We have been best friends since we were four years old. When we reminisce about the magical moments from our childhood, we chat about the endless hours we spent outdoors making stick boats to race down the stream, the den we made in the Rhododendron bushes for our ‘secret club’ and and climbing the ‘witch tree’ that became our hide-out house and from where we sat and watched the world go by. We splashed in puddles, got mucky making mud pies and dens, and creative making daisy chains and petal rose perfume to sell to the neighbours. We have fond memories of the winter months when we made ice slides on the hills at our local park and made an igloo in the back garden with a spade and some shoe boxes! However most of all we remember the feeling of coming in to a cosy fire after spending all day outdoors on a cold winters day.
We now have families of our own and would like our children to experience the freedom to explore and learn through play in an outdoor environment. Not only when they are spending time with the family, but also during their early years education. New evidence from Play England has revealed that 32% of children have never climbed a tree, 29% of children have never built a den and, in fact, a quarter of children today have never had the simple pleasure of rolling down a hill.
So in 2009, we opened Woodland Outdoor Kindergartens in order to provide preschool children in Glasgow and the surrounding area the unique opportunity to experience nature first hand and to develop and thrive in the more challenging and stimulating environment of natural woodland. The children attending spend up to 80% of the day outdoors, having the freedom to explore and learn through nature whilst engaging in high quality learning experiences. The friendly, supportive and nurturing environment enables the children to develop their emotional intelligence, resulting in confident, creative and independent children.
However the kindergarten is more than an just an opportunity for children to play in the woods and get some fresh air. Since opening, we have achieved partnership with Glasgow City Council who have rated the kindergarten as the number one private nursery in the local area, two fantastic reports from the Care Commission/SCSWIS and have therefore experienced high demand for placements. Some parents have chosen to combine this outdoor experience with their existing childcare arrangements, often attending one or two days per week.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has contributed to the success of the kindergarten so far. We are sure we have had as much fun as the children in the woods!
Alison and Debbie (Founders)
