Forest School at Witheridge CofE Academy

Class 4 - Group 1

12/11/2020 We were blessed with a glorious afternoon to kick start our Forest School with some of Year 5 and 6.
Pupils learnt about our native trees here in Great Britain and made a collection of leaves and seeds from the variety of trees on our site. We discussed the seasonal changes in trees and the different type of seeds and seed dispersal methods.
The pupils then learnt about fire lighting and in pairs had the opportunity to see if they could collect kindling and start a fire. It was quite tricky as the day before a lot of rain had fallen and it was quite windy, but I’m pleased to say that some were still successful.

19/11/2020 Another sunny afternoon to enjoy Forest School in the Outdoor Learning Area. This week we looked at Spiders and their Webs.  Pupils learnt about this member of the Arachnid family with it’s two body segments and eight legs. A variety of household and garden spiders were there in jam jars for viewing as we discussed their exoskeleton, eating habits and use of their silk.
The children split into teams and took part in a spider fact quiz and were amazed to learn that :
Spiders cannot chew and instead spray their prey with acid to liquify their bodies before sucking them up.
Spiders can use their silk for “ballooning” and travel distances up to 2 miles on the wind.
Spiders silk is possibly the strongest material in the world.  The largest spider can grow to a leg span of 28cm. Scary indeed !
Pupils then tried to re create webs with sticks and wool. A harder task than any of us imagined . Respect to the skills of the spiders.

26/11/2020 We had another busy session in the Outdoor Learning Area taking a closer look at leaves.
The pupils collected a variety of leaves from around the school and looked at the vein patterns.
We discussed similarities between tree leaves and humans, with breathing techniques
(the leaves through their stomata, pores on their underside) and the use of veins to transport nutrients. Similar needs between trees and humans for water, sunlight, nutrients and sugar. Pupils learnt about parts of leaves and leaf venation patterns.
The group then made Jar Leaf Lanterns with the variety of coloured leaves they had collected.