Friday, 28 August 2015
Brock Forest Fun Group
We adventured into the Brock forest yesterday to check out the spaces and places where learning & exploration could happen. There were so many choices! But there was a general consensus around one spot in particular...it has this amazing fallen log with lots of opportunities for den building, climbing, balancing, etc. The walk to and from the spot held some amazing views of the city down below, wild flowers, and amazing trails. This is going to be a fantastic year of adventure & discovery. And a wonderful experience the Brock Forest group would like to share!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I'm very excited for the program to begin next week. I have been preparing the children. We have discussed the rules and let them know who will be coming with us. We are excited and some nervous friends too.
ReplyDeleteMy partner and I discussed our plans so we are on the same page. All is good.
We are pretty excited as the Brock research team as well & nervous too! We are just looking forward to all the fun. Thanks for posting & see you soon.
ReplyDeleteWe had a great day in the forest today. The children explored, climbed, guided each other and followed friends. Mother nature was kind and sent us a beautiful deer to visit. It had a snack and went on its way leaving behind joy and conversation. The best first day ever.
ReplyDeleteThe pictures look amazing! The children and teachers are very lucky to have such a wonderful place to explore.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteIn celebration of our rain—I thought I would see if S & C would be interested in writing a response to:
Think about how your body experienced the woods (on tues in the rain) and try to describe the experience in terms of what you touched, smelled, saw, heard, and/or tasted.
On our way into the forest the temperature was warm and misty rain was falling. Walking through the field I felt hot and sweaty. I wished the rain would fall and cool me down. We didn't see the same amount of birds as usual on the road. It was fairly quiet. While in the forest we could hear the rain even though we could not see or feel it. There were a few small areas where the rain did come through. We didn't need to completely cover up to stay dry. If we avoided the areas that were wet we were fine. A was getting wet and needed to be encouraged to move or cover up. She prefers to be on her own for a small amount of time before she joins the group. This was hard for her.
The skies were dark heading out and I looked for flashlights not knowing how dark it would be in the woods. When we arrived without them M told me it wasn't dark and we didn't need them. The children can be quite resilient. The forest didn't seem any darker than the walk in.
There seemed to be only one busy chipmunk running around unlike the time before where there were at least three.
At one point C thought the rain stopped. We stopped to listen and found it had not stopped it was just quiet.
When we were doing the colour match activity the wet soil was helpful. A was trying to match her colour exactly.
On our way back when the children found the puddle and were jumping my first instinct was to get them out of it. I had to hold back and let them experience it. I offered a second puddle for the children looking at the mud and not sure if they should try. C tried for a bit. The others were covered head to toe. When it was time to leave E's boot was stuck in the mud. I remembered losing a shoe in a puddle of paint as a child and walking home shoeless. (It was a new housing development and there was a spill in dirt) The experience gave me the knowledge to release the boot. Now I'm thinking I should have let him try even if he lost his boot. I'm torn. That was some dark sticky gooey mud. I didn't want it on my hands or his sock. The thought process and the trial and error would have had more benefits than saving us from a mess.
When we returned to the centre I did get a photo of the mud puddle gang. They looked so happy. We have a rod and hangers for the wet items. This was the first time implementing it. Flipping splash pants right side out and hanging them worked well. So much for not getting mud on my hands. It wasn't so bad. It's kind of weird I would be so concerned, I love messy art and touching insects and odd pets (hemit crabs, rats). Strange thoughts at the moment I guess.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts--feel free to use your journal to record or would you like to try an electronic journal? Up to you...
ReplyDelete