CURRICULUM

 WHAT DO WE DO AT SAPLING SCHOOL?

​We learn through play and observation. We do the kind of creative hands-on experimentation that we believe all young people naturally do when encouraged and left to their own devices. 

LEARNING GOALS & ACTIVITIES:

SOCIAL/ EMOTIONAL:

• Become more awake in our bodies through grounding into the natural world. For example, we pause throughout the day to put on our “listening ears” and practice quietly listening. (To birdsong, the rush of the brook, the wind and other “forest music”)

• Practice tools to self-regulate emotions (pausing, breathing, being observant, etc.)

• Learn to navigate differences and conflict with others

• Develop relationships with the more-than human world
  
  

NATURAL SCIENCE & HISTORY:

• Plants: Study plant ecology using multi-sensory exploration–sight, smell, feel etc. Identification: learn to confidently identify one wild plant each day.

• Water: Learn about the water cycle and stream ecology​

• Geology: Learn about Earth's history, and how we can read that history through rocks. 

 ART  

• Do drawing and writing to reflect what we learn and experience

• Make natural inks from wild plants, and do textile design by making natural dyes 

• Do botanical illustration with plants in the meadow, play with clay and paint

• Make land art (Ex: sculptures, ephemeral installations, fairy houses) ​

FOOD & COOKING

• Harvest fresh food from garden to cook (ex: favorites include quiche, fresh ice cream)

• Study food webs and how wild animals engage in seed dispersal 

• Learn about why plants make the phytochemicals that we enjoy as herbs and spices