Give yourself the gift of quality time in nature as you join us around the midwinter campfire, for a celebration of the Winter Solstice. You will be guided through a range of activities aimed at deepening your nature connection whilst we mark this special moment in the calendar year together.
Experiencing nature with all our senses is a powerful doorway to practising mindfulness which is proven to improve your health & well-being. Practising bushcraft brings us closer to our ancestors and a very old way of understanding the natural world around us. It also fosters a stronger connection to nature. Fire has a hypnotic quality which can really aid getting into a mindful head space. Lighting fires at the darkest time of the year is also an ancient custom and symbolises creating our positive intentions for the new year.
“Winter Solstice, like Summer Solstice, is a moment of pause between two cycles, a moment of transition that can be held and savoured, a doorway, an opening, a place on the edge, when we can stop our busy lives and take a moment to experience this edge between these two great cycles of the year.” Glennie Kindred
James and Kay will guide you through a range of seasonal activities aimed at giving you real techniques which you can use to foster a deeper nature connection in your own time.
You will join us around the campfire amoungst the beautiful ancient woodland of the National Trust’s Erddig estate in North East Wales for a relaxing session of learning and celebrating in amongst the trees.
Enjoy a winter warmer; hot spiced apple cider (non-alcoholic) from our campfire
Awaken your ‘five animal senses’
Use traditional tools; knife, axe and froe
Identify native tree species in winter
Craft your own wild weaving to take home
Unwind with a tree meditation
Roast chestnuts on an open fire
Build your own Midwinter campfire; bring light to the dark
Set your intentions for the new year ahead
Make herbal teas from wild plants
Discover what your Celtic Birth Tree is and what it says about you
Event details
Date: Dec 21, 2022
Time: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Venue: Erddig
Cost: £30
Your Tutor: James Kendall
James is the Head Bushcraft Instructor at Woodland Classroom, having worked in environmental education & conservation for over 10 years. James’ approach to teaching steers his students toward fostering a deeper connection with nature through understanding the landscape around us; “Bushcraft skills are an effective way to do this as we learn how to make use of natural materials and live lightly with the land, whilst also connecting with our own ancient past by seeing the land through the eyes of our ancestors.”
Your Tutor: Kay Ribbons-Steen
Kay has worked for a number of years in eco-therapy having trained as a Mindfulness in a Woodland Setting practitioner. Kay studied a work based diploma in Environmental Conservation with Flintshire Countryside & Coast Service. She is also an Ambassador for the National Autistic Society, and an autism awareness speaker.
She is also a qualified Forest School Leader and Social Forester.
“I am passionate about reconnecting people with nature for our own holistic wellbeing whilst conserving our unique and irreplaceable environment.”
Skills you will learn
Over the course of the programme you will learn a range of skills, including…
Nature Connection
Hedgerow Medicine
Mindfulness
Greenwood crafts
Firelighting Skills
Ancestral Skills
Tree & Plant identification
Meditation techniques
Book now
This session costs £30 per person and is open to adult learners aged 16 years and over. You can read our Event Terms & Conditions here.
Give your family the gift of quality time in nature this Christmas and add a bit of wild to your festive season. Join our celebration of midwinter surrounded by the ancient woodland of the National Trust’s Erddig estate.
Families with children of all ages are welcome to join us at our Forest School circle where we will be stoking the campfire to bring light to the darkest time of the year.
James and Kay will guide you and your children through a range of seasonal activities that will get you all in the festive mood for Christmas. This is going to be a very special and magical event with music, food and good company.
“My son and I attended a lovely winter solstice event on 21st December. It was a truly magical night and we loved the vibe. We will be back again. Loving that my birth tree is Oak by the way!” Nicole Netzband-Piggot
Enjoy a winter warmer; hot spiced apple juice from our campfire
Take a guided foraging walk for natural craft materials
Make a Christmas woodland wreath to take home
Taste roasted chestnuts, campfire popcorn and other hot snacks
Visit the Wishing Tree; set family intentions for the year ahead
Sing along to the mandolin with Christmas Carols around the campfire
Make a willow star to hang in your Christmas tree
Listen to the tale of how the Robin got his red breast
Discover how our ancestors celebrated the Winter Solstice
Event details
Date: Sat Dec 17 & Sun 18 2022
Time: Two sessions available each day. 10:00 am – 12:30 pm & 1.30pm – 4pm
Venue: Erddig
Cost: £35
Your Leaders: James Kendall & Kay Ribbons-Steen
James is a Forest School Leader and Head Bushcraft Instructor at Woodland Classroom, having worked in environmental education & conservation for over 10 years. James’ approach to teaching steers his students toward fostering a deeper connection with nature through understanding the landscape around us; “Bushcraft skills are an effective way to do this as we learn how to make use of natural materials and live lightly with the land, whilst also connecting with our own ancient past by seeing the land through the eyes of our ancestors.”
Kay is a qualified Forest School Leader and Social Forester. She has worked for a number of years in eco-therapy having trained as a Mindfulness in a Woodland Setting practitioner. Kay studied a work based diploma in Environmental Conservation with Flintshire Countryside & Coast Service. She is also an Ambassador for the National Autistic Society, and an autism awareness speaker; “I am passionate about reconnecting people with nature for our own holistic wellbeing whilst conserving our unique and irreplaceable environment.”
Watch a video of a previous event we hosted
Skills you will learn
Over the course of the session you will enjoy a range of skills, including…
Nature Connection
Campfire snacks
Bushcraft for families
Campfire Cooking
Book now
This session costs £35 per family (to a maximum of 2 adults and 3 children per family). Additional children (over 2 years of age) are charged £5 separately.
We are hosting this event on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th Dec. Pick which day suits you.
The event is 2.5 hours long. You can choose from either a morning session (10am – 12.30pm) or afternoon session (1.30pm – 4pm) by selecting the appropriate ticket below. You can read our Event Terms & Conditions here.
Many of us might well be able to spot an oak in winter by looking for fallen acorns or the familiar leaves, but could you tell me the difference between blackthorn and hawthorn in winter just by looking at the buds? Or do you know which trees give themselves away in winter by their bark? We might be able to identify trees in summer when their leaves are on but winter is a whole different ball game.
For anyone looking to improve their tree identification skills winter provides us with many distinctive signs such as buds, bark, twigs and fallen leaf litter that we can use to recognise our native and common tree species. The clues are all there if you know how to look.
In this blog I’ll introduce you to some of clues to look out for in winter and break down the differences between common trees which often get confused. You can get outdoors and spot these clues for yourself with a free download I’ve created; Winter Trees Guide, which you can get your hands on just below.
By the way, if you love trees, but struggle to tell one species from another, then you could enrol in my FREE Tree Identification Course online. More details can be found at the end of the article.
Bud Arrangement: The BIG Giveaway
One of the first things you can ask a tree when you are trying to identify it in winter is this; “Are the buds arranged alternately or in opposite pairs?”
This is absolutely key to nailing the species of tree as once you’ve answered that question it allows you to eliminate a whole bunch of species from your enquiry.
The majority of native tree species in Britain have their buds arranged alternately along the branch.
One last thing to remember; it’s important to select a young healthy twig to answer this question because as a branch matures it will often self-select the healthiest of the twigs to grow on and will drop it’s near partner. So, you can be looking at an older branch and thinking that they definitely don’t grow in opposite pairs, but then on closer inspection you might well notice the old scar left over from where it’s opposite equivalent was self-selected to be dropped by the tree in favour of it’s partner.
When you become practised at this you will begin to start noticing the bud arrangement from a distance, as you look at the form of tree. This is when tree identification can become very satisfying and you can really start showing off.
In the Free Winter Tree ID Guide I’ve grouped alternate budding trees separate from opposite budding trees for easy reference.
Blackthorn vs. Hawthorn
Let’s take two very common trees which often get confused. Not only are their names similar, but they also are thorny, shrubby trees which populate our hedgerows, often growing side by side.
To help confuse matters both these species have alternate buds and the buds are very small and grow in cluster at the end of the twig. So, we need to look at other clues to help us out.
Above: Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) on the left, Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) on the right. The difference is clear.
The first thing to look for is leaf litter below the tree. As you can see from the picture, the leaves shapes are very different. However, this method is unreliable when you’re looking at a dense hedgerow and the two species are intertwined. How can you tell which tree the leaf has fallen from? Luckily, there are other signs we can go to also.
Above: Blackthorn on the left, Hawthorn on the right. Bark is a feature you can use year round to identify a tree.
Looking at the bark is going to be useful here as, like the leaf litter, they are very different. The bark of blackthorn, as its name suggests, is very dark and seems to soak up the light. It is also generally quite smooth. The bark of hawthorn is much more grey to brown and fissures readily, being much more craggy.
As well as the bark you can look at the thorns, which typically you will see a lot more of on blackthorn than you will compared to hawthorn. The last sign to help us here is the autumn fruits, which can often be found still hanging on in winter.
Above: On the left, Blackthorn can hang on to a few withered & dried sloes in winter. On the right, hawthorns often has smaller, deep red berries on show in winter.
The autumn fruit of blackthorn is the sloe. A good size fruit, around 1.5cm diameter and purple to black in colour. In winter though they are shrivelled and looking much worse for wear, with most of them having fallen already. Hawthorn in comparison holds onto it’s berries better in winter. Look for smaller, dark red berries, with an ovoid shape, growing in sparse clusters. As they dry out they darken in colour.
Looking Under The Tree
Have a good kick about in the leaf litter under a tree and you might find another big hint to what species you’re looking at. The old saying goes “the apple never falls far from the tree” and that’s good news for us in this case. I’m talking about fallen fruits and nut cases, many of which can still be found in the depths of winter, if not in the best condition.
Top Left: Crab Apples. Mid Top: Sweet Chestnut. Top Right: Hazelnuts, nibbled by wildlife. Bottom Left: Conkers from Horse Chestnut. Mid Bottom: Beech mast and leaf litter. Bottom Right: A bract from a Lime tree.
Some trees, like the Crab Apple, have a dead giveaway with the fallen, rotting fruits. Look under an established hazelnut and you’ll most likely find empty nut shells, nibbled away by rodents and birds. Then there’s tree like out three native Limes which have special leaves called bracts, which look like nothing else you’ll find on the woodland floor and can only belong to a Lime tree. Beech mast is very reliable under mature trees and you’ll find yourself crunching in underfoot as it carpets the woodland floor. There’s much to be gained by looking down.
Now this only works if there’s something to find and also you should be wary of relying on this too heavily where the tree is crowded with others as what you’re looking at may have fallen from it’s neighbour.
By the far the most reliable method of winter tree identification is to begin with a branch and study a healthy twig and it’s buds. That way we can be sure we’re investigating the right tree and the knowledge of bud and twig is transferable no matter whether the ground below is humous or concrete.
Get Your FREE Winter Tree Guide
I’ve created a handy guide you can use when you’re out and about looking at trees during winter. The guide features 18 native and common British trees which have buds, twigs and leaf litter that you might already be familiar with but also there’s other signs here that you’ve probably never noticed before. I’ve laid out similar looking species side by side so that you can easily distinguish between them.
The guide puts the focus firmly on the winter buds but you’ll also see smaller images featuring other clues you can look for in each species such as old fruits, leaf litter, nut cases, bark and catkins. Where I’ve included these they act as dead giveaways to which tree species you’re looking at.
I hope you find it useful on your journey to understanding the trees around us.
It can be so interesting to really look in to the details of our native trees and notice the changes that they undergo throughout the four seasons. That’s just what I’ve created for my FREE introductory online course called Kickstart Your Tree ID Skills. Here you will find a whole host of resources to take you from clueless to confident on your way to really knowing your trees.
When you sign up to this free mini-course you’ll be identifying common trees with video tutorials and photo galleries at your fingertips. Start your journey to becoming a fully fledged Tree Expert today. The course includes Tree ID Cheat Sheets which you can download and take outdoors with you.
“I’ve been frustrated for so long trying to learn my trees myself and haven’t gotten far. This course answered everything and has seriously upped my game.” Dr. Patrick Alexander
So, you’ve made your sloe gin and your blackberry brandy back in the autumn and you’re now ready to bottle up the drinks to give as gifts for Christmas. But wait! Don’t throw away those berries. You could make divine festive chocolates that will leave you wanting more.
In this article we will show you two easy-to-make and indulgent recipes for our Wild Boozy Berry Chocolates which make great use of your spirit-soaked hedgerow fruits. This is one of our favourite recipes of the whole year.
These chocolates will be the talk of any Christmas gathering with friends or will make a perfect surprise flourish to round off Christmas dinner. You could even wash them down with a tot of blackberry brandy or elderberry vodka. Just remember, they’re not for kids 😉
Above: The brandy-soaked berries in these chocolates are complimented by the orange zest and cinnamon. We added some edible gold spray for a final flourish.
Making Hedgerow Spirits
As outdoor educators, 2020 saw us locked down, unable to run many of our woodland courses and forced to stay close to home for the majority of the year, consequently we have been exploring our local green spaces and (like so many people) really getting further into the fascinating world of wild food and foraging. We have been preserving wild greens, cooking up foraged meals and discovering so many edible plants all around us like never before.
In the spring we were enjoying wild garlic pesto and nettle soup, in the summer it was dandelion honey and elderflower cordial. Autumn has bought us an abundance of berries and one wild food recipe that most people have heard of is sloe gin. It’s a foragers classic and if you’ve never made it for yourself, do give it a go. It’s so simple. If you want a recommend method for making this yourself, head over to the River Cottage website for a simple how-to.
The possibilities of hedgerow spirits go way beyond simply sloe gin though. We have made all sorts of recipes, using vodka, brandy, gin and whiskey. Any of the autumn berries can be used, and any mix, depending on what you have available or an experiment of different flavours together. All of these autumn foraged fruits work well; sloe, bullace, damson, haws, blackberries, rosehips and elderberries.
Above: The sloe gin and blackberry brandy is all bottled up, but we have some boozy berries left over. Don’t get rid of them just yet.
Waste Not, Want Not
Many people would chuck the alcohol-soaked fruits away once it’s time to strain out their hedgerow spirits, but this would be a BIG mistake. We used a whole host of hedgerow berries in our chocolates which has been gathered since summer; wild cherries, blackberries, wild raspberries, wild strawberry, sloe, bilberries, redcurrant and bullace. But you can use whatever fruits you have soaked in alcohol already.
Don’t use elderberries in your chocolates as the seeds can give you an upset stomach if eaten without cooking first. Be sure also to remove any large stones from fruits such as sloe, bullace and cherry too.
Any of the spirits will work for this recipe, but we love brandy-soaked fruit the best with chocolate. Rum would also be a good option.
Above: Use any of these autumn fruits in your hedgerow spirits and chocolates. Sloe, elderberry, rosehip, blackberry, hawthorn and bilberry.
Recipe 1: Boozy Berry, Fruit & Nut Chocolates
Boozy fruit – stones removed from the flesh, as needed
Hazelnuts – Roughly chopped
70% Dark Chocolate – use good quality chocolate, you won’t regret it
Boozy fruit – again, remove the stones where you need to
Grated orange zest
Cinnamon powder (to taste)
70% Dark Chocolate – use the good stuff
Edible Gold Glitter Spray – for decoration
Method
Cut the flesh from your boozy fruit and discard any stones or inedible pips. Set the fruit aside in a bowl for now.
Bring a small pan of water to the boil and rest another bowl over the pan to create a double-boiler. Break up the chocolate and slowly melt it in the dry pan.
Take a clean ice-cube tray and fill each section halfway with the other ingredients; either fruit, orange zest and cinnamon or fruit and hazelnuts.
Next, gently pour the melted chocolate into each section of the ice tray until the ingredients are well covered.
Place the tray in the fridge for 1-2 hours to allow them to set.
Push chocolates out of the tray and for a little sparkle you can either dust some icing sugar over them or give them a splash of edible gold spray.
Lastly, eat them and be merry!
Above: These boozy chocolates contain not only brandy-soaked hedgerow berries but also hazelnuts, for an indulgent Christmas treat.
Discover More Wild Food
If all this talk of wild food and foraging has whetted your appetite then you can take your learning further with us through the range of courses we offer.
You can immerse yourself in the world of foraging through our outdoor courses hosted in beautiful National Trust estate woodlands in North-East Wales. Or if that’s too far afield for you we also host regular online workshops, live through Zoom where we focus on wild foods of the season and give you delicious recipe ideas, foraging tips and expertise from special guest speakers. If this all sounds interesting, check out what’s coming up on our Events page right here.
Another way to get instant access to a whole backlog of wild food & foraging videos, recipes and recorded workshops is to join our Tribe over on Patreon. In return for supporting our mission, our patrons get access loads of exclusive resources. You can join the Tribe from as little as £3.60 per month. Find out about all the benefits right here.
Until next time, good luck with your own foraging journey.
When out and about wandering the wilds have you noticed catkins on the trees? Depending on what time of year you’re looking they can be small and closed up or they could be large, mature, pendulous flowers, dangling like lambs tails in the breeze. They can be a very useful sign to help us identify what species of tree we are looking at.
In this blog I’ll explain what catkins are, when you can see them on different tree species and which trees have catkins. If you love trees, but struggle to tell one species from another, then you could enroll in my FREE Tree Identification Course online. More details can be found at the end of the article.
You can also get your hands on a free download; Spring Trees Catkin Guide which you can find below.
What Are Catkins?
Catkins are made up of a hanging spike of tiny flowers, which begin their lives all closed up but will mature and open as spring approaches. Catkins release pollen which is reliant on the wind to blow it over to a waiting flower. As a general rule, the catkins open up and mature before the leaves appear on the tree. The reason for this is so that the leaves don’t get in the way of the pollen travelling on the wind, so the chances of pollination are increased – nature’s pretty clever like that. Typically there are a lot more of the male catkins on the tree than the female flowers, again giving the tree the best chance at reproduction.
In the majority of tree species, catkins are usually male, but this is not always the case. With willow trees there are separate male and female catkins which only grow on separate trees. So they are reliant on there being the opposite sex tree within reach of the wind.
Goat Willow (Salix caprea) has striking catkins in early Spring. The males (left) and the females (right) appear on separate trees.
When Do Catkins Appear?
On some native trees the new catkins can appear as early as the autumn, when they will be short, closed up and firm to the touch. These will hang around on the branch through winter as they slowly swell and mature. If you’re seeing these young catkins on a tree in winter then it’s most likely one of the following; alder (Alnus glutinosa), birch (Betula spp.) or hazel (Corylus avellana), these are the most common.
Alder (Alnus glutinosa) on the left and birch (Betula spp.) on the right. Young catkins appearing in autumn.
In late winter the hazel tree’s catkins undergo a transformation as they swell in size, open up and release their pollen to the striking but tiny scarlet flowers. They are a beautiful but often overlooked splash of colour at this time of year, if you can find them. The catkins themselves are notable in late winter because they are maturing well ahead of any other native tree. Give the mature catkins a little tap and you might well be rewarded with a cloud of pollen puffing from the flowers.
Hazel (Corylus avellana) is the first native tree to give us a striking splash of colour in late winter, even if it is tiny. A country nickname for the catkins is “lambs tails”
In early spring it’s the turn of the willows and poplars to open up their catkins and this makes these species much easier to recognise than at any other time of the year. As we get to late spring, the female willow flowers have been pollinated and we get those distinctive white fluffy catkins of seeds which float on the wind and litter the pavement and curb-side, the bane of street-sweepers everywhere. I think they look quite nice though.
The fluffy pollinated seeds of the Goat Willow (Salix caprea) these are the mature female catkins. Seeds then spread by wind-dispersal.
Here’s a list of all our native tree species which have catkins, at one time of the year or another:
Alder, Aspen, Black Poplar, Birch, English Oak, Grey Poplar, Hazel, Hornbeam, Sessile Oak, Sweet Chestnut, Willows and White Poplar
Discover more About Trees
It can be so interesting to really look in to the details of our native trees and notice the changes that they undergo throughout the four seasons. That’s just what I’ve created for my FREE introductory online course called Kickstart Your Tree ID Skills. Here you will find a whole host of resources to take you from clueless to confident on your way to really knowing your trees.
When you sign up to this free mini-course you’ll be identifying common trees with video tutorials and photo galleries at your fingertips. Start your journey to becoming a fully fledged Tree Expert today. The course includes Tree ID Cheat Sheets which you can download and take outdoors with you.
“I’ve been frustrated for so long trying to learn my trees myself and haven’t gotten far. This course answered everything and has seriously upped my game.” Dr. Patrick Alexander
FREE Spring Trees Catkins Guide
I’ve created a quick reference pictures guide to 9 of our native and common trees which produce catkins from late winter to early summer. I’ve arranged them in order of when their catkins appear too so you know not only what to look for but when to look for it. I hope you find it useful.
When you’re out walking, have you ever wondered, “which tree is that?”
Once the leaves have fallen from the trees, many people can be stumped when asked what they’re seeing in the woods. But if we can understand the clues trees give us we can unlock their identity and so much more. On this one-day course, we’ll show you how to identify trees in winter by looking at buds, bark, the shape of the tree and other clues. We’ll also look at the different uses that trees have, their place in the ecosystem and dive into a bit of woodland folklore. You will also take away your very own FREE Tree Leaf Identification Swatch Book, which is perfect for continuing your learning and practicing tree ID after the course is done.
Join James, who will be your tutor for the day. He has worked for many years in and around trees from managing the largest community woodland in Wales to hosting his own program of bushcraft and woodland skills courses at National Trust venues.
The Chirk Castle estate is a fantastic site to learn about trees because there is such a wide range of species here which make up a range of varied habitats including broadleaf woodland, scrubby grasslands, and ancient hedgerows.
The course is suitable for anyone aged 16 or over. Tickets cost £35 per person.
Please bring a packed lunch on the day but hot drinks and biscuits will be provided. Please also bring suitable clothing and footwear for the outdoors as we’ll be exploring the estate parkland.
Leaf ID Swatch Guide Included!
Everyone attending this course also gets a FREE Leaf ID Swatch Book to use throughout the day and take away with you. Produced by the Woodland Trust, this pocket-sized and lightweight little guide features leaves, twigs, and buds from 32 common UK trees and shrubs which are cleverly presented and grouped according to similarities in leaf shape, in a format that also makes it ideal for bringing the natural world closer to everyone. On the reverse of each page, the tree or shrub is briefly described. There are also interesting facts and information about where that species tend to grow.
About the Tutor
James Kendall is Bushcraft Instructor and Forest School Leader. He has been working in environmental education & conservation for over 10 years now. He received the Bushcraft Competency Certificate awarded through the Institute for Outdoor Learning after 2 years of real experience and practical study. He was also the Project Manager for Long Wood Community Woodland, the largest community-owned woodland in Wales, overseeing the management of 300 acres (120ha) of broadleaf and conifer forest. He is a former Director of Llais y Goedwig, the voice of community woodlands in Wales.
James has always had an affinity with woodland habitats, being at home amongst the trees, and he has made it his mission to study under some of the UK leaders in bushcraft, greenwood crafts and sustainable woodland management including; Dave Watson (Woodland Survival Crafts), Ben Law (woodsman, author, and eco-builder) Patrick Whitefield (permaculture teacher and author) and Mike Abbott (author and greenwood craftsman).
Booking
Get in touch if you’d like to know more email us. Advance booking is essential. Tickets are available just below on this page.
We love telling stories around the campfire with children at our outdoor activity sessions, especially those tales that are set in the woods and star the creatures that the kids could see for themselves. I think it helps bring the forest alive for their imaginations.
This short story, How The Robin Got Its Red Breast, is a great one to tell on a cold winters day with the campfire crackling away. For me, the story’s message is that no matter how small you are or seem to be, you can achieve great things.
“Long, long ago, when the world was new, as the winter Sun was setting, and the land was locked in ice and snow, all the creatures believed that the warmth they had enjoyed throughout the long summer was lost forever and might never return. They were cold and afraid.”
“As the winter winds blew through the forest, a small brown bird was sheltering in a holly tree and he thought to himself, ‘What could I do?’ Somehow he knew the warmth that had gone belonged to the Sun, so he decided to fly to the Sun and ask for it back. As he took flight the holly twig on which he was standing snapped off, so he took it with him, he thought it would make him feel braver to take a piece of home on his adventure.”
“He flew up, higher and higher he climbed, and as he flew, he felt the heat of the Sun increasing. He flew on, getting hotter and hotter, until he could hardly bear the heat any more and his feathers were scorching, he was so close to the Sun! But still, he was determined to get an audience with the Sun. Then suddenly the holly twig he was carrying burst into flames. He was so shocked that he fainted and fell, down, down, spiralling back to the Earth.”
“When he awoke he realised he still had the burning twig, clutched between his feet. He had done it. He had brought the Sun’s fire back to Earth, and everyone could warm themselves in the heat from the flames. He was a hero! And because he was so brave, and because his feathers had been scorched on his adventure, to this very day, he is still called Robin Redbreast.”
The Robin is probably the UK’s favourite bird. It’s known as the gardner’s friend because it’s often seen perched near to where earth and soil is being dug over, revealing lots of juicy worms. I’ve often had a Robin as my companion when I’m practising my bushcraft skills in the woods. he’s always hoping I’ll turn over some leaves or dead wood in the hope of a easy meal.
To find out more about the Robin, where it lives, what it eats and what it sounds like. You can visit the RSPBs website which should answer all your questions here.
We’ve taken the classic Christmas song and given it our very own twist. So join us for a good old fashioned sing-along. We love singing this around our campfire with our kids groups throughout the festive season.
Forest School sessions are all about letting children be in charge of their own learning and giving them the chance to explore wild spaces on their own terms so they can grow emotionally and intellectually. We run plenty of outdoor sessions throughout the winter because we believe that children should have access to great outdoor activities all year round.
Enough of all that though, on with the song…..
We’ve made a series of pictures to celebrate each of our 12 Days, which also showcase many of the awesome activities that children get up to at forest school sessions. You can see these images by scrolling through…
We love singing this round the campfire with the kids through December and you’re very welcome to use this song too. Here’s a run down of the lyrics:
“On the first day of forest school I had the chance to see…
A child climbing in an oak tree.
Two muddy boots
Three storytimes
Four crawling bugs
Five golden leaves!
Six kids a whittling
Seven mushrooms sprouting
Eight campfires blazing
Nine shelter builders
Ten monkeys swinging
Eleven axes chopping
Twelve hunters tracking”
Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.
So… it’s winter. The days are cold and short, but it’s still a great time to be out and about and see a host of things in the woods that you’d not see at other times of the year. Winter leaves our countryside bare, open to deeper exploration and let’s you poke your nose into all sorts of nooks and crannies that would be walled off with greenery come summertime.
Kenneth Grahame, author of the popular children’s novel The Wind In The Willows, painted an evocative picture of the countryside in winter, which hints at the secrets that are waiting to be discovered;
“The country lay bare and entirely leafless around him, and he thought that he had never seen so far and intimately into the insides of things as on that winter day when Nature was deep in her annual slumber and seemed to have kicked the clothes off… He was glad that he liked the country undecorated, hard, and stripped of its finery. He had got down to the bare bones of it, and they were fine and strong and simple.”
There were plenty of winter adventures for Mole, Ratty and Badger, so in order to inspire you to make your outdoor experience one that the kids will love too we have devised an awesome Winter Scavenger Hunt that will stimulate all the senses of your child. The only sense we haven’t got covered is taste – but we’re sure a nice hot chocolate at home after the walk will tick that box. We hope our scavenger hunt will make going outside in winter a memorable and exciting experience for the whole family. Give it a go and let us know how you got on.
You can share pics of your scavenging adventures on our facebook page, we’d love to see them.
We always host a great range of activity days right through the Autumn and Winter months, because we believe it’s important for kids and adults to get outside more than ever during these times when many people shut themselves away indoors. You can check out our upcoming events HERE.
We NEED To Get Outdoors, even though it’s wet & cold. It’s essential for our health and happiness, here’s why…
Winter is a time of year when many people hide away indoors, mirroring the hibernation of some animals and with all this wind and rain we’ve had for what feels like forever, who can blame them?
Christmas and New Year are behind us and there doesn’t seem much to look forward to. Many of us feel like cuddling up on the sofa and watching a movie when it’s cold, wet and going dark so early. Spring feels like a lifetime away, doesn’t it? When we do have to go out to work or get the kids to school, we dive out of the car and straight indoors, then it’s back out into the car, dive in and out of shops and back home, back to the world of central heating and electric lighting. Although this might make us feel more comfortable, it’s no compensation for the benefits of fresh air and sunlight. Without direct sunlight our bodies cannot produce vitamin D, which is important for maintaining normal blood levels of phosphorus and calcium, and helps keep our bones healthy and strong.
The amount of daylight we get each day has a dramatic effect on our mood too. Without this daylight our body produces substances that make us feel lethargic and lacking in energy. Idun Haugan of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology says that when sunlight hits our retinas at the back of our eyes, light sensitive nerve cells are activated which stimulates the production of serotonin and cortisol;
“These substances are important in determining our physical and mental health. Insufficient levels of serotonin can result in depression, lack of energy, sleep problems, mood swings and poor impulse control.” (Haugan 2013)
It is not always easy to get motivated to go outside in the middle of winter but remember this lack of motivation is caused by our lack of sunlight and the over production of melatonin (our body’s sleep hormone). So in the winter months with so little daylight available it’s even more important to get outside and feel the sun on your face, in fact, I guarantee you will feel more energised and invigorated for making the effort.
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