I have to tell you about the class Kitty and I have been going to. We first discovered The Outdoors Project because Alfie goes to their after-school club on a Tuesday and loves it. I was bemoaning the fact that the only forest-school type group for toddlers was on Wednesdays (when I work) when I found out TOP were planning a Saplings group on a Monday morning in a lovely park in Hove (coincidentally where we held Kitty’s naming day celebrations).
So, for the past four Mondays Kitty and I have donned our waterproofs and met with nine other preschoolers and their carers for some outdoorsy fun. The sessions start with a hello song and a story (sitting on a tarpaulin) before we start on the activities. This week we stuck paper eyes on trees and completed their faces with leaves and sticks, then went round and met everyone else’s tree people (Kitty’s was called Billy). After that, we collected as many leaves as we could find (rather a lot) and threw them into the air to make rain, met and held a worm, made our own mini trees from sticks with leaves attached with elastic bands, then played a few games of What’s the Time, Mr Wolf? before sitting down again for the goodbye song.
In previous weeks, we’ve painted – on trees and paper – with mud, made mud monsters (also called Billy – not sure why!) and twig shelters, collected tiny treasures in matchboxes, gone on a minbeast hunt, played hide and seek, mixed muddy potions and created palettes from colours in nature.
Kitty absolutely loves it and so do I, even though the weather hasn’t always been on our side. The Outdoors Project also runs after-school and holidays clubs and parties in Brighton, Hove, Lewes and Bristol, so, if that’s near you, do check it out. Have a look at the Forest Schools site for more inspiration and to discover a local group if it’s not.
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