Reflection

As individuals we have reflected on our learning experiences over the course of our blog being live. As practitioners know, reflection is an important part of practice. Below are some of our thoughts.

As a recently qualified practitioner I wasn't aware of much surrounding forest school. I had to research a lot in order to find information and this has helped me although I feel the discussion the comments have created has been the most beneficial to me. I hope I can bring in more aspects of forest school to my setting as well as having helped people learn more themselves.

I think that the way this module was delivered was a refreshing approach to learning. I have learnt a lot about forest schools including their history, how the approach reached the UK and the benefits and challenges of risky play in the concept of Forest Schools. I would have like to have been available to implant a Forest school activity on the study weekend to help me view this type of learning from a child's perspective. Thank you to Louise and the rest of the group.

Through carrying out research around the topic of developing forest schools there is a visible link between the experience with nature and the value it holds on a child’s holistic development. It is important that practitioner promote good practice through being supportive, questioning the children’s actitation’s and extending their learning in order to ensure that each child has the opportunity to gain full potential in their experiences of Forest Schools and outdoor learning.

Thank you for being a part of our blog -  Charlotte, Frankie, Jade, Georgia and Sophie!

Full Reference List

Below is the full list of references used in the blog posts for you to find further information.

Child, CYH, Y. H.- and Australia, S. (2014) Parenting and Child Health - Health Topics - Fears - young children. Available at: http://www.cyh.com/HealthTopics/HealthTopicDetails.aspx?p=114&np=141&id=1612 (Accessed: 14 September 2015).

Full principles and criteria for good practice (no date) Available at: http://www.forestschoolassociation.org/full-principles-and-criteria-for-good-practice/ (Accessed: 14 September 2015).

Gallagher, J. and Davy, A. (2006) New Playwork: Play and Care for Children 4-16: For Cache and NVQ Levels 2, 3 and 4 and Playwork Practitioners. 4th edn. London: Cengage Learning Vocational.

SANTAR, J., Santer, J. and Griffiths, C. (2007) Free Play in Early Childhood: A Literature Review. LONDON: National Children’s Bureau Enterprises.

Almon, J. (2013) The Role of Risk and Play in Learning. Available at: http://www.communityplaythings.com/resources/articles/2013/the-role-of-risk-in-play-and-learning

Charlesworth, R. (2013) Understanding child development. Wadsworth: Cengage Learning.

Constable, K. (2012) The Outdoor Classroom, Ages 3-7. Using ideas from Forest Schools to enrich learning. Oxon: Routledge.

Department for Education (2014) Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage 2014. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/335504/EYFS_framework_from_1_September_2014__with_clarification_note.pdf

Douglas, M. (2003) Risk and Blame. Essays in Cultural Theory. 2nd edn. London: Routledge.

Gill, T. (2007) No Fear. Growing up in a risk averse society. London: Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.

Forest School: a marvellous opportunity to learn (2005). Available at: http://www.forestry.gov.uk/pdf/fr0112forestschoolsreport.pdf/$FILE/fr0112forestschoolsreport.pdf

Knight, S. (2011) Risk and Adventure in Early Years Outdoor Play. Learning from Forest Schools. London: Sage.

Lindon, J. (2011) Too Safe For Their Own Good? Helping children learn about risk and life skills. 2nd edn. London: NCB.

Lester, S., and Russell, W. (2013) Play for a Change. Play, Policy and Practice. A review of contemporary perspectives. Available at: http://playengland.org.uk/media/120519/play-for-a-change-summary.pdf

Maynard, T., and Waters, J. (2014) Exploring Outdoor Play in the Early Years. Maidenhead: Open University Press.

Positively Safe: A Practical Guide to Safeguarding (No date). Available at: http://www.childrenengland.org.uk/upload/Positively%20safe%20Final.pdf

Solly, K. (2015) Risk, Challenge and Adventure in the Early Years: a practical guide to exploring and extending learning outdoors. Oxon: Routledge.

Voce, A. (2008) Risky play prepares kids for life. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2008/aug/06/children.play

Bruce, T. (2015). Early Childhood Education 5th Edition. London: Hodder Education.

Robertson, J. (2008). I Ur Och Skur. Creative Star Learning Company.

Tovey, H. (2013). Bringing the Froebel Approach to your Early Years Practice. Oxen: Routledge

Constable, K. (2012). The Outdoor Classroom Ages 3-7 Using ideas from Forest Schools to enrich learning. Oxon: Routledge.

Gill, T. No Fear: Growing up in a risk averse society (2007) London: Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation

Gill, T. (2005, September 23). Let Our Children Roam Free. Retrieved March 28, 2015, from The Ecologist:

http://www.theecologist.org/investigations/society/268765/let_our_children_roam_free.html

History of Forest School. Retrieved September 20, 2015, from Forest School Association: http://www.forestschoolassociation.org/history-of-forest-school/

McCree, J. C. (2012). A Brief History of the Roots of Forest School in the UK. horizons professional development for outdoor practitioners.

O'Connor, A. (2014). Play and the Revised EYFS. Sussex: Community Products (UK).

Weinstein, Nicole. 'Follow The Leader'. Nursery World 11-24 August 2014 (2014): 16. Print.

Ministry for Children, Education and Gender Equality. (2015, October). The Aims of Folkeskole. Retrieved from The Ministry for Children, Education and Gender Equality: http://eng.uvm.dk/Education/Primary-and-Lower-Secondary-Education/The-Folkeskole/The-Aims-of-the-Folkeskole?allowCookies=on (Accessed 23/09/2015)

Stasiuk, P. (Unknown). Early Nature Lessons in Denmark's Forest Preschool. Retrieved from Denmark.DK: http://denmark.dk/en/meet-the-danes/forest-preschools/ (Accessed 23/09/2015)

Williams-Siegfredsen, J. (Unknown). Danish Forest Schools. Teach Early Years, 53. Retrieved from Teach Early Years.

Early Education (2015). ‘Development Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage’. Available at: http://www.foundationyears.org.uk/files/2012/03/Development-Matters-FINAL-PRINT-AMENDED.pdf (Accessed 24 September 2015)

Kuo, F (2011). Parks and other green environments: Essential components of a healthy human habitat. University of Illinois: Urbana-Champaign.

Natural Learning Initiative (2012). Benefits of Connecting Children with Nature: Why Naturalize Outdoor Learning Environments, Creating a Supportive Network and Training Resources for Naturalized Learning Environments in Child Care. Available at: http://naturalearning.org/sites/default/files/Benefits%20of%20Connecting%20Children%20with%20Nature_InfoSheet.pdf (Accessed: 29 September 2015)

Kellert, S (2005). Building for Life: Designing and Understanding the Human-Nature Connection. Washington, DC: Island Press.

Macleod-Brudenell, I (2008). Advanced Early Years For Foundation Degrees & Levels 4/5. Heinemann: Edinburgh.

Play Safety by Play England (2008). Managing risk in play provision: A position statement. London: The National Children’s Bureau.

Risk and Challenge in Playgrounds (2008). Available at: http://www.kidsafewa.com.au/playchallenges.htm (Accessed: 19 September 2015)

Velmans, C (2012). ‘‘Risky play’ good for children, says Forest School study’, Forestry Commission Wales, 20 November [Online]. Available at: http://www.forestry.gov.uk/newsrele.nsf/weballbysubject/f14f1dcea465a55e80257aa7003fec6e (Accessed: 22 September 2015)

Vygotsky, L. S (1978). Mind in society: the development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press.

Critical Evaluation of Learning and Play in Forest School

“At heart, all learning is about going from what is known and familiar to what is unknown and uncertain. So learning, growth and development depend upon risk. Outdoor environments offer the best opportunities for children to get to grips with the unpredictable, engaging, challenging world around them.” (Gill, 20017) This quotation from the notorious advocate of outdoor play Tim Gill encapsulates the importance and value of learning within an outdoor environment such as Forest School.

     In order to critically evaluate the value of learning and play in Forest Schools I felt it appropriate to use the seven areas of learning as outlined by Development Matters as a springboard and guideline to focus the evaluation.

         In terms of physical development, children can use the advantageous open spaces to fine tune the physical skills that they have acquired in their earlier lives. Gross motor skills such as balancing on one leg, running safely on whole foot etc. are examples of these essential skills that can be achieved in Forest Schools: "To move, to run, to find things out by new movement, to feel one's life in every limb - that is the life of early childhood!" (Margaret McMillan as cited in: O'Connor, 2014)  It is therefore invaluable to offer a stimulating Forest School environment that provides risk and challenge in a monitored manner for children to get the most out of them.

                Children can also develop abundant social skills in outdoor environments in accordance with the prime area of Personal, Social and Emotional Development highlighted within the 2012 Development Matters document. Children can reap enormous benefits in speech and language development as a facilitator of social development. Social interaction often entails some form of verbal communication, namely when pre-school children engage in role play activities. This ideology is extended by Constable (2012) in her contemporary book exploring the use of Forest Schools to enrich early years learning in which she stipulates that “opportunities for developing personal social and emotional skills are widespread in the outdoor classroom. There are more challenges, it’s a more risky environment, and there are opportunities for small group tasks, decision making and cooperative work.” (Constable, 2012 p.73) Challenges are constantly being set within the outdoor environment, natural materials are such as planks/blocks of wood, tree stump stepping stones, pebbles, bark etc. all provide children with their own challenges in accordance with their age and stage of development. An important benefit of this is that it can be continually adapted to facilitate children's growing skill and stimulate any child to explore their boundaries, simultaneously boosting their confidence as they realise they are capable of new skills. This also leads on to the importance of practitioners assessing risk on a continual basis as a result of the fluctuating levels of risk caused by these variables.

         Communication and language: Noam Chomsky introduced the concept of transformational grammar. This concept comprises of four kinds of linguistic knowledge; phonology, semantics, syntax and pragmatics. Pragmatics can be explained as the knowledge of what kinds of responses are appropriate in social situations. Children in the pre-school age range can develop their understanding of pragmatics through conversing with one another in imaginative creative ways, including role play. As the stimulating environment of a Forest School lends itself to role-play and imaginative play this conversation between children is likely to occur leading to the correlating benefits.

          Numeracy: There are a number of opportunities for children to develop their skills of numeracy in outdoor areas. Children are able to use real life concepts to support counting such as stepping stones, tyres, logs, pebbles, etc., look for shapes in the outdoor environment and explore shape space and measure concepts such as positional language and symmetry in the natural world. (Constable, 2012)

       Literacy: In the outdoor environment at the setting, there is a chalk board and chalks within the sheltered wooden play area. This encourages the beginnings of letter formation for those pre-school who have acquired such skills. While younger children and babies can develop fine motor skills and hand eye co-ordination to prepare them for the physical skill of writing, Water and paint brushes are also provided outdoors on a regular basis to encourage development of the skills needed to grip writing equipment: - "even the most reluctant writers are keen to have a go when writing opportunities are linked to their interests outside." (Weinstein, 2014, pg. 17)

          Understanding the World: Role play is also often engaged in frequently whilst in outdoor spaces, this may due to the lack of direct provocation in the form of toys which may direct and shape a child's play. Instead they are free to be creative and role-play situations using their own imagination. The outdoors provides the opportunity for children to experience role-play on a larger, noisier and messier than they would be able to indoors. Learning the names and the purposes of wildlife is also the likelihood within Forest Schools which will support children’s understanding of the world and the ideology that plants and trees need certain things to live.

        Expressive arts and Design: "Given the space, children can dance and spin, developing their own creative ways to express their feelings." (O'Connor, 2014) Furthermore, expanding from the previous notion that role-play in the outdoors is a regular occurrence, imagination is intrinsic to role play as children and young people express their thoughts, feelings and emotions through this type of play.  Children are also free to create far more large scale creations outdoors using various natural resources to express themselves which supports endless learning including textural discrimination.

      In conclusion it is evident that Forest School experiences allow children to progress in all areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage alongside having fun and making memories for life in a play environment that is unknowingly teaching them foundation life skills. Although some risks may be entailed the benefits outweigh them in the form of confident independent adults that the children grow up to be.

Original post by Georgia

The impact of the natural environment on children’s holistic development.

When it comes to Forest Schools it is important to remember that the key elements of the concept is that the provision of resources that stimulate the children learning and development are all naturally created and sourced. There is no specific structure to the environment or resources however this is what allows it to be of such quality to the children’s learning.

Kellert (2005) claims that “nature is important to children’s development in every major way—intellectually, emotionally, socially, spiritually and physically”. All these areas of development hold different aspects of specific learning. Within a child’s intellectual development they develop the abilities to problem solve and be creative. A study by Bell and Dyment (2006) found that “children engaged in more creative forms of play in the green areas…. also played more cooperatively” (cited in Natural Learning Initiative, 2012). By allowing children to become more independent with their problem solving and playing together with others we are supporting their emotional development. It is allowing children to understanding the feelings of others, an important aspect of PSED stated in the development framework for early years (Early Education, 2015).

The beneficial areas of the natural environment are all linked. For example the exploration aspect of the natural environment and resources will increases children physical activity which has been proven to in turn reduce Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) symptoms. This is because “schools that use outdoor classrooms and other forms of nature-based experiential education support significant student gains in social studies, science, language arts, and math” (Natural Learning Initiative, 2012). This aspect is then also linked to the enhancement of cognitive abilities by having an outdoor classroom we are allowing children to learn in an environment that holds enough natural air and light in order to show good concentration (Natural Learning Initiative, 2012). The outdoor classroom will also reduce later in life eyesight problems and anxiety or stress levels increasing (cited in Natural Learning Initiative, 2012).

It is not only the resource of the natural environment that provide great opportunities for children but also the environment itself. Kuo (2011) developed an idea that “Green environments are an essential component of a healthy human habitat”. This is because “humans benefit from exposure to green environments (parks, forests, gardens, etc.) and conversely, people with less access to green places report more medical symptoms and poorer health overall” (Kuo, 2011). This means that the environment also supports the health and well-being of children. Kuo (2011) use that phrase of “Vitamin G (G for green)”, claiming all children need this to develop a healthy lifestyle.

It is all about adapting your learning environments and ensuring the outdoor environment is not just a place for physical play but more of an outdoor classroom for learning. Here is an example of an outdoor environment that has been adapted in just this way, creating so many more benefits to each individual child’s development and learning.

“Figure 6 - Before the renovation, this OLE consisted mostly of patchy lawn and manufactured play equipment” (Natural Learning Initiative, 2012).

“Figure 7 - After the outdoor learning environment was renovated and naturalized; it includes raised garden beds, a looped pathway, arbor, and many new trees” (Natural Learning Initiative, 2012).

Good Practice Examples

Green Lane Forest School was praised for its ‘long term planning’ and ‘emphasis on outdoor play’. (Forest Schools Education, 2015)

These two aspects are important when considering starting a Forest School. As the weather can change frequently it is important to know what needs to be done to keep the setting useable in the long-term as well as having a range of activities for the indoors as well due to changing weather conditions. An emphasis on outdoor play is possibly one of the most vital aspects of forest school. Without practitioners believing in what principles they follow, children will not develop from their time at a forest school and are less likely to enjoy the experience. As well as this, the emphasis practitioners have through showing enthusiasm and supporting children in their learning helps to motivate children, especially those who may feel reluctant to engage in an outdoor setting to explore the environment around them.

Crowmarsh Pre-school was rated outstanding, including the use of ‘skilful questioning’ which aids the children learning (Crowmarsh Pre-school, 2015).

Questioning children about their environment can help them understand more about what they are observing. For example, if in a forest school setting a child finds a caterpillar, a practitioner could use questions about the life cycle of a butterfly to help the child explore their environment in order to find the answer.

Bus Stop Pre-school also gained an Outstanding OFSTED rating for aspects including their partnership with parents (Robertson, 2014).

Within a forest school setting, partnership with parents is incredibly important for children’s learning. Knowledge from parents helps extend a child’s learning, for example if a child has shown an increase in balancing skills at home, a practitioner could provide more opportunities for risky play such as tree climbing. As well as this, one of the principles of forest school is providing new experiences. By communicating with parents about what their child hasn’t experienced in an outdoor setting, a forest school could tailor an activity to provide this for the child.

Original post by Charlotte

Developing Forest School

To develop a forest school, initially an adult input is needed. Forest school is a child led learning environment but at the initial stages adults need to ensure the space is safe for children to explore.

One of the first steps is to clear the area of anything which may cause harm to anyone participating in forest school including adults. Care needs to be taken from the adults that they do not clear too much and create an environment which is not inviting for children. The children need to be creating their own learning environment so it is essential that adults do not create learning spaces for the children as this will create an adult led learning space. And this links back to principles two, four, five and six. (Full principles and criteria for good practice, no date)

Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/johnbullas/
5935090020/in/photostream/
This image is not subject to copyright.

Piaget believed in his theory that children create knowledge through play by being engaged and doing so in their environment, this is true for forest school and is a theory that also fits into children’s learning styles through schemas, which is also a good reason for adults to be relaxed about letting children explore their surroundings with minimal adult interference. (SANTAR, Santer, and Griffiths, 2007)

Team work is a key part of forest school, children will begin to do this as they become more confident and grow socially. From experience in creating a forest school it is also important for the adults to work as a team to provide the best experiences for the children. Involving children in the creation of their space they will learn to manage risk themselves and will make adults aware of any danger within the environment.

From experience, adults need to be at ease with themselves about getting messy and using their imagination skills. By showing children that its ok they will feel more at ease and feel more relaxed and this will enable them to have far more beneficial learning experiences.

“children learn most by copying important adults in their lives”

(Child, CYH, anD Australia, 2014)

By being clear with the children about boundaries and safety practitioners are enabling children to explore and take risk. By setting out clear instruction as to what is safe the children then feel freedom within the boundaries set by the adult.  

Froebel, Montessori and Steiner had the belief that adults domineered children’s play causing the children to loose motivation, this is also theory that works well in helping adults to prepare a forest school as it shows that too much adult input can cause more harm than good in some situations. (SANTAR, Santer, and Griffiths, 2007)

Original post by Frankie

Benefits of risk and challenge – specifically the role the practitioner plays.

In order to ensure we are keeping the children safe within their play environments “standards suggests carrying out risk assessments in order to identify hazards inside and outside” (Macleod-Brudenell, 2008, p253). These risk assessments help to minimize the risk of danger or harm to children however when minimising and measuring these risks it is important to consider that “safety considerations also need to be balanced with children's needs for play, learning and fun in the playground” (Risk and Challenge in Playgrounds, 2008), meaning they have the right to risky play.

When providing play opportunities for risky play we as practitioner are allowing children to “assess risk, problem solve, communicate, collaborate and get along with others” (Risk and Challenge in Playgrounds, 2008), all key factors of promoting healthy development.

Play Safety by Play England (2008) claimed that “It is the job of all those responsible for children at play to assess and manage the level of risk, so that children are given the chance to stretch themselves, test and develop their abilities without exposing them to unacceptable risks.” (Play Safety by Play England, 2008, p02)

It takes great observation and engagement from the practitioner within the setting to allow children the confidence to take themselves out of what may be their secure comfort zone. This is why it is important for the practitioners to show personal confidence and participation in all activities and environments. Vygotsky’s (1978) social cultural theory supports the importance of the practitioner when it comes to helping children to learn new concepts such as managing risk or problem solving. He explains how children will use their peers and surrounding adults as a provider or knowledge to feed off. They do this through his theory of the Zone of Proximal Distance (ZPD). The ZPD is the “distance between the actual developmental level and the level of potential development where the adult guidance helps the individual solves the problem and succeeds to the next level of learning” (Vygotsky, 1978). This means that the knowledge and learning that each individual child will develop is due to the knowledge in which their surrounding adults provide them with. If the adult or practitioner is not engaged and supportive of a child when experiencing risk and challenge they will not be able to develop a clear understanding of how to manage their risks and cope with the challenges they may face.

On the other hand it is important to consider that an adult can still be supervising a situation or activity even if they are stood at a distance. A study was carried out on a group of children in Cardiff while they were engaging in a forest school activity. The study found that “children were adept at policing themselves and were more likely to learn from the environment around them if permitted to play without too much adult interference” (Velmans, 2012). This gave them the opportunities to discuss the situations between themselves and manage their own risks. The dangers were still kept minimal and was “managed through discussion with the children and the nurturing of positive self-regulation” (Velmans, 2012). Also the adults were all “available to loosely monitor the children, aware of where they were and wandering occasionally to find and talk to them” (Velmans, 2012). This kind of supervision had a noticeably positive impact on the children’s development because “the option to make their own decisions allowed them to follow their own interests and therefore become more engaged in their learning experiences” (Velmans, 2012). This mean the children learnt valuable skills for engaging in personal learning.

The supervision of adults when engaging in outdoor, natural play that may be risky is paramount. However there is an added value to sharing your knowledge as an adult with the children through discussion and then taking a step back and allowing the children to problem solve themselves. When doing so, be sure to make yourself available to the children’s queries at all times as this will provoke self-esteem and the ability to self-regulation.  

Oriinal post by Sophie