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Forest School in Year 3

27th March 2014

Forest School for children in Year 3 will build on the approach which has been adopted for Reception and Year 1, which allows children freedom to explore, make decisions and think and act independently. For children in Year 3 there will also be opportunities to develop further skills, such as knot tying and the use of different tools such as saws, loppers, ropes, hammers and nails and secateurs.Some examples of activities which are likely to be incorporated into the new Year 3 Forest School programme will be:
 tool and fire safety shelters, rope bridges, rope swings music making
carrying out risk and assessment processes mapping and trails jewellery making
making fires and cooking on an open fire estimating distances using natural materials
 nutrition designing scavenger hunts dramatic storytelling
 building own shelters sound maps tree climbing
 lashing and knot tying making instruments out of woodland materials trust games
 clay and natural art
 Forest School encourages an improved understanding of the outdoors, increases skills and knowledge, increases self esteem and confidence, improves people’s abilities to work together and counters a lack of motivation.Forest School works to engage all learning styles but particularly kinaesthetic learners. Being involved with Forest School over a sustained period of time can show that children will have:
  • increased levels of self awareness
  • increased social skills
  • increased levels of motivation, self discovery and positive attitude to learning
  • increased levels of confidence and self esteem
  • improvement in physical health
  • improvement in mental health
  • improved reported levels of health and well being
  • a better knowledge of the local environment and the natural world that they live in
  • a greater ownership and pride in the local environment
  • increased knowledge and understanding of the changing seasons
Teachers have a new knowledge of each child’s potential from seeing them working in a different environment. These benefits transfer back to the classroom in a range of ways, including:
  • higher levels of language and communication skills in the children
  • higher levels of achievement in school
  • children are better able to work cooperatively as well as on own initiative
  • higher reported levels of confidence and self esteem
  • improved attendance at and enjoyment of school
  • improved levels of physical activity and correspondingly reduced levels of obesity
  • awareness of environmental issues
  • able to dress themselves appropriately for the time of year
  • responsibility for local woodland spaces
  • decrease in damage and vandalism to outdoor woodland spaces
Links to the curriculum will be made once it has been decided which Mantle project the children will be taking on.You can find more information about Forest School at Wandsworth Prep here.