Forest Playschool and Adventure Club: There are only a few weeks left together in our outdoor classroom! Our last day of the 2023-2024 school year will be Thursday, May 23 for Playschool and Friday, May 24 for Sandy Adventure Club. This year has been such a huge year for us at Grateful Gatherings and we cant believe the growth and care we have seen in both inside and outside of Forest School. We want to thank our parents for the care and willingness to help our Teachers and Directors, as well as each other throughout this school year. You all have made this Forest School community so incredible and we couldn’t be more grateful. If you haven’t already heard, there will be some changes to our staff and programs next school year. We encourage you to check out our “Changes & Earth Day” email for those changes if you haven’t already.

As the Summer months approach at Playschool (ages 3-6), our mornings in class together currently feel like a celebration each day! Friendship, adventure and fun are in full swing. Each child has grown so much in their skills and abilities to take care of themselves both physically and emotionally. Their personal work and trust in themselves and others have developed so greatly over the past year and we are seeing them putting their growth and skills to the test. The kids as a whole seem to be finding their own personal favorite ways to challenge themselves in creative ways such as climbing trees, practicing their running and balancing abilities, communicating in new (and successful) ways and branching out of their comfort zones to play with new friends. Each child’s development in language and their ability to regulate themselves, identify their feelings and talk through conflict have been so incredible to watch this year. Some activities we are enjoying right now are reading stories, singing songs, spending time on our rest blanket, playing in our mud kitchen, enjoying all kinds of games (lava monster, hide-and-seek and ninjas seem to be the current favorites) and projects (fairy houses, monster truck ramps and fort building), bubbles, climbing, balancing and risk taking, identifying animal tracks and plants, and going on lots of explorations. We have recently made some planting pots together for the kids to take home to celebrate Earth Day and will also be making seed bombs for our end-of-the-year project in the weeks to come. Our newest Adventure Club Program in Sandy (ages 6-10) began March 15th and has quickly become a hit! We are so happy to have had the opportunity to start a program for some of our older Sandy students and it seems to be growing just as quickly as Playschool has! There have been a few important changes to our current older kid programs in order to make it more affordable to our local families and work better with the changing seasons. If you are interested, we encourage you to check out these changes on our Programs page. We are looking forward to enjoying our last few weeks together as a class for the ‘23-’24 year and can’t wait for Summer Camp and all of the exciting changes next school year is sure to bring!

WHAT WE ARE LEARNING: At this point in the year, it’s not so much about learning new things as much it is about putting into play what we have been practicing throughout the past school year. We are enjoying the warmth and bright sunny days, as well as the beautiful blooming flowers and bugs that are starting to show up in our outdoor classroom! The kids are doing so well at taking care of their belongings, listening to their bodies, and Playing Safe, Playing Fair and Having Fun. We continue to practice these three agreements, as well as staying “coyote close” when at camp or out on explorations, listening to each other, stating personal boundaries and working together on conflict resolution. Teachers are finding less and less need to step in for help, and we are so thrilled to see such huge improvement in these areas. As always, our teachers days are filled with exploring with the kids and making sure everyone is safe and fair with their play. We continue to practice teamwork and encourage personal empowerment with the kids in all that we do. We support them in figuring out how to do things for themselves. When a child does choose to practice doing things without help, we give lots of positive feedback. We continue to guide all of our play back to our Three Agreements (Play Safe, Play Fair, Have Fun) and what they mean.

* We will be sending out a personal update about each child as the end of the school year approaches. Be sure to check your email in the upcoming weeks for those updates.

Summer Camp & ‘24-’25 School Year: If you haven’t already, be sure to enroll or email us and secure your child’s spot for camp and next school year! We have a couple spaces left in our Sandy Camp (ages 3-10) on July 1st, 3rd and 5th and have a few spaces left each day of our Millcreek Camp (ages 6-10).

UPCOMING CLOSURES:

*Last Day for Playschool: May 23rd (The Thursday before Memorial day weekend)

*Last Day for Adventure Club: May 24th (The Friday before Memorial day weekend)

NEW IN 2024: a new school year will bring new programs and nature-play classes along with it! For our 2024-2025 school year, we are ENROLLING for these new classes and spaces go fast, so sign up on our website when you get the chance! Apart from our current Playschool and Adventure Club programs, here is what you can expect from Grateful Gatherings this year:

  • Nature Play Family Weekend Classes (Beginning in Fall 2024, one Saturday a month, Grateful Gatherings will host parent workshops, as well as family nature-play days for local families. For all ages.)

*To learn more about these programs, or to sign up, visit our programs page on our website.

*BOOK OF THE MONTH:

Kids Book: Llama Destroys the World by Jonathan Stutzman (a class favorite)

Adults Book: Atlas of the Heart by Berne Brown

If you have a book you’d like to recommend, please send us a message through Brightwheel!

Here’s whats new at

GRATEFUL GATHERING FOREST SCHOOL

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Forest Playschool?

Originated in Denmark, Forest Kindergartens (or preschools) are a type of education for children between the ages of three and six that is held almost exclusively outdoors. Now adopted and getting more popular in the US, Forest Schools are becoming an incredible child development tool for children of all ages. Grateful Gathering Forest School adopted the Playschool value system because we believe that the best and only true way for a child to practice everyday life skills with passion and curiosity is through play. And we believe the best teacher and playground for that learning is in nature. Our curriculum focuses on interest-led nature exploration, PLAY, and daily discoveries. We engage with our natural world and foster an environment for children to be empowered, develop life skills, friendships, and explore their creativity, while developing confidence and an innate interest in learning about themselves and the world around them.

What can I expect from school everyday?

Grateful Gatherings Forest School’s low teacher to student ratio (4:1 for ages 3-6 and 6:1 for ages 6-10) and our child-led approach to learning allows for every child to show up to school each day just as they are, with teachers able to take care of their individual needs and feelings. We begin each day with a “hello circle” of some kind where we tune into our bodies, talk about the weather for the day and what that means for our clothing (removing layers, feeling too hot/cold, etc.), go over our affirmations and agreements, and sing a song together. The rest of the day is unstructured free-play and in the moment learning about ourselves and our feelings, the natural world around us, and how to build and foster relationships with others. Each class includes: seasonal nature-based learning, unstructured exploration and play, songs & stories, team-building games, food and water to nourish our bodies, mindful practices, problem solving, creativity, skill building, and lots of friendships and fun!

Where is pick-up and drop-off?

We use multiple nature spots throughout Sandy based on season. Pick-up and drop-off will be in the parking lot of the location we are meeting at for the day. Location is seasonal based on sunlight. Teachers will message about location change for any reason.

How do we handle snacks and potty breaks?

Grateful Gatherings is an outdoor program. Depending on where we are at, we wont always have access to public restrooms. We ask that parents help their children get comfortable going to the bathroom outside before they begin our program. We do request parents pack an extra pair for clothing in case of an accident. One teacher will always be close by in case they are needed, and we always carry hand sanitizer for after a potty break. We allow kids to go to go to the bathroom and eat at their food on their own terms (we do ask everyone every day if they need to go to the bathroom and make sure every child has sat down to eat) and actively promote listening to their bodies every day at school.

What do we do in inclement weather or low air-quality days?

Safety is our main priority with the kids, and is a staple in what we teach at school. Because we are a 100% outdoor program, if the weather is unsafe for the children to be outside for extended periods of time, we will have to close for the day. We do not refund if we have to cancel for the day. Make up days are available, but up to the family to schedule.

How can I set my child up for success?

Before joining our program, a lot of parents ask us what they can do to help their child get ready for Forest School. What a great question to ask! We believe the best way to prepare them and make them feel confident in this exciting step is to show them what they will be doing! We ask parents to take them to the places they will be playing in and go for a hike and explore with them! Familiarize them with our website and our social media page and show them some of the activities we do. Practice going to the bathroom outside. Talk to them about what they can expect and what they might be feeling about it. Doing these things with your child will help make him/her more readily able to make that transition, and feel confident in their new outdoor environment!