Newton Burgoland Primary School is committed to providing rich, high quality educational experiences across the curriculum, including in our forest school provision. At the heart of our forest school curriculum is promotion of habits for life-long learning which are woven in to all aspects learning at Newton Burgoland, these are:

Responsibility and Independence: In the world of work we must take responsibility for our choices, actions and words. We must be prepared to take risks, to have a go and to ask for support when we need it.

Perseverance and Resilience: We praise those who put themselves on the line and risk getting it wrong because that is how we learn best. We praise the courage to have a go when you are not sure. We value a can-do attitude and the determination to keep on trying.

Curiosity and Enquiry: A curious mind is a healthy mind. We encourage our children to ask questions and try out new ideas. Great questions help us to learn and can make the world into a better place.

Leadership and Community:

What makes a good leader?

• Positivity
• Integrity
• Humility and gratitude
• Enthusiasm
• Self-efficacy
• Diplomacy
• The ability to put others or the community first
• Courage
• Kindness

Collaboration and Teamwork: In the world of work, we have to be able to work with other people productively. It is a skill we have to learn and to practise- listening to the ideas of others; bravely sharing our own ideas even when we might get it wrong; adapting to meet the needs of other people; managing our feelings positively.

We often learn best when working with others. The act of communication, problem solving together and sharing knowledge is very powerful but it takes skill and practise to know when to share, when and how to listen. Some people are easy to work with, others less so but we have to learn to work with everyone.

Diversity and Respect: It is important that our children show kindness and respect to everyone they meet and to the world around them. We value difference and know that differences make the world a better and more vibrant place to be.

Our Forest School sessions provide a safe and nurturing learning environment through hands-on activities. The learning habits are interwoven into all that we do in forest schools. In our forest setting, children can acquire and develop new skills such as risk taking, risk assessment, building resilience, making choices about their own learning, leading activities and initiating free play with others. They give our children the time to just be themselves and to enjoy the companionship of others. In addition to this, our Forest School sessions actively encourage multiple learning styles, supporting the holistic development of our children.

Please find attached below detail about the opportunities we provide at forest school in order to develop these essential habits for learning.

Our forest school sessions are planned to enrich all areas of the curriculum and to build excellent life-long habits for learning. In EYFS and KS1 the children go out to forest school for an afternoon each week. The rest of the school have the opportunity to take part in forest school sessions across the year. Our sessions are planned with the learning habits in mind and often cover aspects of the wider curriculum e.g. science, maths etc. The provision provides the children with an array of exciting and engaging activities which build on their love of learning.

Since the implementation of forest school, we have watched our children become more confident learning who are not afraid to take risks or try new things. We have seen that forest school sessions support the children with building relationships and navigating friendships. Feedback from parents and children show us that forest school is having a positive impact on the children’s physical and mental well-being.