What is Twiglets?
Twiglets
This is our weekly 'Parent Stay and Play' Forest School programme.
VERY LIMITED SPACES AVAILABLE STILL FOR SEP 2024, Enquire ASAP!
We have Twiglet parent play and stay group on a Monday 10-12pm, Wednesday 10-12pm and Fridays 10-12pm.
A time for parents and their toddlers to have a play adventure in the woods! We will follow the forest school ethos so the children will guide the session and decide what it is they would like to do in the session, with play being at the centre of everything we do! Our sessions welcome you to play with your little ones, join in with the activities and connect with nature. This is a stay and play group for you to experience with your child.
The children will have the opportunity to learn how to light a fire, play in hammocks, play in a mud kitchen, make natural crafts, sing, read stories and play games in the woods! We will also cook a selection of campfire snacks.
Our sessions also offer parents a space to chat to each other and make new friends. The forest School staff are also on hand to support and offer advice for parents of under 5s in how to incorporate the natural world in your little ones childhood. We will also regularly share ideas with you to support you in taking your children outdoors and embracing nature.
We have always said this group is just as much for the parents as it is the children! We understand now, even more than ever new parents need support, our weekly group not only offers children a space to be free, wild and connected to nature, but also provides the parents with a space to be mindful, time to talk to other parents and uninterrupted time to play with your little ones.
The session will go ahead in all kinds of weather so please ensure your child and yourself are dressed with warm layers and waterproof outer layers. The only time we cancel due to weather is deemed unsafe due to strong winds.
Our terms are booked as a 12-week term to keep in line with the forest school principles that it is a long-term programme rather than as one off sessions. The sessions are run by qualified forest school practitioners, whom many are also qualified teachers too! We run on a high staff to child ratio, with 3 members of staff facilitating every session.
We often get asked what age does my child need to be? Really there is no age minimum or maximum! A child of any age will be immersed in nature and have a variety of experiences and opportunities to explore, most of the children attending Twiglets are age 18months-5 years old.
If you would like a space in one of our Twiglet groups, please just send us an email with your childs age, the day you would prefer and a contact email address.
We often have waiting lists so please do message us as early as possible. 12 week term : £180
Our Twiglets programme is designed to follow the forest school principles of being long term, therefore most children remain with us until they move onto school. We work on an auto enrolment basis, so your child keeps their space until you provide us with 1 months’ notice that you are leaving.
Parents are responsible for their own children at all times and must remain on site.
About Us
Twiglets has been awarded as a recongised provider for Forest School by the FSA!
“As soon as we saw that the Forest School Association had a Recognised Forest School Provider scheme we knew that we wanted to ensure our Forest School offered high quality Forest School and that one day we hoped to achieve this recognition. Our children and families love their weekly Twiglets sessions in the woods and our whole team of staff are fully engaged and committed to our long term forest school programmes. We hope that this recognition we have been awarded by the Forest School Association will offer reassurance that our Twiglets sessions follow the Forest School ethos and meet all the principles of Forest School. We are very thankful for this award and appreciate that there are not many other Forest Schools around that have been awarded this so we are incredibly proud.”
Fireflies Forest School, Jessica Brocklebank.
A message from the FSA...
“Good Forest School practice is being followed by dedicated Forest School professionals all over the UK. We believe that the FSA Recognised Forest School Provider scheme will provide these schools and organisations with the means of demonstrating the quality of their work to parents and those who fund their work. It will also help promote their work as they will be found on the FSA publicly searchable map. Forest School is a distinct learning approach based on a set of 6 principles. Our scheme helps people identify those providers who are following good Forest School practice and distinguishes them from other outdoor education that is not Forest School. We therefore congratulate Fireflies Forest School on their success at becoming an approved ‘good practice’ provider.”
The scheme takes providers through an evidence based assessment process ensuring that their practice meets all the necessary requirements to operate professionally in line with the 6 good practice principles of Forest School. It also gives providers a chance to take stock of their programme(s) to see if any improvements need to be made.
For parents wondering where to send their children, or even for decision makers such as Local Authorities and Academies, it is important to know that a provider is operating professionally. Are they working in accordance with good Forest School practice? Are the sessions conducted so that the children’s self-confidence, communication skills, use of tools (among other skills), is progressing week on week? Do they have the appropriate qualifications, First Aid Certificate and risk assessment processes in place? Are the woodland sites well managed? The FSA Recognised Forest School Provider Scheme offers that reassurance!
