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For this year on outdoor learning day we took a walk in nature looking at different things we can hear, see, touch and smell. The picture is of me with my outdoor learning certificate which I received for all my hard work.

Every Friday in class I am enjoying working with others to create a den. So far, we have collected different leaves, twigs and sticks to make this. Hopefully this will turn into a place we can go when we are learning outside.

We've continued to do lots of exploring in all weathers and have also enjoyed some art and crafting activities with leaves and cones we've collected, have planted some acorns and have been reading all about John Muir and the National Park movement.

Today we walked from Chawton to Four Marks. It was a misty morning and a scenic walk. We noticed mole hills, ivy blossom, a variety of fungi, old mans beard. We collected some leaves to do some leaf chromatography. Several of the trees we saw were covered in ivy.

We spent awhile looking at some of the fire damaged trees. Some were definitely burnt to a crisp, but actually many looked like they might survive. We did some research and found that whilst pine trees are very flammable, they have a number of adaptations they use to survive. These include thick bark which doesn't catch fire as quickly and so can protect the inside living tissue. They also often drop lower branches as the tree grows older, which helps fire from climbing up and burning the green needles further up. They also typically have an extensive root system to allow for resprouting after fire, which we definitely saw evidence of.

Today we used the maps the kids had drawn out to see if their Dad could find his way to the dragonfly sculpture. They had been really accurate measuring out the steps and making sure to add in landmarks and so he was able to follow them easily.

We did a mini beast survey where we chose a number of places to do a comparison. The first area we looked at was one of those burnt on the fire and we found nothing! We thought it was down to it having been so badly damaged. At our next site, we chose a woodland setting and found a number of woodlice, centipedes, spiders and worms. The last place we looked was right by the water's edge. We didn't find much there although did see a Red Kite, a beautiful Heron flying over head and some water boatsmen.

Term 1 Primary 7:We went to the Kirn beach to make beautiful beach art with natural materials. Miss Falconer gave us a picture each of beach art to inspire us. After we were looking at invertebrates and vertebrates some of us found shrimp ,jellyfish, starfish and sea anemones. Soon after we went to the other side of the beach to find big rocks and small rocks to paint on in class. Some of us had a skimming competition. Skimming is where you find a flat stone, you hold it side-armed and it bounces of the surface of the water. Then we walked back to the school. We discovered species of invertebrates and vertebrates and new places as well as how to skim stones. By Kimberley and Cara : )