Our nature immersion program for is children ages 1- to 5-years old and their caretakers. We come to
03/19/2020
The Spring Session of Red Door Nature Explorers (originally scheduled for March 30-May 18) will be ON HOLD until further notice. We will be watching the development of the COVID-19 response and make a decision about when and whether to meet for Spring that ensures that we keep our community as safe as possible.
If you were planning to join us for the Spring Semester, please go ahead and sign up by March 24 (next Tuesday!): https://forms.gle/n6KBnNGarJtUfBNJ6
We will keep those who were planning to join us for Spring updated through email about our adjusted schedule and any other announcements to help you get in some nature time with your family. Much love to you all! ❤️
03/14/2020
We love this new addition to our outdoor play space!
03/12/2020
Next time you’re out in nature, think of all the creatures that have traveled the path before you!
Just sit back and appreciate nature in all its wonderful diversity
03/11/2020
We’re going on a TEDDY Bear hunt. We’re going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We’re not scared!
03/09/2020
Craving an immune boost? Get in your daily dose of outdoor time with the Red Door Nature Explorers.
Presented by Toyota.
03/08/2020
Take it easy today, friends! ❤️
03/07/2020
All aboard! This may be the most kids we've had on board our Choo-choo Tree at any given time.
03/06/2020
"In fact, it is before the age of 7 years — ages traditionally known as “pre-academic” — when children desperately need to have a multitude of whole-body sensory experiences on a daily basis in order to develop strong bodies and minds. This is best done outside where the senses are fully ignited and young bodies are challenged by the uneven and unpredictable, ever-changing terrain."
Here is a new post from pediatric occupational therapist Angela Hanscom, author of a number of popular posts on this blog, including “Why so many kids can’t sit still in school today,” as well as “The right — and surprisingly wrong — ways to get kids to sit still in class” and “How s...
Research suggests that prohibiting children from engaging in , and repeatedly warning kids about the bad things that might happen if they do anything remotely dangerous, may actually increase kids' . Kids who have never climbed a tree, or whittled a stick with a knife, and who constantly hear warnings about the dangers inherent in everyday life, may be more likely to become , sometimes without even knowing why they are anxious.
A contemporary approach to the etiology of anxiety points to children developing fears of certain stimuli, such as heights and strangers, that protect them from situations they are not mature enough to cope with. Risky play is a set of motivated behaviours that both provide the child with an exhilarating positive emotion and expose the child to the stimuli they previously have feared. As the child's coping skills improve, these situations and stimuli may be mastered and no longer be feared.
School should be about more than learning mathematics and science, reading and writing. Kids also need to develop resilience and self-reliance. It’s not the end of the world if your kid cuts their finger with a knife, or scrapes their knee on tree bark, and the great majority of such injuries are easily treated, and the child is stronger for the experience.
In countries such as Germany, where attitude toward risk in kindergarten is profoundly different to that in the United States, studies by Essau et al. reported a rate of generalised anxiety disorder of less than 1% for German adolescents. In the United States, Merikangas and Swendsen report that 8.3% of American children have anxiety sufficient to cause severe impairment and/or distress.
Dr Leonard Sax, a physician and a Ph.D. psychologist who has worked with more than 400 schools, nursery schools and family or child based organisations, says these soaring rates of anxiety are connected to many schools now prohibiting any activity which might conceivably result in any injury to any child, with parents following suit.
Sax has written about the “culture of safetyism” that has infiltrated educational culture. He states, “I have been a family doctor for more than 30 years. Until roughly ten years ago, most American parents were okay if their kid scraped their knee or sprained their ankle at school. But today, if a kid sustains a minor injury at school or on the playground, parents now often swoop in like attorneys, demanding to know how the school could be so negligent.”
He advises parents to try to model the virtues we are trying to teach. Of course, a prime responsibility as parents is to keep our kids safe. If a toddler is waddling toward the street, you stop them, but be mindful in other situations where the tradeoff between risk and benefit is more nuanced.
When you are tempted to say “Don’t do that, you might get hurt!” – pause for a moment. Remember that if kids hear nothing but “don’t do that, you might get hurt”, the result may be kids who are risk-averse, fearful of the world around them, and anxious. If your 4-year-old is about to climb a tree, don’t stop them. Stand by, so that you can catch them if they fall. But let them climb.
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Red Door Nature Explorers started as a group of families who wanted to offer their young children the chance to be outside and, well, just be kids. We meet at a private homestead on 50 acres in Stamping Ground, Kentucky, and our program is geared toward children ages 1-5 years old who are accompanied by their parents or caregivers. Our time usually consists of our Opening Circle, where we sing and read a book related to the day’s theme; the day’s Nature Activity; and lots of child-led Free Play. Our families are free to roam the 50 acres, full of forests, wildflower fields, seasonal creeks, ponds and trails. We hope that by offering this time and space in the great outdoors, we can cultivate a community of children and adults alike who are comfortable in and connect around nature.
Our Values:
We are a place where those who join can have fun while finding a meaningful connection to nature.
We promote child-directed unstructured play with minimal adult intervention.
We provide a safe space to engage in risk-taking, build resiliency and stretch ourselves beyond our comfort zones.
We spend a significant time in nature in all kinds of weather.
We are committed to meeting regularly.
We are a trust-filled space where children and adults alike can be honest and vulnerable with one another.
We aim to cultivate the senses through outdoor experiences.
We value, respect and celebrate where each person is right now.
We view art and storytelling as forms of expression and reflection.
We are a place where parents and children are learning together.
We encourage curiosity and exploration of nature and the world around us.
