The wrong weather does not exist for Woodland Folk
If you go down to the Aston Clinton Green Park Woods today you would see the most amazing experience and learning for children aged 2 – 11 taking place!
When you think back to your childhood, what is it that you remember? Summer days playing out with your friends, playing in puddles, cooking food over an open fire? Almost certainly not time spent watching TV or shopping!
We asked the question – what is your best childhood memory, back came the answers and all but 1 out of 32 were based in the great outdoors.
For children being outside is fundamental to their physical and mental health and development. What would you want for your child, grandchild, niece or nephew?
How wonderful for children to have access to the outside in an environment where they can literally spend their entire day if they wish, with the opportunity to be in the woods, watch insects, see meadow flowers, listen to birds singing – what a backdrop to their play – which is after all children’s learning?
Learning that is lead by the child, testing their physical skills – ‘if you can get down you can climb up’, natural instincts – see the flames and feel the heat from a fire being lit in front of you, safely try out some woodworking tools – yes that includes real saws, lopers and secateurs.
Work with your friends and build camps, negotiate the planning and construction.
Create works of art from natural materials, whittle wood and weave materials – you decide what you would like to do and when you would like to do it.
Our smaller little folk follow the EYFS curriculum, although they do not know it! It integrates in a seamless way into all that they do, all children are observed and their learning is monitored – but by their actions they take the lead in identifying what they need and want to learn and when. The fun that the older children have also relates to the curriculum – but they are oblivious to that fact!
A few basic rules to keep everyone safe, but lots and lots of fresh air and exercise, imagine how well they sleep after this!!
Woodland folk is an innovative child care environment providing day care for children aged 2 to school age, and before and after school fun for up to 11 year olds with holiday care during all but the Christmas holidays. We are accessible to all children including those with special educational needs, our skilled team of Older Folk ensure that everyone has fun and learns continuously.
We are developing our setting at Green Park and are looking for sponsors to enable us to enhance the experience that children will have and invite you to support us. Money raised in sponsorship will be used to provide more tools for learning, renovating our bungalow to allow the outside in, and improving our fencing to ensure everyone’s safety which in turn will allow children to have more freedom to explore.
‘What an amazing first day of our summer holiday care at Woodland Folk today – mud painting, bow and arrows made, dens built, cricket pitch created and played on… the list goes on. The children have been fantastic and their feedback has been great – “this is so much better than school, we get to like go out and play and stuff”
Follow us on facebook www.facebook.com/woodlandfolk
Website www.woodlandfolk.org
We have a range of exciting supporter packages. If you would like to find out more please contact woodlandfolk@btinternet.com