You might be wondering why the title of this post isn't, "Rain, Rain, Go Away!" as the children's song reminds us. Well, since Forest School embraces all kinds of weather, we are welcoming the rain to stay awhile, instead of it dismissing it! The rain is a reminder of the life-bringing nature of water and how the Earth can nourish itself through its infinite cycle of precipitation, condensation/transpiration, and evaporation. Instead of telling the rain to "go away!", forest school children become giddy with the excitement that the rain brings! (That being said, just yesterday the weather turned to freezing temperatures overnight! I'll address Forest School in the cold in a future post.)
For this post, I'd like to show what a day would look like for our Forest School on these wet, rain-filled days! While the lessons and interactions are hypothetical, they are based on real interactions I've had with children over my many years teaching preschool.
8:45 AM Children begin arriving, some walking from their cars to the Forest School "Base Camp" building. The teachers, Ms. Nadina and Mr. Rob, greet each of them and help them put away their backpacks while their parents help the children finish getting ready for the day.
8:55 AM As children continue to arrive, one three year old boy, David, shows his dad the food that he plans on using to feed the rabbit, Marbles, today. He and his Dad make sure they have their umbrella (since it's still sprinkling), and head over to Marbles' enclosure to feed him and make sure he has enough water (and check the status of the salt lick they children gave him yesterday).
9:05 AM After putting away her backpack and making sure she has her rain pants, boots and jacket on, a five-year-old girl, Aneesha, says "bye" to her grandma, gives her a hug, and heads out into the rain. When grandma asks, "What will you do out in the rain?", Aneesha shrugs and says, "I'll probably just stand and listen to the rain hitting my jacket. It's very soothing!"
9:15 AM Suki, one of the four-year-olds, has just finished her tea while sitting at the Arts and Crafts table. She had been watching two of her friends continue working on the weaving they were doing yesterday. Ms. Nadina was showing them how to use a different color yarn in the loom to make the pattern a bit different, and she noted that it was an "AAB" pattern with the yellow-yellow-green colors. That gives Suki an idea, so she gets her journal and the watercolor crayons and draws a similar pattern as the loom in her journal and shows her friends.
9:20 AM Most of the parents have said goodbye to their children as they gather outside under the canopy for the Morning Meeting. A few parents decide to stay to see what the children will be working on today. One of the parents is volunteering for the whole time, so she is helping to clean up the morning tea area. During the morning meeting, Ms. Nadina does some silly greeting song that the children have already learned, a cooperative game called "Rain! Thunder!", and then she begins the sharing portion of Morning Meeting. One of the children, who has the talking stick, shares that she feels very sad because it looks like, "God is mad today. It's so icky." Ms. Nadina responds, "When it looks dreary like this, I feel kinda mad too. I want the sun!" She and the children discuss the meaning of dreary and how being mad is okay. Ms. Nadina shows the children a quick breathing exercise she uses when she is mad. At the end of the meeting, Ms. Nadina reviews the news and announcements for the day, with the big news being that the children will be introduced to the new kid, or baby goat, after being in the forest today.
9:45 AM The children, with the help of the teachers and parent volunteer, check to see what their farm chores are for this morning and begin working on that in pairs or small groups. David, Aneesha, and Suki are working together to feed Marbles, so they measure out what Marbles needs using grams on the scale, and head over to his enclosure. One of the teachers, Mr. Rob, goes with them. The children notice that they can't see Marbles anywhere in his enclosure. (Typically, this is where a traditional teacher would step in and say, "Where do you think he is?" but a Forest School teacher just waits a bit to see what the children do) Aneesha says that he is probably inside since it's raining and he doesn't want to get wet. Suki scowls at Aneesha and says, "I don't want him to be inside! How are we gonna feed him?" David mentions that he saw Mr. Rob open the top of the hutch yesterday. The children work together to open up the hutch, trying multiple ways to swing it open. During this time, Mr. Rob as an "active and attentive presence" by being with the children and watching intently, but not offering assistance... yet. After a bit, the children ask Mr. Rob for ideas. Mr. Rob says, "What's stopping the hutch top from opening?" Aneesha looks and sees the latch is all the way down and explains to her friends what she wants to do. They open the hutch and feed Marbles!
10:00 AM After a bathroom break and gear check, the teachers lead the children to the area in the woods the children call, "Fossilville" (because of all the cool fossils exposed on the limestone). Once there, some of the children start exploring the large rock area, "to see if the rain has washed the rock away" (Ms. Nadina notes in her lesson book that the children would probably like to learn about the process of rock erosion). Some of the children continue working on their lean-to building using the bushcraft skills that Ms. Nadina taught them last week. Two of the children say they don't want to stay wet so they go in the shelter area, hanging up their rain jackets, and choose to strip away some bark on the logs they found yesterday. Ms. Nadina has planned to show the children how waterproofing works, so some of the children work with her outside to do a few experiments. The parent volunteer helps two of the children into the lookout area, and they use the binoculars to see what birds are out in the rain.
10:45 AM Mr. Rob sets out a snack in the enclosed area (homemade sourdough crackers, cheese, and dip that the children made yesterday), some of the children wash their hands, sit and eat snack and watch the rain come down even harder outside of the enclosed area. More children come in as the rain starts coming down harder.
11:05 AM Ms. Nadina has been checking in with the children to see if they are feeling wet "on their toes or on their noses!" and a few of the children are starting feel a bit cold. The group decides to head over to the "Base Camp" building to warm up, get dry and think about what they will see when they see the baby goat. In the building, Suki and David decide they want some hot tea to warm up, and Aneesha feels that her socks got a bit damp, so the teacher helps her change her socks and put her damp socks by the warmer.
11:30 AM The group "gears up" and heads over to the main barn to see the baby goat. Mr. Rob reviews the safety rules with washing hands, not touching mouths after touching the goat, and how to pet and handle the baby safely. The children take turns petting and helping to feed the goat, and watching the baby drink milk from their mother. Mr. Rob notes that the baby goat is called a 'kid" and the mom is called a 'dam'. The children discuss other names for animals they have heard.
12:05 PM The group washes their hands before leaving the barn, "gears up" and head back to the Base Camp building as the rain starts really pelting down. Ms. Nadina leads the children in a song as they walk. Children that decide they want to work in the building shed their wet clothes and choose what handwork activities they want to do. Two of the boys decide to keep working on their weaving, and Suki works on coloring her journal a bit more. David decides he wants to practice stacking the wood pieces in order by size and works on that until his dad picks him up. As the children leave, the parents check in with the teachers and discuss the morning's activities. They check the "What's Coming Next?" board upon leaving to see what the next day of Forest School might have in store!
As you can see, Forest School focuses on seasonality, intentionality, and responsiveness. The adults and children let the seasons and daily changes of weather guide what the children will learn. The space and materials are intentionally designed and used to promote connection, compassion, and creativity. Adults and children are also responsive to each other, as well as the other living things around them. I hope this small snapshot into a rainy, Forest School day give you a sense of how Forest School works!
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