Blog by Lisa Pearman

The sun was shining for our trip to the woodlands at Covert Woods. 

We listened to the birds and noises around us - life can be so busy and it is very calming to stop and take in the surroundings. 

The children found interesting natural items on the forest floor and talked to their friends…

Year 5 got to choose and use lots of tools. They made fairy furniture like swings and houses with saws, knives, peelers, loppers, secateurs and hammers. Acrylic paint was used to add some features. Some children made a noughts and crosses game, sawing all of the counters, which now all children in…

The weather was perfect for a fire, which was our first one of the year. We toasted marshmallow and turned them into s'mores. 

It was fabulous to see how the children had settled into life at Forest School - they were asking for things from the shed, building zip wires, dens, shops, planted…

Reception learned all about caterpillars and butterflies in class - we tied our learning into that at Forest School. We were looking for and finding caterpillar holes in leaves, we acted out the Life cycles and planted seeds in flower pots. 2 weeks later, the seedlings had grown and the children…

The saws came out this term for Year 1. They cut logs with bow saws, sometimes in team work. We practised the timber hitch knot which we use to tie the hammock, for example. They tied string to their logs and turned them into pets like dogs, cats and rabbits. We looked at identifying trees and…

Year 1 had a fabulous trip to Covert woods. 

We listened to the birds and noises around us - life can be so busy and it is very calming to stop and take in the surroundings. 

The children found interesting natural items on the forest floor and talked to their friends about the features. They…

Welcome to Covert Woods Year 4. 

The bluebells were out as were the warmer temperatures. We started by listening to the birds and the sounds around us, followed by a blindfold game where the children had to lead each other to a tree and later on recognise it by using their senses. 

We…

This term has been filled with new experiments and challenges.

Year 5 were the first to make their own pencils! 

They built a fire, cut willow branches with secateurs, placed them in a tin with a little hole in made by a nail,  in embers (until the colour of the smoke changed) and they used…

Term 4 saw some new and adventurous sessions in Forest School.

We introduced the new slack line, which runs between two trees and helps children with their balancing skills. 

We talked about Equinox (Equi= equal, nox = night), the beginning of spring where night and day are the same length.…

Term 4 started with 'Happy pancake day'! 

Children made a fire and they are brilliant by now at remembering the rules. They had to mix the batter - 1 grated apple, 1 cup oat milk, 2 cups flour, they had to spoon it in the pan, flip it and then ENJOY the campfire pancake. Some children tried…

Term 4 started off with learning all about birds. We played a game where they learned about camouflaging worms, we read the book Owl babies and acted the story out with puppets, they made bird feeders with cones, lard, toilet role and seeds, they created little and big birds nests and the…

Welcome to the woods! 

The sun was shining and Mr Frost had come out for our trip to the wider woodlands. We looked at where the pine trees and broadleaf trees grow. There was so much room for exploration with natural materials and we returned with many happy and tired faces. 

Year 2 went on…