Summer camps are under way!

As the second week of our summer camps is well under way it has been a good time for us to reflect on the learning of the children in the first week.

Our ultimate aim is 100% child -led play and learning. This does not mean that we just let them play (although we do loads and loads), as teachers and forest school leaders we are trained to listen and observe what the children do, their interests and what motivates them while outdoors. At this point then we recognise the opportunities for learning and scaffold and support children in realising their ideas and learning new skills while doing so!

The last week was absolutely crammed full with child led opportunities for learning. We arrived with nothing more that a basic forest school kit and listened and learned from the children we worked with. We made our own tools, toys, whittled sticks for bows, swords, wands, we made crowns to support their own game of Kings and Queens, listened and worked as a team, offered each other a helping hand in cutting string, tying knots and constructing objects.

I am really looking forward to seeing what this week holds for the children and teachers at Wilderness Adventures and really evaluating what we have learned and achieved with the children will show us how and where to go next with our summer camps!