School is Now in Session
The new school is officially underway and our students are already learning problem solving, resiliency and exploration skills by using the zoo as their outdoor playground. While spending more than half of their day outside, our classes are collaborating in small groups, getting closer to nature and meeting animals of all shapes and sizes.
Daily “zoo walks” offer children the opportunity to see and sometimes interact with animals. Interacting with animals helps support growth in compassion and perspective-taking. It also helps children value what animals have to offer the world, and in turn, what the children have to offer the world.
While many of our activities help a child’s personal development, we always encourage working together and collaboration. Like the picture above, the students worked together to try to make this structure as tall as them. Then, they wanted to see if they could make it even taller. With the help from friends and a pallet, they succeeded.
The start of a new school year is always exciting for our team. It means more children will be able to not only learn, but have fun learning in a nature-based environment. Our 64 students will learn their letters, numbers, science and social studies like at any other licensed preschool, but it’s done through the lens of nature. Instead of sitting down and writing the letter ‘m’ ten times for practice, they might do that it with a stick in mud.