the essence:
The Forest is Our Home and School
earth based
holistic learning
outdoor work and play
remembering, celebrating and connecting
with the wonder of Mother Nature and her cycles
VISION
. . . a trail of giggles and colourful capes billowing through the brush . . . seeing a child sitting quietly under a tree . . . intently watching and feeling an earthworm wiggle in her hand . . . building a dam . . . negotiating play amongst themselves . . . sticks, puddles, stones, sand .. . . climbing a tree and assessing the risk . . . collecting dandelion petals and nettles for tea . . . .leaning against a mossy ledge crayon sketching . . .building a tree fort . . .or an igloo . . . . telling stories around the fire we built . . . stone soup. . . . imagine the possibilities . . .
INTENTION
to model awareness, wonder, respect, responsibility and love for the earth
to nurture self confidence, trust, curiosity, intuition, creativity, connection
to teach self reliance, outdoor knowledge and skills, folk and traditional crafts, healing arts
APPROACH
play-based, emergent curriculum
creating a culture of compassion and inclusion
establishing safety rules, social expectations, boundaries
holding space for the children to be their natural selves
minimal adult interventions
scaffolding but minimal co-learning
listening to and making music with the sounds of nature
optional activities - nature arts and craft, theatre games, wild identification . . . emergent :)
BACKGROUND
I am a mother of two young children . . . . I am keen on outdoor non-school natural learning environments for families with young children, homeschooling families and families seeking an alternative lifestyle and education.
I am gathering an intentional soulful community sharing skills, resources, time, knowledge and wisdom in meaningful ways to offer and serve as a healthier and more sustainable way of life for ourselves and our children.
I don’t consider myself to know all that much, or have that much to teach - in fact I would rather let the children and the outdoors do the talking. But I do have reverence for all Mother Earth’s children (yes even the wolfe spiders and rat snakes as much as they unnerve me) and creative, intuitive and sensitive to energies around and within me.
I aspire to recognize each child's inner beauty and wisdom and I strive to inspire children to be the best that they can be.