SEND Nature Programme – Week Four: Discovery, Cooperation and the Joy of Being Outdoors

The SEND Nature Programme, delivered by Time to Connect CIC in partnership with Forest Frontiers and supported by Bolton CVS, continued this week with a session that demonstrated something incredibly powerful: when children are given the right environment, they often show abilities that others believed they didn’t have.

Despite illness affecting several families, three children attended the session. What followed was a morning filled with curiosity, laughter, cooperation and problem-solving in the forest.

Sometimes smaller groups create space for deeper connection — and that’s exactly what happened.

Science in the forest

The session aligned with Forest School Science Week, with activities designed to encourage children to explore, experiment and ask questions about the natural world.

The children began by experimenting with mud pies and leaf exploration, mixing, touching and testing textures in the forest environment.

But it wasn’t long before something unexpected captured their attention.

Julie and the team had brought walkie-talkies for staff use. As soon as the children spotted them, curiosity took over.

“Can we use them? Can we use them?” they asked.

Instead of saying no, the team turned the moment into an opportunity for discovery.

The children were shown how to set the correct channel and frequency, learning how to press the button, hold it down and speak clearly.

Soon the forest echoed with their new favourite phrases:

“Testing, testing… one, two, three.”“Over and out.”

The children then ventured into different parts of the woods, excitedly communicating with each other across the distance.

What started as a simple curiosity quickly became an activity that supported language, listening skills and problem-solving — all through play.

Learning games and following rules

As the morning continued, the group played a series of games designed to encourage movement, teamwork and listening.

One of the first was a stealth-style game called Ninja, where the children had to sneak quietly through the forest and return to base camp without the parents spotting them.

Although their bright outdoor clothing made hiding somewhat difficult, the children fully embraced the challenge.

More importantly, they were listening carefully, understanding the rules and following instructions.

Julie reflected on how meaningful this was.

“These are children that teachers have been told they can’t teach — children who struggle to sit still in classrooms.”

Yet in the forest, those same children were demonstrating focus, attention and enthusiasm.

Next came a game that some of the children had never played before: Tig.

Once they understood the simple rule — touch someone and say “you’re on!” — the game quickly turned into a joyful chase through the trees, filled with laughter and energy.

But something even more significant began to emerge.

The children weren’t just playing near each other — they were interacting.

Cooperation where it wasn’t expected

One of the most remarkable moments of the session came during a simple science experiment.

The team had brought along a tray of ice blocks, which the children began throwing against trees to see how many pieces they would break into.

At first the children experimented individually, but soon they began to work together, comparing results and laughing at the way the ice shattered.

At one point they wanted to move the tray to a different tree.

The tray was too heavy for one child to carry alone.

Without being asked, they lifted it together.

This might sound like a small moment — but for these children, it represented something huge.

Many of them had previously been described as unable to tolerate other children in close proximity. Yet here they were cooperating, communicating and solving problems together.

Julie reflected on just how powerful that felt:

“These children who the system says can’t work with others were helping each other carry the tray.”

Growth over time

The session also showed how far some children had already come in just a few weeks.

One boy, Joseph, can sometimes be reactive when another child enters his space. In earlier sessions, there had been moments where sharing the same play area felt challenging.

But during this session, something had shifted.

Joseph played alongside the other children, sharing space and activities without conflict.

The progress was clear.

Skills that had begun to develop in earlier sessions were now turning into confidence and cooperation.

For the team, it was an incredibly rewarding moment.

Ending the day with simple joy

As the session drew to a close, there were a few final treats.

Julie introduced small cups filled with whipped cream and miniature milk portions, creating a playful sensory tasting activity that the children absolutely loved.

They enjoyed opening the tiny containers and experimenting with the taste and texture.

Some were already asking if they could take the little cups home.

It was a small, joyful ending to a morning that had already been filled with discovery.

Why moments like this matter

For Julie, the biggest takeaway from the session wasn’t any single activity.

It was seeing what happens when children are given freedom, patience and the right environment.

Instead of being asked to fit into rigid expectations, they were able to:

• explore

• move

• communicate

• solve problems

• and cooperate with others

All in ways that felt natural to them.

By the end of the day, Julie left the forest feeling energised.

“I came away really buzzing,” she said.

Because when we create spaces where children feel safe to be themselves, they often show us just how capable they truly are.

And in the quiet corners of a forest, away from the pressures of traditional classrooms, those abilities are finally given room to grow.