On a recent trip to Colorado we were invited to join Worldmind Nature Immersion School for a session of their Child-Caregiver Forest School at Chatfield Botanical Gardens in Denver. They hold child-caregiver groups for children 0-8, ecological awareness drop off classes for children 4-10, as well as family camping trips seasonally. Aside from this location they also have locations in the Denver Metro, Sand Creek, Morrison, and Boulder. All of the sessions take place in public parks, green ways, and open spaces. Megan Patterson, the creator and director of Worldmind, was the facilitator for our session at Chatfield. Megan has teaching experience across many different environments and holds a teaching licence in the state of Colorado. She also has a serious passion for getting children and families outdoors. After much research about forest school and learning outdoors Megan decided to open Worldmind Nature Immersion School.

As families started to arrive the children were given 20-30 minutes of free exploration during which Megan had some instruments and binoculars and magnifying glasses for the children to use. Once everyone arrived we started the morning by gathering in the grass and then venturing out so they children could examine their plants. At the beginning of the session each child chose a plant that they observe each week to look for changes. As the children slowly returned to the gathering area there was lots of chatter about how the weather had changed their plants after a recent rain.  Megan then read a book about Aspen trees and asked the children to keep their eyes open for them once we went out on our hike. As the children began to wiggle Megan transitioned into some yoga, asking the children their input on which poses they would like to do that day.

Once everyone was feeling calm and focused from the yoga we split into groups of 3-4 children to do a science experiment. As part of the curriculum at Worldmind, Megan makes a point to include some S.T.E.M. learning into each session. On this morning the children were given cups of kool aid, apple cider vinegar, water, clear soda, and baking soda. We took turns looking and smelling the different liquids and talked about what we thought might happen when we added the baking soda. The children were captivated and surprised to see some had no bubbles, some had small bubbles, and some erupted in bubbles spilling over the top of the cup. After the eruptions finished our group decided to mix all the liquids together and then decided it smelled just like raspberry candy!

After the children helped clean up the experiment we packed up the wagon and gathered again to turn on our animal senses for our hike to the play area. Each child choose an animal and then as a group we turned our our animal eyes, ears, and nose. It was a great way to bring the child into the present moment and awaken their senses before heading into the forest. Soon it was time to go so we packed up the wagon and headed out. Watching two three year olds push and pull the heavy wagon on their own gave you a clear sense of the ownership the children feel over their experience here at Worldmind.

After a short hike we arrived at the wonderful play space at Chatfield Botanical Gardens. The area includes a tree house structure with ladders, climbing wall, and cubbies for hiding and looking out. It also has a small pond that the children can wade in, trees for climbing, a large grassy mound, and a sand area. We spent about a half hour here with the majority of parents sitting and chatting on the grassy mound while the children played and explored independently. One child slipped on a mossy rock and all the other children game over to help and comfort him, another example of the sense of community of this group.

Soon it was time to head to “The Water” which was obviously a favorite spot for the children as they had no hesitation to gather and leave the play area. After a short hike through tall grass and woods we arrived at the creek. There was a larger pool which then trickled into a small creek that was perfect for wading. Aside from the water, the area had small cubbies hiding inside the bushes, a tree that had fallen across the creek bed for climbing, and a large sandy area along the bank of the creek. Megan began to unpack her classroom on wheels, putting out shovels and buckets as well as wooden blocks with small fairy and animal figurines. The parents again were able to take a step back as the children settled into the space. Children worked together to fill and dump buckets to create sand sculptures while other waded in the water and threw rocks. Fairy houses were built, and knocked down, and built again, each time using experience from the last building to improve the design of the next.

Children took took risks, weighed consequences, showed perseverance and cooperation, all with little or no involvement of the adults. When conflicts would arise Megan would step in and use conflict resolution techniques like active listening and narrating to help the children come up with their own solutions. A great example was when two children were crossing the fallen tree, each from opposite sides. With just a simple statement from Megan “You are both crossing for different sides, I wonder what will happen when you meet in the middle.” The children talked about it and found a solution so they could both safely cross the log. Throughout the morning Megan’s dedication to making everyone successful in the outdoor classroom was clear. After an hour or so Megan gathered the group again for journal time. Each child brought their nature notebook to each session and as the session came to a close everyone would get out their notebooks, crayons, tape, and pencils and reflect on the morning. For some children this meant scribbling on the page as they told their caregivers a story, some taped leaves or flowers into their notebooks, and some practiced writing words or stories. This again gave the children a chance to quiet their bodies and minds and spend mindful moments reflecting on their morning; what they learned, experienced, and felt. It was very obvious but the quiet concentration that the children valued this time very much.

Soon everyone put away their materials and helped to pack up the wagon. On our way out we were lucky enough to see a snake sunbathing on a nearby bridge. The brave snake stuck around so most of the children got a good look at him before we made our way across the bridge and out of the forest. Chatfield is also home to a working farm which is where our trail ended. Before saying good bye the children visited the chickens, goats, pigs, and donkeys and collected a fallen apple or plum from the nearby fruit trees.

We loved spending our morning with Worldmind Nature Immersion School. Megan’s dedication to getting children and families learning outdoors was inspiring and Worldmind provided a great example of the many different ways nature schooling can be accomplished. A big thank you to Megan and Worldmind for having us, we look forward to visiting again in the future!

To learn more about Worldmind Nature Immersion School please visit their website here.

To read more about Megan’s research on forest school and the benefits of learning in nature see here.