Rabbits - September 12

The Rabbits class is starting to gel together quite nicely, as old friends get reacquainted, new friends join the mix and all the different dynamics of a group start to form. We got to enjoy a beautiful warm fall morning on the bluff this week.

We welcomed each other and did our name game group activity from last week - adding a few more challenges and variations to the game. Next we went exploring a new (to some of us) area of the bluff - the bike park. We hiked down the steep bank to check out this cool spot and collect some leaves. The leaves were brought up to our spot and we all got to work on leaf art name tags using hole punches, paints, markers and string. It was fun to let our creative selves explore on a natural medium.

The name tags came in handy as our friends from the Rabbits / Owls (Rowls) class came to challenge us in a game of animal card tag. It is fun to have another class to mix with, especially with games that require lots of players and it is inspiring to see the leadership that the older more experienced forest schoolers can share with our group. After our friends left we had a snack and read a book, then we got to work on some mapping of our space in order to get to know our area more. I enjoyed observing the details that the rabbits added to their maps, such as the ‘pipe’, the sun and some special trees.

Free time was especially exciting with some dramatic sword fighting taking place. There was lots of merriment, back and forth shouting, running and climbing. This type of physical play is important at forest school and provided our group with the opportunity to discuss and reflect upon what makes this type of play good, safe and fun for everyone who wishes to take part. Because this sword fighting play seems to be very popular we will continue to explore it with our group in the coming weeks. During free time some of the girls learned to put up a hammock and tool circle welcomed some of the sword fighters who needed to enhance their weapons. Next class some of the Rowls will be teaching us how to add a handle to our swords and we will continue to work on our carving techniques to make our swords more purposeful and beautiful!

We ended our morning together with a scavenger hunt of the forest, finding colours that matched our paint swatches. Some colors were harder to find than others!