Wondrous Wrens is our new Forest School group for all families who are deferring school start or home educating. At Wondrous Wrens we focus on building community, igniting curiosity, growing confidence, learning new skills, and offering activities to bring families closer to nature (and to each other!)
We meet on Mondays in terms time in Tilehurst, Reading.
See below for details of our online booking.
Spaces are limited, advanced booking is essential.
Wondrous Wrens is our new Forest School group for all families who are deferring school start or home educating. At Wondrous Wrens we focus on building community, igniting curiosity, growing confidence, learning new skills, and offering activities to bring families closer to nature (and to each other!)
The woodland itself provides the inspiration for all our sessions as we creatively explore seasonal changes and the natural resources each season has to offer. Sessions offer families the opportunity to develop basic foraging, conservation, and tool based skills while enjoying all the well-being benefits immersion in the natural environment provides.
See below for details of our online booking.
We hold a space for all families deferring school starts or home educating children under 12 who would like to be a part of shaping and contributing to a supportive caring community.
We recognise that:
- We are not your child's primary educator, you are. We offer to hold space, bring together community, give you access to nature and a safe place to lead your children's learning journey.
- All families parent and home educate differently and ask that everyone who joins our group comes with an open mind and understanding of each other's individual approaches. We want our community to be a safe place for everyone.
- No one family is the same. Every family may want something slightly different from an outdoor learning environment, so we offer plenty of flexibility for you and your children. If your child is enjoying exploring transporting woodchip by wheelbarrow for a whole term then they are welcome to ignore the frogs. We know they will come to the frogs when they are interested and then they will learn and understand better.
As such our group is not heavily structured in the way that mainstream school is. It has a clear end (gathering by the fire) but is otherwise quite open, with invitations for igniting curiosity and seasonally led. If your child enjoys or gets comfort from a structure we are happy to help add this for them, just let us know.
Our group meets every Monday morning during term time from 10.30-12 noon (see this year's dates below) in the private woodland area on Sage Road in Tilehurst near Brookfields School & Westwood Farm School (postcode RG31 6GG). Take a look at our location below (the entrance gate is just inside the main access gates of Brookfields SEN School).
We meet to play, explore the nature on site, grow, read a story, cook (some weeks) and sing by the fireside (optional at the end). Our learning is seasonal (see below).
We have heaps of resources on site for bug and minibeast study, books, ID sheets and magnifiers. We pond dip each week (weather permitting) and love to help you identify what you find.
Our group is otherwise very free and unstructured; your child can dip into what they want with no expectations from us. We usually end with a story or song by the fireside to support a sense of community but if your child doesn't want to do this, there is no pressure to. It is up to you and your child if you choose to join in the planned activities or enjoy exploring the woods and making your own discoveries. However, your children remain the responsibility of their accompanying adult at all times whilst they are in the woods.
Sessions always include tea and fresh coffee for grown-ups and some biscuits.
In winter we explore the cold weather, ice and watch the red kites hunting and listen to the Robin's solo song. We wrap up around the fireside and cook warm soups and porridge together.
In Spring the pond wakes up with frog spawning and birds return to nest. We watch the changes gather pace week to week and see the trees wake up. We hope for the bluetits to return to their nesting box near the fireside.
In summer the dragonflies emerge and birds are very active. We watch the tadpoles develop into froglets and start to see the newts emerge. Frogs and stag beetles are abundant and the slow worms start to sunbathe under our black sheeting (providing they are not disturbed too much!).
In autumn we watch the leaves change and fall (later each year with climate change) and marvel as the fungi appear. We prepare to hibernate and slow down with the woodland. We watch the pumpkins in our veg patch ripen and cook soups together to warm us.
The small private nature reserve is used by both Brookfields SEN School and Westwood Farm Schools throughout the week. Our profits go towards improving and maintaining the site for all of it's users. The woodland has a copse area, a nature pond, mud kitchen, a summer house (with stove in for winter days) and an A frame shelter over an open fire area. We are always improving the site and open to new ideas and helpers from the community. We are a collective - it takes a village so to speak.
Although you are responsible for your child at all times, as an organisation we actively manage the risks and have policies and procedures in place to minimise unacceptable levels of risk (such as the pond and fire). As a community we all do our best to look out for each other on site and help where we can.
We do not have access to the local school for use of their toileting facilities so we suggest you go before you come. We do have a basic 'toilet shed' with a camping toilet in, contact us if you would like more information about our toileting policy.
We also have nappy changing mats, a potty, picnic rugs and tarps for the ground and a few IKEA highchairs to make life easier.
Our summerhouse has a comfy sofa for feeding in, or if you are more comfortable there are various places to prop yourself around the site.
The site is accessible by wheelchair and buggy however some parts of the site can on occasion get very muddy or uneven in wet weather.
Prices:
Our pricing structure is different for our Wondrous Wren group, to keep the prices affordable for whole families. Families with 2 children receive a discount on the second, and with three a discount on the second and third.
£11 for the first child and accompanying adult per session. This comes to £55 for a 5 week term and £132 for a 12 week term from April - July.
£18 for a family with 2 children per session. This comes to £90 for a 5 week term and £216 for a 12 week term from April - July.
£25 for a family with 3 children per session. This comes to £125 for a 5 week term and £300 for a 12 week term from April - July.
Children under 1 and adults are free.
For new members, a booking form will be emailed to you once we have received your booking through TicketLab.
After running costs (insurance, staff etc), materials and refreshments, profits are reinvested in improving the site for all its users as a part of our Wild City Collective CIC.
It is absolutely critical that no one parks on the Brookfields Special Needs School site during the day due to the restrictions they need to have in place for COVID 19. This is non negotiable as they have many very vulnerable children in their care. Parking at Brookfields is now heavily controlled to reduce any risk of infection to their vulnerable groups. Please allow enough time to park your car and if not then don't rush, there's no such thing as 'late' with our group! We will see you whenever you make it. We know that little ones sometime have varying schedules.
There is free parking on surrounding residential roads, (such as Knowsley Rd) however we ask all our visitors are considerate of local residents and Brookfields School when choosing where to park. Please do not park on yellow lines, grass verges or blocking driveways and allow yourself good time to park, get out and waterproofed up. There is no fixed start that you will miss to 'activities', so don't panic if you arrive 30 minutes 'late'!
We meet this term for the following 5 weeks:
We won't meet on 6th May as it is a bank holiday.
We finish on Monday 20th May until Monday 3rd June to give everyone space and time to refresh ready for the last Summer term.
Our numbers are capped to keep the group small and familiar.
All enquiries go through our contact form (below), instagram or facebook.
We try to post photos of the work we do on Instagram and Facebook regularly. You can get a taste of our other work by following us on https://www.facebook.com/wildcitycollective/ and www.instagram.com/wildcityforestschool
Feel free to post photos yourself about our sessions and tag us but do get permission first for anyone else in your photos.
Our site is just off Sage Road, look for a large metal gate - tucked inside the entrance to Brookfields SEN school.
The nearest bus stop is the Sky blue 16 - Warley Rise stop.
The group is NOT accessible from Westwood Farm School, so if you arrive there you will need to walk around the entire site to access the entrance. Google maps estimates this takes about 9 minutes on foot via the footpath if you follow directions to:
Westwood Farm Wild Woods, Sage Road, RG31 6GG
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