A Peek at Our Day Together

All of our classes follow an in-breath and out-breath rhythm, meaning that children have time for big movement and then time to come in to connect and quiet themselves. This rhythm is what holds the class together. It looks a bit different at each age level.

In our WILD ROOTS and SAPLINGS Programs:

Daily Rhythm

Arrival: Children are greeted warmly by their guides, one of whom will be involved in purposeful work that the children may choose to imitate. If not, they are free to engage in play, close by, in the forest. This play and work time lasts for close to the first hour.

On cooler days, another guide will be engaged in tending to the fire, which children also love to help with by sorting kindling, gathering logs and, if invited, feeding the fire.

Circle: Circle brings the children together for connection. We share in the same seasonal circle songs and verses for a series of weeks so that kids can become very familiar with them. Rich vocabulary is used and the circle is done in a way that takes kids on a seasonal story through movement, song and verse.

Phenology Hike: Following circle, we head out on the trails. The youngest children in Wild Roots stick to the same two trails, while the older Saplings children explore more trails and may hike greater distances. Hiking offers children a chance to work their will as they lengthen their hikes and are able to hike more difficult terrain. The hikes are done at the pace of the children and offer the children a chance to notice seasonal changes. They love to revisit and give name to favorite places.

Sit Spots: Along the trail, we stop in our designated sit spot area and the children choose a space to quietly connect with nature. Guides sing, “Eyes open, ears open, mouths shut. Open your hearts to the forest.” This is the child’s cue to find a space and quiet themselves and open their senses to their surroundings. Later in their day, the children have time to recall through a guided meditation, their hike and sit spot time. This is then recorded in their journals through pictures and words if the children are ready.

Shared Snack: In the Wild Roots classes, guides pack and bring a snack for all of the children to enjoy right on the trail. This breaks up their hike a bit and provides much needed nourishment. Snacks are healthy and often the children help to prepare them prior to the hike, sometimes over the fire. Before snack a shared blessing giving thanks to Mother Earth is sung. During snack, children are encouraged to share their nature stories from the week.

Story Telling Following snack, we hike back to our class area for storytelling. A seasonal story that also may focus on an emotional concept is told through props. The same story is told in the Wild Roots class for many weeks until the story lives in the hearts of the children. They love taking the props and retelling the story as they hear it again and again.

Lunch and Handwork: Following story, lunch that is brought from home is shared and children may have time to engage in handwork projects such as weaving, sewing, play dough or beeswax modeling.

Lavender Foot Rubs and Rest By now the children in the Wild Roots class are tired and ready for connection and quiet. We go inside, lay on our rest mats, take socks off and wash and rub feet with a lavender massage cream. Children listen to quiet music played by one of the guides and a story before we gather for closing circle.

In our Oaks and White Pines Programs:

The Daily Rhythm is somewhat similar.

Arrival: As children arrive, there is often a handwork project or purposeful work that can be done. Georgia, our resident artist, often works with small groups of children at this time creating anything from leather pouches, to forest looms, to lanterns for our lantern walk. Other children may help start the fire. At this age, they are much more independent at this, but a guide is still present. Others engage in their own free exploration and play. Games are invented, hidden spaces are ran to and laughter abounds.

Sit Spots Following this time for big movement and creativity, the children go to their chosen spaces and connect with the natural world. They bring their nature journals and often record something that they notice or that inspires them. This may be a map of their space, something that they wonder about, something that they hear, etc. It is a special time for the children to, individually bond to the land in their own way.

Circle Following sit spots, the class comes together to connect through circle. Verses are recited from memory, songs are sung in rounds, children share their observations from sit spots, games that promote community may be played and intentions are set for the day.

Big Movement Following circle, the children are eager and ready to move. This may look like exploring and discovering on a hike or a cooperative game that reinforces content.

Project Work and Lunch: The rest of the day is spent engaged with the topic that the children are exploring throughout the session. Content may have been woven into the circle and the traditional art work with Georgia upon arrival. But, this is the bulk of the time spent working collaboratively to discover, reach conclusions and create. This time looks different each day and in each session. Sometimes this may look like children building a dam in the creek to learn about animal homes, or moving logs to create their own shelter, carving symbols to later be printed, writing poetry and story, creating and following maps. All of the work is authentic and the children are deeply connected to it.

Closing Circle Our day always ends in connection, reflection and verse.