We view children as unique individuals with their own ideas, thoughts and needs and we therefore prioritize children’s wellbeing, both physical and emotional, along with building their competencies. We foster their participation and autonomy, teach them how to take care of themselves and others and develop their social-emotional abilities so that they learn the skills for life.
We believe that all aspects of education should involve practices that are lasting and caring for the community. Sustainability encompasses many areas of life, from social practices like incorporating the local culture and teaching children compassion, to ecological considerations like developing children’s relationship with nature and their willingness to actively care for the environment.
At Woodlands Forest School, we strongly believe that teachers matter. We recognize teachers as educators and as experts in their field. The curriculum is only as good as the teacher implementing it, so all teachers should be well-trained in research-based methods and engage in ongoing teacher training and development to deliver quality education. Through our training, teachers become independent, creative professionals confident in their skills and capable of collaborating and building professional communities with other educators.
Children’s learning is not limited to specific activities or the classroom. Rather, every situation and moment is a chance to learn something new! At Woodlands Forest School, teachers are trained to recognize these moments and increase learning opportunities. We also designed the learning spaces based on educational research to foster these moments because the environment also plays an important role in the children’s everyday learning experiences.
Play is the most natural way for children to learn and it’s a prerequisite for their development. During play, children display their overall development, even performing a level above their developmental stage because they are motivated to learn and unafraid to take risks. At Woodlands Forest School, our curriculum and teachers know how to foster play and enrich these important opportunities for further learning. We also value the intrinsic value of play and prioritize free play without adult involvement. We see it as an opportunity for the children to collaborate with each other, explore their surroundings, practice solving problems and practice creativity.
Knowledge is socially constructed, which means that children learn through their relationships with others. Building a sense of community, peer learning and developing meaningful relationships with other children and trusted adults are key elements of Woodlands Forest School pedagogy. Through these moments, children learn the social-emotional skills necessary to express themselves and effectively interact with others in all types of situations.
Children also learn through guided exploration, and this is achieved by completing projects. “Inquiry-based learning,” is part of our educational approach, and it involves a collaborative effort between children and teachers. Teachers are trained to carefully observe children’s questions, wonderings and interests and to use these clues to guide the learning. Children, in turn, exercise their agency by choosing project themes, asking questions and exploring new subjects together with their teachers.
Lifelong learning begins in the early years, and transversal competencies are a combination of knowledge, skills, values and attitudes, as well as the ability to use such knowledge in different situations. At Woodlands Forest School, we teach children how to apply their current knowledge in new contexts through playful methods, movement, exploration, daily routines and self-expression so that they become confident learners capable of adapting to and transforming any setting.
At Woodlands Forest School, we embrace the Forest School concept, which revolves around nature-based, child-led learning in outdoor environments like forests and woodlands. This approach nurtures a profound connection to nature, empowers children to choose their educational pursuits, encourages outdoor play and exploration with an element of calculated risk, prioritizes holistic development encompassing physical, emotional, social, and cognitive facets, involves small groups led by trusted facilitators, and ultimately aims to instill a deep appreciation for the natural world and foster lifelong skills and resilience in our students.
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