Shuttlewood Clarke Foundation: Yew Trail Outdoor Classroom

What will students see and do?

The Shuttlewood Clarke Foundation owns acres of mixed woodland on the grounds of Ulverscroft Manor, which includes the Yew Trail Outdoor Classroom. These woods, near Markfield in Leicestershire, include way-marked paths with information boards about the trees and plants. Most of the paths are accessible for those with mobility or sight disabilities.

Along the trail are several different types of activity stations, including a bird hide, yurt and sites for shelter building. Activity packs are available with details on the different methods of construction for students to follow when building their own shelters.

The Discovery Den serves as an outdoor classroom environment and hosts nature trail activities. Students can pick up trail activity packs there or try dogwood weaving to make simple sculptures using branches collected from along the Yew Trail.

Students can explore the wetlands area of the woods, learning about the plants that grow in those conditions. A pond dipping area sits at one end of the flight pond. If you plan to include a trip to the pond as part of your classroom trip, make sure students have appropriate footwear like wellies for sploshing in the shallows.

How does the trip link to the curriculum?

Turning a fun kids’ trip into an educational experience involves making strong connections between the fun activities and the curriculum you’re covering in the classroom.

Bringing education outside offers more hands-on opportunities for learning, which can help with different learning styles.

The most obvious subject link for this trip is science – particularly biology and ecology. A trip to the woods offers numerous opportunities for learning about plants and animals – how they hunt, what they eat and how they interact with each other and humans. This naturally leads to citizenship lessons discussing our responsibility for taking care of the planet.

Two special activities offered at the Yew Trail can also link back to compulsory curriculum subjects. One of these is dogwood weaving, which fits with art and design topics as students build sculptures with wood. Depending on how the weaving is approached, this is also good opportunity for encouraging problem-solving skills.

The other opportunity offered is with the shelter building activity. Students build confidence as they figure out how to build a structure with available materials, learning to follow directions and choosing which type of structure they want to build. For older students, building can contribute to engineering and maths subjects.

Subjects covered

Details of risk assessment

The foundation has completed a full risk assessment study for the Yew Trail and the surrounding grounds. Group leaders are encouraged to visit the trail in advance to help with risk assessment for your group and evaluate the site as an outdoor classroom.

Even if you have brought a group in the past, teachers and group leaders are encouraged to do a new advance visit as the grounds are constantly being changed and improved.

On the day you arrive, foundation staff will be on hand to meet your group and can assist with leading activities during the day.

PLANNING

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