Category: Our Curriculum Page 1 of 4

Here are a few thoughts after ten years of Forest School… yes I started teaching Forest School in 2012…

Well, my thoughts… what always inspired me was the wish to have children understand and be connected with nature. Yes, true it was about how nature was great for children. How nature was important to us. How they are the future and therefore they are entrusted to nature. And from the very start to was always linked to the unseen beings, the invisible law of physics or pharies, you choose, that surrounded us. Always.

The most important thing though – along with working with all of nature – was bringing this joy, this constancy of love. If the activities were overprescribed and joyless, then it would defeat the purpose.

So Forest School would always be a place of learning, yes, but also magic and play…

Fast forward ten years… that’s ten years of being a Waldorf teacher, ten years of Forest School, two years of Covid, two years of starting our own social enterprise… and here we are…

Here are the top 5 things I have learnt as an outdoor teaching practitioner:

1. Plan, plan, plan with the children and the activities in mind.
2. Have everything at hand.
3. Health and safety of course, but also boundaries they can explore and grow into.
4. Always read the children – see where they are and what they need.
5. Have fun with it! Make sure that there is always space for fun.

It has been a wonderful 10 years and with any luck there will be another 10 to go! Thank you everyone who has helped along the way.

I found this picture on social media and it inspired me to write this…

As a teacher I see the importance of play. Children are not mini adults. Their brains are different, their hands and bone structure is different, they learn differently. And they long to learn. They are enthusiastic about life. And it is universal. A child in Asia is exactly like a child in Europe. It is astonishing how they have the exact same characteristics and go through the same developmental stages.

When a child plays they engage every fibre of their being. Their bodies, their imagination, their thought and their will. They enter into a world which they utterly believe and they are creating the future. We do them a greatest service in being able to keep those boundaries of childhood as free and as joyful for as long as possible. It is in their sense that the world is GOOD and BEAUTIFUL that they will seek its TRUTH with a hopeful, beatific will.

At elements we do this. Nature, the greatest teacher, is given the space and we enter a partnership with her to create moments of magic and lasting memories. The child develops a confidence and a trust in the world, while also encountering the very limits of their experience.

Deep play is a state which all children and adults who are working at their best are able to achieve. This happens when you are so engrossed in an activity that time suddenly stands still.

You can see this with very young children when they play and older children when they are using their imagination to world build. We see this in Elements Forest School.

Being managed from pillar to post is something which our children are now very used to. They arrive at an activity and they are now used to being told what to do. This is fine… up to a point. But they must also be given space to breathe. Space to dream. Space to get bored. Space to be themselves. To have down time, as it were.

In Elements we blend the two based on the what the children tell us. Well, not tell TELL us, but we ‘read the room’ – or in this case, the Forest.

The Forest really is the star of the show. After that it is children. Then it is us. As a Steiner educator, and as a team that comes from that background or works intuitively with these principles, seeing where the children are is more important than trying to cram them with activities. The children will learn eventually – but most often the first step is just watching you and being at home in nature.

This is where Deep Play comes in. Deep Play is relaxing, it is freedom, it is delight, it is engaging with the best parts of yourself. It lowers the stress levels, it boosts immune levels, it allays anxiety, it helps ANYONE the opportunity to reconnect with meaning.

At Elements Forest and Garden School this is our top priority. And we believe it can be best – if not only – done in nature. Touching, feeling and discovering the natural environment is healing. Trees give off chemicals which are literally relaxing. Soil is full of bacteria which makes you happy. The air is cleaner in the forest which helps boost your oxygen levels. It is literally ALL GOOD.

Add to that the magic of the elements and you have some very happy children.

If you are interested in signing your child up or having elements are your school or working with your after school, let us know by contacting us on 07540075991 or emailing hello@elementsschool.net

As the years pass, and despite the pandemic, Elements has seen more 100 children take part in our Forest School sessions and other activities.

Our mission is to enable children to experience and get to know the world around them, and in our many activities to gain confidence, develop their sense of confidence and sensory experiences, as well as enjoy all of the seasons around them.

At the Holywood Steiner School, we are able to cook outdoors, explore the beautiful forest they have and put on a series of educational and fun activities.

Children are able to play on their own or join in activities. It makes for a truly rich and in depth outdoor experience.

Our classes in Holywood are now full and bookings will reopen in the Summer term.