Unit 1: Fire

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The early years need more adult supervision particularly as they may get so absorbed in what they are doing, and may forget the lessons of past experience! They also may have limited understanding of cause and effect and not understand how and why they get hurt. As they develop, they are more able to think ahead and consider the consequences.

Making fires always requires permission from landowners. If this is in a school or park, we may bring in a fire bowl that helps to keep the fire above the ground.

Clearing an adequate space (usually a metre wide), checking the soil for tree roots and type of soil (not peat or thick pine debris), we are almost ready! Gathering you sticks and placing them into order of thinness – usually 3 piles – the first being the thinnest: match-stick thin, then pencil thickness, followed by finger thick, is a perfect routine to help with the success of fire lighting.

We recommend leaving approximately 1.5 metres from the centre fire to the outer circle of participants.

Trusting children, observing their practice and letting them do what they can do is part of our role. Creating routines and agreements around the fire in the end sets up a space where they can self-regulate and have ownership.