Kindergarten Programs
Home Sweet HomeTeachers! Are you looking for creative ways to engage your Kindergarten students in active, play-based outdoor learning? Experience the beauty of Huron Natural Area. Explore and learn with us! This program is taught by OCT or ECE certified teachers with a passion for outdoor experiential learning and experience in a forest school setting.
Each "Home Sweet Home" Kindergarten program will be two hours in length, and will include:
Because our funding is through the City of Kitchener, priority is given to Kitchener schools. Questions? Contact us for more information. Kindergarten In NatureWe offer a more "immersion" type of experience called Kindergarten in Nature, where we partner Kindergarten classes with a natural area near their school. We have worked with 18 different Kitchener schools in this program so far, and we'd love to work with yours!
This 3-session program is a nature immersion program that is intended to develop a deeper connection to the land than what can be experienced in a two-hour field trip once a year. Our forest school teachers seek to mentor Kindergarten teachers in fostering a relationship to nature that is ongoing, throughout the school year. Contact us for further details. |
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Teacher Testimonials
The “Home Sweet Home” program is hosted by incredibly inspiring and knowledgeable educators at the Huron Natural Area. When we visited with our children, they drew them into nature through hands on explorations and embedded information and language to teach the children so naturally through their interactions. Our experience allowed for the children to build a connection with nature that we could further foster and extend upon returning to school. The passion behind this program makes it a memorable and important experience for all children and educators!
Tracy Sims, Kindergarten Teacher, WRDSB
Our Kindergarten class has taken part in the “Home Sweet Home” program for a couple of years now and we have always been very impressed with the program. The staff provided a highly engaging program for our students that focused on their interests and abilities relating to our Kindergarten curriculum. We loved all of the outdoor experiences the students had in the creative playscape, on our nature walks, in the field study and in the classroom. The staff members were always friendly and informative and the resources the program offered were a great extension of learning. It is by far our favourite field trip each year!
Jenn Barnes, Kindergarten Teacher, WRDSB
The “Home Sweet Home” program was one of the best trips I have ever taken a class on. The students loved exploring the forest and pond and outdoor natural play centre. They learned many things and then were able to apply their knowledge in the outdoors. At one point, 26 early learning students were laying down on their bellies on the bridge quietly looking for pond life, so excited about learning. As a teacher, I will never forget that moment. I would highly recommend this trip and would LOVE to do it every year.
Kate Kuntz, Kindergarten Teacher, WCDSB
I have brought Kindergarten classes to Huron Natural Area three years in a row for the wonderful environmental education experience you provide. My ECE partners and I are grateful for the joyful way you share your passion and knowledge about nature. It is so important for our students to have both a tangible and emotional connection to the natural world to fuel their innate curiosity and to learn to be good stewards of our planet. Your lessons are always respectful of the developmental level of our young students, with the perfect blend of movement, hands-on discovery and listening to learn new concepts and vocabulary in ways that are engaging and memorable. When we return to school, there are always new inquiries to follow that have been inspired by student observations from our guided visit to the forest and pond. I can't wait for our visit next year!
Jenny Soehner, Kindergarten Teacher, WRDSB
Tracy Sims, Kindergarten Teacher, WRDSB
Our Kindergarten class has taken part in the “Home Sweet Home” program for a couple of years now and we have always been very impressed with the program. The staff provided a highly engaging program for our students that focused on their interests and abilities relating to our Kindergarten curriculum. We loved all of the outdoor experiences the students had in the creative playscape, on our nature walks, in the field study and in the classroom. The staff members were always friendly and informative and the resources the program offered were a great extension of learning. It is by far our favourite field trip each year!
Jenn Barnes, Kindergarten Teacher, WRDSB
The “Home Sweet Home” program was one of the best trips I have ever taken a class on. The students loved exploring the forest and pond and outdoor natural play centre. They learned many things and then were able to apply their knowledge in the outdoors. At one point, 26 early learning students were laying down on their bellies on the bridge quietly looking for pond life, so excited about learning. As a teacher, I will never forget that moment. I would highly recommend this trip and would LOVE to do it every year.
Kate Kuntz, Kindergarten Teacher, WCDSB
I have brought Kindergarten classes to Huron Natural Area three years in a row for the wonderful environmental education experience you provide. My ECE partners and I are grateful for the joyful way you share your passion and knowledge about nature. It is so important for our students to have both a tangible and emotional connection to the natural world to fuel their innate curiosity and to learn to be good stewards of our planet. Your lessons are always respectful of the developmental level of our young students, with the perfect blend of movement, hands-on discovery and listening to learn new concepts and vocabulary in ways that are engaging and memorable. When we return to school, there are always new inquiries to follow that have been inspired by student observations from our guided visit to the forest and pond. I can't wait for our visit next year!
Jenny Soehner, Kindergarten Teacher, WRDSB