As we head into Spring the forest is taking on a lush green blanket: as we walk through, there is the unmistakable scent of garlic- people know straight away that there’s ramsons (Allium ursinum)- or more widely known as wild garlic! It shows early in the year- taking advantage of the early sun before the…
Not going to lie- although I’ve wanted to add biographies to the website for a while to give that human face- rather than a corporate, logo-presenting appearance- to actually sit down and write about yourself is a little daunting! It feels strange, and a little sycophantic- especially as I feel humble that the successes of…
With the North York Moors offering gentle strolls, day-long loop routes and multi-day long distance paths, we’re absolutely thrilled to be recognised as being Walking Friendly by the North York Moors National Park! On our door-step we have open moorland, sea cliffs, dales and forests to explore! I thought I’d take the time to answer…
Whilst watching BBC’s River Walks which focused on the River Tees, I was inspired to go for a paddle on the River Tees- the lower Tees! This is a that many cross daily during their commute, via the dozen or so bridges that carry roads. The same river that’s known for industry and cargo- that…
In a previous post I discussed some initial thoughts on the Forest School approach and ended with the Forest School Association’s definition of Forest School. In this post I’ll delve into the six elements of Forest School, as they were presented during my practitioner training, whilst considering the Forest School Association’s principles of practice and…
I was recently working with a group on a bleak hill side, it was raining and blowing, we were focusing on pacings, bearings, tick features and some some precise navigation in open country. During the debrief, one of the students said that they need more practice on grid references. Grid references! It struck me that…
During last week’s Home Educators’ Forest School session we made a couple of bannocks; bannock sounds as if it has a Scottish heritage- indeed, a quick piece of research suggests that the word itself has a translation of morsel in Gaelic. Without the time for detailed research I’ll leave it at that… Safe to say, bannock is something…
I’m often asked what Forest School is- people have heard of it, but not sure where it is. I’ve recently spoken to people who say their children have been to Forest School- and then tell me about the one afternoon they had. I know teachers who say they do Forest School on their school field-…
As I write this Bonfire Night is coming to an end; there is the occasional whistle and pop outside as the last of the fireworks are let off. It’s just over a week since the clocks went back, so it’s dark by 4.45pm. In 6 weeks it’ll be the Winter Solstice- the shortest day and…
A short video from out YouTube channel that shows how to estimate the time of legs when planning routes- a key navigation skill!
