Jo Gilks – Connecting children with local nature in urban environments

One positive to come out of the COVID pandemic was that people started to connect with nature again. They had to find places to go, places to meet, that were outdoors. People started to walk in their local parks, forests and nature reserves again, or for some, for the first time. When schools and nurseries opened to all pupils after the lockdown many moved some or all of their learning outdoors. But is just being outdoors enough to make a connection with nature or do you need to be more intentional? And how easy is it to find that nature connection if you are in a city?

Jo is working with children in a London park and a little nature reserve in the heart of East London, working in nature and with nature. They follow the wheel of the year, adapting their teaching to the seasons. Jo weaves story, songs, nature crafts, cooking and growing into her forest school sessions, using the permaculture ethics of Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share to guide her planning. This academic year, with her colleagues, she has brought the ‘Children’s Forest’ to London with the aim of creating new pockets of ‘forest’ throughout the city, for the future children of all species. This has been an exciting learning journey for children and adults alike as they have learnt about their local trees, collected their seeds, planted and tended them, ready to plant them out in different locations across the city.

Jo’s webinar will explain how she uses the Children in Permaculture curriculum to alongside forest school principles and the Children’s Forest materials to foster a real connection with nature and the local environment with the children she works with, their families and the local community.

About the Speaker
Jo Gilks is an Early Years Educator and Forest School Leader working in East London. She works with children aged 1 – 11 years old at a Steiner inspired Kindergarten and attached home eduction group. Jo had worked in Early Years for over 30 years, in PVI settings, schools, Children’s Centres, NHS Heath Visiting teams, as a childminder and a nanny. She worked for several years as an early years adviser before going back into working in setting that was fully outdoors, and training as a forest school leader. More recently Jo has completed a Permaculture Design Certificate, a Forest Gardening course and the Children’s Forest training which she weaves into her weekly forest school sessions. Jo loves spending time in the forest and growing fruit, vegetables in her own forest garden.

How to watch this webinar

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