This year is the 8th annual celebration day to connect, share and celebrate everything that is great and wonderful about Forest School - creating joyful and playful celebrations of Forest School across the world.
Our Forest School Day mini-poster to support and celebrate Forest School Day is our checkout FREEBIE for the next couple of weeks - pop one in your basket with any order!
We're sad that the Forest School Association conference is taking a fallow year in 2025 but it's fab to see that the FSA has some regional roadshows coming up, which we are glad to support.
If you didn't get to read the Forest School edition of the Outdoor PractitionerMagazine you can read or download it for free now (see link below).
After last years' request for Forest School kit list favourites we have put them all together and created a new section on the Outdoor Hub (see link below).
In the run up to Forest School Day we'll be posting lots of info & inspiration on social media - please do comment & share your tips and opinions - we're proud to be part of such an expert & passionate community of outdoor practitioners and love to hear what you have to say.
"Thanks to Tina Hutchinson who drew out the blueprint of the Forest School Saw Box on the back of a napkin as we enjoyed lovely cake together at the national Forest School Association Conference. I was captured by the simple concept and Tina's stories of how useful it had been, making sawing on a log or the ground so accessible and controllable." Liz
Structured events providing the opportunity to build experience and skills from a selection of skilled workshop providers. Each roadshow has a mix of theory, practice and skills based learning and has opportunities to network, chat and link in with other Forest School Leaders.
How do Forest Schools support children's mental health? A fascinating episode of The Research Room podcast spotlights the FINCH study with the researchers leading the project. Hear how outdoor, child-led learning helps kids aged 7-11 build resilience, confidence, and a lasting connection with nature.
The most essential part of Forest School is the outdoors & FS leaders, with appropriate clothing a close second. But after that there are many resources that can support your outdoor play and learning with Early Years and Primary Schools. Some bits of kit will sustain many different activities and explorations.
We asked the experts to recommend their favourite bits of kit and what they just couldn't do without. And we're sharing some kit lists that schools and projects have created for themselves. Thank you to all of them for their generosity in sharing their experience with our outdoor community.
Outdoor Practitioner magazine: Forest School Focus
Contents
Forest School Focus Forest School Day • Nature Connection or Nature Contact • 7 ways to deepen your connection to nature • Forest in the City - Forest School in an urban setting • Forest School Stories - overcoming an arson attack • 6 Forest School Principles
Activities Whittle your own hazel knife • Square lashing • Autumn inspirations • Leaf needle felting • Autumn hanging mobile
Guides Fascinating Fungi with the British Mycological Society • Storm Kettles
Practitioners Voice Reflecting on access to nature programmes & Forest School • Letters from projects in Edinburgh & Croydon • Book review: Creating A Forest School – from the roots up! • Outdoor Ed Chat - join the online discussion.
First published, autumn 2021
Outdoor Practitioner: Forest School Focus (issue 3)
The
Tree
Science™
Kit
from
Invicta
Education
is
a
complete
outdoor
learning
resource
designed
to
help
children
explore
and
understand
the
science
of
measuring
trees,
known
as
Dendrometry.
Ideal
for
use
in
schools,
nurseries,
and
forest
school
settings,
this
hands-on
kit
...
A
really
useful
handy
sized
book
with
practical
guidance
based
on
recognised
good
practice
and
Forest
School
Training
Network
recommendations.
This
book
deals
sensibly
with
popular
misconceptions
and
sets
out
the
legal
position
of
using
and
transporting
knives
for
educational
purposes.
...
Find out more on the Outdoor Hub Forest School pages
Forest School
Forest School is an incredible tool for health, wellbeing, outdoor play & learning, from Early Years & Primary schools, right through to adulthood. These pages answer your Forest School questions. You can also read or download the FREE Forest School Edition of The Outdoor Practitioner magazine here.
