Bringing the Forest School Approach to Your Early Years Practice

This easy-to-read series provides an introduction to some of the most important early years philosophies and shows how they can be incorporated into your setting. Each book provides:

• an outline of the background to the approach
• clear explanations of the relevance to contemporary thinking
• suggestions to help you plan a successful learning environment
• examples of what the individual approach can look like in practice.

These convenient guides are essential to early years practitioners, students and parents who wish to fully understand what each approach means to their setting and children.

How has Forest School helped to change attitudes about risk and challenge in the early years? What are the benefits of using this approach for children’s development, health and overall wellbeing?

Bringing the Forest School Approach to your Early Years Practice provides an accessible introduction to Forest School practice. It identifies the key issues involved in setting up, running and managing a Forest school environment and offers clear guidance on resources, staffing and space required for successful play and learning outdoors.

Including links to the Early Years Foundation Stage and a wide range of case studies, the book covers:

• The beginnings of Forest School and how practice has developed
• Child centred play and learning that allows for risk taking and challenge
• Planning for children’s individual needs, learning styles and schemas
• The learning environment
• The role of the adult including health and safety and children’s welfare.

Full of practical advice, this convenient guide will help practitioners to deliver new, exciting and inspiring opportunities for the children they care for.

Karen Constable is an experienced early years teacher, working for almost 20 years in nursery and school settings. Specialising in how children learn about and use the outdoor environment, Karen has worked across schools in Somerset, supporting teachers and students to improve children’s learning. She is currently a reception class teacher and early years leader, working with children ranging from two to five years at Mark First School, Somerset, UK.