Why We Study Forest School
Forest School at Ramsden Hall Academy is fundamental to supporting our pupils' social, emotional and mental health needs through regular, sustained engagement with the natural environment. Through hands-on bushcraft activities including fire lighting, shelter building, tool use, cooking, wildlife observation, navigation, and natural crafts, we provide opportunities for students to develop confidence, resilience, and self-esteem in a safe, therapeutic outdoor setting.
Forest School helps pupils develop emotionally and socially by providing a calm, non-judgmental space where they can experience success, process feelings through nature connection, and build trusting relationships with adults and peers. Our curriculum supports pupils' regulation and wellbeing through structured outdoor activities, whilst building fundamental bushcraft skills, environmental awareness, and the independence necessary for lifelong engagement with nature and outdoor pursuits. The natural environment provides powerful opportunities for mindfulness, sensory regulation, and emotional processing that complement our indoor therapeutic approaches.
By progressing from foundational skills in Year 7 through to advanced bushcraft and leadership in Year 8, our Forest School curriculum prepares students for their next steps in education, training or employment. Through developing practical skills, problem-solving abilities, teamwork, leadership, and environmental stewardship, we ensure pupils leave Ramsden Hall Academy with confidence, resilience, and a deep connection to the natural world that supports their wellbeing throughout their lives.
Our Five Aims
1. Develop Practical Bushcraft and Outdoor Skills
Pupils will build competence across fire lighting, shelter building, tool use, cooking outdoors, navigation, wildlife observation, and natural crafts, developing the fundamental skills needed to engage safely and confidently with outdoor environments. By mastering basic techniques before progressing to advanced bushcraft including friction fire, green woodworking, foraging, and primitive tool making, pupils develop practical capabilities and self-reliance.
2. Build Confidence, Resilience and Emotional Regulation
Every pupil will experience regular achievement through progressive skill development in a supportive outdoor environment that celebrates effort and perseverance. Through manageable challenges, genuine praise, leadership opportunities, and documented progress, pupils develop self-belief and discover that they can overcome obstacles. The natural environment provides powerful opportunities for mindfulness, sensory regulation, and processing emotions, supporting pupils to develop coping strategies and resilience.
3. Develop Leadership, Teamwork and Social Skills
Pupils will learn to work collaboratively through team activities, support younger pupils through peer mentoring, and develop leadership skills by planning and delivering Forest School sessions. By taking on different roles—learner, peer, mentor, teacher—pupils build communication skills, empathy, patience, and the ability to work effectively with others in informal outdoor settings that reduce social anxiety.
4. Foster Environmental Awareness and Stewardship
Pupils will develop understanding of and respect for the natural world through seasonal observation, wildlife study, plant identification, foraging ethics, and conservation projects. By creating habitats, understanding ecosystems, appreciating traditional skills, and leaving positive legacies for the site, pupils develop environmental responsibility and connection to nature that supports their wellbeing and informs their choices throughout life.
5. Experience Success and Celebrate Personal Growth
Pupils will achieve mastery in chosen areas, create portfolios documenting their journey, and present their achievements with pride. Understanding that everyone develops at different rates, celebrating individual progress rather than comparison with others, and focusing on effort over outcomes builds positive self-image and demonstrates that learning can be accessible, rewarding, and deeply meaningful when connected to authentic, hands-on experiences in nature.
How We Teach Forest School
Curriculum Structure
Our Forest School curriculum operates as a two-year progressive programme, with Year 7 focusing on foundational skills and confidence building, and Year 8 developing advanced bushcraft, leadership, and independence.
Year 7 Autumn Term establishes foundations through understanding Forest School rules and boundaries, learning about PPE and safe movement, introducing fire safety and fire lighting using fire steels, maintaining fires and cooking marshmallows, using peelers safely to create tent pegs and identifying wood types, tying basic knots (overhand, reef knot), building simple shelters using natural materials, identifying edible and poisonous plants, creating natural art and paintbrushes, and developing tracking skills. The term concludes with reflection and goal-setting for Spring.
Year 7 Spring Term builds skills through revisiting safety and demonstrating independent fire lighting, carving simple spoons using appropriate tools over two weeks, identifying signs of spring and creating nature journal entries, building and maintaining fires to boil water and make hot drinks, constructing raised beds or wildlife habitats as teams, tying three lashings to create structures, identifying trees by leaf, bark and bud, planning and cooking meals on the fire as groups, using natural navigation techniques, creating waterproof natural shelters, and reflecting on progress with preparation for Summer.
Year 7 Summer Term develops confidence through leading fire lighting sessions for peers, identifying and preparing edible plants safely, creating complex items using multiple tools, building and lighting fires using only natural materials, planning and leading small group activities, creating portfolios of Year 7 work and presenting achievements, completing solo sit-spot experiences for mindfulness, designing and building projects that benefit the Forest School site, and celebrating achievements whilst setting Year 8 goals.
Year 8 Autumn Term advances skills through reviewing Year 7 skills and mentoring Year 7 pupils during orientation, planning and delivering tool safety sessions to Year 7, building fires using friction methods independently, creating three-course meals on the fire with menu planning and budgeting, carving complex items (kuksa/decorated spoons) demonstrating advanced techniques, identifying ten trees and creating teaching resources for Year 7, building weatherproof shelters using advanced lashings, navigating complex orienteering courses and creating courses for Year 7, identifying animal tracks and creating plaster casts with research presentations, using green woodworking techniques to create functional items, planning and leading fire safety sessions for Year 7, foraging and cooking wild food meals understanding legal and ethical considerations, creating natural cordage from scratch, building and using rocket stoves, designing and building conservation projects, demonstrating survival skills and creating survival guides, and reflecting whilst mentoring Year 7 pupils.
Year 8 Spring Term develops leadership through leading seasonal awareness walks with Year 7, completing personal challenge projects (extended carving, complex builds, solo expeditions), researching and presenting bushcraft skills from other cultures, planning and delivering full Forest School sessions to Year 7 with supervision, building and using primitive tools understanding historical context, creating natural dyes and using them to colour materials, planning and executing conservation work parties leading younger pupils, navigating using only natural signs and creating natural navigation guides, building semi-permanent structures for the site, completing adapted 24-hour survival challenges, and reflecting whilst planning Summer legacy projects.
Year 8 Summer Term focuses on legacy through designing and building legacy projects for the Forest School over three weeks, creating handover guides and presenting projects to school, planning and delivering full day Forest School programmes for Year 7 with minimal supervision, completing personal mastery challenges in chosen areas, creating comprehensive portfolios documenting two-year journeys, presenting portfolios to invited audiences and celebrating achievements, leading Forest School taster sessions for prospective pupils and parents, and final celebration with certificates, reflection, goal-setting and passing wisdom to Year 7.
Building Knowledge and Skills from Varied Starting Points
All pupils begin Year 7 with introductory activities that establish expectations, explore the Forest School site, and assess prior experience with outdoor activities. We recognise that students enter lessons at different ability levels and comfort with outdoor environments, and differentiation plays a key role in allowing all to be engaged and challenged within sessions.
Skills are taught progressively, beginning with basic techniques before advancing to complex processes. Year 7 establishes foundational skills including basic fire lighting with firesteels, simple tool use with peelers, basic knots, simple shelter building, plant identification, and understanding safety procedures. Year 8 builds on these foundations with advanced techniques including friction fire methods, complex carving and green woodworking, advanced lashings and structures, foraging and wild cooking, navigation without compasses, and primitive tool making.
Each project revisits and reinforces core skills whilst introducing new techniques. Fire skills progress from using firesteels in Year 7 Autumn through maintaining fires and cooking in Year 7 Spring to independent fire lighting and friction methods in Year 8. Tool use develops from simple peelers in Year 7 Autumn through spoon carving in Year 7 Spring to complex carving, green woodworking and primitive tool making in Year 8. Shelter building advances from simple structures using natural materials in Year 7 Autumn through waterproof shelters in Year 7 Spring to advanced weatherproof shelters and semi-permanent structures in Year 8.
Differentiation is embedded throughout with visual boundaries and buddy systems, hands-on practice with 1:1 support for anxious pupils, scaffolded support with pre-prepared materials, celebrating small successes and effort over outcomes, pair work and adult-led groups, choice of participation level and project complexity, thicker rope for those with motor difficulties, step-by-step visual guides, roles within groups with pre-built frames for support, simplified guides and sensory exploration for non-readers, reduced time or distance for challenges, and close supervision with hand-over-hand support where needed.
Trauma-Informed Teaching Approach
Our Forest School teaching reflects trauma-informed practice through creating safe, predictable outdoor environments where pupils feel known and valued. The Forest School site features clearly defined boundaries with signage, consistent routines including settling, activity, and reflection, visual timetables and task breakdowns, and designated quiet zones for regulation, reducing anxiety about the outdoor space.
We recognise that outdoor activities can trigger anxiety, and some pupils may have negative associations with nature or fear of failure in practical tasks. We respond with patience and understanding, celebrating effort and progress rather than only outcomes. Mistakes are explicitly valued as essential parts of the learning process, creating a culture where pupils feel safe to take risks and try new techniques. Staff remain calm and supportive, providing alternative activities when pupils are dysregulated, allowing them to step away if overwhelmed with staff awareness, and using restorative approaches when conflicts arise.
Pupils have significant choice and control throughout their Forest School journey. They choose their preferred activities within structured frameworks, select their level of challenge, decide on roles within groups, and plan individual projects for assessments. In Year 7, pupils vote for group choice recipes, choose ingredients for cooking, select focus animals for wildlife study, and design their own natural art. In Year 8, pupils choose personal challenge projects, select areas for mastery challenges, plan legacy projects, and decide which skills to develop as mentors, maintaining agency over their outdoor learning.
We build trusting relationships through personalised feedback from staff and peers, small group work based on confidence levels, celebrating individual progress with photo documentation and portfolios, and regular one-to-one check-ins. The natural environment provides powerful therapeutic benefits including mindfulness through solo sit-spots, sensory regulation through nature connection, emotional processing through creative activities, and grounding techniques using natural materials. Staff are trained to recognise when pupils are becoming dysregulated and provide regulation breaks, adapted tasks, or quiet time in designated zones as needed.
Typical Session Structure
Sessions begin with Settling and Site Check (5-10 minutes) where pupils arrive at the Forest School site, understand expectations for the session, complete site safety checks, and see clear learning objectives displayed. This provides predictability and allows pupils to transition from indoor to outdoor learning. Introduction and Demonstration (10-15 minutes) follows, with the teacher demonstrating new techniques using think-aloud to make decision-making visible, showing examples of completed work or techniques, and explaining tools, materials and safety procedures clearly with visual supports.
Guided Practice (15-20 minutes) has pupils begin experimenting with techniques with close teacher support, working through initial stages with scaffolding and immediate feedback, and developing confidence before independent work. Independent Activity (30-40 minutes) allows pupils to work on their projects at their own pace with differentiated support, choosing their approaches and techniques within the activity framework, accessing resources and tools independently with supervision, and receiving targeted support from teacher and TA as needed.
Reflection and Closure (10-15 minutes) reviews learning through "What techniques did we explore today?", allows pupils to share their work or explain their processes, addresses any challenges or questions, and previews the next session. Pupils regularly photograph their work, complete self-assessments using journals or verbal reflection, and engage in peer feedback using constructive language. The session concludes with site tidy-up, tool maintenance, and safe departure. Regulation breaks, movement between activities, and quiet time are built in as needed throughout.
Communication, Literacy and Numeracy Development
Every session includes opportunities to develop literacy through learning Forest School-specific vocabulary including boundary, respect, safety, PPE, firesteel, fire triangle, tinder, kindling, fuel, peeler, knot, lashing, shelter, tarp, foraging, edible, poisonous, navigation, compass, wildlife, habitat, conservation, bushcraft, primitive, friction fire, green woodworking, cordage. Vocabulary is explicitly taught through verbal and visual demonstrations, written labels and displays, and regular use in discussions and journal entries.
Literacy develops significantly through nature journaling recording observations and reflections, creating identification guides and teaching resources, writing instructions for peers, presenting research findings, creating portfolios documenting progress, reflective writing about personal growth, and planning and evaluating projects. Pupils learn to articulate their thinking, justify their choices, and communicate their outdoor learning clearly through various formats including verbal, written, photographic and practical demonstration.
Numeracy skills are embedded throughout including counting equipment and natural materials, measuring and estimating distances and dimensions, understanding angles in structures and navigation, calculating quantities for cooking and materials, working with ratios for mixing and recipes, recording data from wildlife observation, understanding temperature and weather measurements, timing activities and managing schedules, budgeting for cooking projects, and mapping and coordinates for navigation. Year 7 pupils count shapes in tessellated patterns of natural materials, measure wood for cutting, and calculate portions for cooking. Year 8 pupils calculate structural loads, work with efficiency measurements for rocket stoves, and budget for multi-course meals.
Alternative recording methods ensure all pupils can demonstrate their learning including verbal explanations recorded or filmed, photographic documentation of work in progress and outcomes, practical demonstration of techniques, peer discussions about processes and choices, and visual presentations rather than only written work.
SMSC, British Values and Modern Britain
SMSC: Forest School lessons explore moral and ethical issues through understanding environmental stewardship and conservation, respecting wildlife and habitats, foraging ethics and legal responsibilities, safety and responsibility for self and others, and traditional skills and cultural heritage. Pupils consider the importance of protecting nature, the impact of human activity on ecosystems, and how outdoor skills support wellbeing and resilience. Spiritual development occurs through mindfulness in nature, solo sit-spot experiences, and deep connection with the natural world.
British Values: Democracy explored through voting on recipes and activities, collaborative decision-making in group projects, and contributing ideas respectfully; rule of law through understanding safety rules and their importance, following Forest School agreements, respecting boundaries, and learning about foraging laws and environmental regulations; individual liberty through making choices about activities and challenge levels, developing personal interests in bushcraft areas, and setting individual goals; tolerance through working collaboratively across diverse groups, peer mentoring and supporting others, understanding different comfort levels with outdoor activities, and appreciating traditional skills from various cultures.
Modern Britain: Understanding environmental awareness and sustainability, outdoor education and wellbeing, diverse cultural approaches to bushcraft and nature connection, and conservation and stewardship prepares pupils for informed citizenship and contemporary life. Topics like climate change, habitat loss, sustainable living, and mental health benefits of nature connection are handled in age-appropriate ways through hands-on conservation projects, wildlife habitat creation, and discussions about environmental responsibility.
Curriculum Impact
Academic Progress and Achievement
Our progressive two-year programme from foundational bushcraft through to advanced skills and leadership ensures every pupil can demonstrate significant personal growth. Ongoing observation during practical activities, self and peer assessment using journals and constructive feedback, photographic documentation of work in progress and outcomes, practical demonstrations of techniques, and portfolio development showing progression provide formative assessment. End-of-term reflections, practical competency assessments, presentations to audiences, leadership session observations, and completed legacy projects demonstrate summative achievement. Pupils progress from basic fire lighting and simple tool use to friction fire methods, complex carving and green woodworking, advanced navigation and survival skills, and confident leadership of younger pupils, with comprehensive portfolios documenting their remarkable journeys.
Personal Development and Confidence
Progressive skill development with manageable challenges and genuine celebration of effort builds self-esteem and demonstrates that learning can be accessible and deeply rewarding. Successfully completing practical tasks—from lighting first fires to carving spoons to building shelters to leading sessions for younger pupils—creates profound sense of achievement and pride. Understanding that everyone develops at different rates, celebrating individual progress rather than comparison with others, and focusing on effort and perseverance over perfect outcomes builds growth mindset and resilience. Safe, supportive outdoor environments where mistakes are valued as learning opportunities and pupils experience regular success support emotional wellbeing, reduce anxiety, and develop confidence that transfers to all areas of life.
Communication, Emotional Regulation and Social Skills
Pupils progress from supported pair work to confident peer mentoring and session leadership, with improved ability to communicate with peers and adults, give and receive feedback constructively, work collaboratively in teams, and demonstrate leadership and teaching skills. The natural environment provides powerful therapeutic benefits including mindfulness through solo sit-spots and nature connection, sensory regulation through hands-on activities with natural materials, emotional processing through creative expression and reflection, grounding techniques during dysregulation, and calm spaces for managing overwhelming feelings. Understanding how to use nature for wellbeing, regulate emotions through outdoor activity, and build trusting relationships in informal settings equips pupils with lifelong coping strategies.
Preparation for Life Beyond School
Practical bushcraft skills, environmental awareness, problem-solving abilities, teamwork and leadership capabilities prepare pupils for further education, training, employment or independent living. Understanding how to engage safely and confidently with outdoor environments, work collaboratively on projects, lead and support others, solve problems creatively, and persevere through challenges equips pupils with transferable skills valued across many contexts. The confidence, resilience, emotional regulation strategies, and deep connection to nature developed through Forest School support pupils' wellbeing and success throughout their lives, while leadership experience, portfolio development, and presentation skills prepare them for progression to college courses, apprenticeships or employment.
Monitoring and Evaluation
We measure impact through ongoing observation during practical activities, self and peer assessment using journals and reflection, photographic documentation showing skill progression, practical demonstrations of competency, portfolio quality demonstrating range of skills and personal growth, leadership session observations and peer feedback, completed legacy projects benefiting the site, pupil voice (feedback about engagement, confidence, emotional wellbeing and connection to nature), behaviour data (tracking regulation and positive engagement outdoors), evidence that pupils choose to engage with nature independently, use outdoor time for emotional regulation, demonstrate increased resilience and confidence, successfully mentor younger pupils, and present their achievements with pride to audiences.
