Welcome to the Creative Natives website

Creative Natives offers a unique outdoor experience for parents and children, school groups and home educators. We are currently running groups at Mallydams Wood near Hastings and High Woods near Tunbridge Wells.

Parent and Toddler Groups
Creative Natives aims to inspire pre-school children and their carers to use their senses to explore the world around them. Listen to the woodpeckers in spring, smell the green of summer, taste the fruits of the hedgerows in autumn and splash through the muddy puddles in winter. Through outdoor fun and creative seasonal activities using natural resources, the children learn to nurture wildlife, engage in traditional crafts and appreciate the great outdoors as a friendly living playground.


There are no groups being run at the moment, but please see the posts below that show the sort of things we used to get up to.

If you are interested in encouraging children outdoors and nurturing an interest in nature, the environment, crafts and creativity call Sam on 01797 223121 or email info@creative-natives.co.uk for more information.

Creative Partnerships
Creative Natives also works with Creative Partnerships and The Woodland Education Initiative to offer schools and other organsations working with children the opportunity to work with Creative Natives to inspire and nurture children's interest in nature, traditional crafts and outdoor fun.

For more information please contact Sam on 01797 223121 or email info@creative-natives.co.uk

Wednesday, 17 October 2007

The Bug Hotel

We frequently check the Bug Hotel for visitors. Yesterday we found a Devils Coach Horse Beetle whose tail curled like a scorpions!
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The first half term... Winchelsea 2007

Creative Natives has experienced a fantastic first half term. The autumnal leaves, hedgerow berries and seeds have provided us with plenty to do and make, such as natural paints and inks, collages and beautiful mobiles.

We have spent time in a woody area towards the end of Morlais Ridge listening to all the sounds and looking at all the colours and the children painted some inspired pictures under the trees. The children also went hunting for hidden objects not normally found in the woods and things that are.


One Wednesday morning on the beach felt very autumnal, rock pooling in wellies. A couple of common crabs were found along with mussels, barnacles and lots of wet clothes! Warm drinks from the flask went down well. The toddling scavengers bought back plenty of treasure to make a wonderful work of art and some of the smaller stones and shells were stuck onto fish shaped boxes to take home.

During our toddler paced walks we came across many interesting things: A woodpeckers hole; Garden spiders and their glistening webs; Listening to noisy marsh frogs by the river; Bean galls induced on a willow leaf by the grub of a sword fly; and lots of Cinebar moth caterpillars on the poisonous plant ragwort.

On site, our regular visit from a male pheasant has fascinated some of the children, as have some of the strange looking mushrooms, like the shaggy inkcap and the pleated inkcap. The former made excellent ink for our goose feather quills. It was much more effective than the ink we got from sloes which we picked the previous week.


Many of the boys and girls have enjoyed working on the vegetable patch, digging in the soil, raking leaves and building a fantastic castle from hay bales (with the grown ups help!). So far we have only experienced a couple of rainy days which were great. The children enjoyed splashing in the puddles and floating their leaf boats. The tipi was a bit leaky but it did the job for activities when we needed some shelter.

Creative Natives has lots of plans for the coming half term, with Halloween, Bonfire Night and Christmas to look forward too. We will be focusing on the needs of the birds and animals over winter, building shelters and feeders for them. There will be lots to make and do for us too with pumpkins in October and beautiful natural presents, cards and decorations for Christmas. With warmth from the occasional bonfire, woolly
hats, boots, gloves, and, of course, hot chocolate, the Creative Natives are going to have a ball!

If you feel like joining us for one and a half hours a week give me a call on 01797 223121, Sam.
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Wednesday, 12 September 2007

The Launch Party Winchelsea 2007

Thank you to everyone who came to the Launch Party and all those that helped out. The afternoon was a great success. Much noise was made by the children making instruments from recycled rubbish with Peter Quinnell and from the amount of glue, leaves and feathers we had to clear up from the Tipi I think the mask making was enjoyed too!


Several stalls were set up on the day supporting local businesses including Wild Garden who supplied wonderful soup and hedgerow jam tarts. See below for the other businesses who enjoyed the Launch.



Rye Nature Reserve was represented by Miriam who helped the children make some bird feeders. Other activities included face painting and a toddlers assault course.


You can read what the local press had to say here.

Local businesses who supported the day included: Wild Garden Foods, The Gopsall Pottery (who also sold some lovely veggies), Sarah Benton (Arts and Crafts), The Spotted Spoon, Kate (Artist), Hannath Photography and Design, 21st Century Shepherds Huts, Doug and Richard's Oak Benches and Kirsty Hannath (Artist and Photography). Contact us if you want information on any of these businesses.










All Photos Hannath Photography
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