Give your kid one day a week to relax, connect, and play in nature
The Forest School group brings together 6-8 children to play in nature one day a week. Kids get wide-open free play, with lots of opportunities for physical activity, mindfulness, learning, and friendship. A teacher guides the group and help the children build confidence, leadership skills, and a respect and love for nature.
Registration is open for the May-June session!
For kids age 0-6
For children age 0 to 2, a parent or other adult must attend with the child.
For older children, you can choose to drop off your child or attend with them.
Meeting in public parks in the Salaberry-de-Valleyfield region
Usually at Parc Des Îles de St-Timothé.
We may also gather at Parc de l’Île-des-Patriotes and Parc O Ti-Bois Vert.
Fridays 10am to 1pm
May 15 – June 19 (6 weeks)
If a class is cancelled for weather or teacher’s illness, there will be a make-up class in July.
“Fridays?? My kid can’t go on Fridays, they’re in school!”
Yep, so is mine! Forest school is great for homeschooled kids… but kids in school can particpate too. Here’s how.
- Attend on Petagogical Days only.
- Mark your child absent from school to attend sessions occassionally.
- Speak to your teacher to get permission for your child to attend the session regularly. (This is possible! Reach out to me if you would like support or a draft letter as you advocate for your child’s forest school attendance.)
- Organize a Forest School Day for your child’s class. Valleyfield Joue Dehors offers forest school sessions for traditional school classes. Reach out to me to organize one for your child and their classmates.
“Cleoniki offre un des rares espaces où les enfants un lieu d’autonomie et une myriade d’opportunité d’exploration en nature. Son respect et sa bienveillance sont remarquables, tant envers les enfants qu’envers la nature.
Une maman
Merci pour ce que tu fais.”
“Our son really loved all his forest school adventures! Even at just two years old I was so happy to see him so curious, and Cleo provided a great environment to learn and explore through nature.”
A Mom
A day in the woods, forest school style
9:45-10:00 – Arrival – The children arrive and we play near the drop-off spot
10:00 – Morning Circle – The children decide together what to do this morning
10:30-12:30 – Free Play
12:30-1:00 – Lunch – We have a picnic outside
1:00-1:15 – Pick Up – Pick up time while we play near the pick-up spot
Result: A calm, happy, capable (and tired!) kid
You want your kid to have good friends, good sleep, love for nature, happy playtime (and less time bouncing off the walls!). Forest play gives your child the freedom, fresh air, and community they need to thrive.
What do kids do at forest school?
- Climb trees
- Play with sticks
- Hike
- Meet animals
- Build with sticks or snow
- Imaginary play
- Mud or snow cooking
- Races and tag
- Read books
- Write or draw in mud or snow
- Play with ropes or knots
- Find insects
FAQs
Isn’t this kind of play risky?
The forest school philosophy embraces reasonable risk. Every risk that children take is carefully assessed to make sure that the benefits of that activity are worth the small risk involved. That means that yes, children may get scrapes or bruises, but injuries are extremely rare. Benefits to risky activity include building confidence, learning new physical skills, learning how to keep themselves safe, and more.
Are you really outside all day?
In most cases, yes. If it’s very cold or wet, we may find an indoor spot to take breaks during the day. But we’re usually outside the whole time! It’s just like camping.
Does it get canceled for bad weather?
Forest school is canceled in the case of extreme heat, extreme cold, thunderstorms, or other severe weather. Basically, if it would be physically dangerous to be outside. But we’re out there in rain or snow – those aren’t dangerous, they’re fun!
Shouldn’t there be snack time in the schedule too?
Kids are allowed to eat whenever they like throughout the day. Since the kids are exercising more than usual, they may want to eat more frequently too. We recommend that families pack more food than they usually work for a school day!
What does free play mean?
For almost the whole day, children are free to play however they want. We agree as a group on certain limits for safety, and then the kids can do whatever they want! Children are never forced to participate in certain activities or to do things as a group if they don’t want to. The adults follow the kids, not the other way around.
How do you work learning or mindfullness into the day?
Learning happens nonstop at forest school! As children encounter animals or plants they’re curious about, we help them learn more about them. Children learn about math and physics as they climb or build in the forest. We talk often about ecosystems, water cycles, and other phenomena we encounter. Children are curious and love learning, so we guide them to learn as much as they’d like about the natural world we explore. Every forest school day also includes moments where we encourage the kids to quietly listen or look at the forest. By exploring their senses with activities and suggestions, we teach children how to slow down and observe. This is the foundation of mindfulness and meditation, and very beneficial to kids’ mental health.
Ready to join us?
To sign up, simply:
- Fill out the registration form by selecting a button below
- Send your payment via Interac e-transfer to valleyfieldjouedehors @ gmail.com (pricing options below)
You will receive the detailed parent info packet when you register.
Pricing Options
I am committed to making Valleyfield Joue Dehors as accessible as I possibly can, because I believe in the importance of giving every child time to play in nature. Contact me if you need a sliding scale payment option.
There is a 10% discount for registering 2 siblings and a 20% discount for registering 3 or more siblings.
You will receive an RL-24 to deduct these expenses as childcare expenses.
Full Session
Parent Accompanying
$80
per 6-week program
This is the option for you if a parent or other adult will attend with your child. This assumes that you will handle some of the care of your child during the program.
Drop Off
$150
per 6-week program
This is the option for you if you will drop your child off to attend the program without you.
Community Supporter
$220
per 6-week program
This option is for families that want to support the forest school. The extra funding given here is what allows me to offer a discount to families that need it. These extra funds will also be used to bring in speakers, especially Indigenous speakers, to the group.
Per Day
If you would like to register for individual days instead of for the entire 7-week winter program, this is the pricing. You will be able to indicate which days you want to register for on the registration form.
Parent Accompanying
$16
per day
This is the option for you if a parent or other adult will attend with your child. This assumes that you will handle some of the care of your child during the program.
Drop Off
$30
per day
This is the option for you if you will drop your child off to attend the program without you.