Background.
Babybushcraft was developed as a result of needing to extend Forest School sessions to groups of preschool pupils whilst contracting the programme duration to around 5 weeks rather than 12 or more to fit in with educational budgetary constraints. The ethos is the same as Forest School with the ultimate aim being to transition from adult lead activities to child lead activities.
How it all began.- Click on the image to see an enlarged picture of the den village at the end of a strenuous and exciting day for 55 children, their parents and child minders.
We concentrate on imaginative, risky play and find that preschool children perform very well, possibly due to parental fears not having been fully transferred, and can do more than parents expect. There is a lot of imaginative work requiring the group to "get" the storyline before proceding on to the skills. The skills we teach are basic and can be used by parents on weekend walks without any special materials or equipment. We teach den building with natural materials, firelighting skills required to be able to toast a marshmallow, supervised of course, and foraging for tinder, kindling and fuel. They hunt mini beasts and learn about habitats. These sessions can be linked into the EYFS curriculum as required or can stand alone as "Golden time".
Use links within the text or in the panels on the right to explore Babybushcraft and discover the joy experienced by children when allowed to explore in a seemingly risky but actually quite safe environment.
