Is the Forest School right for my child?

Is your child between the ages of 6 weeks to 12 years? Does your child love the outdoors? Do you feel nature offers learning opportunities and enhances our view of the world? If so, you should consider enrolling your child into a Discovery Child Care program like our Forest School.

In our Forest School, we bring the classroom to the forest and the forest into the classroom, offering an environmentally aware foundation of early learning for children. We like to teach the idea that we are one with nature. We’re leaving the earth to the next generation, so learning about taking care of our environment is important.

We believe that being outdoors in beautiful, natural environments, is an essential experience for all children, and it can be fun and instructive at the same time!

Our Forest School program teaches children to feel comfortable and aware outside. From gardening skills, to learning about different types of animals that live in around the area, to finding bugs and identifying birds, we include lots of activities and encourage creativity.

Research shows that being around nature reduces stress, increases attention span and fosters healthy brain development. Here are 3 benefits to connecting children with nature identified by the Forest School Association in Canada.

Increases understanding of and appreciation for nature. The BEST way to understand something is by going out and learning about it. The natural environment is the one of the aspects of life that we need to teach our children about. We teach children to respect and appreciate the world around us through activities, walks and exploring the forest.

Augments ecological literacy. Children in our Forest School learn about sustainability, for example we plant various crops and enjoy the harvest. We plant, grow, nurture, taste, smell, touch and observe, with the food we produce ourselves.

Students experience fewer sick days. Children, who spend time outdoors in fresh air, build up a stronger, healthier immune system. We go exploring in our outdoor classroom and we experience things through the forest like grass, trees, tree branches, dirt and puddles.

Discovery Child Care is the 1st Certified Nature Explore Classroom in Canada! (2012)

About Discovery Child Care Barrie Based Discovery Child Care brings nature into the classroom and takes the classroom into nature, offering an environmentally aware foundation of early learning for children, from infants to school age. We follow an Emergent Curriculum philosophy, which means your child will be provided with hands-on, play-based learning opportunities that will encourage active exploration, autonomy, choice, problem solving and plain old fun! Your child’s individual interests, abilities and needs will be considered when planning our indoor and outdoor programs. For more information, visit http://www.discoverychild.on.ca or http://www.forestschool.ca/