedgehog, transport all the sticks across the site, or find as many brown and red objects as they can.
- Extend Vocabulary. Believe it or not, many natural words such as buttercup and conker are being replaced in children’s dictionaries with new technology words such as chatroom and blog.
- Prevent Anxiety And Depression. In the US in 2022, 37 million people are currently on anti-depressants. (Source) In the UK last year, 70 million prescriptions were written for anti-depressants.
Welcome to the Child & Nature Alliance of Canada. We foster meaningful connections with the outdoors for children and youth. All children and youth should have the opportunity to play and learn in forests, parks, meadows and mud puddles. We work to connect children and youth with nature through policy, research, and practice.
Resource Category: Curriculum/Resource Guides The role of this guide is to help educators and the communities that surround and support them, (such as administrators, facilities staff, parents, licensing officials, etc.), to learn more about Forest and Nature School (FNS) and what this model of education offers Canadian children.
- What Is Forest School?
- What Are The Key Skills That It promotes?
- What Are Its Other Benefits?
- Transitional Art Pits
- Hill Slide
- Rope Swing
- Fire Pit
- Cutting/Chopping Wood
- Simple Woodwork
- Den Making
One of the current positive trends in education at the moment is the increasing popularity of Forest Schools. This brand of learning has a fantastically wide range of benefits. It is the type of learning that many of us try introduce to our own kids on family days out and holidays: making dams, climbing trees, building fires. The sort of thing that...
Many, although not all, of the key skills developed by forest school can be linked to personal and social development. The main skill-sets are probably the following: 1. Discipline 2. Self-awareness 3. Empathy 4. A positive mental attitude 5. Self-esteem 6. Teamwork 7. Independence 8. Confidence
Its other main benefits are the following: 1. Children learn how to live a healthy lifestyle 2. They form excellent relationships with others 3. They develop their speaking and communication skills at an accelerated rate 4. They learn to manage risks (check out the many benefits of risky play here) 5. They learn about the environment 6. They unders...
These look a bit like digging garden plots. It is basically a square or rectangle of soil. Arrange some baskets of natural objects next the square – loose parts items such as stones, sticks, pine cones, leaves etc (To find a full list of my favorite 100 materials to use for loose parts play then check this article out.) I find transitional art in t...
Such a simple activity this one, but one that really develops enjoyment, resilience and physical development. All you need is some sort of slight slope in your setting. Potentially this could be man-made, although this would be quite an investment of time and resources just for this activity. However, if you have a slope somewhere in your setting, ...
An excellent simple activity that develops teamwork. All you need is some sort of reasonably sturdy tree, and a strong rope. It makes sense to use the same tree each time, and the children start to associate that tree with the rope-swing. Any boundaries and procedures you have introduced get more strongly enforced by familiarity to an area of the o...
This in one of the absolute highlights of forest school. It is also the one that requires the greatest awareness of health and safety. One good procedure to get into the children’s heads is never to set foot in the middle of the fire-pit, whether there is a fire in it or not. Always walk around the outside! Fire-pits introduce children to risky ele...
This activity requires very careful supervision and prior risk assessment. One simple way to do this is use a ‘billhook’. This is a smallish tool that looks a bit like a scythe with a handle at each end. It is also good to have a chopping board that looks a bit like the one in the picture below. Place the piece of wood that you are going to cut on ...
This is a forest school activitythat lots of people have anxiety about, but again it is just a case of having good supervision and a solid risk assessment, and you should be fine. One of the simplest tools to begin using is a simple hand-drill. These can be used to create holes in wood. I have created mobiles made from natural materials before and ...
The classic way of creating these dens is to create an ‘A’ frame. This will require a bit of adult support with young children. Materials required are: a.) robust branches/thick sticks b.) string or thin rope c.) Scissors d.) A tarpaulin e.) A heavy mallet f.) Tent pegs
A Forest School or Forest Kindergarten is an innovative educational approach that places nature at the forefront of learning. Unlike traditional primary schools, Forest Schools immerse children in outdoor environments, fostering a deep connection to the natural world. In a Forest School, the journey of education unfolds beneath the canopy of ...
Slow and focused breathing has also been shown to calm the nervous system, lowering stress, blood pressure, digestive issues, and other physical factors. Fact 24. Build a water bottle rocket. All you’ll need for this nifty experiment are an empty water bottle, a cork, some cardboard cones for wings, a pump, and water.
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