Our week in the forest...
With spring comes a fresh sense of wonder and growth. Following last week’s whimsical welcome to the spring season, the forest has continued to entice and excite all of us at Little Forest Folk Chiswick. Our children’s spirits are as high as ever, blooming like the beds of wildflowers that powder the meadow. This week has been full of culture and creativity, intertwined with what we do best, child led exploration of the great outdoors. Our adventurers are living by the gracious words of author and poet Margaret Atwood, “In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.”
The level of empathy hovering above the forest throughout the week has been nothing short of heart warming. The children have taken their natural sense of inquisition and used it to express their love of all creatures great and small. What started as a collection of bug hotels, after thoughtful and purposeful arrangement, ended up as a five star resort for our forest friends. The children checked in on their guests each day and were delighted to find a whole host of different insects lapping up the hospitality. The care and attention the children show when interacting with their guests is a perfect example of the life skills we wish to impart on them at Little Forest Folk.
This week, our cultural journey began with a celebration of Shrove Tuesday complete with mouth watering pancakes. From the moment our children began to turn up to school, they were eager to share their ideas on the perfect pancake. Some children preferred the idea of pancakes topped with juicy fruits, while others swayed more towards honey and maple syrup. It was incredibly fulfilling to see the appreciation from the children for being treated to a special morning snack. By the time all of the pancakes were wolfed down, the children darted into the meadow to try their hand at making their own pancake mud batter. Once the whisking was out of the way, the frying pans came out and our master chefs got to show off their culinary talent. To say the least, they were flipping amazing!
With St. David’s Day (Dydd Gwyl Dewi) on Wednesday, the children were excited to learn about the cultural significance of all things Welsh! We started our morning by discussing the national flower of Wales, the daffodil. The children learnt about how daffodils grow from bulbs, slowly reaching up and bursting out into the sunshine to share the beauty that lies within. Alongside this, the children were entranced by the story of the red dragon (ddraig coch) that takes pride of place on the Welsh flag. By the end of the day the forest was filled with children proudly displaying their new respect for this shared culture in the form of painted faces. As a parting gift, each child was given a daffodil to take home and nurture, allowing them to share their experiences with their families.
After two wonderfully cultured days, we were then delighted to roll into World Book Day. A day where book lovers of all ages come together to enjoy a shared passion, the power of a great story. With staff and children arriving dressed as their favourite book characters, the day was spent delving into fictional worlds of wonder. The children’s appreciation of books grows as they do and it is inspiring to see our little readers seeking out books independently. We have also started a practise known as story scribing, where children tell stories and adults write them down. As time goes on the children revisit their stories, adding to them and changing them as their own interests and ideas change. We are all excited to see how the children’s unique stories develop over the coming months. How exciting to think that the children’s books of the future could in fact be written for children, by children!
Food in the forest:
Our March menu will be introduced next week! See all of the menu changes in our update.
Our new dinner on Tuesdays:
Slow cooked beef, root vegetables and potato hotpot
The casserole steak will be seasoned and slow cooked in the oven with swede, parsnips and carrots, onions, garlic and mustard. It is then mix it with seasoned, boiled potatoes. A very hearty and healthy stew which also tastes delicious!
Our March food in the forest can be found HERE
Have a great weekend!
Little Forest Folk
Chiswick
