Learning Through Play & Exploration
Questions? At K.I.N. Outdoor Learning Centre, nature is the core of the curriculum. There is extensive daily outdoor time over the course of the year, and teachers implement high-quality early childhood practices as well as high-quality environmental education practices.
K.I.N. Outdoor Learning Centre is a licensed early childhood program for 3-5 year olds where at least 90% of the class day is held outside on our private forest property and nature is infused into all aspects of the program. Our program emphasizes inquiry-based learning through play and hands-on discovery; this means the curriculum is emergent (i.e., based on children’s interests), and experiences are typically rooted in the seasonal happenings of the natural world. Additionally, nature is integrated into the indoor spaces, and the play areas have an overall appearance of a natural area rather than structured play equipment. Research has tracked the benefits of integrating nature with education. This ongoing research shows that spending time outside supports children’s developmental, cognitive, emotional, physical and social growth in unique ways that a highly structured indoor classroom cannot provide!
“Let Nature be your facilitator.”
William Wordsworth