1st-5th Grade Preschool Kindergarten Marine Life Summer Camp
Let's learn the nature school way!
Fall-Spring 8:30-3pm
Summer Camp 9-3pm
Let's learn the nature school way!
Fall-Spring 8:30-3pm
Summer Camp 9-3pm
Wild Child is a year-round outdoor nature camp for children who are enrolled in a charter school, are homeschooled, or are in preschool & kindergarten.
Drop off ONLY 8:30-3pm
Join us year round, rain or shine!
Located at public parks around Mission Bay or around East County.
Come join us in the sun and the water for a summer full of fun! Ages 3-10 and enrolling now.
Our Day Camp moves to different playgrounds with trail access each day. The students each bring a little backpack with a water bottle & lunch inside. Learning and play is done both on the trail and at the playground.
Our classes are lead by dedicated and experienced educators. Using proven teaching strategies, we make sure that every student feels seen, supported, and cared for. Our teachers are experienced in outdoor exploration and learning. From early child care through kindergarten, your little one will feel at home in our nature school.
Nature schools or Forest Schools originated in Europe. They facilitate learning through experiencing the natural world. The idea has gained quite a bit of traction in the U.S. and nature schools have been seen popping up all over the country. Our nature school moves to different locations each day. Rain or shine, our students come to sch
Nature schools or Forest Schools originated in Europe. They facilitate learning through experiencing the natural world. The idea has gained quite a bit of traction in the U.S. and nature schools have been seen popping up all over the country. Our nature school moves to different locations each day. Rain or shine, our students come to school prepared for the day's weather. We learn about life through experiencing the world around us and applying this to academic areas.
Our goal is to make your child feel safe and cared for while they learn through play and our age appropriate lessons. We are not just child care facilitators, we are teachers in every aspect. The lessons at our nature school are directed through the curiosity of the students. We utilize the nature around us as well as Montessori and Wald
Our goal is to make your child feel safe and cared for while they learn through play and our age appropriate lessons. We are not just child care facilitators, we are teachers in every aspect. The lessons at our nature school are directed through the curiosity of the students. We utilize the nature around us as well as Montessori and Waldorf teaching strategies for math, letters, reading, science, emotional/social development, and creating art. We strive to stimulate our students at the level each individual is ready for.
During the warm weather months, we can be found at parks within Mission Bay. Our kiddos wear life jackets in the water and learn about sea life on the shore. In the cooler months, we can be found at parks with trail access in areas such as North Clairemont, Clairemont, Bay-ho, Balboa Park, Pacific Beach, South Park, Mission Trails, and Mission Valley.
We believe the best way to teach students is to provide one on one attention. To facilitate this we keep our classroom ratios small, but yet large enough to foster friendships and lifelong connections. Our teacher to student ratio is 1:5. We have the capacity to have 10 students with us. Our group is mixed age.
We follow California State Standards for teaching kindergarten without any standardized tests. We believe teaching these standards can be done through play and through inquiry led by the children. Our teaching style is heavily influenced by the Reggio Emilia approach as we strive to foster the innate curiosity of the students. Our curriculum prepares students to begin their reading journey through listening to stories, discovering the alphabet, and practicing phonetics all within a natural setting. We teach math that is appropriate to age and utilize proven strategies to support learning. Much of our focus is on social and emotional development of the child. We cultivate grit and growth mindset in our students so they feel adept to tackle any situation. We also teach beginner Spanish and Piano!
If your family has a love of nature, the outdoors, and doesn't mind muddy shoes or wet rain jackets, we are the nature school for you! We encourage risky play and allow our students to test their boundaries. If a student is ready to try climbing a tree, we will be there with our arms outstretched ready to support them if they need it. Children usually know what feels safe and what doesn't. We are here to encourage their exploration of the world and be there as a safety net. Coming home with a scraped knee or a stubbed finger is not unusual, just like when you're with your family at the park or your backyard. Our teachers are trained in first aid, CPR, and emergency situation protocols. We will be swimming at the bay in the summer months. Students are required to wear life jackets when we go swimming.
Please reach us at if you cannot find an answer to your question.
We do not facilitate nap time.
We operate in a whole group setting. This means the children learn from their older peers and also from teaching and helping the younger students. Our group of learners is small enough that each child has the opportunity to work at their own level within our larger group. There may be times where the older children get to do an activity that is separate from the younger ones, but usually all students will be included at their own capability level.
Since we operate as a whole group, all of the teachers will be your child's teacher!
Our class is in session even if it rains! We believe there is no such thing as bad weather in San Diego. There is only inadequate clothing for the weather. The teachers will do their best to remind parents when to bring rain wear, but please check the weather app when preparing your child for school.
We have a small camping toilet that folds and comes with us wherever we go, but we also have access to the parks public bathrooms. If the class is out on a nature walk, our teachers are prepared to handle business "the nature way" or with the use of the foldable toilet behind some screening foliage.
Yes! It depends on the day and the temperature outside, but there will be days where the children have time to play in the water. There will be other days where they play only in the sand or in the large grassy area beneath the trees. Please pack a swimsuit and towel just in case!
The teachers bring foldable desks and chairs to our location everyday for the students to work comfortably. The children will be able to decide if they would rather work on the grass or at a table. Just like in a traditional classroom, the students will participate in California Common Core designed lessons, but unlike the traditional classroom, lessons will be focused on each students personal interests and progress. The older students will be working on writing, reading, math, social studies, and science. Younger students who are ready for more will be challenged according to their individual progress. All students will learn through music, play, and games designed to facilitate learning. Our school practices can be compared to Montessori and Waldorf style learning. Sometimes we may be practicing ABC's in a composition notebook and other times we might be using a stick to write in the mud. Likewise math might be using rocks or flowers we find or it might be practicing written equations.
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