Australia Day can feel complicated in early childhood settings. Many educators want to celebrate the richness of this Country and the many ways people understand what being Australian means. At the same time, we can no longer ignore that Australia became the nation it is through colonisation, and that this has had significant and ongoing … Continue reading Country Was Here First: A Story for Australia Day / Survival Day (Free Download)
Author: Geira Jen
Position Available: Nature Mentor/Playworker
Position Available! Birdwings Forest School are hiring.
A healing story for children in the fire crisis
Children will need to talk about the bushfire too. They will need to explore this topic in every playful way in order to make sense of the experience and their emotions attached to it. At Birdwings we use oral storytelling, drama and art to help children process the experience. Storytelling easily crosses over and carries on through play, and formal storytelling can also provide children with a stage to share their understandings.
Storytelling and Trauma: supporting children in times of stress
We have many families in our local Birdwings community within this area (who are all safe) but who have been on high alert in preparation for the possibility of wild bushfire changing their lives forever. This week, the children will be talking about the fires, they will be sharing experiences, discussing the things they know, and watching each other for shared emotional responses as they talk to understand what has happened in their world.
The importance of handcrafts for brain development
Just as it is impossible for us to work without immersion in nature, handcrafting is one of our cornerstone practices at Birdwings Nature. The process and the product of handcrafting and creativity are part of who we are and how we relate to our world. It is part of how we move through our seasonal shifts with the children and how we celebrate the gift of childhood.
Fun with friends in forest school
We love our Birdwings Bush Club and Little Birdwings Forest Kindy because children can have a natural childhood, playing and having fun with friends in nature.
What does risk-taking really look like in early childhood?
One of the biggest hurdles to outdoor play is understanding the nature of risk-taking. We have found that the most challenging daily risk-taking children will experience in our nature immersion programs has little to do with wild nature play at all. Snakes, fire-work, water-play and tree-climbing are not as challenging for children as putting on … Continue reading What does risk-taking really look like in early childhood?
Getting enough nature play?
We want our children to have a special, care-free childhood filled with special memories of family moments and playing with friends, just like our own was. We know it is a priority to make sure our children have free play time outside, but our lives as parents are so busy and childhood is increasingly scheduled, so that it is now difficult to ensure our children are getting enough nature play. Finding the balance between the pressures of modern living and our own values for freedom, creativity and play can be a real challenge families.
The challenges of childhood are meant to be tricky.
Challenge is meant to be a bit tricky. Challenge stretches us and asks us to find our more about ourselves. Challenge encourages us to reflect on our capabilities, our effort and our motivation. It hones our vision and it uplifts us when we finally realise that now we can do it, when we couldn't before. Remember when that was hard?
Birdwings Nature Retreat is forest school for grown ups.
Birdwings offers forest school for grown-ups in our nature connection retreats. Relax and reconnect in the rainforest.