What Forest School Can Reveal About Your Children

When was the last time your kids went out to play outside like this? 

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I’ve been having these sinking feeling conversations lately with friends on how kids nowadays don’t get to play like we used to – those times when we would tell our parents that we were just going out to play and only come home when it was already time to eat. Maybe it was a safer time, but those days were filled with climbing trees, getting lost outdoors, getting creative with what we had, and finding ourselves in mischief sometimes. Still, it was a time when we felt so free.  

For some reason, as life and technology happened; raising our own children came with them staying indoors more, stuck on their gadgets, watching TV and YouTube. If too much screen time is a sign of the times, then what kind of generation are we building up?

This made me worry. Is my child learning enough skills to prepare him for the future? How will he learn to be a resourceful, creative, compassionate, independent, and strong person? How do I build him up to live a life of his own?

I was super happy to find a school that acknowledges the real struggles parents face today. I came to find that it’s a school that can augment my child’s current schooling to prepare him for ever-changing times.  

Forest School Philippines sets up the stage for children to be outdoors in a real forest and learn anything through play.  

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As Shawi, Forest School Leader, puts it: “Play must be viewed as more than just a right for our children, but a life essential. In fact, more than the academic skills, children learn the most important life skills through playing: problem-solving, advocating for themselves, decision-making skills, working in groups, taking turns, sharing, resolving conflicts, cooperating, compromising, negotiation.”

How does Forest School actually work?

Every Wednesday and Saturday, a Nature Walk is done for children from 9:30AM – 11:30AM in a forest in Alitaptap Artist’s Village, Amadeo, Cavite (near Tagaytay city). It’s a short trek for kids that ultimately leads to a charming waterfall where they can take a dip and play. During the walk, they get to observe butterflies and dragonflies, as well as various flora, mosses, ferns, and fungi.

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What’s special about Forest School Philippines is that its child-led, which means Shawi lets your children be intensely absorbed in what they are doing. She does not interfere. Self-actualization happens when a child is focused and involved in what he is doing.

There may be moments when a child trips; but, instead of rushing to their side, you will see that other kids will actually step in to help the other child and ask if they are okay. This is just one scenario that leads to an engaged life.

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At the mini waterfalls, I noticed that the kids discovered things to play with on their own, like a stray vine and a floating log. When it was time to go back, the kids also dressed up on their own. I also observed an older brother help his younger sibling dress up. Through this activity, I saw that they learned patience, independence, and care.

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What can Forest School Philippines reveal about your kid?

  1. Compassion and empathy
  2. Independence
  3. Confident interaction
  4. Alertness, physical activity and exercise
  5. Increased intellectual capacity
  6. Sharpened emotional intelligence
  7. Released emotional trauma
  8. Self-esteem 

It would be great if you let your child avail of the six-session nature-walk so that they can get into the habit of appreciating nature and acquiring certain skills sets that can only be developed in this setting. (One session costs Php750, while six sessions cost Php3,000.)

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Now you may think: what do the parents do while the children are learning to be people of their own? Get some “me” time by either staying at a charming Kubo in Alitaptap Artist’s Village or go visit a great coffee shop around Amadeo.

As more and more parents don’t seem to be satisfied with the educational system nowadays and where homeschooling and unschooling are becoming the norm; Forest School is here to augment your child’s learning and development journey.

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What would it mean for you to let your kids get out and unplug a little more? Your child will unlock his inner genius and be fully capable of sharing his gifts to the world. Book a session now with Forest School Philippines.

Forest School Philippines

info@forestschoolphilippines.com

Website: https://forestschoolphilippines.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/forestschoolph

Instagram: @forestschoolph