What is a Nature Based Preschool?

Nature based learning recognizes the benefits of nature in promoting whole-child development and environmental literacy and therefore places nature at the heart of the curriculum. Learning opportunities are place-based, seasonal, and authentic experiences that emerge from children’s interactions and evolving relationships with the natural world. To maximize the benefits of interacting with nature, most of each day is spent outdoors engaged in inquiry-based learning through play and hands on discovery.

Nature based learning promotes emergent and experiential learning, providing children-initiated, play-based experiences, outdoors, that lead to individualized learning. Direct teacher instruction is limited as the teacher’s role is to be a guide and a co-learner following children’s natural curiosity.

Nature based learning sees all children as capable members of the learning community who have valuable and unique contributions and are worthy of respect. This mindset fosters children’s healthy development and is critical for building children’s long-term confidence in their ability to make changes in their world.

• Whole-child development focuses on developing a child’s physical, social-emotional, spiritual, and cognitive development.

• Environmental literacy focuses on developing knowledge of the environment and includes caring about people, the environment, and having the motivation and ability to do things to keep the planet healthy for everyone. The environmental literacy includes:

  • Skills in asking questions, defending ideas, making observations, and problem solving

  • Knowledge of plants, animals, local ecosystems, natural resources, and familiarity with environmental issues relevant to children