The kids are back to school and hopefully settling into their new academic year nicely. And Forest School is about to start. But what exactly do your kids need to wear for Forest School? The Autumn weather can go from wet to sunny, warm to cold, in a flash so it can be difficult to know exactly what to wear for forest school. How can you ensure your kids stay warm dry and comfortable when they’re outdoors all day?
What is Forest School?
Forest school is an outdoor-based educational program that uses the natural environment as a classroom. Students learn in the forest and participate in activities such as tree identification, den building, animal tracking, and nature journaling.
Forest schools are based on the belief that children should be introduced to nature early on so they can develop a lifelong love for it. The idea is to allow them to explore and learn about nature in their own way without any outside interference or instruction.
My son absolutely loves Forest School. He’s carved Christmas decorations out of wood, been pond dipping, toasted marshmallows on a campfire and climbed trees. It’s such a wonderful way to combine practical learning through play and nature.
*Disclaimer: I was kindly gifted some clothing from Regatta Outdoors for my son to try. All views and opinions are as always, my own.
What to wear for Forest School?
Layers
Layers are so important for Forest School. If it’s cold, the layers will help keep your child warm. If it’s hot, however, the layers can be stripped off easily.
My son layered up here with the Regatta Outdoors kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt and Regatta Outdoors kids Hooded Fleece. Then as an extra warm layer, he has the Regatta Outdoors Kids full zip fleece.
Wellies
Wellies are a must-have forest school. They will not only keep your kid’s feet nice and dry but they will also let them splash in puddles and streams and not get mud covered all over their shoes.
The monster claws wellies are a favourite with my son. Not only are they comfortable, but they are also pretty awesome too! They are from Regatta Outdoors and there’s a whole range of designs in the Kids’ Mudplay Animal Wellies including sharks, tigers and unicorns.
These are available from Regatta Outdoors: Kids’ Mudplay Animal Wellies
Waterproof Clothing
Forest school takes place whatever the weather – rain or shine! So if there’s more rain than shine on the day your child is outdoors learning, then make sure they stay protected from the wet with waterproof clothing.
Regatta Outdoors have a wonderful range of waterproofs. My son loves his pack-away waterproof jacket in bright kiwi camo (see above picture). It’s lightweight and looks really cool. But most importantly of all (from a mum’s perspective anyway!) – it will keep his upper body dry. Whilst waterproof trousers (and the aforementioned all-important wellies) will keep his bottom half dry. They go over the trousers he’s wearing and are both waterproof and breathable.
These are both available from Regatta Outdoors:
Kids’ Printed Lever Packaway Waterproof Jacket | Bright Kiwi Camo available in a variety of colours.
Kids’ Pack It Waterproof Overtrousers | Black
Hats and Gloves
If it’s a cold day it’s also worth ensuring your kids have warm hats and gloves to keep their heads and hands warm.
I hope this has been helpful and that your children have the best time at Forest School.
