Videos
Brush up your woodland wildflower identification skills for Forest School and join me for a springtime wander to identify 10 common UK woodland wildflower species.
Looking to light a fire successfully and safely at Forest School? This video covers the fire lighting basics, including; how to lay, light and extinguish a simple fire for Forest School, including essential safety information, preparation tips and some thoughts on how to manage the space and learners at Forest School.
Looking to light a fire successfully and safely at Forest School? This video covers the fire lighting basics, including; how to lay, light and extinguish a simple fire for Forest School, including essential safety information, preparation tips and some thoughts on how to manage the space and learners at Forest School.
Are you thinking about leading foraging activities at Forest School? In this video I cover essential tips to stay safe, be mindful of sustainable practices and keeping with the law when leading foraging activities at Forest School..
Many practitioners are using Forest School for Early Years, it does after all come from Scandinavian Early Years practice!
We are sharing our thoughts about how Forest School is meeting the principles of the EYFS and how Forest School dovetails beautifully with good Early Years practice.
This video takes a look at some brilliant adult-led learning experiences in the forest school in Bradley Green Primary School in Hyde.
Strong, bendy wood as a renewable resource – we celebrate Hazel trees (Corylus avellana) and share how to identify Hazel in winter using the S.O.B.S. acronym. As well as winter tree identification we also share some properties and uses of Hazel that may be useful for Forest School programmes.
Excellent introduction to Forest Schools by Teachers TV
Wondering how to teach knots at Forest School? Is knot tying terminology getting you in a tangle? In this video I give an introduction to knots at Forest School, sharing some thoughts on terminology and 7 teaching tips I’ve found useful.
Choosing the right leaves and tools to use for natural art
See what objects float and which sink. Make your own natural raft.
Julia Robertson takes a class outside to show them how to study maths outdoors
Pam Lowry, the Principal of Killylea Primary School, recounts how they started off with getting the children outside 1 day a week for outdoor play. 5 years later they are an ‘outdoor learning’ school.
All school settings are different but think of this as a long-term and ideally whole-school project. This clip offers practical pointers for getting started and developing outdoor learning.
Outdoor learning gives children the freedom to learn in a low stress environment and being out in nature is calming in itself for the children. This clip outlines the many benefits for the children, teachers, parents and the school.
It is important to plan for outdoor learning and this plan should be a flexible working document. This clip gives advice on the guidance they found useful for planning and the delivery of the curriculum in an outdoor setting.
Pam Lowry sums up the positives of outdoor learning and invites you to Killylea Primary School to see it in action.
Pam Lowry reflects on the impact of her journey with outdoor learning.
Play at Forest School is valued as the ‘highest expression of human development’, yet we live in a consumeristic society that doesn’t always value it. In this video we explore a definition of play, consider the importance of play in nature and look at how we can support play at Forest School.
I love a good hammock! In this video I share how to rig a hammock for Forest School, including safety setup tips, knots for hammocks and some thoughts on how learners might use them.
Wondering how to do a Forest School Risk Assessment? In this video we talk you through the 5 steps to risk assessment at Forest School and share some examples of how I’ve gone about this in the past.
Appropriate risk at Forest School develops resilience, self-worth and is one of the Forest School principles. However, we live in a risk adverse society that doesn’t always support appropriate risk taking. In this video we explore some of the misconceptions around risk, consider the importance of risk to healthy human development and look at how we can support appropriate risk at Forest School.
Working with teenagers at Forest School? In this video we share 7 tips for running Forest School with secondary aged learners based on my experiences of trying to reach a state of learner-led ‘play’ when I have worked with this age group.
Confusingly, you don’t need a forest and its nothing to do with school! So what is Forest School? In this video I give an introduction to Forest School ethos, history and background in the UK.
What clothes should you wear in Winter for a Forest School session?