A day of forest school training

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Forest school training

I am on my bed smelling of smoke and defrosting my toes and fingers as I write this. I'll have to be quick because I'm going to meet some of my new friends for a meal at their hotel in about half an hour. One of the things I haven't liked much about this trip is spending evenings alone. I get a bit lonely, even though I quite like my own company it's not nearly as good as spending time with people you enjoy being around. So I was thrilled to be able to join Katrina and Sarah, two practitioners (as they call educators here) who are in Crieff for forest training. 

I met seven early childhood practitioners today and we packed quite a lot into our time together. We learnt about the history of forest schools, developed environmental impact matrix's and then spent the afternoon preparing all the ingredients, utensils and tools for a big camp fire cook up. We had to consider all the items we would need at the fire house to accomplish the meal. We worked cooperatively and collaboratively to achieve this and once everything was organised and prepared we made our way to the fire house. 

We started with the soup cooked in a cast iron pan, baked bread inside orange skins and wrapped around bamboo poles. We also had steamed fish (not me of course, I don't eat things that had faces), vegetable kebabs, potato chips and roasted marshmallows pressed between two chocolate oat biscuits. I'd like to say it was all delicious but everything had a rather smokey flavour and charcoal texture. What was delicious was the process, the collaboration, cooperation and camaraderie that can only occur around a camp fire. It brings people close together, drawn by the warmth and the the necessity to work together for the benefit of everyone. The circle that is created around a fire is symbolic of the human need to belong. 

We learnt how to set a fire, how to keep it blazing and how to whittle sticks for the kebabs and marshmallows. We had to consider what to cook first, what needed flames and what needed coals, and to work out the most effective methods of placement on the fire. These are forestry skills that children learn when they are a part of the nature forest programs that are dotted around the country. 

We also got to carve a ball inside a cube with a raw potato and a knife. It was amazing and put me in that zone where the task takes so much concentration that the time just melts and you only realise you have a sore back and stiff wrists and fingers from the effort when you're about done.

Then came the cleaning up and that also took considerable cooperation and time management. It was freezing by the time we left. 

The other highlight of this day was an evening with two lovely ladies who are here for the training. Over a nice meal and a bottle of wine we shared our professional journeys. It was interesting to hear that Katrina and Sally have many of the similar worries that we have. How to provide the fifteen hours a week, how to manage with limited funding, how to get a lunch break, how to fit in all the demands of the regulators and how to document effectively as well as efficiently. How to fit it into the work day and not take loads home. How to convince co workers and parents that outdoor play in the woods or park is of such tremendous value that it's worth the effort, the hard work and problem solving over the many constraints. We were amazed at how much we had in common, across the other side of the globe. 

I'll leave you here with this. It's taken about three goes to get this written so I'll post it and hopefully not be too late for the last day of forest training. 

Post if you can. Tell me your one biggest worry in your early childhood centre. I won't attempt to find a solution but I'm interested. 

Talk tomorrow

Ruth