On Monday 6th November, our Year 1 children went on an exciting school trip to Ledsham Forest in Leeds, visiting charity Countryside Learning, who provide educational workshops to educate, inform and inspire children to appreciate the countryside and have a greater understanding of the wide range of issues surrounding it.

All the Pre-Prep children take part in regular Forest School sessions in our purpose built Owl’s Den, a wooden lodge which is nestled amongst a woodland area in QEGS, our brother school within Wakefield Grammar School Foundation. We are fortunate to have two specialist Forest School qualified teachers who are passionate about taking learning outdoors and creating these wonderful experiences for the children. Hence, our trip to Ledsham Forest was a fantastic opportunity for the children to experience a Forest School experience on a much larger scale!

The children learnt about the anatomy of a tree and the important role trees play in filtering our air, discovered minibeasts in the woods and went on a scavenger hunt. They worked in teams to explore the woods, developing their interpersonal skills; all whilst having fun with their peers.

There is plenty of research to evidence the advantages of Outdoor Learning (OL) for our children’s learning and development. For example, this study by Forest Research indicates that OL boosts children’s confidence, social skills, communication, motivation, physical skills, knowledge and understanding. Similarly, it has been proven that encouraging children to explore nature and immerse themselves in the natural world can aid in their social and emotional development. 

We have seen first-hand how receptive our children are to Outdoor Learning days, displaying beaming smiles and growing in confidence – that’s why it has been embedded into our school curriculum ever since we opened Wakefield Grammar Pre-Preparatory School in 2021.

Mrs R Mayes, 

Year 1 Lead