At Carlton we aim to foster children’s inquisitive nature and help them gain a love of learning. We believe that all children have the right to experience the unique and special nature of being outdoors and provide them with new experiences and opportunities that they may not have out of school. We believe direct experience outdoors can be powerful and motivating. The impact from outdoor learning can be active and instantaneous, having a positive effect on behavior. Therefore at Carlton we will encourage children to spend time outdoors by providing Forest School programmes, giving opportunities to manage animals, gardening and adventure.
We celebrated Outdoor Classroom Day throughout school. Our children took part in many activities, taking their learning inside, out.
We made our own bird models out of clay during our Forest School session. We then placed the birds in a nest we had already made for them.
In our afterschool club we have been practising our fire lighting skills by striking the flint and steel. We then lit our own mini fires in a fire bowl. We also made our own keyrings by decorating wooden nuggets and drilling a hole through them with a hand drill.
We have now replaced our Spring Bulbs with Bedding Plants and we are are thrilled with how they look. A huge thanks to BBEST organisers for helping us make our playground a nicer environment for the Carlton Community.
The Year 3 Forest School children created some stunning art work recently. They used cloth and a hammer to create some leaf prints and we were all impressed with how these turned out.
Some of our children have really enjoyed taking part in gardening with our school governor Mr Irvine.
Year 1 celebrated Earth Day by learning about recycling. They then went outside to complete a nature scavenger hunt and enjoyed some forest bathing where they laid back, felt the sun on their skin, the grass beneath them and listened to the sounds around them.
The children have enjoyed filling our new planters with spring bulbs, thank you to the organisers at BBEST for providing the children with the planets, bulbs, soil and compost they needed.
We planted a new cherry tree in memorial of the beloved Ms. Motley and others from our Carlton Community who have gained their wings.
Capture the Flag is a fun game for children. Together they have to work as a team to hide and capture the other teams flag before someone catches theirs. Children thought hard to think of obscure places to hide their flag.
We have been practicing how to use Loppers and Secateurs. When working with a partner we made sure we communicated effectively and explained exactly where we were going to be cutting.
Spring is one it’s way which means we can begin to plant the many seeds we have! Today we started by planting Tigerella Tomato Seeds and Cylindra Beetroot.
One of our pupils used fantastic whittling and frapping skills to make a Wooden Sword.
We had fun playing in the snow. We made huge snow balls, snow angels and had a long jump competition in the snow. We also made mazes for each other to follow and had a cheeky snowball fight. We were definitely ready to warm up with a hot chocolate after.
Some of our year 4 children enjoyed playing and digging in the mud. They even created their own mud monster using the loose parts they could find in our Forest School.
Some of our Year 3 children did an amazing job at building their own dens independently. They worked well together as a team and remembered the knots they had learnt previous session.
Tarps don’t just need to be used for den building, there is many things you can do with them. Some of our year 4 children discovered that they are good to slide on and that if it is a windy day, you can use them almost like a kite.
Some of the year 3 children had fun in the rain today! First we counted how many raindrops we could catch on our tongues, then we went on a rainy creature hunt to spot which animals and insects come out when it is raining.
After that we went on to make our own potions using mud and natural resources we could find in our outdoor area. We made a wish before pouring out the contents.
We warmed up with a hot chocolate under a shelter and then learnt how to tie knots ready for when we will build our own shelters.
As school was closued due to snow, Miss Wilson challenged both the children and staff to go play out in the snow and make a snowman to boost wellbeing levels. The effort that the children and adults put in to their snowmen was amazing! Below are all the pictures Miss Wilson recieved, welldone everybody!
We prepared another planter so we could transfer our seedlings from their pots and give them more space. Fingers crossed they continue to grow!
Oh what fun there is to be had in a pile of leaves! Today we made a huge leave pile to jump into. We then had fun throwing the leaves at each other. We got quite dirty but we didn’t care!
Today we read the story, The Gruffalo and thought about the different habitats some of the animals lived in. We then worked together as team to recreate these habitats. We made a nest for the owl and a log pile house for the snake.
Today the weather was a little drizzly, so we worked together as a team to build a shelter. We helped to clear the area and hang the tarpaulin from the trees. We then used netting to try camouflage our den further. We enjoyed playing in the den throughout the morning, especially when we had Hot Chocolate and Cookies in there!
To warm up first we played a game of eye spy but using objects we could find around our Forest School. We then carried out Autumn themed activities. We collected leaves and made our very own Autumn crowns, then after snack we used more leaves to make hedgehog pictures. We all had lots of fun and felt very Autumnal.
We started our session by collecting leaves to dry out, to use at a later date. Then we played 1-2-3 Where Are You? Which is a game similar to hide and seek. One we had warmed up, we had lots of fun foraging for hazelnuts. We used a wooden mallet, making sure to keep our fingers safe, to crack the hazelnuts open but unluckily there were no nuts inside! After our snack we then used Autumn coloured paints to make our very own Autumn themed pictures.
Using a wooden mallet to crack open hazelnuts.
We picked a courgette and some of our runner beans!
Today Forest School sessions with some Year 1 children. We we’re very excited as we put on our waterproofs and wellies. We began our session by playing a game, we collected natural materials that we thought were special and hid them for other children to hide. Whilst doing this we found an egg on the floor, so we listened to the birds and tried to find where it may have come from!
We then planted some seeds together to grow in our poly tunnel and also made sure the plants in the planters were also watered. Then we we’re allowed to play before snack, we enjoyed the Autumn Leaves.
For Snack we had yummy hot chocolate, healthy carrots and cookies. We we’re all full and ready to get on with our next task which was feeding the chickens and collecting their eggs. We got 8!
It began to rain a little and to keep us warm we then played the Beetle Game where we had to tag each other. After that when we felt warmer we used Autumn leaves and sticks to make magic wands. Finally we shared what our wands could do with each other before reflecting and saying what we enjoyed the most. What a busy morning!
We grew a green pepper in our planters, the children in Early Years then had a taste and even gave some to Rex the tortoise!
Bubble 1 worked fantastically together as a team to create this fantastic Woodland Den. They even got creative with leaves they could find lying around and sticky buds to add decoration to their creation.
Miss Wilson is proud of these two children who managed to learn two different types of knots and then go on to tie them independently! They learn’t a Timber Hitch and a Taut Line which will help them when den building.
Bubble 1 have enjoyed exploring their Forest School for natural materials they could use to make their own nature bracelets. They did a fantastic job at using the materials around them and each bracelet was different and unique to them. Welldone!
Looking after and caring for the chickens can be dirty work- especially when you fall in the mud!
We had an amazing first Forest School session with Sophie! We started by finding the birds that had a message for us from the Blossom Fairy. We had to help her become big again by carrying out tasks she had left us.
Then we played the stick game and used our imaginations to use our sticks in as many ways as possible, such as to mix, brush our hair and as a magic wand!
We got creative and collected flowers to make our own special potions- the Lavender smelt delicious! We also used these beautiful flowers to make fantastic art work which we then framed using sticks.
The afternoon was very busy, so we had delicious snack and then had time to play, swing in the hammock and jump in the mud!
Miss Wilson chitted some potato seeds on the windowsill, we then worked together to plant these seeds into a grow bag which we filled with compost. We will need to keep topping up the bag and adding in water until we have grown or very own potatoes.
Doing a fantastic job at cleaning our eggs ready to sell!
Some of our Year 3 Children enjoyed working together in small groups to construct a house using the natural materials they could find around them. They especially enjoyed finding large sticks and using them to dig in the mud to make pools.
We worked together to make a huge leaf pile and took it in turns to jump into it! It was fantastic.
The children enjoyed playing a variety of games in our after school club such as Beetle Tig and Stick Javelin. The weather was rainy so we made the most of it by jumping in the mud!
We discovered that one of our chickens has come to enjoy being stroked. He described her a “silky and soft.”
Some of the children in our after school club were very wary about mud and having mud on their hands. To fully enjoy the Forest School experience children need to understand that being muddy is all part of the fun and a way to enjoy our natural world. Therefore Miss Wilson persuaded the children to paint their faces with MUD! Children commented that this was the best part of their session and they no longer felt worried about being muddy.
Our chickens produced enough eggs for us to sell to staff and parents. We will be selling our Organic Eggs for £1 for a box of 6. All money raised will be put towards maintaining our chickens and developing our outdoor area further. The parents who bought the eggs say they we’re very yummy!
Ks1 children enjoyed their first Outdoor session! We embraced the cold, wind and rain and successfully kept out fire lit long enough so we were able to toast marshmallows which tasted delicious! The children practised using the Fire Strikers which was a lot more difficult than it looked, but they all did fantastic!
For our final Forest School session the Foxes were given the opportunity to manage risk by using a Bow Saw with support from Miss Wilson. The children were very sensible and did a fantastic job. To finish our session we painted our faces once more and played some games which they had enjoyed throughout their Forest School experience. The Foxes learn’t a new game called Frisbee which was extremely fun and competitive.
Thank you Foxes for 6 weeks of fun!
Our hens have now begun to lay their eggs and our children are very excited about this! We have all enjoyed checking the hen house daily to see where the eggs have been left for us.
During our 4th Session, the foxes enjoyed exploring bugs, leaves and trees up close with Jeweller Magnifying glasses. The children worked together to make a house for bugs, using natural materials. After snack, the Foxes then went on a bear hunt! Using our Forest School to re-enact the story, we didn’t find a real bear this time.
The Foxes had a very exciting fifth session at Forest School. First of all they re-capped and acted out the story of ‘Going on a Bear Hunt’ from their last session. The children then worked together to set up a party for the bear using natural materials to make food, decorations and a fire. The children then did a brilliant job at helping Miss Wilson to put up the Tarpaulin and knots to make a shelter for the bear. The children enjoyed keeping dry and having their snack under the shelter too. After snack the children painted each others faces with camouflage paint so that they could hide in the trees and bushes unseen! The children really enjoyed getting dirty and playing in their Forest School.
Foxes enjoyed using a range of equipment to hunt for creepy crawlies in our Forest School. They looked under logs, in the bushes and used nets to see what was hiding in the trees. The children then used natural materials to create a piece of art work to show their favorite bug. We also played a game of charades where children had to guess what each Fox was acting out. We also showed our appreciation to each other by choosing a natural gift, exchanging them and and then we finished off with a compliment.
This week at Forest School the Foxes did a fantastic job at tending to the chickens, they were all very brave and willing to clean out the chicken’s mess! The Foxes then used natural materials they could collect to make an imaginary meal, they all did this independently and created some amazing art. After snack, the children then chose a friend and worked very hard to make a friendship key ring for them. The whole group had another successful session, well done Foxes!
On Thursday 12th September a group of Year 2 Children had their first Forest School Session. First the children had the opportunity to play and find natural materials. We then played 1.2.3 Where are You and Eagle Eye, the children enjoyed hiding from each other. The group especially loved having Hot Chocolate and Buns/Biscuits for snack! At the end of the session the children were given the chance to reflect and chose a name for their group. They chose foxes!
Carlton Junior and Infant School
Upper Road, Dewsbury,
West Yorkshire, WF13 2DQ
Tel: 01924 325265
Fax: -
E-mail: office.carlton@kirkleeseducation.uk
If you have any queries or require further information please contact school by email, telephone or letter and the office staff (Mrs O'Brien or Mrs Hussain) will be more than happy to help in any way they can.
Headteacher: Ms Mahmood
Chair of Governors: Mr A Afzal
SENCO: Miss E Hewitt