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Sunday Monthly Nature Mentoring FR

11/5/2017

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We enjoyed our usual morning routine of warm up games, gathering and sharing what we are thankful for and then heading down to our holly camp to create a fire, snack and story.  After the story, about half the group headed off for a wandering day on the other side of the forest.  This was full of games, such fun playing wolves and deer in the bracken and heather.  We found a real sun spot for lunch and some of us even ventured down to the stream...

The other half had time to explore, build and create at our camp.  Those who chose to also had the option to engage with processing a rabbit that had been offered to the group to learn from.  The respect and gratitude they showed was truly beautiful.
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Saturday Monthly Mentoring

11/4/2017

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Such a spacious, rich, joyful day full of learning, experimenting and feasting.  Vicky and Ed's group processed the acorns they had leeched since last month into a scrumptious acorn chocolate brownie cake. 

​Feathers and Jill offered a session to all the children who wanted to on honouring life and death through the gift of a few rabbits.  It was beautiful how respectfully they all engaged in this and how much gratitude was expressed for life and for all our relations that support our lives.
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Monthly Nature Mentoring, Back at Hawthbush Farm

10/7/2017

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What a delight to go back to a place where we've been getting to know the land, the wildlife, the trees and the streams over the past 6 years!  I look forward to our first session back at Hawthbush Farm each year.  
Highlights from our time in the woods for Vicky and Ed's group included finding our camp that had been somewhat re-claimed by ferns and doing some tending of the space for our upcoming season here.  Much joy and exploration occurred after discovering bracken tunnels.  We gathered and shelled acorns to leave in a stream to cold leach for the month.  We also enjoyed cooking sweet chestnuts which were delicious!
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Daniel, Carrie and Ross's Group - Monthly Mentoring
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What an awesome day! So much excitement in the air to go out and explore the forest land having not been there over the summer holidays, and ooooh yes there sure were some treats. Hundreds and hundreds of Himalayan balsam with their explosive seeds which we worked out made excellent pea shooters….if you can get the seed into the shooter stem without it popping that is! The water level in the stream was very low which made for excellent daring welly wading, after a hiding game.
Roasted apples and lunch around the fire and onto, rope swings, elder pipes, free play and an intense game of storm the castle.
It was fantastic to see everyone back out in nature, sharing stories of summer, crafting and playing together; and all surrounded by the gentle and humbling autumnal colours. Can’t wait for next month!
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Greeting the Coming of Autumn

9/5/2017

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This Saturday was our last monthly nature mentoring session in our Summer camp and on arrival one of the parens greeted me saying "happy autumn".  I didn't quite want to accept it, but he said - look at the colours, they are starting to turn.  He was right.  The green somehow looks that bit less green in the oaks and the bracken and some of the birch had bright yellow leaves.

We decided to have a wandering session with my group and discovered that Daniel had that plan also for his group.  We made a goal - to get to the mini waterfall without the other group seeing us and snuck on our way.  After a while of moving ever so quietly along the deer trails we saw some movement up on over the little ridge and thought it must be Daniel's group.  We got in close to the bank of the little ravine and crept closer.  After a little welcome distraction of exploring a 'cave' we heard voices and then to our surprise heard the whispy tune of a flute...

"That must be the younger group," I said.  So we went up to say hello.  Sure enough they were having a lovely time making autumn necklaces with what looked like elder and rowan berry beads.

We went on our way and found Daniel's group all hiding around the waterfall.  I still love the moment when I catch the eye of some unknown hider glinting through ferns!  
The rest of our day was delightful.  All the children were content and engaged for ages by the waterfall and surrounding stream areas.  There was mining of red rock, damming and clearing areas of the stream, the search for the frog and whittling on the side.  After some time we had lunch and stories all together and wend our way down stream to an area that was so much fun to leap the river from one bank to the other.

After a big game of the 'villagers' we split in two - one group to go and set up a rope swing, the other to play a stealth game of steal the spines from the hedgehog.  Shortly after we'd re-gathered for everyone to get a go on the swing it was time to head back.  

It was lovely to see the afternoon group on our way back and have them join us for the last little bit of our journey.

​I think I may now be ready to welcome the Autumn!

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    Authors

    Victoria Mew, Founder of Cultivating Curiosity

    Ross Torode, Youth Program Facilitator

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  • Home
  • About
  • Our Team
  • Programmes
    • Monthly Mentoring
    • Home Ed
    • Holidays
    • Connection Camp
    • Schools
  • Media
    • Book: Learning With Nature >
      • About the Authors
      • Book Reviews
  • Store
  • Blog
  • Contact us