Welcome to Petworth Forest School
At Petworth we believe Forest School supports the development of the whole child; including confidence, self esteem, resilience, independence and sense of achievement through child initiated learning within the natural environment.
Forest School promotes a knowledge and understanding of the local natural environment in which their care of and contribution towards is valued.
Forest School at Petworth
The philosophy of Forest School is to encourage and inspire individuals of any age through positive outdoor experiences. Spending time in a woodland environment has a great positive influence on health, wellbeing and personal development.
By engaging in, motivating and participating in achievable tasks and activities in a woodland environment each child has an opportunity to develop intrinsic motivation, sound emotional and social skills. These, through self-awareness can be developed to reach personal potential.
Forest School has demonstrated success with children of all ages who visit the same local woodlands on a regular basis. Through play they have the opportunity to learn about the natural environment, how to handle risks, and most importantly, how to use their own initiative to solve problems and co-operate with others. For this reason we aim to participate in the programme regularly.
Forest School programmes run throughout the year, with children going to the woods in all weathers (except high winds). Children use full sized tools, play, learn boundaries of behaviour both physical and social, establish and grow in confidence, self-esteem and become self-motivated.