Spraoi Forest School

Who Am I?

My name is Muireann Carrol Burke and I run Spraoi Forest School.

  • I am a parent to three children aging from 6 to 15.

  • I have always been a nature enthusiast

  • I have worked with children and young adults for the last three years as part of Scouting Ireland, Foroige and the GAA

  • I am garda vetted by each entity that I work for

  • I am a certified outdoor Rec3 first-aider and a cardiac first responder

  • I have run and work for Forest School programs in Dublin

  • I am a QQI level 6 Forest School Leader and a member of the Irish Forest School Association

  • I run a social inclusion group called Terenure Community Support & Integration, which helps all ages and nationalities integrate into the community through various activities.

What is Forest School?

Forest School fosters a child-centered ethos in relation to learning and play, whereby children can make decisions regarding what they participate in, what interests them, what games they wish to play.

As a Forest School leader my role is not to have all the answers but to facilitate curiosity, creativity, skill development, supervised risk-taking, observation, and reflection.

  • Focus on play outdoors

  • Foster holistic development

  • Child-centered

  • Physical and mental wellbeing

  • Nature connection

  • Leave no trace and environmental stewardship

  • Understanding our place in the world and being part of a community

  • Opportunity to face challenges

  • Taking supervised risks

  • Life skills and decision making development

  • Safety of children is paramount.

Where can I find out more?

Irish Forest School Association https://irishforestschoolassociation.ie/

What kind of things happen at Forest School?

The main activity that happens at forest school is play. Play is self-directed by the children with an option to participate in group activities.

  • Free play outdoors making up their own games

  • walking on low-ropes between trees

  • lying in a hammock

  • using a rope swing

  • making dens and playing with sticks

  • using tools such as saws, hammers, knives

  • playing outdoor games such as Eagle’s Nest, Woolly Mammoth tracking, Fox tails

  • Storytelling

  • Arts and crafts such as making a wood cookie

  • Fairy fires - learning how to light a fire in a scallop shell