Outdoor Chronicles

Beach School

Well our brilliant Fox Pre-schoolers have really got used to the rhythm of Beach School life. T.T. was waiting for them at the beach and the children got to work collecting more stones for her house. Leonora and the children tried to look for the one we built last week, but after some discussion we realised the water might have washed it away. Everything is an education when you are in the elements. The boys had been collecting stones and wanted to use them to make a cake for Simon the seagull, another new friend! They decided to plan a birthday for him so there was much discussion as to what we would need. Cake was top of the list! Leonora and the children told some stories about T.T, Simon and even the Wavy Witch from the West who lives in the waves. It was a glorious sunny morning at the Beach. What fun!

Forest School

It was another gloriously muddy and wet time at Forest School. We all know what this means – PUDDLES! The children ran straight in and got covered in mud. But that was OK because ‘we can wash our hands in the rain’ said one of the children. The children found a note from the Gruffalo who politely thanked the children for their help building the den last week. He wanted to celebrate with them and suggested a party. The Gruffalo of course as they all know loves marshmallows so we went looking for sticks to use to toast them. The children learned how to whittle the sticks so that they would hold the pretend marshmallows. It was a new skill to learn and they practiced tool safety first with rules like, ‘My space’ ( checking no one is in your area) & ‘Always move the tool away from your body’. My ended the session with the owl & mice game which the children loved because it involved lots of running around.

Kitchen Garden

The Hedgehogs, Alex, myself and Lydia are having a ball at the kitchen garden too. The children are getting stuck into some real skills and knowledge. This week they have been helping us dig over the plot because we are expanding our beds so we can grow even more vegetables. They’ve been finding slow worms, worms and all sorts of pond life. They’ve also been cleaning out the pond so we can get it ready for this years frogs. We have been down to the plot shop to get some seeds for our first planting of the year, and we are preparing our potato grow bags. The classroom is now a cosy space to be and the children spent their time between our outdoor jobs and warming up in front of the stove. We now have the facility for hot drinks up there for the staff and warming milk for the children which is making life a lot more comfortable. Alex even hung up their coats to warm them whilst the children ate lunch before venturing out again. They are digging and talking and looking after their tools (and talking) and getting busy and talking some more. The language and fun and hard work all rolled into one is a joy to see. We have a big plan of action for the coming months and are very excited about them!