Spring has Sprung & it’s the perfect season to bathe in the glorious sunshine after our long cold winter. Blossoms are blooming, birds are chirping and what better way to spend your morning than outdoors with your tribe at Gresswell Forest Wildlife Reserve in Macleod?

Join us for a weekly bush playgroup program (10 sessions) where families gather to enjoy all the benefits that nature has to offer. This forest location provides children and their families the opportunity to immerse themselves in nature as its bush all the way! There will be a fair bit of kangaroo and wildlife spotting along the many tracks, a creek, nature cubbies, and logs to climb and balance on.

We provide a gentle rhythm to our facilitated playgroups with a focus on sensory play, storytelling, song, craft, learning, free and unstructured play and plenty of opportunities to build gross motor skills through climbing, balancing and movement.

Eco Explorers bush playgroups are facilitated by qualified and experienced nature play educators (read more about our team here) that are highly skilled and knowledgeable in the area that they work in.

Our Gresswell Forest bush playgroup is run by Penny, a qualified primary school teacher and level 3 forest school leader who has been working as a bush playgroup facilitator at Gresswell Forest for more than 2 years. She has a passion for connecting children to nature.

Our program has been developed to give your child optimum opportunity to build their gross motor and physical skills through movement and fine motor skills during our craft activities. Research clearly shows that the more time your child spends in nature, the better they are prepared for school, both physically and emotionally.

It’s also a time for parents to disconnect from their busy lives (and technology) and re-connect with their child in nature. This time is as much for you as it is for your child. Our bush playgroups bring together a community of like-minded parents who are supportive and welcoming.

Bush playgroup is an all-weather outdoor playgroup so you need to make sure you bring appropriate weather protection and clothing. Children must have closed footwear when walking in the bush, sun hats, sunscreen, wet weather gear, plenty of snacks and water and a change of clothes. Our playgroup will only be cancelled in the event of an extreme weather warning; fire, storm, high temperatures and strong winds.

Ages: 1 – 4 years (siblings under 14 months are welcome to attend for free).

*Parents are responsible for their children at all times.