Seasons at Parkhead Primary School  

Working collaboratively with schools is one of the main focuses of the Emerald Explorers programme, with six schools across the borough being involved for 18 months. During that time they've worked intensively with an artist, visited local green spaces and celebrated their own creativity. 

Parkhead Primary in Winlaton is lucky enough to have substantial green spaces on school grounds for the children to play in. Part of the grounds has been developed as a forest school area and when teacher Kelly Stott applied to be part of the Emerald Explorers programme, she wanted to see how much more they could get out of this fantastic resource by working with an artist.   

 Programme producer, Susan Mulholland, commissioned visual artist Jyl Friggens, as  Jyl's experience of working outdoors provided the perfect pairing.  

 "Running workshops in nature provides a limitless space without walls or ceilings, offering endless opportunities to engage all the senses. It's a fantastic way to help kids connect with the natural world while fostering creativity and curiosity. For me personally, working outdoors enhances my artistic thinking, encourages meditation, improves my mood, and sharpens my focus. Plus, as the Scandinavian saying goes, 'There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing!" Jyl Friggens  

 Let's just say there was a lot of 'good' clothing needed as the programme ran once a month from March-July and then again from November to March. Jyl planned to use the seasonal changes as the inspiration and focus of her monthly sessions:  

 "I enjoy working with seasonal themes because each season's unique environment and atmosphere bring distinct opportunities and challenges. I'm especially drawn to the traditional ways of connecting with nature, particularly through the Celtic Wheel of the Year."  

 

Kelly reported that all the activities really challenged and engaged the children and captured their imaginations:   

 "The children (particularly the year 2s) are a very creative cohort who enjoy hands on learning and being in the forest school environment. They really enjoyed making the spring jingle stick and waking up nature. The year 1 children are also very creative and enjoy the explorative nature of the miniature garden activity. It was lovely to see the children exploring the resources through sight, touch and smell, creating and then adapting their designs as they went. They were all very proud of their creations and each was unique."  

 Kelly is already forest school trained but was able to add activities to her own toolkit, inspired by Jyl's workshops:  

 "During the year 2 session where the children made the coffee filter butterflies, it was lovely to see their response to their final piece when they saw how water had changed their design. There was definitely a 'wow' factor to that one. It was great to see the children admiring the outcomes of their peers too. All pupils showed good resilience throughout the activities (some elements could be a little challenging e.g. attaching an item, threading etc) with these elements encouraging teamwork and turn taking too.   

I would certainly repeat this activity, as it really surprised the children and promoted lots of good discussion in terms of art e.g. secondary colours, but also from a PSHCE point of view."  

 What advice would Kelly give teachers who want to incorporate more creative activities in their work?   

 "To simply give it a go. Even it is simply finding a quiet spot with a sketch book to do a little bit of mindful doodling or a listening walk/scavenger hunt, the outdoor environment allows the children to take things more in their stride and eases the pressure of 'success' but instead encourages a more positive attitude to new challenges. I think once teachers are also comfortable in this environment, it will assist them in being able to think of how to use the outdoors in a creative way to support curriculum areas."  

 If you're feeling inspired, Jyl has kindly shared her Welcome Spring Stick activity for you to try with your class so you can wake up spring together!  

 What you'll need:   

"First start a stick collection! Find fallen sticks especially good after a storm. If the children find their own stick this ensures a degree of ownership.  

Sticks that are 'green' freshly cut can be easily have the bark stripped. This is a job for a potato peeler. It's as easy as peeling carrots provided there are no knots in the green wood. Little children can easily manage this task with support to get going. With dead wood the job is more difficult.  

Best wear a glove on the hand that is holding the stick!  

Note: Elder sticks can be easily peeled  

A good size stick to work with is finger to elbow size.  

Next gather other materials, ribbons or wool in brown, green, yellow, and gold, small bells  

Attach the ribbons either by tying, wrapping tape or using small rubber bands.  

Leave extra ribbon at the end to hang down like streamers. Tie the bells on to the end of the streamers. Show them how to shake the bells, pointing the wand at the ground and trees, to wake the sleeping plants within the earth. If you like, they can say an incantation as they do so, like:  'Wake, wake, plants in the earth, spring is a time of light and rebirth. Hear, hear this magical sound, and grow, grow, out of the ground."