Fiona Danks is an environmental educator and author who works with her writing partner Jo Schofield to create beautiful books about the natural world. Fiona and Jo believe that reconnecting everyone with nature is vital if we are to understand our reliance on a healthy and biodiverse natural world, and ensure it is protected for the future. They believe that all children and families should regularly spend time outdoors in green spaces where nature can weave its magic upon them.

Together they have been writing and photographing the Going Wild books for the last fifteen years. Through their books and website, they inspire families everywhere to get outside and become immersed in the natural world. They have run events, lead training courses for teachers and environmental educators, presented at conferences as keynote speakers, written articles, and they are helping to build the Leaves for Life Campaign (@joinleavesforlife) to raise awareness of the ecological emergency..

They both live at the foot of the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire, where they enjoy natural history, walking and exploring the local countryside. For more information on how to encourage children to go outdoors, visit Jo and Fiona's website - [...]

Jo Schofield gained a degree in psychology from Exeter University and began her career working for an educational psychologist in London. After getting involved in the production of a film, she went on to work in the creative department of a TV advertising agency where she began taking still photographs. This led on to her becoming a commercial photographer in Australia and then London. She worked mainly for national editorial magazines such as Country Living. When her children were small she worked in Watlington Primary School and the Dragon school in Oxford, applying her creative knowledge to the classroom with children aged 6-9 years. More recently she has been focusing on writing and photographing for a series of books with co-author Fiona Danks. Jo lives near Watlington in Oxfordshire.

Discovering sticks

Adventure and bushcraft sticks

Make a fire

Cook over a fire

Build a den

Make a DIY tent

Make a staff

Make a stick sword

Make a catapult

Make an ancient spear-thrower and a spear

Make a bow and arrows

Make a pea-shooter

Magic sticks

Make a star wand

Make a wizard's wand

Make scavenging sticks

Make a witch's broomstick

Make a wiggly snake

Make shadow pictures

Make stick characters

Make stick and clay animals

Make a fairy house or an elf castle

Make miniature worlds for toy people and animals

Make hobby animals

Make woodland monsters

Make woodland magic carpets

Make a flying creature

Make fairy and fish sticks

Make wild storyboards

Creative sticks

Draw in mud and sand

Make charcoal pencils

Make a paintbrush

Make a picture frame

Make a woody crown

Make a necklace

Create stick art for a woodland gallery

Choose a stirring stick

Make a nest

Make a dream-catcher

Make a loom for wild weaving

Weave a wild basket

Make stick and paper lanterns

Make natural mobiles and wind chimes

Make a wreath

Decorate a seasonal stick tree with stick stars

Stick games

Throw a stick for a dog

Play pick-up sticks

Make a flying machine

Play capture the flag

Play quoits

Play Aunt Sally

Invent your own stick games

Do the stick tower challenge

Play tracking with sticks

Play the woodland mapping game

Sunny sticks

Navigate with a stick and the sun

Make a sun clock

Measure the radius of the earth

Musical sticks

Make percussion sticks

Make stick rattles

Bushcraft busking with a can guitar

Watery sticks

Play Pooh sticks

Mini raft challenge

Make a pond-dipping net

Make a fishing rod

Measure the depth of a stream

Woodcraft and conservation

Make your own walking/tracking stick

Make a stretcher

Make a mouse trap

Plant a tree

Make a habitat pile

Make a creepy-crawly hotel

Make a bird feeder

Stick stuff

Index

Acknowledgments