This amazing offering is one of a kind in the Jacksonville area! The Spring River Community has a long and rich history of supporting outdoor education, including the founding of the only all outdoor K-8 outdoor education program in Northeast Florida.
Our Forest School mission is to instill in our students a love and reverence of our local parks and natural wonders. After all, our children are the future stewards of this beautiful earth!
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Our nature immersion program is rooted in the Forest School traditions of North Europe, focusing on experiential learning that will help build students' reverence for the natural world. With a holistic, learner-centered focus, our foresters will become invested in their education and foster a lifelong relationship with the land, their teachers and classmates, and the community.
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Our twice-a-week class will take place in local forested parks and will be led by trained and experienced outdoor educators, whose bios you can read on the Meet Our Teachers page under the Enrichment and Specials teachers section.
The Jacksonville area has many parks to explore, such as unspoiled Florida scrub hammocks, forests, wetlands, marshes, dunes, and beaches to foster nature education and connection. The long-term benefits of learning outside of nature are well-researched and documented and are the perfect complement to any homeschool program. Our classes have spent time at Timucuan Preserve, Dutton Island Preserve, and Hanna Park.
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FAQ:
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Forest School is a homeschool enrichment class for grades K-5 that meets on Wednesdays and Thursdays, split into two classes of grades K-2 and grades 3-5. Families can sign up for one day or two. Sibling exceptions will be considered.
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The Class hours are 9 am - 2 pm
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Tuition/Fees:
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Annual Commitment is $1,815 for either 1-day program
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Supply Fee: $80 for either 1-day program.
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Class ratio 1:6 with a lead and assistant teacher​
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The group will be visiting a minimum of one park each session period.
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Children should bring their own water bottle, backpack, sir spot blanket, hat, snack, and lunch.
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Any child attending will need to be mature enough to carry their own backpack and belongings
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Any child attending will need to be mature enough to stay with the group and listen to the teacher.
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"Teaching children about the natural world should be seen as one of the most important events in their lives."
-Thomas Berry
Forest School (K-5)
Nature Immersion Program
During our time in the forest, exploration of the natural world around us is our curriculum. Through direct discovery, the students will learn through firsthand experiences that engage the five senses. Observing, collecting, and categorizing natural objects, as well as other hands-on activities, help acquaint students with the natural world in general – and with our local landscapes in particular. We study Physical Geography such as weather and seasons, plant and animal identification, eco-studies, trail reading and etiquette, and navigation.
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Our foresters will follow a predictable rhythm, including circle time, nature hike/exploration, silent snack time to foster quiet observation, nature journaling with study observations, outdoor artistic or skill work activity, lunch, and nature-infused storytime.
Drop off & Free Play​
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Morning circle, verse, movement, and nature study
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Hike
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Silent sit spot/snack
Free Play
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Hike
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Lunch
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Craft/handwork
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Journal
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Story/closing Circle
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Forest Rhythm
