Alliance Connect Roadshow – The Power of the Outdoors
9.30am – 4pm, Saturday 9 September 2023
Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre - School Road, Craven Arms, SY7 9RS
Alliance members: £25 per person; Non-members: £50 per person
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Join us for a whole day devoted to celebrating the power of nature!
Following on from our hugely successful inaugural Connect Roadshow event in March, we’re delighted to be joined by expert speakers from the Forest School Learning Initiative, the Nature Premium campaign, Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre and Shropshire Wildlife Trust, alongside the Alliance’s own early years experts and experienced educator Clare Ballard, to explore the power of the outdoors and how it can support best practice in the early years.
From the practice of forest bathing to den building, supporting language development to considering how to challenge your own perceptions of risk, this Connect Roadshow event will focus on the vital role that nature plays not only in children’s early learning and development, but in supporting the wellbeing of both children and adults.
This in-person event is a fantastic opportunity to organise a whole-team away day, and access high-quality outdoor CPD, at an affordable price.
All attendees will also automatically be entered into a raffle for a chance to win a CPD bundle worth £100, which will be drawn at the end of the event.
Please note that in keeping with the focus of the day, the event will take place outdoors so please ensure your clothes and footwear are suitable for an outdoor environment!
Agenda9.30am – 10am: Refreshments and networking
10am – 10.10am: Ruth Richardson, early years development officer and Connect Roadshow host will give an overview of the day's events
10.10am – 10.30am: Christina Dee, director of the Forest School Learning Initiative
Chris will focus on the impact that the Covid pandemic has had on children’s development and explore how the outdoors be used to support children’s learning, development and wellbeing to enable them to reach their full potential.
10.30am – 10.45am: Ellie Larkham, education and learning manager at the Shropshire Wildlife Trust
We know it works – we see the benefits every day – but do we give ourselves (and our staff) the same access to the benefits of nature that we do the children in our care? How can we allow time for nature as busy educators?
In this session, Ellie will pose a range of thoughtful questions about the value we place on our own wellbeing and offer some accessible ways to facilitate nature connection for the adults in your setting.
10.45am – 11am: Refreshment break
11am – 12 noon: Breakout 1 – delegates can choose from one of the five following practical seminars
Connect 1 Storytelling and the use of narrative to develop language skills – Chris Dee, director, Forest School Learning Initiative
This session will provide valuable practical experience of using natural materials and the forest school setting to enhance talking and use of descriptive language and explore the ways in which this can provide a basis for writing.
There will also be an opportunity to examine how we can bring well-loved stories to life outdoors and open a world of possibilities and promote holistic development.
Connect 2 Outdoor learning environments for two-year-olds – Alison Heseltine, early years development manager, Early Years Alliance and Rebecca Elsom, early years development officer, Early Years Alliance
Join us to explore the powerful contribution outdoor play makes to children’s wellbeing, development and learning with a focus on ensuring our youngest children’s needs are met.
In this session, we will consider practical steps to achieve a stimulating outdoor environment for two-year-olds which ignites awe and wonder, exploration and play, problem-solving and critical thinking.
Connect 3 Den building for imaginative play – Stephanie Bellows, learning manager, Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre
Building dens has lots of benefits for children: it sparks creative thinking, problem solving, encourages children to work together and helps them develop their communication skills. There are also advantages for physical development as children use their large muscles and develop fine motor skills.
Join us to discover how dens can fire children’s imaginations and support learning.
Connect 4 A 'risky’ business? – Ellie Larkham, learning manager, Shropshire Wildlife Trust
Fear is a healthy and ultimately essential part of human life. Not only is it what helps us to learn what is harmful to us and those around us, but it can preserve life and can ensure the continued progression of humanity. However, in a world where we are continually surrounded by inaccurate perceptions of how harmful and how likely a risk is, we have become increasingly risk-averse.
With a focus on the language of risk and how what we say helps or hinders active play and development, this session will use practical examples and evidence to support you to make choices that enrich your learning environment and help children to use their in-built expertise to fulfil their potential.
Connect 5 Forest bathing – Clare Ballard, retired primary school headteacher
As educators of young children, we must ensure that we consider our own wellbeing to be able to offer the best of our selves for young children to learn and develop. We have always known that nature is beneficial, and now scientific research has shown that it has a measurable benefit to our mental and physical wellbeing.
The practice of Shinrin Yoku (forest bathing) involves simply ‘being’ in the woods and immersing oneself in the natural environment, using all our senses to take in the many benefits. Clare will lead a short session in the woodland where you will be able to switch off, relax and breathe.
12 noon – 1pm: Lunch and networking
1pm – 2pm: Breakout 2: delegates can choose another session from one of the five Connects
2pm – 2.10pm: Comfort break
2.10pm – 3.10pm: Breakout 3: delegates can choose a final session from one of the five Connects
3.10pm – 3.20pm: Comfort break
3.20pm – 3.55pm: Dr Sara A Collins, Nature Premium campaign co-lead
The changemaker, outdoor educator and expert den-builder will close the event by exploring the many benefits of nature, and the hope that the Nature Premium campaign – which calls for the government to support all children to access nature regularly no matter where they live – has generated for the future.
3.55pm – 4pm: Raffle
Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre
