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Reggio / Waldorf / Forest Kindergarten / Granola / Natural - Learning Methods>Forest K
grateday 08:48 PM 01-28-2015
I wish I could run a forest kindergarten it has been a dream of mine. As I meet with my families I realize that such a kindergarten is possibly a culture clash in the area I live. I mean 1 out of the 4 families I serve would be interested. That is a small percent. I would travel to learn about it then bring it to an area I know were it would be utilized. It is sad to see the disconnect and fear our society has with what holds sustains and balances our lives

As a society we are connected but not all of us are connected to the nature around us. We are exploiting our resources and planet but in a way that is not caring and giving back to it. We are not happy with what we have and buying things that exploit resources. Nature gives us plenty of toys. Sure natures toys can hurt can get a child dirty but so can many of the man made ones. The detergents people use to wash there clothes are harming skin and environment. Its ok for kids to get a little muddy its ok and its healthy physiologically and psychologically. The outdoors is a natural sensorynplayground in its own way. Its various sized rocks and biological diversity are a wonder and curiosity. The outdoors lends an open mind and it creates an opened mind. If you engage in its wonder and splendor the animals have a lesson the plants have a lesson the weather has a lesson the fungi have a lesson.

If I dwelled and taught with children in this place maybe they would grow knowing what really is important

This wrapped.up convenient life is convenient for us but has a price that is not paid in currency.

Yeah I went there!#!!!
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Heidi 07:40 AM 01-29-2015
This has been something I've often dreamed of, as well.

Our new house will be on 5 acres, with a share of a 10-acre pond, marshy area, and woods. I will definately be incorporating that into my program. The tough part is, if you're rural, you're rural. So, it means parents have further to drive and thus it's tougher to attract families. If you're in town, there is no "forest", so it's tricky to have a good forest school.

I suppose someone in town could offer transportation, but that add further complications.

I also get mostly infants and toddlers (the 2's and up go to the centers...in town), and taking 5 kiddos, 2 of whom can't walk, into the woods is another challenge. They really don't make good all-terrain strollers, do they?
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Unregistered 11:49 AM 07-29-2016
I've always told my parents we spend a lot of time outside and follow Richard Louv and his group. Now I'm reading David Sobel's Nature Preschools and Forest Kindergartens: The Handbook for Outdoor Learning. There isn't any training in my area so I may need to travel for it eventually. Our goal is to get as close as we can to this model by buying property and building a base camp, etc. The trend is spreading, slowly, but all the same so I'm feeling confident and very excited!
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daycarediva 10:21 AM 08-22-2016
We are buying a new home on 14 acres of wooded land. It is directly next to the town (off of a dead end street in town, actually, 2 blocks from Main St!) and would make an amazing location for a forest school. I love nature (hence the move!) and am really excited to start a new program there. I have been in a major 'daycare' slump, and making moves to get out, but the new land has put my train of thought in a different direction.
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skipper 05:32 AM 12-06-2018
I have a nature daycare. We live on the edge of an otherwise unused forest which provides endless playspaces. My curriculum is Waldorf based and I am the only care home of this type in my area, thus making the demand huge.
Unfortunately, due to the property (wooded, with a small stream, a pond, 200 y/o stone walls, etc - all the things that make it what it is) I can't get licensed. The powers that be would rather the children play on an asphalt pad with plastic climbing equipment in fair weather conditions. They want our home heated with electric, not a woodstove (which the children help gather kindling for as part of their day), our toys are deemed 'unsafe', etc, etc.
Fortunately, there is a population of alternative-minded families in my area who want this for their children and are willing to pay well for it.
My program is full day, all-weather outdoor adventure. The children learn essential safety and survival skills, they are calm, imaginative and wise. When we're indoors they play with rocks, sticks, wooden blocks, etc, they dress up and put on plays, tell stories, bake bread, listen to music. It's very rewarding, but like I said frustrating in that it's not 'legal'.
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Heidi 02:53 PM 12-20-2018
Originally Posted by skipper:
I have a nature daycare. We live on the edge of an otherwise unused forest which provides endless playspaces. My curriculum is Waldorf based and I am the only care home of this type in my area, thus making the demand huge.
Unfortunately, due to the property (wooded, with a small stream, a pond, 200 y/o stone walls, etc - all the things that make it what it is) I can't get licensed. The powers that be would rather the children play on an asphalt pad with plastic climbing equipment in fair weather conditions. They want our home heated with electric, not a woodstove (which the children help gather kindling for as part of their day), our toys are deemed 'unsafe', etc, etc.
Fortunately, there is a population of alternative-minded families in my area who want this for their children and are willing to pay well for it.
My program is full day, all-weather outdoor adventure. The children learn essential safety and survival skills, they are calm, imaginative and wise. When we're indoors they play with rocks, sticks, wooden blocks, etc, they dress up and put on plays, tell stories, bake bread, listen to music. It's very rewarding, but like I said frustrating in that it's not 'legal'.
So, in Wisconsin you must have a fenced in yard in order to be licensed, but you don't have to stay in the yard. It's fine to go for walks or on field trips. Could you fence in a little part of the yard to as a loophole?


But maybe the wood-burner is a deal breaker? We have one, but I never used it during daycare hours, as I recall, and we have a back-up furnace. It's on the upper level of our home, and my daycare was on the lower level, so there was no access either way.
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Tags:forest method, kindergarten, kindergarten - forest
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