Forest School is focused around nature-based, child-led activities, ideally in a wooded environment. While one of the key principles in Forest School is to let children interact with their environment in an unstructured way, it also involves helping them explore ideas and interests by offering activity opportunities such as den making, cooking over an open fire, learning to use tools, and doing crafts with natural materials.
I run forest school sessions as part of my day job, and these posts are all about the various activities I do with the children. I am a qualified teacher and have also done the Level 3 Forest School Leader course, and have lots of experience working with children and adults of all ages and ability.
Painting pumpkins for Halloween is a simple and fun alternative to carving pumpkins that allows even the smallest children get in on the fun. Want to get little ones involved in decorating for Halloween, but not ready to let them loose with a knife? This activity is the perfect solution….
Forget the plastic, and have some spooky fun in the woods with a Halloween forest school session. Over the years I’ve built up a whole assortment of frightfully good nature activities to do with children in October. Here are thirteen of my favourite tried-and-tested Halloween activities for nature play.
Pumpkin hammering – or rather, hammering golf tees into pumpkins – is a fabulously easy and fun activity that children love. It is perfect for the autumn season, and, come Halloween, it’s a favourite activity at my forest school sessions. And don’t let the simplicity of the activity fool you….
Glow-worms and fireflies have to be among the most magical creatures around. Living creatures that glow; is there anything stranger or more wonderful? When we discovered there is a native British (or rather, European) glow-worm, we were inspired to make a lantern version, that shines just like the real thing….
(or Lampyris noctiluca to their friends) Finding out there is a British glow-worm inspired the kids and me to make fabulous lantern versions of our own. But we also wanted to find out more about these fascinating insects. What we found out was so interesting, we had to share. Read…
Last Halloween I had the challenge of putting together a pumpkin trail for small children. This meant carving pumpkins that were friendly rather than frightening, and more gorgeous than gruesome. And so what could be more perfect for little ones than a Pumpkin Animals trail? Want some inspiration and ideas…
These hedgehog pumpkins are are perfect non-scary halloween decorations for little children. What’s more, even tiny tots can get involved in making them. Want to see how? Read on to find out!
One of our favourite autumn and Halloween activities for kids is making this adorable pumpkin bird feeder. They are really easy to make, look amazing hanging from the trees, and, as they are made from all natural materials, are great for the wildlife in more ways than one. Want to…
One of our favourite autumn activities is making conker creatures. Like most families, we absolutely love collecting conkers (or horse chestnuts) in the autumn. There’s something so tactile about those smooth, shiny shells that’s just irresistible. A conker hunt means the thrill of finding a shiny conker hiding under crinkly leaves, or…
A kids treasure hunt is a great activity for mixed age groups, as even little ones can get involved. But if you’ve ever been on a hunt where a few bolder and quicker kids scoop up all the loot, leaving the rest trailing behind in tears, then you’ll know that…