Forest Folk

Keeping kids aged 5-9 busy in the outdoors during the holidays with science-infused adventures delivered with forest school child-lead pedagogy. Our camps range from nature-based adventures through to scientific inquiry into water and soil quality as flora and fauna. We encourage engagement with nature's playground and instil mindfulness through observation of birds, plants, and animals. Has your child ever wanted to discover how birds and their conversations help us understand what dangers may be lurking in our environment? Do they want to work out what a foraged meal would look like, or a how to test water to see if it's safe to drink? Join us for a grand nature adventure infused with science.

We have options that align with Singapore and International school holidays.

Locations

Dulwich College (Singapore)

Greenleaf Forest

We deliver in-school programmes for International schools during term time on their campus as part of the curriculum during school hours or as after-school enrichment. Because our Forest School Laader is a fully qualified Early Years Classroom Teacher, we can link 

Our in-school programmes bring the curriculum to life by taking children into the outdoor classroom to learn about the natural world, plant, animals, and habitats as well as supporting physical development. We can also bring in communication and language as well as maths, literacy, and expressive arts and have the room to deploy kinaesthetic approaches. Children can touch the soil and participate in developing their school campus whilst developing a deep understanding on environmental stewardship and sustainability.

Our after-school programmes help to develop intrinsic motivation for scientific field work. We take time to discover where a child's natural interest lies, and then we build on that by giving them access to tools and scientific equipment. We are currently delivering after-school programmes for the following age groups in a number of international schools:

• Reception/ Kindergarten 1 (aged 4-5 years)
• Year 1/ Kindergarten 2 (aged 5-6 years)
• Year 2/ Grade 1 (aged 6-7 years)
• Year 3/ Grade 2 (aged 7-8 years)
• Year 4/ Grade 3 (aged 8-9 years)
• Year 5/ Grade 4 (aged 9-10 years)
• Year 6/ Grade 5 (aged 10-11 years)

We design outdoor classrooms using Agroforestry and Permaculture techniques. This ensures that your outdoor classroom experience is rich with learning opportunities that reflect natural processes, which supports teaching of the curriculum. We also apply a forest school leader's and teacher's understanding of risk to help keep kids safe in the outdoors.

In one action research project, we sent 20 children aged 5 years out into the forest school environment (with no enhanced provision, such as digging tool) in pairs. In 15 mins they uncovered an average of 16 learning opportunities and 1-2 inquiry questions. About 40% of these learning opportunities were related to the colour and structure of leaves and the inquiry questions were related to advanced areas such as bird reproduction, properties of light, and plant sensation. This shows the power of engaging environments combined with child-lead learning for connecting to the curriculum.

What we consider when developing an outdoor classroom:

• Plants are edible to ensure against poisoning and teach foraging
• Footfall is mitigated, which reduced muddiness and mosquito breeding
• Climbing trees are identified and cared for appropriately
• Water is managed to reduce erosion and create water-play opportunities
• Habitat for wildlife is developed and managed to enhance learning
• Mosquitoes are kept down using natural ecological techniques
• Attractive natural backdrops are included for marketable photo opportunities

We train people to be a Forest School Leader Level 3. Then we support Forest School Leaders to develop practical skills and site maintenance to outdoor educators who are responsible and accountable for their tropical outdoor classroom. Outdoor educators can refresh their practical SOPs for different tools, develop forest school-specific risk assessment skills, and learn nature-based horticultural techniques to create an enriching environment and keep toxic chemicals off their site and away from kids.

Areas of development:

• Practical tool SOPs for use with children, developing your own SOPs for new activities
• Risk assessment thinking that is specific to forest school environments and activities
• Site zoning that integrates agroforestry, permaculture, risk, and education practices
• Earthworks that build soil and create play opportunities
• Soil building techniques to mitigate challenges of leached tropical soils
• Managing footfall using game trails, woodchips, ground plants, and basecamp cycling
• Plant species that are native or bioregional to the tropics and suitable for the outdoor classroom
• Horticultural techniques such as transplanting, cuttings, seed saving, pruning, and mulching
• Working with the site ecology to to respond to changes, such as an uptick in mosquitoes