The wonderful Elise from Woodland Makery visited The Priory for another Forest School session. The children were captivated by the array of activities available and completely engrossed and engaged throughout the whole session.
The children were shown how to make fresh nettle soup and bread and were involved in every step of the process, from preparing and removing the sting “The nettles don’t sting when you put them in water” explained one child, to chopping the vegetables into tiny pieces and finally watching the soup cook and bubble up, filling the space with the most delicious smell!
The children were introduced to using a hand saw to cut small pieces off of a branch to create their very own bugs. The next step of this activity was to use a palm drill to create a hole in the wood, then use pipe cleaners, wool and pens to really bring their vision to life, creating the most wonderful bugs you have ever seen.
The children were also given the opportunity to use a hammer and their big muscles to bash a nettle leaf inside a cloth to disperse the natural inks and produce beautiful natural artwork. This is a Japanese term called Hapa Zome, meaning ‘leaf-dye’.
How could we not incorporate the children’s favourite thing to do by going on a bug hunt around the garden! The children searched and explored to find lots of creepy crawlies hiding behind, inside and underneath everything and anything and then discovering the vast variety of insects we have living in the different habitats in our garden.
We finished this session by coming together as a group to taste the soup and bread which was made with love and given the biggest thumbs up from the children!!
Thank you to Elise for another wonderful session. We look forward to the upcoming sessions at both The Court House and Mornington House very soon.
You can find out more about Elise and her work here: www.woodlandmakery.com
u-Sports at Mornington House