Crossacres Forest School
The Forest School approach to learning puts the child at the very centre. Each child is responsible for their own learning and decision-making; they decide what they are comfortable with, the risks they want to take, how to solve problems and to cooperate with others. They learn about their own strengths and weaknesses and are in control of what they choose to learn and how.
Activities:
During the forest school sessions, children are led and closely supervised by members of staff who are forest school / first-aid trained. The children take part in a variety of team-building and individual tasks, using problem solving skills and being able to observe the natural world around them. Children learn a variety of skills: building dens, learning how to build a fire, learning how to cook food on a campfire, using tools to create pieces of natural art and learning about plants and habitats in the area.
This link shows the progression of skills document which children will be taught during Forest School Sessions in Years 4 and 5.
Progression of skills overview sheet.docx
Wilderness Therapy
This year we are really excited that we have introduced Wilderness Therapy into our therapeutic interventions. Miss Harrison and Mrs Christie have been trained how to deliver this course and work will groups of up to 8 children at a time in the forest schools area. The current provision is called “Wild Crew” and is aimed at Year 5 and 6 children. The course enables children to continue to develop their forest skills learning but also work on their social and emotional needs at the same time.
Here are some of the things the children have said about Wild Crew:-
“It makes me feel more relaxed. When I’m out there I don’t stress about anything. I have everybody there to push me through and get me through everything”
“It makes me feel more confident because on Thursdays we sometimes do reading tests or grammar after Wild Crew I seem to do really well but I don’t really know why that is”