Climbing up

We have a mixed age group and sometimes the older ones want to do something different to the younger ones.  So the two eldest boys this week set to work on making an A frame ladder from scratch with Kate, while I helped the younger members of the FS to build a freestanding den.

The A frame ladder is made up of two long poles which are square lashed together and then you ladder lash the runs starting at the top and working down.  The clever thing about this type of lashing is that as you stand on the rungs you make the lashing tighter and so the ladder becomes more secure.  The boys measured all the wood and then cut it using two sawhorses and a Laplander saw before starting to tie it together.

The younger members of the group helped to light the two storm kettles and set up the cups for the hot chocolate once they had finished working on the den.  The moving and construction of the den had shown some good teamwork as materials were moved from the old den site and put to use on the new den.  As well as the construction of the den we had mark making, with charcoal from an old fire, the invention of a game that involved string and a tree and finally the putting up of a rope ladder.  The rope ladder was made using hazel runs with holes drilled into them and figure of eight knots to hold them in place.  There was some good effort at climbing the ladder not the easiest thing to do.

Next week we will continue with ladders and swings for the first half of the session and finish with our first game of thicket this term.