Forest school activities for all seasons – yes; I know – you heard right! You CAN get outside whatever the weather and learn with the kids! Forest, and outdoor activities are wonderful for the kids; helping to build so many different skills, from problem solving, to communications, and social awareness. (Note: this post contains affiliate links)
We have two great activities to share with you on the site today, for the spring and the summer.
Spring forest school activity – Earth Day birthday cake
There is nothing more fun for kids (perfect for age 2+) than getting dirty in the forest; and springtime is a great season to celebrate the start of new life, and birthdays with mud, water and lots of messy play! These printables give you lots of learning ideas for an Earth Day birthday cake. The activity gives plenty of opportunities to discuss the Earth; perhaps you would ask what the children think would be a good gift for Earth’s birthday! Bet there would be some wonderful ideas for this from some of those young minds. Perhaps a way to break down plastic a bit faster? 😀
Summer forest school activity – Bark masks
This printable activity encourages children (suitable for 4+) to explore different cultures and artistic ideas through the creation of some rather wonderful masks. Mask making is incredibly diverse; from Amazonian and African culture, to glittering, modern masked balls.
If you would like both of these activities, all you need to do is click on the image below.
Both of these activities are included within the new book A Year of Forest School which has loads of activities split across four chapters for educators and parents to explore with their kids throughout the year. The book has been written by Jane Worroll & Peter Houghton; who have experience both as Countryside rangers and Forest School Playleaders respectively.
This book is designed for those up to the age of 12, with all activities focused on how nature changes through the seasons, using the resources and themes available within those four times of the year; including activities suitable for Easter and Chirstmas. we have shown you two of the activities for Spring and Summer, but in the Autumn, you are encouraged to get children to make mobiles from leaves, and toast apples and nuts over a campfire. Each chapter also has an extended idea; perhaps you can turn these into birthday parties or just a very special nature day out.
We do have a few other activities to help kids connect with nature on the site, so why not take a look at these too?
- Forest school activities: How to reconnect your kids with nature,
- 10 ways for the kids to connect with nature this summer,
- Nature painting for toddlers, and
- Easy nature sensory bags.
If you would like to take a look at some of the other great forest school activities for different seasons out there, why not check out:
- Forest school activity from Rain or Shine Mamma,
- Forest school activities for outdoor classrooms from Nuturestore, and
- 5 simple outdoor mindfulness activities from Pre-schoolers Inspirations.
We hope you like these activities and this article, do sign up to our newsletter for more articles in your inbox each week, making sure to let us know when you sign up that you came via this article.
Thanks so much for reading, and see you again next time!
Helen
Helen
Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine!Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time.KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10.It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania.Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on.Get in touch TODAY!