Course Content
18 ITC credits across five units of study, plus a coursework portfolio and your own Forest School handbook.
Five units of study
The Forest School Leader Award consists of 18 ITC credits contained in five units:
- Forest School Programmes: Practical Skills — how to use the outdoor environment for learning and teach a range of practical woodland skills to others.
- Forest School Programmes: The Woodland Environment — understanding the structure, diversity and management of a wooded area.
- Forest School Programme: Learning and Development — theories of learning and how to support holistic development. The importance of play, and how to raise self-esteem in learners.
- Forest School Programmes: Planning and Preparation — preparation needed to establish your own Forest School, including policies and procedures, risk and communication.
- Forest School Programme: Delivery — delivering and evaluating Forest School sessions.
Venue
A beautiful, privately owned woodland in the village of Ashdon, near Saffron Walden in North Essex. The meeting point is All Saints Church, Church Hill, Ashdon.
What 3 Words: remotest.glow.adventure
Course commitment
The Total Qualification Time (TQT) for the Level 3 Forest School Leader qualification is 180 hours. This is made up of the taught element (mainly through face-to-face contact with your tutors) and self-directed study (mainly written assignments for the coursework portfolio).
Part of the course involves identifying a suitable site, then establishing and running a 6-week ‘Introduction to Forest School’ programme. This includes creating a Forest School handbook of policies and procedures for your site and group of learners. Trainees also complete a Coursework Portfolio evidencing the learning outcomes from all five units — research, practical and written assignments, photographs and other evidence of learning.
One of the benchmarks to become an FSA Endorsed Trainer is that at least 96 of the 180 hours should be taught face-to-face (ideally outdoors), leaving approximately 84 hours of self-directed study. This high proportion of face-to-face training ensures trainees benefit from the feedback, advice, guidance and support tutors are able to provide when working with individuals and groups.
We have refined and developed our course further, recognising that to achieve success trainees often need even more input and support from their tutors. As a result, the taught element of our current course is approximately 134 hours, leaving just 46 hours of self-directed learning.
We split the course into manageable blocks (see the Course Programme) and provide regular support through portfolio tutorials and workshops alongside the practical training days, throughout the 12 months of the course.
