Play

Play is THE most important activity for any child. It is self expression, it encourages development of the child’s senses through experiences with its own body. This helps the child gain deeper knowledge of any material or tool, it offers social engagement and emotional growth. It activates the brain and imagination to foster creative forces and shape thoughts, and to understand cause and effect. Unstructured and free play is the most essential way a child can learn and get to know him/herself and the world. Play is for the child what work is for the adult.

At “Kinder-Woods” a space for play is offered and initiated by the adult and fostered every day for a good part of the program. It is a foundation for all our activities.

Rhythm and Rest

Rhythm shapes our day. I guide children through a rhythmic morning of activity and rest -- an inhale and exhale. We start the day with a greeting circle and acknowledgement of everyone present, then we spend time outside feeding animals, doing outdoor chores, and just socializing. This leads  into active play activities. After one and a half hours we gather to have a snack and a break from activity. Refreshed, we continue playing or engaging in a building project if the weather allows. Otherwise we take shelter in the tipi and play there or concentrate on a craft activity. Then we bless our meal and eat our lunch. A story will close the day before departing for home. This cycle repeats each day and knowing the sequence provides the child with a sense of security and certainty, and helps him/her  to feel safe and emotionally secure. Rhythm carries the child and keeps anxiety at bay and fosters a feeling for time. Similarly the rhythm of the year is experienced, as we live with the weather and temperature changes, songs, activities, crafts and stories adapted to the seasons. If the child stays for more than one year, it will experience this yearly rhythm and remember the inner pictures and moods emotionally, allowing for a coherent experience of time and familiarity. 

Learn

Learning happens at every minute for children: While throwing a ball (large motor movement and balance), listening to a story (language, imagination), discussing things with a friend (social, verbal), making a yarn doll (fine motor, conceptualization), while taking a walk in the woods (balance, endurance, plant names). When a child is guided to actively engage, curiosity and imagination are stimulated. And when he/she feels safe with his/her friends, he/she will automatically learn and absorb everything around it. I foster learning through active engagement with the child, deep interest, and individual tasks the teacher deems helpful for development of each child. I also acknowledge that as a teacher I learn alongside the children as I am deeply interested in their personality and inner growth.

Nature

The experience of Nature around us carries something deeply healing. It provides the feeling of belonging to something bigger and eternally stronger than our own being. We can let go of limitations and emotional tension and are carried by wind, rain, sun, water, and the soil, which teaches us permanence. The trees protect and carry and nurture our souls with sound and greenery and allow us to build shelters. It is calming to be outdoors and the seasons give us the experience of time and change, and can establish trust in our life-sustaining earth.  For children it can provide reprieve from stress and offer learning experiences through developing resilience. As per Richard Louv (author of :”Last child in the woods”): “Direct exposure to nature is essential for physical and emotional health and can improve all children’s cognitive abilities and resistance to negative stresses and depression.” And: “Children need nature for the healthy development of their senses, and therefore, for learning and creativity”.

Movement

Movement is a sign of life. In nature most things move: the water, trees, air, the light, animals, and plants. This movement inspires the child to move, and he/she will more easily be able to stay in touch with their emotions through this external movement.. Through games and stories filled with movement and rhymes, as well as circle time filled with images, the children are guided to move their body in imitation of the pictures of  the story. The child is activated to express the emotions of the story and gain a more complete feeling for its body and thus him/herself.  Equally, physical development is fostered. Richard Louv says that studies in Sweden and Norway show that “Over a year’s time, the children who played in natural areas tested better for motor fitness, especially in balance and agility.”

Nutrition

Nutrition is often a challenge for children: to find the right food and allow different tastes to be taken in. I provide healthy natural (mainly organic) snacks such as nuts (if not allergic), fruits, or raw vegetables. I will also consider and adjust for allergies or preferences. A packed snack should be brought into the sessions for our snack time. Meals happen at the same time each day and are part of the rhythmical arrangement of the morning. The teacher will gladly give advice on healthy nutrition. In the (future) Kindergarten the children will be part of snack preparation and can thus build a connection to the food being prepared. Parents are often surprised to hear that a child eats a food with gusto at school that it previously refused, if he/she was able to partake in its preparation. 

Craft

Craft projects are offered not just to create beautiful items, but for many educational reasons. The child develops fine motor skills, persistence and patience with oneself and the material, learns general life skills, and encounters different materials found in nature (wood, cotton, clay, hemp, etc), from animals (wool, wax, silk). The experience of the qualities of the different materials helps it understand the world more deeply. It also lays a foundation to any work with, or use of the hands and fosters creativity and confidence in the world. 

Art

Art appears in every part of our program. Drawing with warming wax crayons, immersing the child in the experience of a color during watercolor painting or listening to or creating a story told by the teacher or played out by a child with figures are all tools to foster imagination. I create a peaceful space where any “piece of art” is cherished. I strive to exemplify this by arranging our shelter/house in a beautiful way, with deep attention to detail.

Music

Music: Circle time in the morning starts and ends with a song, which increases over time in complexity. It lays a foundation for a rhythmic feeling for music and allows a child to join at his/her ability and to develop an ear for the pitch of their own voice. The singing voice of the teacher is purposefully gentle and high to match the voice range of the children. Songs are often used to introduce transitions in activity. Music also accompanies storytelling and certain group games.

My goal is to establish a safe play space for children in the Northern Berkshires in a mature forest open to the young children, families and members of Kinder-woods