Inspiring confidence, curiosity, and community through year-round education in the great outdoors.
our mission
To awaken and cultivate a deeper connection to nature and self, and to ignite a lifelong love of learning, by guiding children through place-based, child-centered education and experiences in the great outdoors.
our beginnings
Hi there, I’m Leona - founder of Roots & Wings Forest School. The journey of our school began in the fall of 2020, though it existed as an idea in my head for several years prior. Our initial Wildlings program ran for 8 weeks that fall and accepted 10 children. By the end of the session, we had 14 children on a waitlist. We continued to grow, serving 21 children in the spring, and 43 children during our first summer. By the end of 2021, our programs had reached over 100 children from the surrounding area. Recognizing the need for full day care for working families, Roots & Wings began offering full-time programs in the summer of 2022, and a full-time elementary school cohort in the fall of 2022. Our school is now open 50 hours per week and serves up to 30 children a day in our two-room schoolhouse.
our future
Currently, our small nature-based private school serves learners in preschool through grade 4. As we continue to grow, we plan to offer education for Pre-K-12 students, adding one grade per year as our oldest founding learners grow. We envision becoming a regional nature education center serving not only Pre-K-12 but also providing outdoor spaces, trails, resources, and programming for community members of all ages within ten years. We are currently beginning the process of obtaining land to build this dream. If you are interested in helping make this dream a reality, please reach out!
our philosophy
At Roots & Wings Forest School, we believe that children are intrinsically motivated to learn. Our goal is to promote learning across all developmental domains (physical, cognitive, social, and emotional) by providing a positive environment that encourages discovery and exploration of the natural world in every season. Our program is play-based and child-centered. We believe that children learn best through direct experience - and children experience the world through play! Our child-centered approach provides children with a sense of confidence, responsibility, and empowerment. We believe that by learning in and about the natural world, children will care for their environment and what happens to it. Spending time outdoors is critical to the physical, cognitive, and social development of children. We spend the majority of our school day outdoors in our forest classroom whenever possible.