Frequently Asked Questions
What is Nature School?
Nature School is an education that takes place in the outdoors that focuses on learning from the earth and connecting to the earth. The pedagogy emphasizes wonder-based learning through play and hands-on discovery. Typically Nature and Forest schools spend at least 30% of their day in the outdoors. We spend 100% of our day outside activating our senses, and enjoying all the wonder and change that comes with each special season!
Why Wasatch Nature School?
Why Outdoor Education?
Our goal is to help children cultivate a love of the natural world at an early age in order to enhance their mental, physical, and social well-being. We invite children to explore, play, and interact with nature in a way that boosts their creativity and problem-solving skills. When children are allowed to follow their own interests in a hands-on environment, children retain and process learning more readily.
What Curriculum Do You Use?
We use the curriculum "Wildlings Academy," developed by our Director, Carlie Davis. This curriculum includes nature walks and observation, songs, story-telling, poetry and nursery rhymes, art and music appreciation, introduction to people and cultures, nature-inspired celebrations for each solstice, equinox and even cross-quarter days, a moon curriculum, age-appropriate introductions to letters and the sounds they make, real-life early mathematical concepts through contextual and intentional "math-talk", and hands-on experiences inspired by the outdoors and all through play.
Wildlings Academy follows the natural rhythms of nature and helps us to zero in just a bit on those natural occurrences. We notice and wonder about robins when the robins are in abundance during the onset of Spring. We notice and wonder about spiders when they are in abundance building glorious webs all throughout our greenspace. We notice and wonder about the coming of the fall season as leaves are falling all over our outdoor classroom. We hunt for mushrooms in the fall and spring when they are naturally growing.
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Wildlings Academy believes that childhood is PRECIOUS and short and that growing up is not to be rushed. The curriculum is full of magic and imagination and contains the perfect balance of gentle academic learning and explorative learning and we couldn't be more excited to bring the community this new, and exciting way of learning by Wildlings Academy!
Is Nature School a Good Fit for Every Family?
Nature School is a much more risky learning environment than indoor traditional schooling., with obvious risk being no walls! Safety for all students is our #1 priority, which is why we insist that every child learn our Safety Habits, also referred to as our Safety Boundaries. The first rule is to Stay Together as a Class! Following this #1 safety rule is required for children to remain in the program. If you feel that your child is not developmentally ready to stay with their class and teachers and struggles to follow directions and rules the nature school may not be the right fit at this time in their development. We will provide guidance to our students who tend to wander and give them the opportunity to learn this expectation. After a few weeks, if your child still struggles to stay within the established safety boundaries, we may have to dismiss them from the program for their own safety and re-invite them back a bit later down the road after they've had some time to work on this skill.
In addition to being able to follow our #1 safety rule we also inform parents that the following skills are helpful in having a successful nature school experience:
- your child has been exposed to different weather conditions and is willing to wear weather appropriate clothing including a few layers in the winter (this can be difficult for some children)
- your child can detach from their caregiver and connect to their teacher
- your child can communicate their needs (hungry, thirsty, tired, something hurts, they need to use the restroom, etc)
- your child is potty trained and has the ability to use the onsite porta-potty or nature potty
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Wasatch Nature school does not focus highly on rigorous academics. We follow the teachings of Waldorf, Montessori, and Reggio and view academics as something that should come a bit later in life (7 and up). We do gently expose our students to academic topics in a fun and playful way in the context of what they are studying and working on and we believe we are planting those seeds for higher level learning as we preserve their childhood and help mold their minds in more developmentally appropriate ways to prepare them for academic study.
If you have further questions about whether or not Nature School is a good fit for your child please don't hesitate to contact us via email: hello@wasatchnatureschool.org
Are the Classes Always Outside?
We hold classes outside all year long! Yes, even in the winter! In fact, the winter months are one of our favorite times of the year to be outside! Certain experiences, observations, and growth can only take place during the winter months and the 9-month school year is not complete without the magic of Nature School in the Winter!
We do our best to educate our families on how to properly dress their children to keep them comfortable during their time with us. We love the saying that "There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing", but realize that there is a difference between being uncomfortable and suffering and we certainly understand that learning cannot take place if our students and staff are suffering.
Occasionally we will close nature school for the day based on extreme weather conditions or extreme illness outbreaks (Covid-19). There is no exact science when it comes to school closures. We factor in expected precipitation, wind chill, humidity, cloud coverage, expected hourly temperature, road conditions, and "real feel" temps. We will "typically" operate in temperatures that are 17º or above, but again there is no exact rule. We have 6 built-in closures per class per school year that we can use before tuition is adjusted. We've never gone over 6 closures in a school year in the last 8 years of operation with the exception of the onset of COVID 19.
What Time of Year Does Wasatch
Nature School Operate?
We are a YEAR-ROUND Program!
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We offer Forest Tots (ages 15 months - 35 months) Forest Preschool (ages 3-5), Forest Kindergarten (age 5-6), & Wilderness Explorers (ages 6-11) from September through May, and Summer Camps for ages 3-11 in June, July, and August!
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We hope you'll join us all year long for 4 seasons and 12 months of learning through play all outside!
How Much is School Tuition?
Tuition varies depending on the frequency of the schedule. For our 2024-25, classes the prices are listed below:
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1 day a week: $115/month (Forest Kindergarten and Wilderness Explorers Classes Only)
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2 days a week: $230/month (Forest Preschool, Forest Kindergarten, Wilderness Explorers)
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3 days a week: $345/month (Forest Preschool and Forest Kindergarten)
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4 days a week: $460/month (Forest Preschool and Forest Kindergarten)
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1 Time Non-refundable Registration Fee of $120
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We are an approved Provider through the Utah Fits All Scholarship!
We are also an approved Provider for My Tech High and Harmony Ed!
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Can I Schedule a School Visit?
Yes, Absolutely! You may schedule a 30-minute school visit by emailing: hello@wasatchnatureschool.org
What Age Group Does Wasatch Nature School Serve?
We serve:
-Toddlers (ages 15 months - 25 months) (Forest Tots)
-Preschoolers (ages 3-5) (Forest Preschool)
-Kindergarteners (ages 5-6) (Forest Kindergarten)
-Elementary (ages 6-11) (Wilderness Explorers)
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-Ages 3-11 for Summer Camps
What Clothes and Gear Will My Child Need?
We explore areas with tree branches, grasses, puddles, bugs, and mud. Children need to wear rainboots daily in the fall and spring and a full insulated snowsuit with layers in the winter including a warm hat, waterproof mittens, wool socks (recommended), and insulated, waterproof snow boots.
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We share the belief in the Scandinavian mantra, "There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing."​
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It's imperative that children come to nature school well-dressed for the weather. Caregivers can also support their child by modeling a positive attitude in regards to the weather conditions. If children come to nature school without proper clothing you may be asked to go home and come back with additional layers. We do keep a small stock of coats, gloves, and hats in our storage shed at our Provo location to help with this. This option is not available at our Vineyard location.
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Please view our gear recommendations below:
Boot Recommendations:
Roma: www.romaboots.org
Oaki: https://oaki.com/collections/toddler-snow-boots
Plae: https://plae.co/collections/december-2020
Sorel: https://www.sorel.com/c/kids/
Polarn O. Pyret: https://www.polarnopyretusa.com/
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Base Layers Recommendations:
Smart Wool: https://www.smartwool.com
Woolino: https://woolino.com/
Ella's Wool: https://ellaswool.com/
Polarn O. Pyret: https://www.polarnopyretusa.com/
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Outerwear Gear (mittens, hats, snowsuits, socks)
Polarn O. Pyret: https://www.polarnopyretusa.com/
Oaki: https://oaki.com/
Outdoor School Shop: outdoorschoolshop.com/schools/wasatch-nature-school/
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DISCOUNT CODES:
15% off at Outdoor School Shop: WASATCH
15% OFF POLARN O' PYRET Sign Up Link:
https://www.polarnopyretusa.com/outdoor-schools-savings-program/
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It speeds up the application process to create your customer account in advance, you can do it here:
https://www.polarnopyretusa.com/login.php?action=create_account
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​​​Group Ordering:
We do a group order every year at the end of August for Oaki Rain Suits and Roma boots at a discounted rate!
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What About When it Rains/is Cold/is Hot?
When it rains we will have class with umbrellas and puddle jumping and use our class tents to stay dry as needed!
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When it is cold, we will have class with snowmen, sledding, snow forts and lots of gross motor movement and play! We will also use our class tents as needed to stay dry and warm up. Each class tent has a heater inside of it to warm up and get a break from the elements.
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When it is hot, we will have class--often with water play, and shady hideouts!
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In the rare case of severe weather where it would not be safe for us to be outside class will be canceled.
How Big are the Classes?
We are proud to maintain small class sizes to ensure that every child is kept safe and given the love, time, and attention they need to thrive in our outdoor environment!
Each preschool class will have 2 teachers and 12 children providing a 1:6 ratio.
Our Forest Kindergarten and Wilderness Explorers Class will be capped at 14 students with 2 teachers providing a 1:7 ratio.
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*We support working mothers and do allow staff to bring their own children to nature school. It's possible there may be 1-2 extra little ones in tow depending on the year and the circumstances of the teacher.
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Does My Child Have to be Potty-Trained in order to attend Forest Preschool?
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We do have the expectation that any child entering Forest Preschool must be 3 years old by September 1st of the year they are attending and must be potty trained. However, we understand that there are exceptions and we are happy to work with you given your individual circumstances. We understand that not every child is quite potty trained at the age of 3. We allow these little ones to come to school in a pull-up. If they soil their pull-up and it produces a messy situation we will contact you to come to the school to change the child's pull-up and clean up the child. We do not change diapers/pull-ups. We will give your child the opportunity to use the potty a few times throughout the day and coach them in the potty while they are still learning. We do not wipe children but can assist them with pants up and down if needed. Please reach out with any questions by emailing: hello@wasatchnatureschool.org
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