L'Appel de la forêt Paris
Offer young urbanites a sensitive experience of life.
The vision
L'Appel de la forêt's animators are convinced that it's first and foremost in the field, with their hands in the earth, their feet on the trees, their noses in the spring flowers and their ears in the bird songs, that tomorrow's children are built. Before the big speeches, the real thing. To this end, they organize regular outings to the forest, departing from central Paris by public transport.
The pedagogical project
Forest workshops, launched in September 2020, are offered to groups of eight children, aged 6 to 9, (year-round registration from September 2021).
The aim is to give children a strong connection with nature, based on active teaching.
The bottom line is:
- children don't spend enough time outdoors
- they learn best by doing
Since September, children have been learning about the passing of the seasons, and the names of insects, forest animals and plants. To do this, they use observation, touch, smell and taste. Whenever possible, the properties and uses of plants are evoked, and used as a source of creativity. All learning channels are called upon.
The children's motor skills have clearly developed. Climbing trees was not an easy task for everyone in September. Seeing them gain self-confidence by observing others, finding solutions to their problems, and asking for help from the activity leaders when necessary, was a great source of joy for everyone!
Knowledge of animals is acquired mainly through tracking and group games, through which participants understand how animals live and interact in their natural environment.
To support children in their discoveries, we offer recognition books and cards prepared by the animators, in the form of games or reading.
When the weather's fine, each child is given a drawing book to learn how to draw their surroundings.
Outings are made in all weathers, and this too is a source of learning and physical development.
The team
As a publisher of travel guides and books for young people, I have trained in Pédagogie par la nature withÉveil et Nature (2019) and Forest School Autour du feu (2021). I launched L'Appel de la forêt to help as many little Parisians as possible benefit from the proximity of the rich surrounding forests and spread the Forest School pedagogy.
Assia Rabinowitz
Volunteer coordinator and animator
As a Montessori educator for over ten years and a Nature educator, I love to pass on to children my botanical and wild discoveries born of passionate explorations. I particularly enjoy creative moments that appeal to all our senses. In addition to L'Appel de la forêt, on Sunday mornings I lead families on Montessori Nature Walks in Paris parks.
Anne-Jeanne Etienbled
Animator
I worked in the film industry for over fifteen years as a writer-director, film workshop leader and high school cinema teacher, before becoming interested in alternative pedagogies. Inspired by my childhood spent in contact with the wilderness between the shores of Lake Geneva and the Alps, I trained as a mentor using the 8 Shields method. My aim is to help children and their families to (re)connect fully with themselves, others and the living world.
Isabelle Mayor
Animator
As a free-play trainer and passionate nature organizer, I offer a variety of nature activities designed to deepen the bond between people of all ages and nature and each other. With an eye to both personal fulfillment and the preservation of nature, I work to expand children's space for exploration, to (re)enliven their experiences, and ours too.
Rachel Zetland
Animator
Objective of the fundraising campaign
We'd like to go even further in the development of learning: to do this, we'd like to expand our stock of materials (in particular with the purchase of tools and musical instruments), and propose the occasional visit of specialists to enrich the pedagogical proposal and create "beacons" in the children's memory. These visits will be accompanied by teaching aids.
We would like to have one "guest" per season:
- a botanist to discover edible and medicinal wild plants
- a professional tracker to take you further in reading the wild landscape
- a "primitive life" craftsman to learn how to make a wooden spoon
- an ornithologist to discover the life of birds
