Acorns to Oaks - Askrigg

02/08/2024

What an amazingly busy week it has been for us here at Acorns to Oaks, culminating in a skills session today where we worked on sawing and splitting wood, cooking perfect popcorn, and using the cobra stitch to weave a paracord bracelet.
There was even a humorous fungi (photo below) that was the source of many giggles during the last few days!

31/07/2024

Work continues apace to ensure the children attending the Gruffalo themed family picnic tomorrow all get a little hand crafted Gruffalo puppet to call their own.

31/07/2024

Our new pin badges are in, and I absolutely love them!

Each child will receive one when they attend any of our sessions this summer. I look forward to seeing them on school bags everywhere in September!

30/07/2024

Acorns to Oaks was out and about today, we packed up our equipment and headed to Hawes for the afternoon. We were invited to collaborate with Stage 1 Cycles, and what a fantastic afternoon it was!
New faces and old joined us for an afternoon in the sunshine, where we worked on our whittling, den building, fire making skills, and even chilled with an ice cream in our hammock.
A big thank you to Helen for organising the day, and we look forward to working with you again soon.

08/07/2024

08/07/2024

Family Discounts

Wondering how your children can experience woodland activities on a budget this summer?
Well good news! I am introducing the following family discounts for Acorns to Oaks sessions.

Day sessions, unaccompanied children
(aged 8+)
1 child £30
2 children £50
3 children £70

Family sessions, unaccompanied children
(aged 8+)
1 child £15
2 children £25
3 children £35

Family sessions, accompanied children
(Any age)
1 child £10
2 children £15
3 children £20

If you have any questions (or more than 3 of your children would like to attend) please contact me.

02/07/2024

This afternoon’s session was dealer’s choice, giving the children space and time to hone their skills with minimal interference from myself.

The children quickly settled into different activities, and soon enough tools had been selected, skills practised, fires had been lit, and the children happily went about their tasks.

A popular choice was creating tinder using a pencil sharpener and a dry stick. Ideal for little fingers, the sharpener is a simple example of how using a familiar closed blade can be incorporated into outdoor learning.

25/06/2024

The sun refused to show its face this afternoon, so we made dandelions to brighten up our day. The children used their fine motor skills, open blade skills, and their knowledge of knots to produce these lovely little flowers.

24/06/2024

STOP THE PRESS!

Tonight we have received confirmation of the following amazing offer for qualifying children who attend any of our BAWB Schools.

Miss Collins writes,

The BAWB Federation is happy to pay for holiday club places for any children on free school meals or any who meet pupil premium criteria (details below).

Additionally, if any family would like their children to attend a holiday club but would find it hard to pay for it, school would be willing to consider requests for support with that.
Please contact Vicky Collins, Executive Headteacher: [email protected].

What an amazing offer from BAWB Schools, and I hope it enables more of our families to access the activity days this summer. A huge thank you to all the staff who are working behind the scenes to make this possible.

https://b-a-wb.com/general-information/pupil-premium/ #:~:text=The%20pupil%20premium%20is%20a,children%20from%20low%20income%20families.

24/06/2024

It is the moment that you have all been waiting for, session dates for activity days over the summer holidays!

Thursday 01 August family session.
Friday 02 August day session.

Monday 05 August day session.
Tuesday 06 August family session.

Thursday 15 August family session.
Friday 16 August day session.

Monday 19 August day session.
Tuesday 20 August family session.

Friday 30 August day session.

Family sessions (3-4hrs) are for all ages accompanied, with up to a further 8 unaccompanied children aged 8+.
£10 per accompanied child.
£15 per unaccompanied child.
Campfire snacks provided, but please bring a drink.

Day sessions (0900-1530hrs) for up to 12 unaccompanied children aged 8+.
£30 per child. Campfire snacks included, but please bring a packed lunch and drink.

I am also working on a ‘frequent flyer’ or family discount scheme as some families have 3 or more children who would like to attend.

If my OFSTED registration comes through soon I will also be able to take unaccompanied children under 8 for day sessions.

More details on each session to follow over on the events page soon.

We look forward to seeing you all over the holidays.

Rob.

20/06/2024

The lesser spotted sunshine was seen in the Dales yesterday, and was strong enough to produce a flame!

A quick reminder to ensure decorative crystals and random glass beads are not left on windowsills or car dashboards at this time of year.

18/06/2024

After we cooked our damper bread during after school club, one of the children went home so enthused about what she had learned that she made her own damper bread, adding chocolate chips for an extra layer of taste.

There was a knock on my door just after I got in from work, and I was gifted this amazing treat! It was still warm, tasted delicious, and absolutely made my day. Thank you so much.

18/06/2024

Following on from creating a decent fire, today the children cooked the traditional Australian campfire bread, known as damper bread. Baked over hot coals on a stick which we rotated periodically, the bread took around 15 minutes to become golden brown and delicious.

18/06/2024

The children at our after school club have been learning how to safely create a campfire, and just as importantly, how to ensure the fire is completely out when they have finished with it.

09/06/2024

A relaxing hour or so of lesson planning for me this evening, working on my own whittling skills before I teach the children on Tuesday afternoon.

This week the children will be expanding on their flat section and flat stop cuts, shaping a bobbin cut into their ’try sticks’.

Last week we carefully cut wide hooks, and will work on a more complex pointed hook in the weeks to come.

26/05/2024

Worried about the weather forecast for Wednesday’s family picnic? 🌧️

Fear no more, as here at Acorns to Oaks we have got you, quite literally, covered!

With teepees for the children, a shelter over the activity area, and golf umbrellas for the adults, rain never stops play!

Family and unaccompanied child spaces are still available, so get in touch and I will see you on Wednesday.