News
Burning Ambition
General
Posted: Mar 1, 2007
Children from St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School in Hunslet experienced the welcome warmth of a blazing campfire on a cold and blustery day in Bradley Wood, Brighouse. This was the grand finale of a six-week session of outdoor activities in the woodland as part of the Branch Out project, run by BTCV Skelton Grange Environment Centre and Groundwork Leeds, with the generous support and employee involvement from the HSBC in the Community Programme. The project works with children from Leeds, providing positive, fun outdoor experiences within a woodland environment.
The Year 1 and 2 children earned freshly-popped popcorn, cooked over the fire, by following a woodland quiz trail testing what they had learned during the project. In the previous weekly sessions the children had taken part in activities such as den building, identifying tree leaves and learning how to behave safely around campfires. The Branch Out project is based on the Scandinavian concept of Forest Schools where children develop confidence and boost self-esteem and self-control by taking part in outdoor play and learning.
Branch Out Project Officer Julie Howarth Pulleyn said “The children have been really looking forward to experiencing a real campfire, and they were not disappointed – and the popcorn was very popular! It’s been great to see the children develop over the weeks and learn so much from being outdoors and exploring the natural world.”
Branch Out Project Officer Julie Howarth Pulleyn said “The children have been really looking forward to experiencing a real campfire, and they were not disappointed – and the popcorn was very popular! It’s been great to see the children develop over the weeks and learn so much from being outdoors and exploring the natural world.”
