A Summary of my Unit 1 learning journey

7th-11th Oct 2020

As I have come to the end of unit 1 I thought it would be a good idea to collate and record my learning journey throughout this unit so below is a summary of what I have personally found out and discovered within this section of the course. To create this I have read back through my learning journals from the past few months and highlighted key learning moments.

· Excitement about starting the course and finally living a dream.

· Nervous of beginning and making a start-worried about sharing my work and communicating what I have learnt.

· Interested to find out more about the history of Forest School education having to relearn how to write an essay and do research again.

· Loving all the links and aspects of my life that this course draws together. Making links and connections to my past working and living in Norway and personal educational pedagogy.

· Starting a blog which documents my journey and a Facebook page-overcoming fears of sharing and overwhelmed by the support and encouragement given by family and friends

· Enjoyed writing a comparative study and finding out more about Forest School research.

· Started videoing my learning journey and set up a you tube account to store these videos. Enjoyed going out into the local woodlands around where I live and looking at them in a new way. Really noticing features and being able to apply my learning about the different levels in a woodland.

· Finding out more about different woodlands and coniferous and deciduous trees. Using equipment to measure PH and height of the trees-really looking at the flora and fauna that inhabit these two quite different woodlands. Using video again to record my learning and becoming more confident in front of the camera.

· Learning more names of native flora and finding different identification tools and apps to help me. Creating an identification leaflet for own site. Getting to know own site more and understanding its ecosystem. Playing and learning more about videoing and keeping up my blog and Facebook page.

· Understanding and writing about the importance of identification and how this brings us closer to knowing and caring about the ecosystem. Understanding the importance of this skill for kids and bringing them closer to the natural world. The importance of fostering a love for nature in young people and sustainably.

· Finding out more about the geology and history of the local landscape. Reading and following local conservation groups and discovering more woodlands around the site that are protected and looked after by charities and organisations. Understanding the history of sustainability and understanding that woodlands need our support and care as much as we need them.

· Naming and working out a logo for my own Forest School-developing more ideas and consolidating my beliefs, ethos, and values.

· Discovering more about teaching children about sustainability and educational theories that are the foundations of Forest School teaching and learning. Thinking about the cohort that I will teach and their developmental stages and needs. Thinking about activities and how sustainability will be such a fundamental part of the teaching.

· Developing risk assessments and ecological impact assessments thinking carefully about the site and the activities that will take place there. Drawing all I have learnt so far together and creating a three-year plan for the site. Understanding and appreciating the learning journey I am on and seeing the connections, links, and relevance of it all.

· Feeling more confident and pleased that I have completed Unit 1. A bit worried about the time it is taking me but also feel that a deep level of understanding is taking place and that every journey is unique and not compare it to others who are on the same path.

Mighty oaks from little acorns grow.