Wild Tots provides a wonderful opportunity for children aged 2-6 and their parents to experience and learn from nature by exploring and playing in the outdoors. The popular sessions will be held every Thursday and Friday morning throughout February and March.
The usual price is £10 per child – but thanks to The Southern Co-op’s donation, sessions are now only £5 for two hours of wild fun or just £4 for members of the Trust. Sessions include arts and crafts, games, stories, exploration, mud kitchens, minibeast hunting and so much more!
“This is a fantastic opportunity to encourage young children to have some weekly fun - exploring, learning and playing in the woods, in a Forest School inspired adventure,” said Laura Stone, from the Trust’s Outdoor Learning Team.
“The sessions are designed to engage children with wildlife and to promote independent learning. We aim to boost creativity, confidence, communication skills and physical development and above all we have fantastic fun in the outdoors!”
A recent study carried out by researchers at the University of Derby found that just one session spent getting closer to nature can help families to improve their skills and knowledge about playing outdoors with their families.
Spending time outside was also shown to increase people’s sense of connection to nature and proved beneficial for health and wellbeing in both adults and children.
The Wild Tots donation by The Southern Co-op is part of the ‘My Wild Neighbourhood’ campaign, working with Wildlife Trusts in the southern region to encourage families to get outside and explore the wild in their neighbourhoods.
The initiative is supported by proceeds from the carrier bag levy collected by The Southern Co-op, distributed through their ‘Love Your Neighbourhood’ programme.
The Trust hopes the subsidised Wild Tots dates will make the sessions accessible to even more families in Surrey. They will be running every Thursday from 10am-12noon at the Trust’s Nower Wood educational nature reserve near Leatherhead and every Friday from 10am-12noon at Newlands Corner near Guildford, throughout February and March.
Wild Tots forms part of Surrey Wildlife Trust’s mission to inspire and educate people of all ages about nature. Up to 15,000 children and young people benefit every year from its wide range of outdoor learning courses and events.