Our Week in the Forest...
Wow, what a beautiful week it has been for our little Forest Folkers. In preparation for a cold and wet day at Paradise we lit the wood burning stove in the yurt for the first time this winter! After the children’s experience of toasting marshmallows at the fire pit they started singing “We walk around the edge, we walk around the edge”, taking their fire marshal role very seriously and reminding their friends “The fire is so hot and dangerous you will melt!”. Inside the cosy yurt the children chatted, read stories and got creative with the paper, pencils, hole punch and string! For the bold, it was their chance to get outside and revel in the wintry conditions - dancing in the rain (or shall we call it snow?!) and singing Jingle Bells made us all feel very Christmassy!
Over at the Windmill we started the week with a bitterly cold day - not that this could stop any of our intrepid explorers. “It’s snow!” they called to each other before finding a ‘Snowman’s body’ at the bottom of a hill. Giggling and crunching their way through the frost they worked as a team to push the snowman’s body back up the hill. Next, they found little bundles of ice to act as a head and sticks as arms. Throughout the day we explored the different textures we found in the forest; the smashing of the ice at the pond and in the puddles, the crunching and cracking of the frosty leaves beneath our feet and the scraping of the frost ice on the tops of logs. This connection between the sound and textures of the forest and the weather we’re experiencing has been a real focus this week.
We have also been lucky enough to take a trip to the Deen City Farm this week. It felt like a breath of fresh air from beginning to end. From the excitement of travelling on the top deck of a ‘Big Red Bus!’ to the care and love shown when feeding the pygmy goats and sheep, it was a magical day. The thrill of pointing out the different animals was tantalising. We also saw farmer role-play which we’ve not really seen much of before! Jumping on tractors, feeding all the animals and having to call the farm vet to fix Amy the goat’s broken leg! Clearly the outing had a significant impact on the role play that the children engaged in, it will be interesting to see if the children will take this back to the forest. In a way travelling to the farm defined our forest children, no matter where they go, sometimes the most joy in life descends from the simplest of activities. For the children, this meant splashing in loads of puddles, playing hide and seek along the way and of course, collecting armfuls of their favourite sticks!
Have a lovely weekend!
Little Forest Folk
Wandsworth