Language and Literacy
A Strong Child is one who feels confident, capable and self-assured. Strong children have a sense of their own identity and their own capabilities. With support, they become able to make decisions, trust themselves and have a positive self-image.
Cover your friend’s eyes and guide them round the woods. Next time you’re in the woods, cover your friend’s eyes with a blindfold, and ask them to explore. Carefully guide your friends through the woods Do they notice the difference between open and closed patches of woodland? Can they hear, smell and feel more now their eyes are covered? Try moving through different parts of the woods, but make sure your friend doesn’t trip or fall!
School grounds focus: • Where are we now? • Where do we want to be? • How can we get there?
A treasure hunt for spelling and language work
We had to search for the stocking. There was something red hidden in the thick trees
A simple activity to write creatively
NIFSA Full of Life Resource
NIFSA Full of Life resource
NIFSA Full of Life Resource
NIFSA resource
NIFSA Full of Life Resource
NIFSA Full of Life Resource
A resource to inspire throughout the year
Make the first letter of your name using twigs, fallen leaves, berries and nuts. This is a fun activity for autumn when lots of leaves and seeds fall from the trees. Make an outline on the ground using sticks. Fill in the letter with natural treasures. Can you make the rest of your name?
The main aims of this project are to engage young people in understanding the range of important landscapes, habitats and species around them, and to encourage interaction with the natural environment within their own school grounds and further afield. It is also hoped that this project will help to overcome the perceived barriers for teachers with regards to outdoor learning. The Heart of The Glens Landscape Partnership Scheme has facilitated a range of outdoor activities with primary schools within The Glens of Antrim
A self-guided handbook for primary school teachers to facilitate the use of local parks as outdoor classrooms
Hide and Seek Animal Thematic Unit resources
Hide and Seek Thematic Unit main handbook
A treasure hunt for spelling and language work
Tell stories around a roaring fire – made from leaves! In autumn, there are lots of flame-coloured leaves around. Get collecting, then build your own leafy campfire. Arrange some conkers or stones in a circle. Stack some sticks in a teepee shape. Cover the sticks with the brightest leaves you can find, so they look like a flickering fire. Real fires in woods can be dangerous. This is a safe alternative that’s great fun to make!
Time spent cloud gazing and describing what they could see encouraged lots of description and imagination.
Welcome to the second edition of the Loose Parts Play Toolkit. Since 2016, when it was first published under Scotland’s Play Strategy, we have seen a burgeoning of loose parts play in schools and nurseries, play, care, childminding and out of school settings. Across the country, education and play practitioners are building a body of knowledge from their experiences of facilitating play and, at the same time, managing an array of challenges that come from the introduction of loose parts
Make a magic potion using natural treasures. If you go down to the woods today, you’ll find heaps of ingredients to make your own make potion. Collect some mysterious bits and bobs. Can you find a fluffy feather, some scented pine needles, a shiny acorn? Add water and a little food colouring. Use a special stirring stick to give everything a magic mix Now make a wish! This is a great activity for Halloween, or if your kids like playing witches and wizards.
Keep a log of your woodland adventures. Record your next woodland adventure in this wonderful woodland log book. Draw, paint and write about everything you discovered Think about how you describe the woods and trees you see Remember to use all your senses and see what you can spot Keeping a record like this helps you remember your favourite woods, and what you got up to on your visit.
Can you find all the birds in the grid? From swifts and swallows to cuckoos and ospreys, many birds migrate to the UK for the summer. It’s a good place to raise chicks because there’s lots of natural food around. Download the wordsearch and see how many migratory birds you can find.