Unit 3 2.2 Outline the concept of holistic development.

Humans have many connecting physical and intellectual abilities. These abilities enable us to survive in our world and connect to other beings. There are five areas of development in humans; these are physical development, intellectual development, emotional and social intelligence and communication. One could say, in addition to these five, we also have cultural intelligence and moral/spiritual development.

We need to move freely throughout our environment, we need to acquire knowledge, we need to work with and change information we receive by problem solving, we need to be able to assess risk and act appropriately, we need to be creative and need to be able to communicate. In addition to this, we also need to be able to moderate our behaviour and follow the rules.

When educating children we need to educate them in all these areas. We cannot just focus on intellectual abilities without giving equal weight to all other areas, each area of development is dependent on another. Holistic development means developing the whole individual, not just focusing on one element of the individual’s development or education.

By educating the whole child we, as educators, create well-adjusted adults, who contribute to society in a positive way. By teaching holistically, within a natural setting, children learn about their connection with the world around them. They also learn to respect their planet, as well as their fellow man. Adults can then lead more fulfilled lives and contribute to the overall health and development of their local environment, their nation as a whole and in turn, the world they live in.

 

How have you used this concept to promote balanced educational opportunities for your client group during the Forest Schools programme? 

1. Physical movement and coordination – (Gross motor) we climb through trees and negotiate our way through woodland and water in every session. (Fine motor) We also create structures and art from woodland materials.

2. Intellectual development – We link learning walks to topics, for example, we discussed animal habitats, visited badger sets and then created our own natural habitats for our own soft toy animal.

3. Emotional and Social Intelligence and Communication – We end every woodland activity by gathering together at the woodland seating area. Then one child leads the others in a discussion about what they found or did in their woodland time that day. The younger children may need adult support with this. Children have to show respect for each other by listening, taking turns and having the confidence to speak in front of and lead the group. It is a part of the woodland experience that all the children really enjoy.

4. Cultural – We discuss the uniqueness of our local woodland and our collective responsibility within it. The children are able to exchange experiences they have had of other natural environments. Our school is very lucky to have many children, who have already had a variety of multicultural experiences. Our collective woodland Forest School culture is something that develops with every session, as our respect for each other and our environment grows with every meeting.

5.  Moral/Social - I collect litter on every walk. The children notice that, as they collect beautiful natural items during activities, I am collecting plastic and other waste materials. We even find items with teeth marks made from local wildlife. This has inspired many environmental responsibility discussions and a deep desire in the children to take care of their environment. The children wanted to help with the litter clearance job so much that we now nominate two litter spotters. These children are given the correct safety equipment and assist in the litter collection task.