Muddy Mountains Forest School

08/09/2026

31/08/2026

☀️🍒Session 2, Term 1 - 26-29/08/26🍒☀️

After the first week which was for settling the new children, reunions and returning to the our sites and routines, in this week, all our groups starting working hard in their wee projects.

This is what the groups have been up to:

- The Woodland Explorers 🌳🔎🍄 has their first foraging session of the term collecting 3 different things: blackberries to mix with other ingredients to make flapjacks, sycamore leaves to wrap them and some thin hazel branches to use as toothpicks to seal the leaves. We used our brand new fire pit where we made a fire and used the embers to cook the flapjacks.

- The Tree Crafty Elves 🌳✏️🧝 also went foraging cheking some dead trees and branches (mainly elders), looking for jelly ears. We collected some of them which now we are letting dry for a while and we will use to make jelly ears jaffa cakes. We also harvested some willow branches to make our own willow charcoal. Some children used some of the branches to make bows and arrows!

- The Red Eyed Crickets 🔴👁️🦗 spent the morning climbing and playing at muddy mountains which for many of them was their first time and they all loved it! They all showed their amazing climbing skills going up and down using ropes and roots. They also prepared some willow, cutting, peeling and placing them into a tin which was in the fire for around 20 minutes until it turn into charcoal.

- The Tree Titans 🌳💪made their own mallets. The most experienced children did a master class to the newest ones, showing them the steps to make them. They cut the branches, measured the handles and then using the 'batoning technique' they made thinners and smoother. Also, they collected some more jelly ears for the following sessions

24/08/2026

☀️🍒Session 1, Term 1 - 19-22/08/26🍒☀️

After 7 weeks off, we were back at our favourite place: the forest!

We were all very excited and happy to see each other after the summer and also meet the new members of the groups.  

All the groups had a first session to remember the boundaries, rules and routines and also to play lots of ice breaker games in order to introduce/know the new children.

They also managed to make their own models using clay and wood, build dens, play with the ropes and climb some trees and boulders.

It is so nice to be back! Next week more and better!

30/06/2026

☀️🏖️Session 10, Term 4 - 24-26/06/26🏖️☀️

We can't believe this was the last session of the term! Time really flies! We had such a nice couple of nice, sunny and hot days but the start of the Friday was a bit scary with the darkness and the thunders (we decided to start later than usual).

It was such an emotional week as we had some children leaving us, including 9 of them from the Friday groups who have been with us since the very first day of Muddy Mountains. Lots of hugs and tears to say good bye, we will really miss them all!

This is what the groups have been up to:

- The Woodland Explorers 🌳🔎🍄 enjoyed their last session of the term at the Inch Park where they saw how big are already the crab apple trees that they planted a few months ago and to have their sports day. They played tug of war, hockey race, welly throwing, 10 passes, football and the big relay race. They also had so much fun playing in the river before they had some ice lollies to finish the year.

- The Tree Crafty Elves 🌳✏️🧝 had such an amazing and hot last day receiving some treats for their incredible year. They spent the morning playing in the river having a water fight using their water pistol and all kinds of items to throw water. Then they enjoyed a fresh and yummy rhubarb cordial with some biscuits to say bye to some peers who are leaving us.

- The Red Eyed Crickets 🔴👁️🦗 & the Tree Titans 🌳💪 joined their forces once again in order to have their sports day. Although the day didn't start well,(we had to postpone the starting time due to the thunderstorm), in the end they played all the sports and had such a nice day! They played similar sports than the Woodland Explorers but with the mixed team that they all made last week. They all had such a blast!

23/06/2026

🌱🌻Session 9, Term 4 - 17-19/06/26🌱 🌻 

- The Woodland Explorers 🌳🔎🍄 spent their session at the Braidburn Valley Park since they have been asking to go there for ages. They had so much playing at the river, building damms and looking for pottery and seaglass. They also managed to make elderflower cordial and bows and arrows.

- The Tree Crafty Elves 🌳✏️🧝 enjoyed their sports day! They had such much fun playing tug of war, hockey races, rolling log race, football, 10 passes game and finally a couple of huge relay races. The children were amazing competing but showing an amazing fair play

- The Red Eyed Crickets 🔴👁️🦗 & the Tree Titans 🌳💪 joined their forces with the idea of doing their sports day but unfortunately due to the heavy rain we decided to postpone it for next week. However, they managed to make their own teams in a fair and level way and also prepared their own items for their teams such as brazalets, head bandanas or armbands. 

01/06/2026

🌱🌻Session 6, Term 4 - 27-29/05/26🌱 🌻

We all had such a nice time in the forest enjoying the good weather, discovering lots of chicks in their nests and finding amazing animals like newts!

This is what the groups have been up to:

- The Woodland Explorers 🌳🔎🍄 continued working on tool, this time using different kinds of woods and other items like elastic bands, nuts, string, pipe cleaners and rubber amongst others to create their own people and animals. It was so nice to see their incredible imagination at creating their models.

- The Tree Crafty Elves 🌳✏️🧝 had such an amazing day doing their first gorge walking! The whole group was in the water going from the middle of the Hermitage of Braid until the bridge that is after the Scout bridge. Although the water wasn't very warm, after being inside for a wee while, our legs and feet got used to it!

- The Red Eyed Crickets 🔴👁️🦗 dedicated the session to one of our favourite trees: elder. We collected some elderflower heads (they just opened) to make our own elderflower cordial. Each child took some home to taste it with some fizzy water or just water. Also, we used some elder branches to make some very cool elder spud shooters!

- The Tree Titans 🌳💪 used all the now dried plants and leaves that they collected a couple of weeks ago, to make their own tea bags. The process was simple but very entertaining, crushing all the leaves using the pestle & mortar and introducing them into the wee bags.

25/05/2026

🌱🌻Session 5, Term 4 - 20-22/05/26🌱🌻

In this first week of sunny and warm weather (next week looks even better), all our groups enjoyed being outdoors and using the elements to play, learn and have so much fun!

This is what the groups have been up to:

- The Woodland Explorers 🌳🔎🍄 had a very musical session creating their own instruments. They used their amazing tool skills making elder whistles, rattles using Y-shape sticks and some metallic items like bottle caps,nuts and washers and finally some hazel-grass whistles. At the end of the session, each child had at least one instrument and we all played in the "Muddy Mountain's band".

- The Tree Crafty Elves 🌳✏️🧝 brought their personal rocks/minerals/fossils collections from home to share with the group. Then we went to the river to look for some different precious stones and we finished the day at the Agassiz rock where some children were challenged to create the highest Cairns whilst others were showing their amazing climbing skills at the boulders.

- The Red Eyed Crickets 🔴👁️🦗 finally did what they have been asking during the whole year: they went gorge walking! This time they were so brave going through the tunnels using their torches and discovering secret paths. After this tiring activity, they had a more relaxing afternoon playing with ropes making their own swings and continued making the giant pestle & mortar that they started a few weeks ago.

- The Tree Titans 🌳💪 also had a session that they were asking for ages: they made their own weapons/guns. One of them was a peg gun using clothes pegs, an elastic band and a piece of wood and the other one was an elder spud shooter that required a small branch of elder and pieces of potatoes. They really enjoyed shooting at the pots and pans which were in the shooting area.

18/05/2026

🌱🌻Session 4, Term 4 - 13-15/05/26🌱 🌻 

We continued using different natural resources from the woods to make/create very useful items. Also, we kept learning about foraging and their wide variety of uses.

This is what the groups have been doing:

- The Woodland Explorers 🌳🔎🍄 have been asking for ages to make weapons so in this session we showed them how to make 2 different kinds of friendly guns: the elder spud gun which required some tools skills to make it and the peg gun, very easy to make and very fun to play with. The whole group really enjoyed shooting them at the target and getting lots of points.

- The Tree Crafty Elves 🌳✏️🧝 collected some resin from a few pine trees to make their own pine pitch glue. They melted in the fire and mixed with some charcoal powder and beeswax. Once the mixture was ready, they used the candy floss technique to add it to some sticks to use it in the future. They also used some dried nettles to make their own tea bags!

- The Red Eyed Crickets 🔴👁️🦗 showed once again how incredible their whittling skills are by creating different animals creatures, some spares and swords using hazel wood. They also had so much fun climbing bus boulders and playing at the river.

-  The Tree Titans 🌳💪 went for a long walk along the Hermitage with the intention of foraging different plants to make their own teas. They made some bundles with the ones that they collected to take home and let them dry for the following sessions and put them in tea bags. And also, they managed to make tea using nettles, lemon balm, minta and fennel!