We feel that nature and our environment are essential to learning. We visit the Oakmont School playground to give the children opportunities to play and explore. Also, we will take trips to local parks to hike on trails, dig in the soil, and learn from what we find. Our program incorporates the importance of sustainability and recycling to help foster an appreciation for our world.

Our learning process is not defined by our classroom walls.    Children can bring new life to a variety of materials, including natural elements found while we play outside.  By allowing children to use materials without preconceived or predetermined  outcomes we encourage children to flex their creative muscles.  Collecting sticks quickly turns into an experiment to see if we can make words.  Collecting "spikey balls" (aka the seeds of the sweet gum tree) to roll down the slide or to create a campfire.  We encourage the children to enjoy nature inside the classroom as well.

Rain or Shine

Being outside is a core value for the program.  “Nice weather” is a relative term, and we choose to be very liberal with our definition.  We choose to say playable weather.  Our classroom approach is always be prepared to go outside.  Rain boots and snow gear are a must for us! Being outside everyday allows children to experience play in its natural form.  They can experiment, discover, problem solve, negotiate turns, practice social rules, and create.  Plus they have a lot of FUN. 

Nature Collection

Our ever growing and changing nature table boasts bird nests, abandon paper wasp nest, sticks and rocks of all shapes and sizes, and so much more.

Outings

We value that the children understand the nature is all around them. We often use our community days to meet up at local spots to offer children an opportunity to experience nature in a way the we can not offer at school. These outings include Sugartown Strawberries, Riverbend Education Center, Saunders Wood and Tyler Arborteum.

Our Community Garden

Each year the garden is explored by the children.  They are involved in every aspect of the garden from picking the seeds, planning out the space, weeding, and the most fun of all harvesting!  We incorporate seasonal vegetables into our classroom snack whenever possible. Spinach, kale, carrots, beets, radish, are just some past successes.

Our Pets

We have one classroom resident at the moment. Herbert is an ornate box turtle that enjoys lettuce, slow walks around his habitat, and taking the occasional dip in his watering bowl.  He loves strawberries and blackberries as a special treat.

Composting: worms & container

Our vertical worm bin is thriving and actively making compost for our garden and plants.  Started several years ago, the worm bin is a quiet addition to our room that is always busy.  The worms breakdown our left over scrapes from snack- making sure we keep the balance just right so they are not too busy or overwhelmed but have just enough food to chew through.  They love pretty much everything we give them.