Early Childhood Education
Our Early Childhood Education Programs
Our early childhood enrichment programs at Johnson Nature Center provide young children with place-based learning opportunities to cultivate a love of nature and agriculture while creating a safe place to grow resilience and connections within their world.
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To provide opportunities that naturally spark a deeper sense of wonderment and appreciation towards systems of the natural world.
To promote the joys of learning through play that fosters inquiry and discovery.
To strengthen social-emotional skills by providing opportunities to assess and manage risk to build a growth mindset and confidence.
To nourish cognitive development by engaging children in design thinking and experimentation, resulting in creative ideas and solutions that revise their understanding of the workings of the world around them.
To create a community that invites children to make meaningful impacts in their local community, taking responsible actions to honor, preserve, and sustain our natural and agricultural resources.
Check back for updates as we continue to GROW!
You, Me & the Trees
Ages 2-3 years old with an adult chaperone
Parents and caregivers are invited to explore the outdoors with their toddlers and observe the many ways nature can help us learn. Children 2-3 years old will have the opportunity to embrace the wonders of nature through their senses and engage in unique learning experiences.
TreeSchool
Ages 3-4 years old (drop-off)
Every child deserves a “happy place” to gain independence, make friends, develop unique skills and interests, and learn to contribute to a community. TreeSchool, our drop-off early childhood program, provides children with such a place. With 40 acres of forest, pond, and prairie to explore, children develop lifelong skills through meaningful play and project-based learning experiences.
TreeSchool Workshop
Ages 3-4 years old with an adult chaperone
The best happy places are ones that are shared. In TreeSchool Workshop, caregivers will join students on their nature-based learning journey while learning about the impacts of connecting children to the outdoors. Join us to build a toolkit of knowledge for how to adopt these practices in your everyday life.
BHS Developmental Kindergarten
Integrated field-based learning experiences
BHS Developmental Kindergarten classes alternate visits between Bowers School Farm & Johnson Nature Center with the aim of integrating agricultural experiences and nature-based learning into the curriculum, sparking discovery and joy for exploration and learning in the outdoors.