What is it?
Willow Wood is the location for our outdoor learning programme at St Mary’s. First and foremost, it is an opportunity to learn outside and connect with nature. Led by our skilled leader Kevin Morgan, who has over 20 years’ experience, each class takes part in two blocks of sessions over the course of each year. Programmes include bush craft (fire building, roasting marshmallows); making bug hotels, bird nests and fat balls; pond dipping; shelter building; team challenges; and appreciating nature (learning about wildlife through observation and exploration).
Where is it?
Based at the Junior Site on Richmond Road, Willow Wood is nestled at the back of the school just a stone’s throw from English Heritage’s Marble Hill Park. Workshops are outside but groups have access to the site’s toilet facilities and a spare classroom if necessary.
Why outdoor learning?
Research has found that children are happier, healthier and more motivated to learn when they have opportunities to learn outside. “We learn to love nature as children, and our commitment to nature later in life – respecting it, protecting it, restoring it, or simply enjoying it – is built on that childhood foundation. That’s why it’s so important we give all children the chance to experience the natural world.” (Environment Minister Rory Stewart, 2016).
