How forest school training changed my life
It's no exaggeration to say that doing my forest school training has changed my life in many positive ways. Obviously, I now make my living training people like you to become forest school leaders but along the way, I've had many transformations, both personal and professional, all from training as a forest school leader. Here are a few of my favourites:
🌱 Freedom:
I've never been very good at doing things just for the sake of doing them, something that became very clear when I trained as a primary school teacher! All that pointless paperwork and sticking doggedly to a curriculum whether my pupils were ready for the next task or not... no thank you! With forest school and forest school training, I'm able to work in a way that suits both me and my learners, one that gets the best out of all of us. I'm not constrained by a curriculum, or rules that I've had no say in, or walls. I love it!
🌱 Mental health:
When you've been doing something for over 15 years, you can guarantee that a whole lot of 'life events', both good and bad, have happened along the way. There have been plenty of times over the years, when I'm glad that I've been heading to the healing trees rather than a stuffy classroom or office. I've learned that not only is being outside good for my learners, it's also good for me.
🌱 Awe and wonder:
Put quite simply, the natural world is absolutely flippin' amazing! There is such beauty and magnificence all around us and I totally appreciate being able to experience this every day, even at work! And I love being able to share this with other people and see the sparks of awe and wonder in others. There's always, always something new to learn and it never ceases to amaze me.
🌱 Making a difference:
Through my forest school career I've worked with many, many groups, from toddlers to women in recovery. I know that I've made a difference to all of them, as many have told me so, but my favourite comes from working with a group of teenage boys at risk of exclusion. I worked with them every week for three years and we always cooked fried egg sandwiches over the fire. They were a group that were very much on the edge of the school-to-prison pipeline and the aim of the sessions was to build their self-esteem and interpersonal skills and to show them a different route was possible. The first few sessions were a bit like Fight Club but we stuck with it. Over time, the arguments over whose sandwich it was, changed to them making sure that everyone had one, then to making sure the adults had one too, and finally asking how we preferred our eggs to be cooked! One afternoon, as we all sat scoffing our fried egg sandwiches (I'd asked for mine over-easy), one of the boys piped up with, "I always thought I'd end up in prison, but I think I'd like to be a chef instead!" It still brings a lump to my throat today, many years later, and it's just one amongst a number of similar stories.
I could go on, but you get the idea! I'll leave you for today with some words from a couple of my students
“Thank you so much for being a major catalyst - it was by far the most life affirming, inspiring and fun CPD I have had in over 20 years. Wish I done it sooner. ”
- Ginny, Level 3 Student
"I felt compelled to thank you so much for the best 5 days I've had in ages, for the inspiration and hope it provided. You really are wonderful at what you do!"
- Lisa, Level 3 Student
You can check out my forest school training by clicking the button below, including access to a 14-day free trial.