Nature Buddies

Mondays from 1-3

Southern New Milford, CT

8 weeks beginning September 21, through November 9

Making Connections For: all ages along with their caregiver (not a drop off program)

For our fifth Nature Buddies season, our tried-and-true rhythm of open play, exploration and curiosity-led days, sprinkled with guided adventures will stay the same! (see below for original program description.) All ages are welcome to participate as usual.

With that being said, we are excited to offer something new for our seasoned adventurers! Expedition Packs are DIY kits for our older, experienced explorers who are interested and ready to take on self-guided challenges. While always welcome to stay with our core group and wherever our interests lead us for the day, these tools and tasks are designed for independent work to keep the tweens & teens engaged in our community.

Exploration topics will include trailblazing and trail rating, creek bio-assessment, fishing derby tracking, weather tracking, "leading littles" Nature Buddies assistants, whittling and “survival challenges" like shelter building. Each week, tweens & teens will have the option to pull a kit of their choice from the basket and head out with their own group walkie-talkie to stay connected, while the rest of the group does our regular Nature Buddies thing. The Expedition Packs are a way to offer the older, more seasoned nature enthusiasts something a little more independent (caregivers still stay and hang with other grownups:)

If you've loved Nature Buddies before, not much (if anything!) will change for you! If you've been hoping your older kiddo would be more enthusiastically participatory or you've never joined because you weren't sure if your tween/teen was "too old," here's their chance to try something new!

Participants in this program partake in outdoor experiential learning opportunities with a balanced mix of guided lessons and open exploration. Caregivers stay on the premises and engage with their child and other grownups to build a community of like-minded nature-loving families.

The goal of these classes, aside from cultivating a love of the great outdoors, is to help children build social emotional resiliency, social skills, group bonding, emotional regulation and self confidence through a mix of organized collaborative learning and unstructured exploration and play. These are far from a “sit and listen” type of class; families can feel free to participate in whatever way works best for them to get the most benefit of our time together. Caregivers should plan to learn and play alongside their child while experiencing all the benefits nature has to offer. 

The benefits of multi-age socialization are plentiful. The seasoned explorers tend to be leaders for the younger ones, giving them confidence and a sense of responsibility, and it helps the younger children to experience the lessons naturally illuminated by their older peers. I’ve observed great self-confidence and positivity in children who play and explore alongside one another in a mixed-age group.