This Thursday and Friday we had a fantastic time camping out near Mrs Jesse’s farm. There were lots of new skills learnt, amazing sights and smells and even smiles and laughter on a damp morning in the woods.
After helping to assemble their own tents, the children listened carefully to a safety briefing and went on a boundary walk around the woodland. We then began collecting firewood, digging a fire pit and putting together the fires, using Mrs Jesse’s “upside down” method.
When the fires were all ready, we went on a short hike across the fields to the farm to see how sausages are made. We saw some cute cows and their calves, met Flick the dog and most importantly got to take some fresh sausages back to camp.
We returned back to camp and began to light the fires, some groups getting started very quickly while others had to persevere to find their spark. Soon there were sausages sizzling in all the frying pans and children happily waiting for dinner.
The rest of the evening was spent playing games in the woods and in the fields, learning big group games or den building.
As the evening drew on we gathered round the big fire pit and were treated to a sing-a-long with Mrs Jesse and her guitar.
Next it was time for the night walk, most children were very excited to see the woods after dark but some nervy ones needed to stay close to adults for support. All the children showed great resilience to stick it out and shared a magical moment listening to the rustling branches in the moonlight.
The next morning may have been a bit of a wash out but the children still kept their spirits high, helping to make a bit shelter and making their own breakfast and lunch independently. All the children did really well and hopefully made lots of great memories. Thank you to all the adults who helped out and pick up and drop off too!
