What does a day at Scugog Nature School look like?
Every day at Scugog Nature School will bring new experiences and look different from the last. Weekly themes and a basic schedule will help guide each day’s learning.
Group size will be a maximum of 16 (ages 4-8) or 20 (ages 9-13) students with two qualified educators. Each day will start and end with circle time to set intentions and reflect on learnings. A sample “schedule” may be as follows:
| 8:30am – 9:00am | Drop off |
| 9:00am – 9:30am | Opening Circle and theme introduction |
| 9:30am – 12:00pm* | Theme-related programming (games, experiments, guided activities, etc.) |
| 12:00pm – 1:00pm | Lunch |
| 1:00pm – 3:00pm* | Theme-related Adventure of the Day (hiking, fort building, site exploration, etc.) |
| 3:00pm – 3:30pm | Closing Circle and reflection |
| 3:30pm – 4:00pm | Pick up |
*snack time will occur mid-way through programming blocks
Little Sprouts is a morning-only program. The schedule for Little Sprouts may be as follows:
| 9:00am – 9:30am | Gathering time and gross motor play |
| 9:30am – 9:40am | Opening Circle and theme introduction |
| 9:40am – 10:30am | Structured Activities (games, stories, songs, art, etc.) |
| 10:30am – 10:40am | Snack |
| 10:40am – 11:20am | Unstructured Play (loose-parts play, forest exploration, etc.) |
| 11:20am – 11:30am | Closing Circle and song |
Our “classroom”
We are located on over 300 spectacular acres along the shores of Lake Scugog. Our property includes cedar groves, old growth hardwood forests, a meadow and protected wetlands including a vibrant swamp and more than 1,000 feet of beautiful shoreline. It is an ideal setting for children to interact with the natural world, and although most of our time is spent outdoors, we do have a variety of indoor spaces available as needed.
“The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness”. – John Muir