HABITAT FOREST SCHOOL

As many of you know, I have relocated to China and currently I am working within the Early Years Foundation Stages Framework with children aged between 2-6. My bilingual colleague and I have  set up our little site despite the difficulties, we did manage to establish a very basic one for our children. 

I found it interesting, that especially in a megacity like Shenzhen where children must and should have opportunities to visit an outdoor space on a daily basis as a part of their EY development, many educators still does not understand the importance of being outdoor, therefore not urging the children to be outdoor as much as possible. 

With our little site we have achieved a huge success amongst the little ones and they progressed rapidly socially and emotionally, not to mention that they formed their own little community; consequently their communicational skills in English has progressed rapidly as well; we only conduct our sessions in English so their ESL language development is outstanding.

Some children has shown the signs of under development on fine- and gross motors skills as they are lacking vestibular proprioception and tactile skills, we try to support this  on a daily basis by being outdoor at least 1.5 hours every day,  they are now in the emerging stage.


Outdoor learning is rooted firmly in the key educational theories of the past 150 years. From Vygotsky to Montessori, Dewey to Gardner many of these thinkers were significantly influenced by nature, and they put the child at the centre of their own learning, and all talk of the importance of children being allowed to explore the world independently with appropriate support, and not control. 

The forest school experience encourages children to explore their own innate drive to learn, in the richest classroom we have - the outdoors.

We know that modern children are in desperate need of chances to manage risk in order to develop life-skills vital for succeed as adults. Children need to be more active, for physical health and maximum cognitive development. They need more independence in their learning, and less time as passive receivers of information. They need more play to build creativity, courage, and social skills, and they need to spend more time outside the daily routine, coming up with strategies to cope with unknown challenges.

They need real life experiences, to grow into resilient, capable adults and they need to spend more time in nature, in order to develop a life-long love of nature which will inspire them to become the future guardians of the natural world.


Caring for the Natural Environment


Habitat Forest School encourages all of our children to look after the woodland. Children will voluntarily litter pick around the site, and dispose of any rubbish responsibly. The children are encouraged to spot different signs of growth and are careful to avoid trampling new spring buds underfoot.

They are taught how to care for growing trees by avoiding damaging branches and leaves. When building fires, children collect fallen branches and debris. We store these natural materials to ensure sustainability.

With the support and guidance of Habitat Forest School teacher, the children learn to master the correct use of tools, so they can safely help in managing our forest.

WE LIKE;

forest schools association

forest schools education

woodland trust

wildlife trust

WeAct Woking

mornings together

early years outdoor

where learning meets play






As many of you know, I have relocated to China and currently I am working within the Early Years Foundation Stages Framework with children aged between 2-6. My bilingual colleague and I have  set up our little site despite the difficulties, we did manage to establish a very basic one for our children. 

I found it interesting, that especially in a megacity like Shenzhen where children must and should have opportunities to visit an outdoor space on a daily basis as a part of their EY development, many educators still does not understand the importance of being outdoor, therefore not urging the children to be outdoor as much as possible. 

With our little site we have achieved a huge success amongst the little ones and they progressed rapidly socially and emotionally, not to mention that they formed their own little community; consequently their communicational skills in English has progressed rapidly as well; we only conduct our sessions in English so their ESL language development is outstanding.

Some children has shown the signs of under development on fine- and gross motors skills as they are lacking vestibular proprioception and tactile skills, we try to support this  on a daily basis by being outdoor at least 1.5 hours every day,  they are now in the emerging stage.


Outdoor learning is rooted firmly in the key educational theories of the past 150 years. From Vygotsky to Montessori, Dewey to Gardner many of these thinkers were significantly influenced by nature, and they put the child at the centre of their own learning, and all talk of the importance of children being allowed to explore the world independently with appropriate support, and not control. 

The forest school experience encourages children to explore their own innate drive to learn, in the richest classroom we have - the outdoors.

We know that modern children are in desperate need of chances to manage risk in order to develop life-skills vital for succeed as adults. Children need to be more active, for physical health and maximum cognitive development. They need more independence in their learning, and less time as passive receivers of information. They need more play to build creativity, courage, and social skills, and they need to spend more time outside the daily routine, coming up with strategies to cope with unknown challenges.

They need real life experiences, to grow into resilient, capable adults and they need to spend more time in nature, in order to develop a life-long love of nature which will inspire them to become the future guardians of the natural world.


Caring for the Natural Environment


Habitat Forest School encourages all of our children to look after the woodland. Children will voluntarily litter pick around the site, and dispose of any rubbish responsibly. The children are encouraged to spot different signs of growth and are careful to avoid trampling new spring buds underfoot.

They are taught how to care for growing trees by avoiding damaging branches and leaves. When building fires, children collect fallen branches and debris. We store these natural materials to ensure sustainability.

With the support and guidance of Habitat Forest School teacher, the children learn to master the correct use of tools, so they can safely help in managing our forest.

WE LIKE;

forest schools association

forest schools education

woodland trust

wildlife trust

WeAct Woking

mornings together

early years outdoor

where learning meets play






Using Format