education
Outdoor Education and Learning
Hainault Forest is the perfect classroom; it inspires and motivates, sparking a connection between people and the natural world. Stepping out of the everyday and spending time in nature is great for young bodies and minds, and we’d love to help your learners experience the wonder of the woods.
All visits need booking including self-led, please fill out the enquiry form below.
Book a
Self-guided Visit
We are taking bookings for self-guided educational group visits. With large areas of forest, a playground, cut grass fields and a farm to explore, there are endless possibilities for learning and fun. These visits are entirely self-led so we cannot provide resources or risk assessments for these. We are accepting enquiries for Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays during term time.
If you would prefer to have a curriculum linked outdoor learning session delivered by our staff, check out our guided options below!
education
Guided Visit Offers
The following sessions are led by our education ranger and may be supported by other staff or volunteers (all delivery staff and volunteers have a current enhanced DBS check).
These sessions are approximately 1hr long and are available to book for a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 30 children.
A maximum of two sessions can be booked in per day and sessions cannot run simultaneously, current availability is on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays during term time only.
A quote for the cost will be sent to you once we have the information from the enquiry form to calculate this.
learning at
Foxburrows Farm
Sessions on the farm will introduce pupils to a variety of farm animals, their diets, and habitats. Find out how these animals have been part of the forest throughout history.
Storytime on the farm: This session begins with a story (choice of 3) before exploring the farm to find the characters from the book. Practise counting, animal noises and movements as we tour the farm.
Discovery farm: Join us on an interactive tour of Foxburrows Farm. Name the animals that live here and how look after them, before sorting the animals into groups (Carnivore, Omnivore, Herbivore). Upon availability there will also be the chance to create enrichment for an animal and watch the animal enjoy this.
Discovery Farm: Join us on an interactive tour of Foxburrows Farm, learn about different animals, how we care for them and what food they eat. Find out if they give birth to live young or lay eggs, and whether they have feathers, fur, or scales. Use this knowledge to sort them into groups. Upon availability there will also be the chance to create enrichment for an animal and watch the animal enjoy this.
Life On The Farm: Discover our farm animals and sort them into groups, learn about the life cycle of the animals on the farm, including what we use farm animals for (where our food comes from, horses pulling timber, conservation grazing). Upon availability there will also be the chance to create enrichment for an animal and watch the animal enjoy this.
Discover
The Forest
Discover the hidden world of the forest. In these sessions pupils will learn what makes a forest, why they are so important and what we can do to protect them.
Fantastic Forests: Let’s go for a walk of discovery in the forest, as we follow a set route stopping to take in the sights and sounds of the woods. This sensory focussed walk will explore colour, texture and sounds and how these might change over the seasons.
Fantastic Forests: Discover what makes up a forest through exploring the alive, dead and never alive parts. Take part in activities that will use our senses to describe the world around us. Then learn about why the forest is important and how we can look after it.
Fantastic Forests: Join our ranger to discover the different elements that make a forest, learn to identify a few key species and what they need to grow. Find out how we look after the forest and why we need to protect it.
Fantastic Forests: Join our ranger to discover the different elements that make a forest, learn to identify a few key species, what they need to grow, and how they are adapted to their environment. Find out how we look after the forest and why we need to protect it. We will compare the forest to other climates to consider what similarities/ differences we would see.
Learn all about
Habitats
Pupils will explore some of the different habitats at Hainault Forest in this session. Finding out why habitats are different and what plants/animals live in them.
Minibeast explorers: In this session we will take out bug-hunting equipment to two different habitats. We will try to catch some minibeasts and practice counting and comparison skills.
Habitats: Explore 2 different habitats on site, finding out what plants and animals live in different places and why.
Habitats: We will find out about some of the key habitats in Hainault Forest. Learn what makes them special, and what they provide for the animals and plants that live there.
Habitats: Compare different parts of the forest, describe the type of habitat and what animals and plants can be found.
Extra questions?
Contact us via email at [email protected]