*Visit to The Foresteers Outdoor Preschool in Oughtibridge*
“It was wonderful to meet Hayley Smith who runs the Foresteers Outdoor Preschool on the outskirts of Oughtibridge.
Foresteers is based on a Scandinavian educational model – where children play freely outdoors all day, learning new skills like cooking their meals on a camp fire. Children also learn maths, reading and other formal subjects, but in a natural and engaging way that links to the curriculum, but also to the season in which the learning takes place.
In Parliament I’m privileged to sit on the Education Select Committee whose role is to scrutinise the work of the Department for Education (DfE). So meeting with educators, teachers and students in my constituency helps inform my work on the Committee.
It was fascinating to learn about the work of Hayley and her fellow practitioners at the Foresteers – and it was lovely to join in the activities with the children.
Walking into the woods with lanterns illuminated by the morning sun, hearing only birds, wind chimes and the local pigs and chickens was absolutely breathtaking.
A huge thank you to Hayley and the children for showing me their preschool, and helping me learn a little bit more about different approaches to early-years teaching.”
It provided a great opportunity to discuss issues facing the education industry.
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